Vertiball: Precision Prototypes That Replicate Injection‑Molded Parts

Founder and CEO Curtis Kennedy, who has personally battled chronic back pain, recognized that conventional at‑home treatments—such as using a tennis ball for targeted massage—are often difficult to perform correctly. He set out to transform the way people address muscle and back discomfort.

To solve this, he engineered a vertical ball mount that lets users target specific spinal regions with precision. The patented mobile mounting system uses an industrial‑strength suction cup that adheres to smooth, non‑porous surfaces—including painted drywall, metal, and wood. A freely rotating massage ball sits on a sliding latch, and the compact, lightweight design means it can travel from a gym locker to the home office.

“I know that Vertiball has the ability to change how we treat back and muscle pain [and give] its users the ability to control their pain and find relief on their own terms.”

Curtis Kennedy, Vertiball CEO

Vertiball’s engineering team develops concepts and creates CAD models entirely in Autodesk Fusion 360, then validates them with their Form 3 SLA 3D printer. Reaching this efficient workflow required extensive experimentation.

Discovering a reliable SLA workflow

While studying at the University of New Brunswick, Curtis prototyped early iterations using FDM 3D printers. When the first injection‑molded samples arrived, they failed to fit together—shrinkage in the FDM parts had introduced critical inaccuracies.

The design must withstand everyday use, with the latching mechanism actuated hundreds or thousands of times. The device combines injection‑molded plastic that mates with metal fasteners, sliding front and back housings that must remain crack‑free, and a freely rotating ball that demands low friction. Consequently, the team chose polyamide 6—a durable, low‑friction material for the final molded parts.

Accurate prototypes were essential to replicate the precision and surface finish of injection‑molded parts. Curtis ordered a custom Durable Resin sample from Formlabs, which allowed him to refine the design before outsourcing to an injection‑molding partner. The success of these prints led the team to acquire their own Form 3 printer.

“The Form 3 is essential in our workflow as it is the only 3D printer we own that can print with the dimensional accuracy needed to properly test new prototypes that can be compared with the functionality that would be achieved by plastic injection molding.”

Curtis Kennedy

Selecting a CAD platform involved the same careful evaluation. The team settled on Fusion 360, praising its intuitive interface and streamlined workflow compared to other modeling tools.

Vertiball design in Fusion 360, and as‑printed on the Form 3.

Fusion 360’s simulation tools let designers predict real‑world performance, running stress analyses to identify and refine weak points. While virtual iteration is invaluable, the team maintains that physical prototypes confirm real‑world behavior: “Simulation validates theory, but testing proves it.”

Vertiball’s flagship device launched on Kickstarter in 2019, surpassing its funding target eightfold. The product continues to receive glowing reviews from physical therapists and athletes—among them NFL stars CeeDee Lamb and Minkah Fitzpatrick—underscoring the brand’s commitment to the motto, “If we can feel our best, we can be our best.”

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Formlabs Integration with Fusion 360

Formlabs and Autodesk’s Fusion 360 have partnered to streamline digital workflows, introducing new CAD tools for seamless SLA printing. Visit the integration hub to explore the latest Fusion 360 features, read user stories, and download the design guide.

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