The luke arm
The “Luke Arm”
The DEKA arm system, nicknamed “Luke Arm” in honor of the Star Wars hero, is a new and improved prosthetic limb. Created by famous inventor Dean Kamen and his team, the “Luke Arm” is one of the most advanced prosthetic ever built, with the ability to pick up both delicate and rugged substances. This is very important for amputees, especially those who live alone, and should hopefully improve their lives. Prosthetic limbs interested me specifically because they are one of the many brain children of engineering and biology. Prosthetics have to factor in delicate technology and make it as strong as real flesh all while being manageable on a daily basis.
The FDA has recently approved the DEKA Arm System or “Luke Arm” for commercialization. This robotic arm uses electromyogram (EMG) electrodes, which sense electrical activity in the muscles closest to the prosthetic, to interpret nerve signals into movement. That’s not all, to get even more complicated motion, the engineers placed wireless switches on the user’s feet to transmit signals to the computer in the arm. This allows for more precise actions, such as picking up a coin or grape, and moving multiple joints at once. The DEKA team set out to try and build an arm that acted and felt as normal as possible, with the same size and weight as a regular limb, a rubber skin-like coating over it, and as much natural arm movement as possible. In order to do this DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) supplied the development with forty million dollars. Likewise the study to find feedback from potential consumers was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs with the assembly of 36 volunteers. The commercialized product is intended for those who are eighteen years or older and have lost their limbs at either the shoulder, mid-upper or mid-lower arm as according to FDA(U.S. Food and Drug Administration). DEKA is hoping to be able to negotiate a fair commercial price with manufacturers soon so as to
The DEKA arm system, nicknamed “Luke Arm” in honor of the Star Wars hero, is a new and improved prosthetic limb. Created by famous inventor Dean Kamen and his team, the “Luke Arm” is one of the most advanced prosthetic ever built, with the ability to pick up both delicate and rugged substances. This is very important for amputees, especially those who live alone, and should hopefully improve their lives. Prosthetic limbs interested me specifically because they are one of the many brain children of engineering and biology. Prosthetics have to factor in delicate technology and make it as strong as real flesh all while being manageable on a daily basis.
The FDA has recently approved the DEKA Arm System or “Luke Arm” for commercialization. This robotic arm uses electromyogram (EMG) electrodes, which sense electrical activity in the muscles closest to the prosthetic, to interpret nerve signals into movement. That’s not all, to get even more complicated motion, the engineers placed wireless switches on the user’s feet to transmit signals to the computer in the arm. This allows for more precise actions, such as picking up a coin or grape, and moving multiple joints at once. The DEKA team set out to try and build an arm that acted and felt as normal as possible, with the same size and weight as a regular limb, a rubber skin-like coating over it, and as much natural arm movement as possible. In order to do this DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) supplied the development with forty million dollars. Likewise the study to find feedback from potential consumers was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs with the assembly of 36 volunteers. The commercialized product is intended for those who are eighteen years or older and have lost their limbs at either the shoulder, mid-upper or mid-lower arm as according to FDA(U.S. Food and Drug Administration). DEKA is hoping to be able to negotiate a fair commercial price with manufacturers soon so as to