News Archive
Rocket-powered arm leads to bionic breakthrough
A NEW rocket-powered mechanical arm, fuelled by liquid hydrogen peroxide and using iridium-coated alumina granules, could lead to "better, stronger, faster" bionic limbs, according to research conducted at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
The new prototype mechanical arm is capable of lifting up to 11kg, which is four times more than current commercial prosthetic arms and around four times faster.
Researcher Michael Goldfarb said: "Our design does not have superhuman strength or capability, but it is closer in terms of function and power to a human arm than any previous prosthetic device that is self-powered and weighs about the same as a natural arm."
The design of the arm is similar to rocket systems used to help space shuttles and satellites manoeuvre while in orbit and uses a miniature rocket, the size of a pencil, fuelled by pressurized liquid hydrogen peroxide catalysed by iridium-coated alumina granules, which then generates steam that forces pistons into action.
The arm also has improved dexterity and manoeuvrability, with a wrist that can twist and bend,
A NEW rocket-powered mechanical arm, fuelled by liquid hydrogen peroxide and using iridium-coated alumina granules, could lead to "better, stronger, faster" bionic limbs, according to research conducted at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
The new prototype mechanical arm is capable of lifting up to 11kg, which is four times more than current commercial prosthetic arms and around four times faster.
Researcher Michael Goldfarb said: "Our design does not have superhuman strength or capability, but it is closer in terms of function and power to a human arm than any previous prosthetic device that is self-powered and weighs about the same as a natural arm."
The design of the arm is similar to rocket systems used to help space shuttles and satellites manoeuvre while in orbit and uses a miniature rocket, the size of a pencil, fuelled by pressurized liquid hydrogen peroxide catalysed by iridium-coated alumina granules, which then generates steam that forces pistons into action.
The arm also has improved dexterity and manoeuvrability, with a wrist that can twist and bend,
'Dressing loop' proving a boost
THE ‘dressing loop’ – a metre-long stretch of elastic – is speeding up the rate at which occupational therapists (OTs) at the Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak Hospitals can evaluate patients’ functional abilities as part of an assessment screen before they are discharged home.
The idea is also proving a boost for patients’ privacy and dignity because they no longer have to undress, dress and wash themselves to demonstrate how well they could cope after leaving hospital.
Now a commercial licence deal for the invention – by a team led by Catherine Sykes, deputy head of the Trust’s OT service – has been concluded thanks to MidTECH.
MidTECH has brokered the agreement for the production and distribution of the ‘dressing loop’ by Nottingham Rehab Supplies and the product will soon be on sale to other NHS and social care organisations.
It was in 1999 that Catherine and two of her then colleagues, Rob Heath and Sarah Winters, had a brainstorming session to see if there was a quicker way of assessing patients’ needs when they were due to be discharged from hospital.
OTs used to have to watch as patients dressed and washed themselves to assess whether they would need extra help or disability equipment when they went home.
The raw idea for the ‘dressing loop’ initially came from Sarah Winters, who remembered a game from her schooldays in which, as part of a race, children would have to pick up a loop of elastic and pull it over their bodies from toe to head.
Catherine, who qualified as an OT in 1990 and has worked for UHB for 15 years, becoming deputy head of the service in 2001, said: “We realised that if somebody could reach down to pull the loop over their feet, up their body and over their head they would have the range of movement needed to get washed, undressed and dressed.
“We experimented with different pieces of elastic and came up with the idea for fitting ‘D’ shaped rings so that it could expand or contract depending upon a patient’s size. We teamed this up with a jar, which can show a patient’s hand function in relation to how well they can open things.
“Of the 200 referrals a month that our OTs receive from wards needing patients assessed before discharge, around 40 are for people who can benefit from using the ‘dressing loop’. The loop is much better for these patients’ privacy and dignity – and it cuts the amount of time for an assessment by 30 minutes to an hour, meaning they can go home more quickly and free up beds for others who need them.”
The invention won the ‘low tech’ category of MidTECH’s innovation awards in 2006 and the £2,000 prize was reinvested to steer forward its development as a commercial product.
David Gleaves, chief executive of MidTECH, said: “The beauty of this innovation is that it is simple in concept – yet very effective. We’re extremely pleased that MidTECH has been instrumental in negotiating a commercial licence deal so that this ingenious device will be available to help patients and OTs in other hospitals. The UHB Trust will also benefit financially and will be able to invest the share of the profits that it receives to develop and enhance its services.”
THE ‘dressing loop’ – a metre-long stretch of elastic – is speeding up the rate at which occupational therapists (OTs) at the Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak Hospitals can evaluate patients’ functional abilities as part of an assessment screen before they are discharged home.
