Case Study: Brown Medical School achieves breakthrough 3D insights into wrist movement with 3D Systems

New Insights on Wrist Movement Uncovered with Geomagic Reverse Engineering

3D Systems partnered with researchers at Brown Medical School/Rhode Island Hospital who faced a fundamental challenge: existing knowledge of wrist kinematics—largely based on cadaver studies and X‑rays—couldn’t capture live, three‑dimensional motion or simulate real injury mechanics. The team needed a non‑invasive way to generate highly accurate 3D models of wrist bones through a full range of motion to reassess motion patterns and improve diagnosis and treatment.

Using CT scans and Mayo Foundation’s Analyze software, researchers converted bone contours into point clouds, then used Geomagic Wrap to create polygonal models and NURBS surfaces, refined in SOLIDWORKS and produced as physical parts with 3D printing. Animated with proprietary algorithms to interpolate motion, the workflow produced models accurate to 0.2 mm and within two degrees of rotation, revealing that each carpal bone moves with its own pattern—findings that could dramatically improve diagnosis and treatment of wrist injuries.

Brown Medical School

Joseph Crisco

Director of the Orthopedic Bioengineering Laboratory