New Prosthetic Allows Each Finger to Move Separately

A new prosthetic hand being tested at the Orthopedic University Hospital in Heidelberg functions almost like a natural hand, being able to hold a credit card, use a keyboard with the index finger, and lift a bag weighing up to 20 kg.

According to the source, it is the world’s first commercially available prosthetic hand that can move each finger separately and has an astounding range of grip configurations.

For the first time worldwide, a patient at the Orthopedic University Hospital in Heidelberg has tested both the “i-LIMB” hand in comparison with another innovative prosthesis, the so called “Flu-idhand”. Eighteen-year-old Sören Wolf, who was born with only one hand, is enthusiastic about its capabilities.

The new prosthetic hand developed and distributed by the Scottish company Touch Bionics certainly has advantages over previous models. For example, a comparable standard product from another manufacturer allows only a pinch grip using thumb, index, and middle finger, and not a grip using all five fingers. This does not allow a full-wrap grip of an object.

Complex electronics and five motors contained in the fingers enable every digit of the i-LIMB to be powered individually. A passive positioning of the thumb enables various grip configurations to be activated. The myoelectric signals from the stump control the prosthetic hand; muscle signals are picked up by electrodes on the skin and transferred to the control electron-ics in the prosthetic hand. Batteries provide the necessary power.

The “Fluidhand” from Karlsruhe, thus far developed only as a prototype that is also being tested in the Orthopedic University Hospital in Heidel-berg, is based on a somewhat different principle. Unlike its predecessors, the new hand can close around objects, even those with irregular surfaces. A large contact surface and soft, passive form elements greatly reduce the gripping power required to hold onto such an object. The hand also feels softer, more elastic, and more natural than conventional hard prosthetic devices.

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