Low cost and lightweight prosthetic hand with a cosmetic glove and grasping function

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K01549
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Rehabilitation science/Welfare engineering
• Research Institution: Osaka Institute of Technology
• Principal Investigator: Yoshikawa Masahiro 大阪工業大学, ロボティクス&デザイン工学部, 准教授 (40584511)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 義手

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The aim of this study is to develop a low cost and lightweight prosthetic hands with a cosmetic glove and grasping function. We conducted the following research to develop the hand. 1)Flexible cosmetic glove with realistic appearance, 2)Wire-driven five-fingered electric prosthetic Hand, 3)Five-fingered prosthetic hand driven with curved pneumatic artificial muscles, 4)Hand motion estimation using a distance sensor array. The effectiveness of the hands was verified with user tests in which an amputee participated.

Free Research Field

福祉工学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では，装飾グローブ，ワイヤで駆動する5指義手，湾曲型空気圧人工筋で駆動する5指義手，距離センサアレイを用いた手の動作推定手法，の開発を行った．これらの研究成果を活用することにより，新しい5指義手を実現することが可能となり，前腕欠損者に対して新たな義手の選択肢を提供できる．開発した2種の義手は，ユーザが実際に装着して使用できるレベルを達成している．