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Os dedos de Bionic dão às mãos em parte amputadas um aperto bom

por Brendon Nafziger, DOTmed News Associate Editor | December 10, 2009

Even pointing is possible, thanks to the "stall" mechanism which recognizes when a finger is blocked by an object. For instance, if you press your index finger against an object, and contract the other fingers, the hand "knows" to keep the pointer finger extended. This feature can also be used to intelligently grip objects, such as when giving someone a handshake or picking up the telephone, according to Touch Bionics.

While ProDigits are quite versatile, true individual control of fingers isn't possible. Patients can hunt and peck on the keyboard, for instance, but they can't type, rolling all their digits naturally -- at least, not yet. "Individual discrete control, we're working on it," Gill says.

Learning curve

Gill says the learning curve is from around a couple of weeks to a month. Typically, a patient would first undergo a physical - and emotional - assessment at one of the clinics Touch Bionics works with. (Currently, Touch Bionics has its own North American clinics in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Chicago and Toronto, with operational and test centers in Ohio, and a new clinic under construction in Los Angeles.) If eligible for the device, the patient would have a fully customized hand made for them. (Engineering costs for personalized hands are around 35,000 to 40,000 pounds.) Once outfitted, the patient would practice at home for a few weeks, and then come back for extra tweaking.

Touch Bionics makes sure patients work with an occupational therapist who helps them get the most out of the device. A physician can also use the product's wireless technology to monitor their performance with it, both to better customize the prosthetics, and as research for future versions.

As the hands are fully personalized, patients get to choose their own silicone skins: either colored or clear robotic silicone, or a life-like shell made by LIVINGSKIN, a company just outside New York acquired by Touch Bionics. According to Gill, the LIVINGSKIN studio resembles a Hollywood special effects company, and patients can request the shape and color of their new appendage, and even add freckles, hair or more idiosyncratic cosmetic features, such as bitten nails. "If they bite their nails with their teeth," says Gill, "they want the covering to look like it's been bitten."

Surprisingly, national differences emerge for the skin preferences.

"Americans in general like robotic skins because they've got this device, they want to show it's robotic. They feel comfortable with it," Gill says. "In Europe, most patients want restoration, the human form. I always say, why can't they all feel a bit like my good friends in the States? They can feel comfortable with it, and show it and promote it."


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