Simulator for Testing the Friction Torque of the Femoral Head of a Hip Prosthesis

Abstract

A hip joint simulator has an important role in the preclinical validation of implants, in improving their quality and acquiring additional knowledge on tribological processes involving joint prostheses. Hip simulators should be able to provide testing conditions very close to the physiological, kinematics and anatomical conditions of human joints. In actual fact, no simulator meets exactly such quality conditions. In order to perform hip implant tests recreating as closely as possible the actual conditions of joints, we have designed a laboratory simulator for testing the friction coupling of the femoral head of a hip prosthesis.