For kids who dream of being a superhero or heroine, receiving a bionic prosthetic arm that looks like something out of Iron Man or Captain America might be the highlight of their young lives. 
It’s right up there with overcoming a disability that once kept them from riding bikes, playing video games and all the other things kids enjoy doing.
With a little help from TI, students at the University of Central Florida (UCF) are making dreams a reality for children who were born without an arm or who have lost an arm.
One of those kids is Alex Pring, an 8-year-old Iron Man fan who was born with a partially developed right arm.
“Alex was very shy before – even afraid to go into a grocery because of how people would treat him or because they would ask questions that would hurt his feelings,” said Albert Manero, executive director of a nonprofit group called Limbitless Solutions. “Now he’s probably the most confident 8-year old you could imagine.
“He is very confident of his prosthetic arm.”
But this is not just any prosthetic arm. It’s a personalized, custom-made arm with movable hands and fingers, and all of its parts were printed on a 3-D printer. Alex’s arm looks just like the arm Iron Man uses to make the world safer.
He calls his prosthetic arm “the best gift ever.” Click here to watch a video of Alex receiving his arm from Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr.
“We thought kids just wanted to blend in and feel normal. But we found out it’s more about personal identity and expression,” Albert said. “It’s not a defect for them; it’s a facet of their personality.”
The TI-Limbitless connection
Prosthetic arms typically start around $40,000 – a pricetag that most people cannot afford even through insurance. Limbitless has built about 20 arms for children at no cost to their families. The idea is to show recipients that there are no limits.
“No one should profit at the expense of a child that was born without an arm,” Albert said. “We are finding innovative ways to make the arms more cost-effective so we can continue doing this.”
When Limbitless first started its mission two years ago, the arms cost around $350 in materials, including plastics, hardware, batteries and motors. We have helped the group reduce its materials costs by about 15 percent by providing a fully integrated board of TI analog, MCU and connectivity devices. The board has also helped increase the arm’s functionality.
“We are constantly innovating and improving,” Albert said. “Using TI chips has extended the performance and battery life of the system because the chips are more specialized for what we are trying to do. It’s a big leap forward.”
The arm and hand operate with the help of three electrodes attached to the user’s arm muscles. When the user squeezes a muscle, an electrical pulse triggers the Servo motor to open or close the hand. Engineers hope to increase the functionality of the arm even more in the future.
UCF grad Carolus Andrews has been researching ways to incorporate haptic feedback and Bluetooth into the arms.
Haptics can help users know if they have a good grip on an object. The gentle buzzing of the haptics also reminds them to set objects down to avoid draining the battery. The arm drains power faster when the arm's Servo motor is engaged and the hand is closed on an object, Carolus explained.
“Alex asked if we could include haptics in the arm we were building for him,” he said. “We thought it was a great idea.”
Carolus recently joined TI as an applications engineer through our apps rotation program, but he still does volunteer work for Limbitless.
Back on the UCF campus, the Limbitless team produces the arms on 3-D printers inside the TI Innovation Lab. We have supported the students there by providing them test boards and evaluation modules to work with and giving them access to senior designers that they can call with questions.
Peter Balyta, president of our Ed Tech business, describes the TI Innovation Lab at UCF as a maker space where students across multiple disciplines can turn their ideas into prototypes.
“TI is bringing real-world engineering concepts to life for thousands of students in these labs worldwide,” said Peter, who leads all academic engagements for TI, including our university marketing program. “And, what’s more, we’re also showing how students are taking those concepts and creating functional, working designs that are truly improving people’s lives.”
The Limbitless team also is using the Innovation Lab to build a patent-pending bionic wheelchair that a user can control with his or her face muscles. The group worked with a paralyzed war veteran to create the wheelchair.
“A lot of our ideas are coming out of the TI Innovation Lab,” Albert said.
Finding inspiration
Albert originally got the idea for the bionic arm while driving his car. He heard a story on the radio about a man in Washington State who developed the first 3-D-printed mechanical hand for a carpenter in South Africa.
“I went to my research lab and said, ‘I have to be a part of this. What can I do to help?’” Albert said. “Then Alex’s parents contacted us and asked if we could build their son an arm.”
Since then, the group has produced and delivered about 20 robotic arms to children. About 480 kids from 50 countries are on a waiting list for arms. Limbitless plans to help hundreds of kids in the next year and eventually thousands of kids.
The robotic arm has been a fulfilling project for Albert, who credits a great team of 80 volunteer students from various backgrounds.
“It’s exciting to take what you are learning in academics and help someone. It’s the most rewarding work you can do. When you see the smiles when you’re able to deliver an arm, it makes it all worth it,” said Albert, a Fulbright Scholar who is currently getting his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from UCF.
“We’re going to make a lot of superheroes.”
If you would like to learn more about how Limbitless is helping children, go to the group’s Website.
Photos courtesy of KT Crabb Photography.