Anna Liu and Mike Tonkin of London-based Tonkin Liu have developed an innovative medical device for use in patients’ windpipes. The prototype stent is based on the firm’s signature Shell Lace Structure, a “single-surface structural technology designed and developed through a decade of research for architectural and engineering applications.”
The 3D-printed prototype is 500 times smaller than those used by the firm for their architectural applications and was developed in collaboration with Arup and the Natural History Museum.
The structure behind the design uses biomimicry to abstract the principles of mollusks and plants and has been used since 2008 to create ultra-lightweight pavilions, bridges, and towers. The medical application of the technology takes the form of a tracheal stent, commonly used to treat collapsed airways in cases of throat cancer, trauma, and old age.
This project is small in scale but grand in ambition. It demonstrates how architects can apply themselves beyond architecture – how we can design things other than buildings. We hope now to bring the Shell Lace Stent to manufacture and we can design things other than buildings. Our aim is now to bring the Shell Lace Stent to manufacture stage and see it bring tangible benefits to patients globally.
-Mike Tonkin, Co-founder, Tonkin Liu
Tonkin Liu’s design departs from the traditional, non-tailored, poor-fitting tubular mesh, instead creating a C-shaped instrument more adaptable for unique patients. The C-shaped design unfurls once inserted, creating a flexible, strong fit inspired by the geometric principles of Calla Lily petals. Manufactured from medical grade silicone, the perforated surface also assists breathability and drug delivery.
We need to collectively reimagine the role of the architect – the architecture sector has great potential to engage with different realms and professions. As we all live longer and make greater demands on the medical profession, we should all look to use what skills we have (in our case advanced digital design and fabrication) to collaborate and benefit society.
-Mike Tonkin, Co-founder, Tonkin Liu
The design has been praised by leading medical experts, with Professor Martin Birchall of University College London hailing it as “a remarkable and unprecedented stent invention, that is groundbreaking in the context of currently available devices.”
The prototype stent development was supported by funding from the government-funded Innovate UK program in 2016.
News via: Olson Kundig