The idea is also proving a boost for patients’ privacy and dignity because they no longer have to undress, dress and wash themselves to demonstrate how well they could cope after leaving hospital.
Now a commercial licence deal for the invention – by a team led by Catherine Sykes, deputy head of the Trust’s OT service – has been concluded thanks to MidTECH.
MidTECH has brokered the agreement for the production and distribution of the ‘dressing loop’ by Nottingham Rehab Supplies and the product will soon be on sale to other NHS and social care organisations.
It was in 1999 that Catherine and two of her then colleagues, Rob Heath and Sarah Winters, had a brainstorming session to see if there was a quicker way of assessing patients’ needs when they were due to be discharged from hospital.
OTs used to have to watch as patients dressed and washed themselves to assess whether they would need extra help or disability equipment when they went home.
The raw idea for the ‘dressing loop’ initially came from Sarah Winters, who remembered a game from her schooldays in which, as part of a race, children would have to pick up a loop of elastic and pull it over their bodies from toe to head.
Catherine, who qualified as an OT in 1990 and has worked for UHB for 15 years, becoming deputy head of the service in 2001, said: “We realised that if somebody could reach down to pull the loop over their feet, up their body and over their head they would have the range of movement needed to get washed, undressed and dressed.
“We experimented with different pieces of elastic and came up with the idea for fitting ‘D’ shaped rings so that it could expand or contract depending upon a patient’s size. We teamed this up with a jar, which can show a patient’s hand function in relation to how well they can open things.
“Of the 200 referrals a month that our OTs receive from wards needing patients assessed before discharge, around 40 are for people who can benefit from using the ‘dressing loop’. The loop is much better for these patients’ privacy and dignity – and it cuts the amount of time for an assessment by 30 minutes to an hour, meaning they can go home more quickly and free up beds for others who need them.”
The invention won the ‘low tech’ category of MidTECH’s innovation awards in 2006 and the £2,000 prize was reinvested to steer forward its development as a commercial product.
David Gleaves, chief executive of MidTECH, said: “The beauty of this innovation is that it is simple in concept – yet very effective. We’re extremely pleased that MidTECH has been instrumental in negotiating a commercial licence deal so that this ingenious device will be available to help patients and OTs in other hospitals. The UHB Trust will also benefit financially and will be able to invest the share of the profits that it receives to develop and enhance its services.”
Proprio Foot wins top award
OSSUR’S Proprio Foot has won a 2007 da Vinci Award in America.
The Proprio Foot is the world’s first motor-powered and intelligent prosthetic foot. The foot replaces muscle function that was lost due to an amputation, enabling amputees to perform normal, functional activites by:
Sensing. Knowing where their foot is in space is a huge safety issue for amputees. Sophisticated sensor technology mimics the body’s own neural receptors that are sensitive to mechanical change, providing artificial proprioception (that sense of where the limb is in space). Hence the name PROPRIO FOOT.
Thinking. Patented artificial intelligence (AI) processes information from the sensors and activates the most appropriate response for the next step.
Acting. The AI transmits a constant stream of signals which instruct high-precision actuator technology to act and deliver optimal function. Expertise in real-time motion analysis for the foot was provided by Canadian company, Dynastream.
“We take great pleasure in knowing that the Proprio Foot has won the 2007 da Vinci Award,” said Eythor Bender, Ossur America’s president. “The foot was launched in September 2006, and the US Department of Defense and the VA are both actively using it to benefit servicemen returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, as well as veterans of past wars. It is also quickly becoming the foot of choice for diabetic amputees all over the world.”
The da Vinci Awards honour outstanding engineering achievements relative to design process, product design and applied research which relate to accessibility and universal design issues.
The winners were honoured at a ceremony during a gala reception at the Ritz Carlton in Dearborn, Michigan.
OSSUR’S Proprio Foot has won a 2007 da Vinci Award in America.
The Proprio Foot is the world’s first motor-powered and intelligent prosthetic foot. The foot replaces muscle function that was lost due to an amputation, enabling amputees to perform normal, functional activites by:
Sensing. Knowing where their foot is in space is a huge safety issue for amputees. Sophisticated sensor technology mimics the body’s own neural receptors that are sensitive to mechanical change, providing artificial proprioception (that sense of where the limb is in space). Hence the name PROPRIO FOOT.
Thinking. Patented artificial intelligence (AI) processes information from the sensors and activates the most appropriate response for the next step.
Acting. The AI transmits a constant stream of signals which instruct high-precision actuator technology to act and deliver optimal function. Expertise in real-time motion analysis for the foot was provided by Canadian company, Dynastream.
