26 September, 2013

Reinventing the Prosthetic Limb

This project was my final exam in my 4th year of Model Making and Digital Design in IADT. We were allowed to create anything, with the limit only being it had to fit within a 1meter cube box.  This was the project I'd been waiting for seeing as how my whole reason for going back to college to do this course was a promise I made to myself about wanted to create a new prosthetic limb.

The idea was simple, bring the design of prosthetic limbs into the 21st century. Looking at the design and shape of prosthetic limbs that are worn by people today, and with a lot of researching into the subject, it was clear that they had not been updated since the 1950s.  Which is unfair in today's world of designer clothing, computers, buildings. I knew that creating the limbs by hand would be tricky and not time effected. I wanted this project to be a prototype of how it can be done in the future so I went with 3D modeling the prototype and then having that model 3D Printed.

Each section of the limb was modeled in 3D Studio Max, then brought into Mudbox where the finer level of sculpting was done. Each part locks and fits together perfectly and is to a 1:1 scale with a human arm. An inner bone was made for everything to lock to which, with use of an adjustable elbow used in prosthetic limbs, would attach to the arm socket. The arm socket itself was design from a non-stander design show that very piece can be reworked.

This is the inner forearm was sculpted with the realistic muscle structure of the forearm carver into it.

The outside of the forearm was given the shape of the muscles but given a much harder, fabricated feel.

The hand, which itself is removable and can be switched out for another number of other designs, was modeled into a natural resting pose.  The top of the hand having the same harden fabricated look as the forearm where as the palm was given a textured feel so show that it could act as a grip.

This is only my first stepping stone. I want to go further with this. but my only question now is how.

-Matty