My-Hand: “It’s a prosthesis to show off not to hide”

Ready to experiment, My-Hand, new bionic hand made in Italy that restores the touch and doesn’t need any surgical procedure for grafting. It’s not just a new prosthetic hands but it is the paradigm of a new concept of prosthetic-hand. It has already given ample evidence of success in testing and it is being tested on patients: My-Hand is capable of converting thought into motion and return tactile sensations. Extraordinariness of this invention lies behind the absence of a surgical procedure when it’s implanted on the patient.

Moreover, it will be put on market at low cost, between the spread of technology and strong focus on social, typical of Sant’Anna School, the research Institute of biorobotics, which holds the patent. The genius of the main My-Hand lies in the scope of touch sensors and dexterity, which allows it to make “taken” and “posture” needed in everyday life entirely equivalent to those of a hand. The replacement device, resulting in movement the intentions of the person wearing it and returns it to tactile sensations. The movements and hand grips can be activated and controlled in an almost natural through sensors (easily) wearable, which detect the input nerve that pass through the muscles, the time for which they are to carry out such movements.
Neurological stimulus are “converted” into movements of the prosthesis.
Touch sensors integrated on the fingers recording interactions with the environment by restoring what researchers call “sensory physiological return“.

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Functions:

• Anthropomorphic look 5 fingers
• Weighing less than 500g (including the wrist)
• External dimensions comparable to those of the hand of an adult woman
• Implementation by 3 electric motors
• Structure of aluminum alloy
• Robust transmission based on stiff links and sprockets
• Innovative transmission system patented by the decline of the index and thumb opposition based on coupling “wheel of Geneva”
• Control electronics integrated in the back of the hand
• Proportional Control muscle signals
• Complete closure of the fingers in less than 1 second
• 7 movements and possible outlets: 1. cylindrical (for large items, such as a bottle) 2. bidigitale (for small objects) 3. side (to grasp, for example, keys or credit cards) 4. index extended (for pressing buttons) 5. flexed index finger (to write on a keyboard) 6. adduction of fingers (to hold objects between the fingers, like a cigarette) 7. rest (natural position of rest)

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The prosthesis, is distinguished to be “light” in weight as in the pricewell as for the technology and design. A novelty resides precisely in the aesthetics of the prosthesis, designed thanks to the great cooperation between researchers and designers, during project. “It’s a prosthesis to show off not to hide“, re-engage Christian Cipriani, lecturer at the Institute of biorobotics and coordinator of My-Hand project, funded with over 400 thousand euro from the Ministry of Education, University and Research, devoted to the development of non-invasive technologies to facilitate the recovery of sensory and motor functions.

About project has been developed a technology for prosthetic hands that combines “beauty” and technological innovation. The “bionic hand” developed by My-Hand stands for succession law with another project, financed by the European Commission, coordinated by Prof. Cipriani and also just completed “WAY”: with this exoskeleton for motor control of the hands, it was possible to develop the technology to implant the revolutionary new “bionic hand” without going through surgery, then preventing a long painful process for the patient. To reap these benefits, the team of the Institute of biorobotics followed a method innovative.

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“We started – says the coordinator Christian Cipriani – designing the exterior, the casing containing the technology and in collaboration with the designers of DARC Studio in Rome, we have developed a prosthetic aesthetically appealing”.

Alessio Tommasetti, member of DARC Studio, that has contributed to the project My-Hand drawing the revolutionary prosthesis, adds that:

“It was a challenge very hard – says the designer – but we are proud to have accepted. Often we invaded the technical field of bioengineers with art and design, but we started working together effectively, together we developed a highly innovative concept”.

Later the development of aesthetic details, engineers, led by researcher Marco Controzzi, have “filled” My-Hand with mechanisms, technology and artificial intelligence, achieving a result that combines functionality and robustness to aesthetic sophistication.

The bionic hand – underlines Marco Controzzi – uses three electric motors and an opposable thumb to grasp objects of various shapes and different weight. Another new technology is particularly relevant – he added – is a mechanism invented at the Institute of biorobotics, which with only one engine, allows rotation of the thumb or the decline in the alternately. This possibility – ends – ensures the execution of all the outlets without affecting the weight but ensuring high strength.

Today the prosthesis, “beautiful” for design and especially with a sophisticated technological “core”, is ready for clinical trials. After passing the test with patients, the researchers believe that established companies or start-ups are able to grasp and to “translate” the results by My-Hand in commercial products, to be soon available to amputees, at lower prices – to get an idea – than those of a smartphone of the latest generation. The market potential is large: according to some estimates, every year in Europe there are more than 2 thousand new cases of amputation of the hand. We just have to wait until the end of the trial and hope in the promise about social presented during the marketing.

[ Source: http://www.sssup.it/news.jsp?ID_NEWS=5015&GTemplate=default.jsp ]