Put it in the bath: engineers from Russia develop a prosthetic hand with memory effectScience and technology19:45 | 12 July 2023

Researchers from the Moscow Aviation Institute (MAI), commissioned by the Center for Innovative Technologies in Orthopedics of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, created a hand prosthesis from a titanium nickelide alloy.

The wire frame was placed in a latex case that imitated human skin and then filled with two-component silicone that gradually hardens. The resulting composition of silicone rubber and titanium nickelite has a shape memory effect: if the prosthesis is heated to a temperature higher than 45 °C, the hand frame is restored to the original configuration specified during manufacture.

One of the developers, Dmitry Gusev, Professor of the Department of Materials Science and Materials Processing Technology of the Moscow Aviation Institute, said that to do this, it is enough to put it in a hot water bath for 30 minutes.

With the help of prosthetics of Russian scientists, a person can hold and carry loads, drive a car or work with construction tools. During testing, the product in the form of a compressed brush held up to five liters of water weighing 4.5 kilograms per day without deformation, and also helped to successfully cut wooden bars.

Gusev noted that the development is durable: A brushless volunteer has been successfully using it for over a year without damage.

According to its properties, the prosthesis occupies an intermediate position between relatively inexpensive products that only reproduce the appearance of the limb, and expensive multifunctional products. However, if the cost of the latter ranges from 500 thousand to five million rubles, then the cost of the products of Russian scientists should not exceed 100 thousand rubles.

However, you will need to register a medical device to enter the market. MAI estimates that the product will be available to consumers no earlier than 2025.