HEIDELBERG, Germany, April 23 (UPI) -- German medical scientists said they are testing a prosthetic hand with fingers that, for the first time, can move separately, nearly like a natural hand.
Researchers at the Orthopedic University Hospital in Heidelberg said the prosthesis can hold a credit card, use a keyboard with the index finger and lift a bag weighing up to 44 pounds. The scientists said the hand is world's first commercially available prosthetic hand that can move each finger separately and has a wide range of full grip configurations.
Myoelectric signals from the stump of the arm control the prosthesis. Complex electronics and five motors contained in the fingers enable every digit of the hand, called i-LIMB, to be powered individually, researchers said Muscle signals are picked up by electrodes on the skin and transferred to the control electronics in the hand. Batteries provide the necessary power.
The prosthesis was developed by the Scottish company Touch Bionics.
