Research
growing recently to create affordable prosthetics of something the majority of
us take for granted: our hands. The Slade lab, stemming from the University of
Illinois, has created a prosthetic hand by the name of Tact which is both
functional and affordable. With the needs of underdeveloped countries in mind,
the team chose to create Tact using parts from a 3-D printer. This created a much
cheaper and lighter version of the prosthetic which goes for about $250 whereas
most competitors range from $25,000-$100,000. Though much cheaper than big-name
prosthetic companies, Tact outperforms or performs just as well. The team made
sure the hand was lighter than 420-615g range of the most expensive prosthetics
(it weighs about 350g), relieving the amputees of the fatigue and eventual pain
they feel from wearing a prosthetic. Tact also performed just as well picking
up everyday objects such as a water bottle but showed some difficulty in fine
tasks such as picking up a battery. When the team applied adhesives or liquid
rubber, it performed as well as the other prosthetics. Tact also reduces interference
when grasping objects by being 34-46% thinner than other prosthetics.
A
Canadian professor at the University of Toronto, Matt Ratto, is developing
similar technology with a focus on leg amputees in Uganda. According the Washington
Post, Ratto says that there is a major lack of prosthetic technicians in
comparison to how many people are in need of prosthetics. In an attempt to
combat this problem, Ratto and his team are developing prosthetic legs which
work 80% as well as custom-made prosthetics from technicians. The lab has
utilized Microsoft Kinect and other scanning software to analyze how to shape
the leg and sockets. Right now the team has focused on creating sockets for
people to put in between the prosthetic leg and knee or foot.
Both
labs are very much in touch with what developing countries are in need of and
have done their best to accommodate. Though these prosthetics may not fit as
well as completely customized, handmade ones, it is a cheap and just as
efficient alternative. Allowing for more people to have prosthetic limbs will also allow for people to live a greater quality of life. These labs will eventually allow for everyone in need of
a prosthetic to receive one, making a difference worldwide in millions of
people’s lives.
References
McFarland, Matt. “Using 3-D printing to address the
need for prosthetics in Uganda.” The
Washington Post, 17 Jan. 2014. Web. 1 May 2015. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/01/17/using-3-d-printing-to-address-the-need-for-prosthetics-in-uganda/
Slade, P., A. Akhtar, M. Nguyen, T. Bretl. (2015).
Tact: Design and performance of an open-source, affordable, myoelectric
prosthetic hand. The International
Conference on Robotics and Automation, Seattle, WA. https://luc.app.box.com/s/4c031c26bsh2bj3619si/1/2926647381/27826615704/1
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