Catching up with Impactor: Driving innovation in hip replacement surgery with ImpacTell’s smart hammer
The EU-funded Impactor project was launched in 2022 to develop an instrumented hammer – a medical device that allows surgeons to assess the stability of orthopaedic implants used in hip replacement surgery. By financing the first lab prototypes of the device and augmenting the research team with valuable expertise, Impactor contributed decisively to the establishment of French spin-off ImpacTell. The company is currently taking steps towards commercialising its instrumented hammers. “It was this study of the feasibility of our technology that made it possible to consider the creation of a commercial company,” comments researcher Guillaume Haiat of Impactor project coordinator French National Centre for Scientific Research, describing the impact of the project that ended in 2024. The disruptive technology integrates – for the very first time – an AI-driven decision support system into a conventional surgical hammer that is equipped with sensors and embeds signal processing software.
Smart tech to surgeons’ aid
The aptly named SmartHammer fulfils the unmet clinical need for an actionable estimate of the stability of implants during the surgery. Currently, surgeons rely on empirical methods, such as listening to the sound produced when the instrument used to insert the orthopaedic implant is struck with a hammer. Based on this sound, they then adjust the intensity and number of hammer blows. The SmartHammer includes a sensor measuring the resonance frequency of the bone-implant system during the impact. The score derived from this measurement allows surgeons to monitor the bone and implant interface during implantation and to detect the occurrence of fractures that may not be visible to the naked eye. Besides real-time fracture detection, the device provides an impartial and accurate quantitative estimate of implant stability, requiring no additional action from the surgeon as is the case with vibration techniques. “The measurement is instantaneous since it is performed during the same impact as that applied to drive the implant into the bone,” explains Haiat. He added that surgeons remain in control of their final decision since the measurement does not modify the surgical protocol. The smart tool also helps reduce operating time. Surgeons on ImpacTell’s scientific advisory board estimate a reduction of 10-20 % in the time needed to insert implants, and even greater if cemented prostheses are avoided since this eliminates cement drying time.
Preparing for CE marking
Beginning with EUR 3 000 when it was established in 2022, the company has since raised over EUR 900 000 through grants, capital increases and convertible bonds. These funds have been used to finalise the development of the SmartHammer with the objective to acquire the CE mark indicating conformity with European health, safety and environmental protection standards by the end of 2026. The SmartHammer promises to reduce the risk of aseptic loosening and peroperative fractures, enables wider implementation of uncemented procedures, improves patients’ quality of life and allows them to return to work more quickly. Once available on the market, SmartHammer, whose development was supported by Impactor (Development of an instrumented hammer to assess the stability of hip implant during surgery: assessment of the commercial feasibility), will greatly impact public health and its economy. The ‘Life After’ feature shines a light on finished EU-funded projects and what they have achieved since the end of EU funding. If you are interested in having your project featured as a ‘Life After’ project, please send us an email to editorial@cordis.europa.eu and tell us why!
