Jeff Powell, a student at UNC-Chapel Hill has been making prosthetic hands out of 3-D printers. Each 3D printed hand costs roughly less than $20. The project began this summer and is continuing to help children in the need of a prosthetic hand. Holden Mora, the first child in Chapel Hill to receive this hand, was deformed due to a birth defect. "I'm perfect one handed" The 7 year states but is currently learning how to be perfect two handed with his new hand. By showing Jeff certain bugs the hand may have, Holden also helps Jeff in improving his innovation. Jeff is also trying to start a non profit organization dedicated to giving children a hand a Prosthetic Hand similar to Holden's. What do you think about future prosthetic body parts being created by 3D printers? Do you think it will be effective?
I think this is a neat idea however, there are probably many glitches due to the fact it is not made by a company. I hope people that recieved these are happy.
ReplyDeleteThis could really help handicapped people who do not have the money available for expensive prosthetic hands, but I am curious to know how a hand made from a 3D printer could work so well. It doesn't seem like the technology would be that good if it is so cheap though.
ReplyDeleteI think that as this invention is first starting out, it might not have a large impact on people without hands. It seems as though it would actually get in the way since it doesn't seem to be able to do much right now. However, I think that with time and more work, they will become more useful. It's amazing how a piece of technology has the capability to change so many lives while being quite cost efficient. I think that these prosthetic hands have huge potential.
ReplyDeleteI think this has a lot of potential and while we obviously haven't perfected the technology yet, I'm sure there will be great advancements within the next decade or two. It could end up being very helpful for people missing limbs or in need of organ transplants.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is a very cool way to make a prosthetic hand. Although this technology has not been perfected, I believe it has a lot of potential of helping people with deformities. A very important part of this is that the arm is about $20. That is really important because many people are not be able to afford the fancy expensive arms and legs but this $20 prosthetic would be available to all.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very innovative way to use 3D printers to help people in need and I think the best part, like Dhruv said, is that it only costs $20. I would love to see this idea developed further so that people who can't afford prosthetic limbs made of more expensive materials can still have access to something so helpful.
ReplyDeleteFrom the way things look like, a prosthetic hand made by a 3D printer and is very affordable to make seems like a great idea. It would be helping many of those who do not have a hand(s) in their daily lives. However, the reliability of the invention should be taken into question, as it is in its early developmental stages, and the possible side effects of the device should be considered as well. If this invention goes well, then many people around the world who have been slighted by the hand of nature will be able to strike back with a hand of their own.
ReplyDeleteThis could really help alot of people out. My uncle had to loose his arm because of cancer and i really think that we could use this to help people like him out. But we should take into consideration on what may happen if the arm were to backfire. Is there any side effects? theres alot more reaserch to do before we can do this.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this could help many handicapped people who do not have money for an expensive prosthetic hand. A prosthetic hand made by a 3D printer is very affordable and many normal people could get it. However, we do not know if the hand will glitch and it is still in its developmental stages. I think it will be effective in the future when they test it more.
ReplyDeleteI believe this might help handicap people, but not in the physical way. I say this because the material from which the hand is made is cheap. That is probably the reason it is so cheap. This might help them emotionally but not physically.
ReplyDeleteI believe this could help handicap people in many ways. One of them is because probably they cant buy something that is very expensive. This could help them in many ways. It's also interesting how a 3D printed could work for those people who need. It's also very cheap. GOOD!
ReplyDeleteI think this is a really good idea, especially because it is so cheap. I can't even begin to imagine how hard it would be to live missing a hand, so for those who deal with this everyday, this seems like a great way to make things easier. I think they will be really effective in helping people with this condition.
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