Medical Design - 1st Place at the Fraunhofer Innovation Competition "FORM FOLLOWS FUTURE"

For the Fraunhofer Innovation Competition "Form Follows Future," product ideas for Fraunhofer's cutting-edge technologies were sought. Designers were assigned technologies to create a product that best utilized their properties. The resulting concepts were presented in an elevator pitch at the 2017 Fraunhofer Symposium. Subsequently, the audience selected first and second places, which were given the opportunity to further develop the product with a €25,000 scholarship at Fraunhofer the following year.

My product idea "METAKO - the Scoliosis Corset" won first place and was further developed during the funding period.

Scoliosis is a curvature of the spine that mainly affects young girls aged 10 to 17 and is treated with brace therapy. These braces are currently very uncomfortable due to their lack of padding and, despite needing to be worn 23 hours a day, are minimally designed. This leads to braces being worn less frequently and long-term treatment failures.

METAKO is a scoliosis corset that meets the functional requirements of an orthosis while also fulfilling the aesthetic demands of the patients. Using 3D printing, the corset's production is much more precise and comfortable compared to traditional plaster casts. Patients can also choose an individual design through generative design software. The smooth transition of the Meta-plastic from hard to soft provides greater comfort in sensitive areas, leading to more effective treatment.

METAKO- Scoliosis Corset

FROM

HARD

TO

SOFT