Customer Driven Innovation – Custom Designed Pedestals

Newsletter from November 4th, 2020, describing a unique Plexon innovation for use with the N-Form array.

November 4th, 2020 #7

Our latest in the Plexon Customer Driven Innovation Series

Many different things can guide the development of new products and the improvement of existing products. At Plexon, our customers are a driving force for this innovation. Our sales team works closely with customers to identify ways that Plexon engineers can help make research more efficient and productive. The Customer Driven Innovation series highlights some of these solutions.

Custom Designed Pedestals

Generic Pedestal

The N-Form* is a customizable 3D multi-electrode array for chronic in vivo electrophysiology. Neurophysiology experiments in non-human primates typically attach these arrays to the subject’s skull using a recording chamber or pedestal that is designed to house and protect the connectors on the array.

In our conversations with customers, we learned that the generic commercially available pedestals are not contoured to the subject’s skull and this results in an imperfect fit between the bone and chamber. Dental acrylic is often applied around the chamber to seal gaps resulting from the imperfect fit which
can complicate surgical procedures.

In order to prevent the issues associated with the generic pedestals, Plexon offers custom pedestals designed for each subject and each array. Customers can send either .stl or .stp 3D CAD files for our engineers to review. These files will be used to create a pedestal that is subject-specific and with the curvature requested so that the pedestal conforms to the subject’s skull.

Plexon can provide a 3D printed plastic version of the pedestal so that customers can test fit it prior to the titanium version being manufactured.

The images above show the development of a custom pedestal used to mount two 64 channel arrays. The curvature of the pedestal was modified so that it would conform to the subject’s skull.

Pedestals Designed for a Specific Connector Type

An array with the connector housed in the pedestal. The customer can epoxy the electrode in place following sterilization using either medical grade epoxy or dental cement.

Components of a custom pedestal used to mount one 128 channel N-Form electrode array. The kit includes a titanium pedestal base, titanium pedestal lid, five silicone gaskets that sit between the base and lid, and ten screws for attaching the lid to the base.

Is there something in your lab that you think Plexon could help make easier? Contact us to provide the details and we will be happy to discuss this with our engineers.

*N-Form® Arrays are manufactured by Modular Bionics ™ Inc. U.S. Patent No. 9,095,267 and patents pending. The N-Form array is intended for non-human animal research only.