“We take great pleasure in knowing that the Proprio Foot has won the 2007 da Vinci Award,” said Eythor Bender, Ossur America’s president. “The foot was launched in September 2006, and the US Department of Defense and the VA are both actively using it to benefit servicemen returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, as well as veterans of past wars. It is also quickly becoming the foot of choice for diabetic amputees all over the world.”
The da Vinci Awards honour outstanding engineering achievements relative to design process, product design and applied research which relate to accessibility and universal design issues.
The winners were honoured at a ceremony during a gala reception at the Ritz Carlton in Dearborn, Michigan.
'Adventure' chair prototype unveiled
A PROTOTYPE of a multi terrain adventure chair (MTAC) which aims to bring together both able bodied children and children with disabilities was unveiled at The Robert Gordon University.
Johanna Doyle, a recent engineering design graduate from RGU, developed the project as part of her honours year.
The idea originally came from school pupils from Elrick Primary School after reading a poem about a disabled child who found it almost impossible to move around in a wheelchair in the snow.
The pupils came up with the concept of MTAC which would allow children with disabilities to enjoy the outdoors and have fun with their friends. The children entered their design in, 'The Young Inventors
Scotland Challenge', which they won in 2004.
The School received funding from Wood Group and approached RGU to take MTAC forward. Johanna Doyle (21), from Portlethen, became involved in September last year, moving the project on considerably.
The design is innovatively different, featuring a stylish globe made of glass reinforced plastic mounted on a sturdy boxed aluminium chassis. The body chassis is mounted onto four independent 'spider-like' aluminium legs.
Using pneumatics and tension springs the chair will lower offering the child easy access into the MTAC and then heighten to improve the child's eye level when socialising.
Johanna said: “I kept the colours black and red although there is no reason why it can't be customised to suit the individual.”
A controller similar to that used on a Playstation console will be used to control the vehicle. This can be used by the child or by an external carer. Johanna said: “I believe that keeping the steering design similar to a device children are familiar with would keep things simple.
“The power pack will be located at the back and covered with mesh so that children cannot tamper with it or get their fingers stuck. This is also the reason why there are no hinges on the exterior of the MTAC, all the springs and rams are tucked away underneath the chassis.”
The full scale prototype was funded by Elrick Primary, RGU and Wood Group, with RGU's Alan Owen and Gareth Broxton and John Bethel from Wood Group involved throughout.
The staff and pupils from Elrick Primary School were Louise Malcolm the headteacher at the time, teacher Anne Fairley, and pupils Sarah Scott, Shannen Murray, Rebecca Fraser and Neil Melville.
Johanna now works at Aker Kvaerner Subsea Limited as a junior designer in the Christmas tree department.
A PROTOTYPE of a multi terrain adventure chair (MTAC) which aims to bring together both able bodied children and children with disabilities was unveiled at The Robert Gordon University.
Johanna Doyle, a recent engineering design graduate from RGU, developed the project as part of her honours year.
The idea originally came from school pupils from Elrick Primary School after reading a poem about a disabled child who found it almost impossible to move around in a wheelchair in the snow.
The pupils came up with the concept of MTAC which would allow children with disabilities to enjoy the outdoors and have fun with their friends. The children entered their design in, 'The Young Inventors
Scotland Challenge', which they won in 2004.
The School received funding from Wood Group and approached RGU to take MTAC forward. Johanna Doyle (21), from Portlethen, became involved in September last year, moving the project on considerably.
The design is innovatively different, featuring a stylish globe made of glass reinforced plastic mounted on a sturdy boxed aluminium chassis. The body chassis is mounted onto four independent 'spider-like' aluminium legs.
Using pneumatics and tension springs the chair will lower offering the child easy access into the MTAC and then heighten to improve the child's eye level when socialising.
Johanna said: “I kept the colours black and red although there is no reason why it can't be customised to suit the individual.”
A controller similar to that used on a Playstation console will be used to control the vehicle. This can be used by the child or by an external carer. Johanna said: “I believe that keeping the steering design similar to a device children are familiar with would keep things simple.
“The power pack will be located at the back and covered with mesh so that children cannot tamper with it or get their fingers stuck. This is also the reason why there are no hinges on the exterior of the MTAC, all the springs and rams are tucked away underneath the chassis.”
The full scale prototype was funded by Elrick Primary, RGU and Wood Group, with RGU's Alan Owen and Gareth Broxton and John Bethel from Wood Group involved throughout.
The staff and pupils from Elrick Primary School were Louise Malcolm the headteacher at the time, teacher Anne Fairley, and pupils Sarah Scott, Shannen Murray, Rebecca Fraser and Neil Melville.
Johanna now works at Aker Kvaerner Subsea Limited as a junior designer in the Christmas tree department.
