Study of an ultrasonic bone cutting blade for orthopaedic surgery

The design of an ultrasonic cutting blade is presented in this study. The blade is designed as a cutting tool for orthopaedic surgery. It is tuned at a frequency of 35kHz and in the first longitudinal mode. Finite element analysis was carried out to investigate the blade dynamic parameters and its structural behaviour. Two prototypes of the design were manufactured and experimentally tested. This included experimental modal analysis to reveal the actual modal behaviour of the blades and cutting experiments to observe the overall performance and temperature accumulated. The temperature of the cutting area during the test was monitored by a thermal imaging camera and the cutting samples were examined afterwards. The analysis and experimental work conducted have demonstrated that the blade was operating efficiently at the desired frequency. However, a relatively high temperature of the cutting blade was observed which has stimulated further design modification.