Group 6 – Charleta Williams, Eric Trizis, Randy Tejeda, Adam Harte, Dwayne Wolfe, Marcus Mitchell, and Shiquita Green

What is a Prosthetic Limb? An artificial extension that replaces a missing body part and allows that person to continue on with his/her life. The prosthetic limb has come a long ways sense its development and has proven to be beneficial to all who have used them.

History Merging of Technology Common Users Future of Prosthetics

Earliest known prostheses: Egyptian Big Toe Pirates – Peg legs and hooks? George Washington – Wooden Teeth

Ambroise Paré - The Father of Facial Prosthetics Anesthesia Improvements Development of Sterile Surgery

During WWII ( ), the US government spearheaded research into artificial limbs. In 1968, Marvin Minsky developed the Tentacle Arm.

In 1969, Victor Scheinman completed the Stanford Arm. In 1998, Campbell Aird was fitted with the first bionic arm, the Edinburg Modular Arm System (EMAS).

Transtibial Prosthesis Transfemoral Prosthesis Transradial Prosthesis Transhumeral Prosthesis

DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) the U.S. Department of Defense agency responsible for development of new technology for use by the military, seems to be spearheading the development of prosthetic limbs.

War Veterans are high up on the list for prosthetics. They are constantly surrounded by explosives and terrorists Recently, an article was read about a former war veteran who lost his arms, leg, and a right index finger to a bomb in Iraq. With the use of prosthetics, however, he is able to continue living a closer to normal life. He has not been bounded to a wheelchair and he’s now able to once again skateboard, ride his bicycle, and hold his children.

Firefighters are always expected to lend a helping hand when there is an emergency. However, there have been instances when things don’t always go the way they were intended to. Gregory Malais is now a retired fireman that lost his leg at work.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, someone is injured by a car accident every 10 seconds, a death occurs every 12 minutes, and a 117 people die every day. For those that don’t die and are in serious accidents, quite often they are bounded to wheel chairs or other aids. Many victims also survive with the aid of prosthetics.

The Open Prosthetics Project What does the OPP do for the industry? How can open-source designs help the people who need prosthetics?

Developed between 1920s – 1930s Revived technology Has been reverse engineered and made new.

Has created new interest in the product. Can be rapidly manufactured.

The original design was very durable. Making sure the open-source design is just as durable is a main goal of the OPP.

Finding manufacturers that are willing to produce the OPP. Investors and manufacturers feel that the market is too small, making it not very profitable to produce them.

From wood to merging into technology, Prosthetic limbs has come a long way and we now have a better approach. The use of technology has made it much better for numerous people to use prosthetic limbs as they are easier to operate now.

The most common users are: War Veterans, Fire Fighters, and Car Accident Victims. The future for Prosthetics are improving with new technology every day, prosthetic limbs have no choice but to become stronger and to be used by more people.

You should now have a better understanding of the history, merging of technology, who the common users are, and the future of prosthetics.