Capt. Carey DuVal
Capt. Carey DuVal@nub.fist.style
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"I like how quickly I can cycle through the grips and gestures as well as the secure grip on the fingers and in the palm."

Benefits to the User

The BrainRobotics prosthetic hand helps amputees do more than they ever thought possible.

  • Lightweight and comfortable, the BrainRobotics prosthetic hand requires no surgical interventions or implants
  • 2 advanced sensors are placed inside the socket to read and understand the user’s intent
  • In total, 6 micro-motors exist in the hand, 2 in the thumb for horizontal & vertical movements and 1 in all other fingers
  • A fully-opposable thumb enables natural, finely controlled, movements for picking up objects and making complex gestures
  • A user is able to train a new gesture in just 10-15 minutes. Powerful AI algorithms process electrical signals delivered by muscles at the end of the residual limb and interpret them to perform the desired movement.
  • Any firmware updates that are needed for the hand are easily pushed to the hand remotely
  • The user has several options for how to control the hand allowing him/her to use their preferred method to perform activities of daily living
  • The user and clinician facing app is available on both iOS and Android devices

If you can imagine it, the BrainRobotics prosthetic hand can do it.
Explore What You Can Do

BrainRobotics_prosthetic-hand_gaming

Capt. Carey Duval fit with the BrainRobotics 2-channel hand and
HiFi socket from biodesigns

“I could flex inside the prosthetic, and it would change from a finger point to a two-finger pinch, and then from a pinch to a fist,” Duval said. “I could control a computer mouse and work a keyboard for the first time in a long time. I haven’t played a computer game in six years.”

The Basics on Myoelectric Externally Powered Devices

A myoelectric prosthetic device works off myoelectric signals that allow a user to get in and out of a variety of grips that allow the device to mimic the movements of a sound hand and allow for opening, closing, grasping, and gripping various items and objects.

It is important to stress that time, training, and patience, is a must with any new prosthetic device, no matter how technologically advanced.  With time, training, and patience will come new accomplishments and the freedom to do everyday tasks once again.

It is also important to remember that any prosthetic device a user may own is a tool and not a true replacement of the missing limb.  These tools allow you to accomplish a variety of tasks in your daily life. In order to get the prosthetic device that is the right one for you will depend on your specific goals and unique needs.

Click HERE to read more about bionic arm & hand control systems.

myoelectric hand

Form, Fit, Function

There are 6 key grips you need to look to to be able to complete with a myoelectric device. 

These 6 grips will allow you to complete key Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). Your ability to remain independent is contingent upon your ability to perform ADLs.

First and foremost, you’ll want to look at two different factors, precision & power, and how well they work together. 

You want them working together not one versus another.

  • Tip Prehension – Holding small sharp objects like a nail
  • Lateral Prehension – Holding a flat object with stability, like a CD or plate
  • Spherical Prehension – Holding an apple or item that needs stabilizing without damaging force
  • Cylindrical Prehension – Holding a hair brush or holding handles
  • Hook Prehension – Carrying a briefcase of shopping bag
  • Palmar Grip – Grasping a book by the biding or shaking hands

These 6 basic hand functions should be available to all individuals, who choose to, and are able to, go with the myoelectric prosthetic device.

Your Prosthetic Options

Someone who suffers from upper limb loss or deficiency typically has 6 prosthetic options following a traumatic event:

  1. No Prosthesis
  2. Passive Functional / Aesthetic
  3. Body Powered / Conventional
  4. Myoelectric / External Power
  5. Hybrid
  6. Adaptive/Activity Specific

There are also several attributes that people with upper-limb amputations/differences look for in a prosthesis:

  1. Appearance – To blend in 
  2. Reliability/Performance – The single-most relevant factor in prosthetic acceptance for many upper-limb prosthetic users
  3. Functionality – Prosthetic arms are also worn for functional tasks that can be specific to work, home, garden, and recreation

Where the BrainRobotics Prosthetic Hand Fits In

The BrainRobotics prosthetic hand is suitable for new or existing myoelectric users with transradial level absence and at least two viable muscle sites. It is a myoelectric multiarticulating prosthetic hand that, in the 8-channel version, will combine Brain-Machine Interface (BMI) technology with an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Algorithm.

The current 2-channel version of the BrainRobotics prosthetic hand can abstract the electromyographic (EMG) signal in the users’ forearm, recognizing their intended movement and transfer the intention into the actual gesture of the prosthetic hand with 24 available gesture options.

The user of the 8-channel hand will benefit from truly intuitive movement that has not been possible before and the user of the 2-channel prosthetic hand will be able to access needed grips easier through two different methods of control.

There are distinct differences in how a user will control the hand depending on whether they are fit with a 2-channel or 8-channel device.

2-channel device:

  • 2 electrodes with corresponding cables
  • Switch mode & Perform mode

8-channel device:

  • 8 electrodes with corresponding cables
  • One chip in wrist area
  • Gesture recognition mode & Intuitive control mode
BrainRobotics prosthetic hand
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