Property modulation of pseudoelastic alloys ! for the manufacturing of personalised ! rehabilitation devices

Pseusoelasticity is a very useful property of NiTi-based alloys, which can be exploited for the design of innovative wearable devices for neuromuscular rehabilitation, and the treatment of movement disorders. The great interpersonal variability of body masses, muscular forces, desease type and severity require that the pseudoelastic characteristics of those materials be modulated to meet individual needs and produce the desired results. The combination of alloy composition, plastic deformation and thermal ageing affects the microstructure of the final products. Thermal ageing is particular important in the fine tuning of martensitic transformation characteristics. This work presents a method to guide real-time property modulation while the pseudoelatic elements are thermally treated and shows the map of desirable and achievable characteristics for biomedical applications in rehabilitation.