If your hand is damaged or deformed and you need a prosthetic hand, you have a serious problem. But children who need prosthetic hands have even more serious problems. Prosthetic hands can cost over $8,000, and might not be covered by insurance. On top of that, the children can outgrow the hand quickly, leading to additional expenses throughout their lives. That’s where the e-NABLE Organization has changed everything. It’s a group of volunteers around the world who use 3D printers and CAD design to make custom prosthetic hands for a fraction of the cost; often less than $50. They’ll even print the hand and ship it to children who don’t have access to a 3D printer. That was the case for Keith Harris, a boy whose birth defect caused his fingers on his right hand to fuse together and not fully form. Thanks to e-Nable, he was able to get a robotic hand in less than a month. They even covered the $45 cost.
But Pat Starace took this movement to the next level by creating a prosthetic hand that is not only functional and cheap, but also extremely cool. He created a 3D prosthetic hand design based on Iron Man’s gauntlet. It can not only grasp objects, but incorporates lights to simulate Iron Man’s lasers and thrusters. Frankly, it looks so cool that I want one.
This video goes into the process in more detail
What do you think about eNable?
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<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="34164 ">5 Comments
Fire lasers!
Wow, that hand is more wired than most phones were ten years ago. What a great idea for a kid.
That is way cool! It's a fantastic idea.
What a fascinating story. Cool gadgets serving such noble purposes.
Does he graduate to Darth Vader when he gets older?
They're all so pretty! Great activities for kids. These days, most would just keep them occupied…and quiet playing games on their ipads
fun Activities for Kids