Characterization of cuttlebone for adaptive infills

One of the main advantages of Additive Manufacturing (AM) is that the internal volume of a part has no longer to be solid. Different infill structures can be implemented inside the internal volume, with the ability to control the filling percentage. Cellular based structures have a self-repairing and fault-tolerance properties, which makes them a potential candidate for bio-mimicking structures. These structures are quite intricate; therefore, their direct replication is hardly possible. The cuttlebone internal structure is one such potential candidate, as it possesses relatively high compressive and flexural strength with porousness. This study characterizes the geometrical aspects of a cuttlebone structure to be used as bio-mimicking infill for parts produced by AM. The use of bio-mimicking Infilled 3D printed parts will lend a hand towards the overall objective of developing robust orthopedic implants and prosthetics along with other customized applications in the field of automobile and aerospace industry, being durable and ultra-light weight.