Home » Cristian Fracassi, the engineer of lowcost prostheses for wounded in the Ukrainian conflict

Cristian Fracassi, the engineer of lowcost prostheses for wounded in the Ukrainian conflict

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Cristian Fracassi, the engineer of lowcost prostheses for wounded in the Ukrainian conflict

“Hello? We are a non-profit organization of doctors working in Ukraine. There are 3 thousand people, including children, who were victims of the bombings and lost a leg. The prostheses cost between 5 and 80 thousand euros. We have no budget, for now we just give crutches. Can you do something for us with the 3D printer? “.

This is roughly how the phone call that Cristian Fracassi, the engineer who transformed diving masks into respiratory masks during the pandemic, received a month and a half ago. On the other side of the line, there is Antonella Bertolotti, doctors from Brescia who works in Ukraine for the non-profit organization Intermed. “Suddenly I was faced with a huge problem. I was skeptical, I was afraid. We needed” prostheses “that must last for years and hold kilos of weight. But the desire to try was very strong. Three thousand people were waiting for me …”.

So Fracassi gets to work. He lets go of all the projects he has at stake, looks at traditional prostheses, studies, understands their limitations, learns, tests. He spends days and nights in the office. Then he comes up with the idea: “I“ hacked ”the tutor they give you after knee surgery. I bought it on Amazon and started modifying it.” He brings together different materials, aluminum for the tubular, polyurethane for the foot, 3D printing pieces for the cover. He makes five prototypes. And in the end he succeeds. He creates a low-cost, ready-to-use “prosthesis” (“technically it should be called a walking aid”) to solve the problem of 3,000 maimed by the war in Ukraine. He files the patent, leaves it free for those with humanitarian purposes. And he calls the project “Letizia”, in honor of two special women.

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“Letizia is the name of my mom, the first person who taught me to walk. And Letizia is the name of the girl who tried the prototypes and gave me a lot of feedback.” To help him, also an orthopedist from Brescia, Davide Piovani, a Ukrainian primary at the Vinnytsya hospital, a nurse from Rome, friends, relatives and just her: Letizia, 34 years old and a leg lost at the age of 5 due to an illness. Found with a post on Linkedin.

“We met in my office, he told me his story, he brought me his old prosthesis as a gift, he made me study the new one he is wearing, he told me about some problems (the artificial skin of the foot wears out). And he gave me feedback. “

Cristian had thought of making the foot with carbon fiber, but it is a material that costs and wears out. So he opts for polyurethane, a material that is more resistant than rubber and which costs less. “It’s the one with which all the wheels of the trolleys and skates are made.

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And the first tests he makes on himself. “I had seen the film Welcome to the South in which Claudio Bisio was a fake invalid. I tried to imitate him. I tied the ankle to the thigh with a belt. I take the first step and the foot breaks. I do it again, it works. Second prototype: I try the aid, the knee wobbles. It was weak, I reinforce it. Third prototype: it seems ok, but it hurts unbelievably. The fourth prototype to try it is Letizia, the orthopedist assists her. The prosthesis slips, the stump is lowered. “Put a stop, a silicone cushion where the stump will fall and you will see that it works” she advised me “. No sooner said than done. Then with 3D printing creates the “cover” of the prosthesis which is thus more aesthetically beautiful and more functional.

Complete and finished project. For the use of materials and screws: cost 500 euros

At this point, Fracassi starts looking for funds. He calls friends, relatives, supporters and in two days raises capital for 22 thousand euros. “I’m gassed, maybe I’m underestimating the problems (which have been endless with the masks). It’s the first“ prosthesis ”that costs very little, it’s modular, it’s good for everyone. It adapts to any type of leg”.

A mathematics champion, a degree in construction engineering and architecture, a doctorate in materials engineering, a master’s degree in economics, Fracassi has many patents behind him. During the pandemic, he 3D printed the Charlotte valve (named after his wife) in just 8 hours, which allowed a connection between the mask and oxygen. The file with the instructions for this process has been downloaded on YouTube more than 2 million and 500 times. The world media, from New York Times at the Bbcthey talked about his ingenuity.

In May 2020, he was appointed Knight of Merit by the President of the Republic Mattarella. He won the Compasso D’oro. He ended up in a Google video, in a Jeep advertisement, in a Coca Cola interview: as a symbol of Italians’ inventiveness. He won the Mother Teresa Memorial Award, an award already given to the Dalai Lama.

“I’m not a genius, I’m not even an inventor. I transfer technology“. Then to make you understand what he means, he tells you what his he lawyer who protects patents always tells him. “Cristian, new ideas do not exist. Look at the books, if you analyze them they are made from the 21 letters of the alphabet that mixed and moved are able to create an infinity of stories. I have transferred this thing into my world. In engineering there are physical principles, which you can know and put together like the 21 letters. Here I am remixing already existing things. I’m just good at observing. “

Where did your curiosity arise? If you ask him, Cristian smiles and starts talking about his childhood when he played in his father’s factory (you can read his biography here beautifully written by our director Riccardo Luna)

“I was born and raised in my father’s textile company. My cradle was textiles. There I learned how machines work. Since then I have never stopped observing. I study how a parable is made, I fall in love with engines. Aria Stirling. I look at the glulam planks. I learned early on how to make things work. And do you know why? My dad was a super stingy. His mentality was and still is to always save. first time he called a technician. He asked him a thousand questions: what screw did you use, why do you do this and not, and he forced me to observe and learn. So the next time, when another machine broke down, he said to me: “Come and give one hand ”, find a solution”.

It’s Sunday morning, Cristian is in the office. In the background you can hear the noise of the 3D printers at work. For tomorrow he wants to have 43 prostheses ready, the ones he is able to build with the funds he has already raised. Meanwhile, he looks for new capital, he nurtures new dreams (such as making deserts arable). And he doesn’t give up. “I want to dedicate the next conquest to my daughter Beatrice”.

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