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Equipment designed for use in working orthopedic materials into desired prostheses by performing mechanical operations such as drilling and cutting. These machines usually consist of a table-top or stand-alone equipment that includes a rotating assembly (also known as spindle) that includes a shaft, bearings and associated detachable drilling devices (e.g., drill bits, burs), and a support (e.g., a vise clamped to a table) for the piece that is being conformed. Unlike a conventional drilling machine which holds the piece under work stationary as the drill moves axially to penetrate the material, milling machines also move the piece under work radially and/or laterally against the rotating spindle. Both the piece and spindle movements are precisely controlled (e.g., to less than 25 microns); orthopedic milling machines may be manually operated, mechanically automated, or digitally controlled (e.g., using computer-aided design/manufacturing, CAD/CAM) methods. Five- and seven-axis milling machines have the capability to complete complex orthopedic designs in a single operation; in particular, seven-axis contour milling machines enable profile milling of extremely complex geometry. Dedicated orthopedic milling/drilling machines may be used to manufacture prostheses from all or some of a variety of materials (e.g., polyurethane foam, polyethylene, plaster, metal) intended for many applications (e.g., seat braces, foot and lower limb prostheses, orthoses).
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