AssetID: 53282533
Headline: Korean Scientists Develop Prosthetic Hand That Can Be 3D Printed And Assembled In Minutes
Caption: Seoul National University researchers have developed 3D-printed Prosthetic hand (ST3P hand) that can be printed in just one step. Their invention, the ST3P handmakes is designed as a monolithic structure with nine finger joints and has a lightweight (under 255g), low-cost (under $500) form, manufactured via single-step 3D printing. Although the assembly of the actuators and electronics is still required, the assembly time is about 10 minutes which is reduced by more than 10 times compared to the typical open source 3D printed prostheses. Single-step 3D printing, which can manufacture complicated designs without assembly, has the potential to completely change our design perspective, and how 3D printing products, rather than printing static components, ready-to-use movable mechanisms become a reality. Existing 3D printing solutions are challenged by precision limitations, and cannot directly produce tightly mated moving surfaces. Therefore, joints must be designed with a sufficient gap between the components, resulting in joints and other mechanisms with imprecise motion. In this study, the Seoul team built a bio-inspired printable joint that simulates the anatomical structure of the human finger joint. This bio-inspired design allows the joint to be single-step 3D printed and provides precise motion. The hand can perform basic hand tasks of activities of daily living by providing a pulling force of 48 N and grasp strength of 20 N. The simple manufacturing of the ST3P hand could help us take one step closer to realising fully customized robotic prosthetic hands at low cost and effort.
Keywords: 3D printing,feature,prosthetic hand,video,photo,seoul,korea,science,technology
PersonInImage: