Fuzzy Inference System Applied to Mechanical Design of Bone Tissue Engineering Scaffolds

Abstract

Solid free form fabrication are now being developed to fabricate scaffolds with controlled architecture for bone tissue engineering. These techniques use computer-aided design (CAD) to aid the design of optimized three-dimensional structures in a large number of materials. The development of mechanical models to simulate the scaffolds behavior for bone tissue engineering represents a relevant area in regenerative medicine. This paper presents a computer tool to design tailored scaffolds as a function of mechanical properties considering a specific kind of bone tissue. The kernel of this tool is formed from a fuzzy inference system (FIS) and a parametric design algorithm. The models obtained from this methodology were evaluated using finite element analysis (FEA) and they exhibit suitable features and characteristics to be used in experimental case studies.