Method for improving skin color accuracy of three-dimensional printed training models for early pressure ulcer recognition

Abstract The purpose of this study was to develop a method to create color-accurate three-dimensional (3D) printed models of the human skin, based on digital 3D scans of the skin surface. In future, this methodology could be applied to create more intricate and life-like training models for educating health-care workers on recognition of early stage pressure ulcers in patients with diverse skin tones. In this study, a transfer function was derived to compensate for color errors introduced via the 3D printing process, for a specific model of color 3D printer. The effectiveness of the transfer function was tested by measuring color errors for a set of 3D printed color blocks fabricated with and without the transfer function color correction method. Lastly, a feasibility study was conducted to demonstrate the application of the color correction algorithm to 3D printed skin models generated from 3D color scans of healthy human subjects of varying skin tones.