Researchers have created the first nerve-controlled prosthetic hand that can be used in daily life
Most bionic limbs are controlled by electrical signals generated by muscles moving near the attachment site. But when an arm is amputated above the elbow, the remaining muscles aren't enough to control every joint in an artificial hand. “The higher the amputation, the more joints you have to replace, and the fewer muscles you have to do it,” says Max Ortiz Catalán, a bionicist at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden.
Now Ortiz Catalán's team has developed a bionic system that allowed a man with an above-elbow amputation to control every finger of a robotic arm, as described recently in Science Translational Medicine. To create more muscle signals to prompt the prosthetic, the researchers dissected the nerve bundles that carry signals from the man's brain to muscles in his upper arm.
Prosthetics usually pick up muscle signals with electrodes on the skin's surface. For the new device, the researchers used a more reliable technique: implanting electrodes directly on or within the muscles. This commonly involves running wires through the skin—a design feasible only in laboratory settings, not in daily life. But in the new system, wires pass through the titanium bolt and into the robotic arm.
The man has been using the prosthesis in his daily life for more than three years to grasp objects and pour drinks. “This is the first nerve-based prosthetic hand that the patient can go home with,” says bioengineer Cynthia Chestek of the University of Michigan, who was not involved in the project. The team is working to optimize the controllability of the prosthesis and to integrate sensory feedback.
Still, attaching the device requires major surgery that carries a risk of infection. “Not all amputees are going to want a titanium bolt through their skin,” Chestek says. Also, the prosthesis has so far been demonstrated just once. “It's only one participant, but it shows some exciting results,” says prosthetic scientist Laura Miller of the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Her group is planning to collaborate with Ortiz Catalán on a larger trial.
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Nvidia, Arm to develop chips based on Arm technology: reportJon Swartz is a senior reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco, covering many of the biggest players in tech, including Netflix, Facebook and Google. Jon has covered technology for more than 20 years, and previously worked for Barron's and USA Today. Follow him on Twitter jswartz.
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