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Bionic Hands to Become a Reality Soon?
Spy der Mann writes "A highly dexterous, bio-inspired artificial hand and sensory system that could provide patients with active feeling, is being developed by a European project called cyberhand. The final prototype includes sensors for tension, force, joint angle, end stroke and contact."
Steve Austin, Luke Skywalker, and Darth Vader all sue for patent infringement.
It'll be great if the sensors on these bionic hands can be switched on and off at the user's will.
This way, the users can grab burning lottery ticket out of a fire place.
Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
Finally, a return to two-handed typing...
So, while this stuff is very kewl, and in particular I've been following development on artificial hands (as far as I know, only the face is more complex), it raises in me the question of what it will bring with it in the near future....
Cybernetic implants are under development as well, including the borg-like communications chip that most of us would have seen on 'How William Shatner changed the Universe'
So on top of all the typical moral concerns this subject raises, in the days when we're as much technology as human being, what will be the complications when our complex implants' OS gives us the equivalent of the BSOD?
A couple fans told me that my last journal entry was mint; give it a shot. Hope you like.
According to Popular Science, there's already a mind-controlled bionic arm out. It allows for better movement than previous prosthetic limbs as well.
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http://www.popsci.com/popsci/bown2005/personalhea
"Welcome to the future of prosthetic limbs: true mind control. For the first time ever, an amputee need only think about a movement--picking up a glass, for instance--and the 12-pound Neuro-Controlled Bionic Arm dutifully coordinates the task. Electrodes intercept the limb's residual nerve firings and feed them to a computer embedded in the forearm, which then commands six motors to move the device's shoulder, elbow and hand in unison. Thanks to hand sensors, the wearer can even gauge pressure and fine-tune his grip.
For now, the prototype arm fits just one man, Jesse Sullivan. This year, Sullivan demonstrated the device at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where doctors are working to refine it. A faster, more durable commercial version should be ready by 2008, but the ultimate goal is a robotic limb that functions as well as, if not better than, its human analogue."
It isn't as good as an arm that allows for feeling, but hey, think of what happens when a bionic arm that allows you to feel has an error. Ouchies.
The final prototype includes sensors for tension, force, joint angle, end stroke and contact."
bwa hahahahhaah
Mod me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!
does it run linux? can it play ogg?
"Wow, it really DOES feel like a stranger!"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4225896.stm
If you look at history you will find that war time always sees a boon in prosthetic and other medical technologies. We are getting a LOT of soldiers coming home with missing and damaged limbs, so there is a surge in trial patients, funding and general interest. Granted this is comming from Germany, not the US.... Doctor StrangeLove anyone?
Wonder how long till someone develops bionic eyes? I've been itching to ditch these failing organic meatballs called eyes for something better. High-def bionic eyes with zoom and night-vision would be pretty cool, not to mention the possibility of using them as a way to overlay information on top of stuff you see. Getting spyware could be quite annoying though, and if law enforcement had a way of remotely disabling them would suck, but maybe one could avoid that by running OS software on them. :)
As I know someone with partially servo controlled limb, I occasionally get to read some of the literature that is targeted towards people who need such devices. Something that seems to be a constant concern is heat dissapation.
The loss of a hand is a tremendous blow to the bodies ability to cool itself, and the addition of anything that creates additional heat is usually considered to be non-starter.
As I am unable to read the article from here I can not see if that is addressed within, but I am curious as to if there were any comments regarding it.
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order- Ed Howdershelt Via Tass