Modern prosthetics with high dexterity are quite pricey to say the least, but engineers at MIT and Shanghai Jiao Tong University hope to change that. The team has built a soft, lightweight, and potentially low-cost neuroprosthetic hand that enables amputees to easily perform daily activities, like picking up a glass, pouring a carton of juice, petting a dog, or just zipping up a backpack.
It currently costs just $500 to build this inflatable smart hand, which is not only soft, but also very elastic. The prosthetic boasts a system for tactile feedback capable of restoring some primitive sensation in a volunteer’s residual limb. Despite being lightweight, it’s still remarkably durable and able to quickly recover after being hit with a hammer or run over with a car.
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This is not a product yet, but the performance is already similar or superior to existing neuroprosthetics, which we’re excited about. There’s huge potential to make this soft prosthetic very low cost, for low-income families who have suffered from amputation,” said Xuanhe Zhao, professor of mechanical engineering and of civil and environmental engineering at MIT.
