Prosthetics

Prosthetic limbs are getting better every year, but the strength and precision they gain doesn't always translate to easier or more effective use, since amputees have only a basic level of control ove

Prosthetic limbs are getting better, but not as quickly as you'd think. They're not as smart as our real limbs, which (directed by the brain) do things like automatically stretch out to catch ourselve

Homeland Security has issued a warning for a set of critical-rated vulnerabilities in Medtronic defibrillators that put the devices at risk of manipulation. These small cardio-defibrillators are impla

Researchers have created a prosthetic hand that offers its users the ability to feel where it is and how the fingers are positioned — a sense known as proprioception. The headline may be in jest, bu

Prosthetic limbs have come a long way from the heavy, solid hands and legs of yesteryear, but it's still difficult to pack a range of motion into them without complex or bulky machinery. But new resea

A pair of Canadian students making a simple, inexpensive prosthetic arm have taken home the grand prize at Microsoft's Imagine Cup, a global startup competition the company holds yearly. SmartArm will

Prosthetic limbs are getting better and more personalized, but useful as they are, they're still a far cry from the real thing. This new prosthetic ankle is a little closer than others, though: it mov

The science of prosthetics has been advancing by leaps and bounds over the last few years, and research into soft robotics has been especially complementary. The same techniques that go into making a

There are white boards lining the walls covered in complex formulas and earlier iterations of the company’s robotic leg are scattered in pieces on and underneath tables. You can practically chart th

The latest in soft robotics and shrinking sensors enables limbs and digits with ever-increasing levels of sensation and realism. At the same time, 3D printing is making it possible to bring sophistica

The future of prosthetics is fast arriving, with 3D-printed construction, advanced materials and embedded sensors replacing the unadorned wood and plastic of yore. But like the rest of the future, it'

"Index... ring... pinky... index... middle..." Nathan Copeland is telling a researcher which of his fingers he feels a touch on. But the researcher is touching a robotic hand, not Copeland's, whose

When someone has lost a hand, particularly the dominant one, it can be a real challenge to do the simple clicks and drags that all of us take for granted on our desktops and laptops. A German design t

The recent ubiquity of 3D printers and innovations in prosthetic design, manufacturing and distribution offer a viable solution for the millions of people living with limb loss around the world. In th

Asem Hasna, 22, heard dead silence for five minutes after a shell blew his left leg off in a small town southwest of Damascus in April 2013. A mathematics student turned volunteer paramedic Hasna h

During the 2015 Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles last week, a fifth grader named Ari stopped by a booth set up by Google. The booth had information about its "Impact Challenge" for disabili

DARPA’s initiative to build a prosthetic arm that’s fully controllable via a wearer’s mind has won approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (via Verge), a key green light

The Dextrus hand is the working prototype resulting from <a target="_blank" href="http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-open-hand-project-a-low-cost-robotic-hand">Joel Gibbard's Open Hand Project</a>,