4 ms·

Radboud University connects first click-on arm prosthesis to nerves

16 points by vezycash 10y ago

rocqua 10y ago
I wonder at what point these arms are going to get better. I suspect it'd be a lot easier to train a prosthetic arm when there is still a physical arm to be attached. Doing this before a replacement should really cut down on the 'rehabilitation time'. Perhaps, in the scenario, it is better to just leave to current arm attached and give a prospective cyborg a third arm rather than replacing the current arm.
- Retric 10y ago
  IMO, the next stop is going to be a drop in price. Good enough and 2k generally beats awesome and 200k.
awinter-py 10y ago
the myoband approach to nerve control is fascinating. they're not plugging into the user's nervous system, they're just measuring what the upper arm does when the user controls their phantom limb. this is a much better ad for myo than the video on myo.com, which looks like a bad remake of the gesture controls from earth final conflict.
thomyorkie 10y ago
> Through an opening in the skin, the patient “clicks” the prosthesis onto a metal rod in the bone. So he has a flap of skin that just spreads apart and reveals this metal rod? How does he avoid infections?
- vorotato 10y ago
  This article really failed in addressing transdermals and how this works without constant infections.
- jessriedel 10y ago
  It's a terrible article. These may be better. Economist: "Artificial limbs that feel like the real thing are getting closer" http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21623580-artificial-limbs-feel-real-thing-are-getting-closer-once-more http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/2162358... Wikipedia: "Osseointegration" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osseointegration https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osseointegration Videos of surgery (somewhat graphic) and use of the prosthetic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irtF-kGpaV4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irtF-kGpaV4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmt165ZTPmI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmt165ZTPmI
jalk 10y ago
I have been thinking for a long time that such prosthetic arms should also be able to act as USB HID. e.g. send keystokes "directly" from the nerves - optionally merging with the input from a regular keyboard. And once you have that USB cord from your new arm, you might as well pack some flash storage, 2FA device, etc in there.
- bitwize 10y ago
  For the longest time I wondered why that guy from Ghost in the Shell had the fingers that each split into several tiny, blade-like fingers just so he could type faster; if you already have robot hands couldn't you send impulses directly to enter stuff into a computer?
  - Jack000 10y ago
    I've always thought that was an air gap - if you lived in a world where your ghost could be hacked you wouldn't want to risk being plugged in just for some text input.

16 points by vezycash 10y ago

I wonder at what point these arms are going to get better. I suspect it'd be a lot easier to train a prosthetic arm when there is still a physical arm to be attached. Doing this before a replacement should really cut down on the 'rehabilitation time'. Perhaps, in the scenario, it is better to just leave to current arm attached and give a prospective cyborg a third arm rather than replacing the current arm.

Retric 10y ago
IMO, the next stop is going to be a drop in price. Good enough and 2k generally beats awesome and 200k.

awinter-py 10y ago

the myoband approach to nerve control is fascinating. they're not plugging into the user's nervous system, they're just measuring what the upper arm does when the user controls their phantom limb. this is a much better ad for myo than the video on myo.com, which looks like a bad remake of the gesture controls from earth final conflict.

thomyorkie 10y ago

> Through an opening in the skin, the patient “clicks” the prosthesis onto a metal rod in the bone. So he has a flap of skin that just spreads apart and reveals this metal rod? How does he avoid infections?

vorotato 10y ago
This article really failed in addressing transdermals and how this works without constant infections.
jessriedel 10y ago
It's a terrible article. These may be better. Economist: "Artificial limbs that feel like the real thing are getting closer" http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21623580-artificial-limbs-feel-real-thing-are-getting-closer-once-more http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/2162358... Wikipedia: "Osseointegration" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osseointegration https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osseointegration Videos of surgery (somewhat graphic) and use of the prosthetic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irtF-kGpaV4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irtF-kGpaV4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmt165ZTPmI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmt165ZTPmI

jalk 10y ago

I have been thinking for a long time that such prosthetic arms should also be able to act as USB HID. e.g. send keystokes "directly" from the nerves - optionally merging with the input from a regular keyboard. And once you have that USB cord from your new arm, you might as well pack some flash storage, 2FA device, etc in there.

bitwize 10y ago
For the longest time I wondered why that guy from Ghost in the Shell had the fingers that each split into several tiny, blade-like fingers just so he could type faster; if you already have robot hands couldn't you send impulses directly to enter stuff into a computer?
- Jack000 10y ago
  I've always thought that was an air gap - if you lived in a world where your ghost could be hacked you wouldn't want to risk being plugged in just for some text input.