A Biomimetic Prehensile Digit for Upper-Limb Prostheses

用于上肢假肢的仿生预握手指

• 批准号: 8196356
• 负责人: BRADLEY D VEATCH
• 金额: $ 16.42万
• 依托单位: INVISIBLE HAND ENTERPRISES, LLC
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-08-01 至 2013-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8196356
• 关键词: Absenteeism at work; Accounting; Acoustics; Address; Amputation; Amputees; Beryllium; Biomimetics; Bionics; Characteristics; Clinical; Commit; Contralateral; Creativeness; Cumulative Trauma Disorders; Developing Countries; Development; Devices; Digit structure; Dimensions; Disadvantaged; Distal; Elements; Engineering; Ensure; Environment; Equilibrium; Exhibits; Failure; Family; Fiber; Fingers; Fostering; Funding; Government; Hand; High Prevalence; Incidence; Joints; Left; Life; Ligaments; Limb Prosthesis; Limb structure; Manufacturer Name; Marketing; Medical; Mission; Movement; Nature; Noise; Orthopedic Surgery procedures; Pain; Performance; Phase; Plant Resins; Population; Positioning Attribute; Process; Production; Productivity; Property; Prosthesis; Quality of life; Research; Research Infrastructure; Research Personnel; Resources; Role; Secure; Services; Side; Small Business Innovation Research Grant; Societies; Stigmata; Surface; System; Techniques; Technology; Tendon structure; Testing; Textiles; Thumb structure; Time; Touch sensation; Trauma; United States; United States National Institutes of Health; Upper Extremity; Validation; Woman; Work; Wrist; bone; commercialization; cost; design; empowered; grasp; improved; innovation; interest; men; programs; prototype; repaired; social; social stigma; sound; success; tool; volunteer

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Among amputation types involving the upper limbs, partial hand is the most prevalent by far and among the most challenging for prosthetists to address well. Sound side overreliance for these amputees gives rise to a high prevalence of contralateral overuse syndrome (COS), a progressive, painful, and debilitating condition. Research shows that prostheses reduce the incidence of COS by encouraging more balanced, bimanual limb usage. Consequently, there is strong interest in developing new prosthetic options for partial hand amputees. At the same time, in certain developing countries the use of forced amputations to incite terror combined with deeply entrenched cultural stigmas have produced a growing population of amputees abroad who need functional and more realistic looking hand prostheses to help them reintegrate and regain social acceptance. Invisible Hand Enterprises, LLC (IHE) is developing a new articulated digit technology it believes holds the potential to help satisfy both of these overlapping needs by making possible the creation of affordable partial and whole hand prostheses having excellent cosmesis and grasp functionality. In Phase I of this three-phase Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, IHE will complete the development of its digit technology and initiate field validation testing with volunteer subjects to assess whether commercial development is justified. IHE's digit system exploits properties and functional characteristics of synthetic textile fibers to replicate key functions of ligaments, tendons, and cartilaginous articulations within the anatomical finger, along with "bone" elements fabricated from engineering resin. This new prehensile digit technology is purposefully robust, lightweight, inexpensive, and achieves excellent adaptive grasp with strikingly lifelike movement. IHE will collaborate with Lake Prosthetics & Research, LLC (LPR) to refine its designs and maximize their clinical versatility, addressing frequently overlooked considerations such as means of attachment, adjustable positioning, and efficient cable routing. Prototype digits will be fabricated and incorporated into three (3) partial and three (3) whole hand prostheses. Volunteer subjects will wear these prostheses to assess the digits' performance under strenuous real-world operating conditions. Phase II comprises making design refinements to address issues invariably identified in Phase I, expanding testing to include more demanding tasks and environments, and establishing manufacturing infrastructure to support Phase III commercialization activities. IHE exists to create technologically and economically appropriate prosthetics options for disadvantaged amputees worldwide, enabling them to regain functionality, personal dignity, joy in living, and social, cultural, and tribal acceptance. The company's fundamental objective is to delight amputees by providing tools that help them relish living and enjoy an even higher quality of life. IHE asserts the work described in this submittal is important and worthwhile, and wholly consistent with the spirit and purposes of the National Institute of Health's (NIH) SBIR program. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Invisible Hand Enterprises' innovative new prehensile digit technology uses synthetic textile fibers to realize modular fingers that are robust, lightweight, and inexpensive. Designed for off-the-shelf use by the prosthetist, they are intended for both partial and whole hand prostheses, providing secure, stable grasp and realistic movement for excellent cosmesis. The technology purposefully addresses needs within the United States and in developing countries for technologically and economically appropriate options that help users participate and contribute to their families and society.

描述（由申请人提供）：在涉及上肢的截肢类型中，部分手是迄今为止最普遍的，也是假肢医生最难解决的。这些截肢者的侧侧过度依赖导致对侧过度使用综合征（COS）的高患病率，这是一种进行性、疼痛性和衰弱性疾病。研究表明，假体通过鼓励更平衡的双手肢体使用来减少COS的发生率。因此，有强烈的兴趣开发新的假肢选择部分手部截肢者。与此同时，在某些发展中国家，利用强迫截肢来煽动恐怖，再加上根深蒂固的文化耻辱，导致越来越多的国外截肢者需要功能和更逼真的假肢来帮助他们重新融入社会并重新获得社会认可。看不见的手企业有限责任公司（IHE）正在开发一种新的关节式数字技术，它相信通过创造价格合理的部分和全手假肢，具有出色的美容和抓握功能，有可能帮助满足这些重叠的需求。在这个三期小企业创新研究（SBIR）项目的第一阶段，IHE将完成其数字技术的开发，并开始对志愿者进行实地验证测试，以评估商业开发是否合理。IHE的手指系统利用合成纺织纤维的特性和功能特征来复制解剖手指内的韧带、肌腱和软骨关节的关键功能，以及由工程树脂制成的“骨”元素。这种新的可抓握的数字技术具有坚固、轻便、廉价的特点，并能实现出色的自适应抓握，动作栩栩如生。IHE将与Lake Prosthetics & Research， LLC （LPR）合作，改进其设计，最大限度地提高其临床多功能性，解决经常被忽视的问题，如连接方式、可调节定位和有效的电缆布线。原型手指将被制造并整合到三(3)个部分和三(3)个完整的手部假肢中。志愿者将佩戴这些假体来评估手指在真实环境下的表现。第二阶段包括改进设计以解决第一阶段中确定的问题，扩展测试以包括更苛刻的任务和环境，并建立制造基础设施以支持第三阶段的商业化活动。IHE的存在是为了为世界各地的弱势截肢者创造技术上和经济上合适的假肢选择，使他们重新获得功能，个人尊严，生活乐趣，以及社会，文化和部落的接受。公司的基本目标是为截肢者提供工具，帮助他们享受生活，享受更高质量的生活。IHE认为这份报告中所描述的工作是重要和有价值的，并且完全符合美国国立卫生研究院（NIH） SBIR计划的精神和目的。