Ember Arm – the freedom of movement without compromises!
The newly developed upper extremity prosthesis of Pro-Limb could mean the reclamation of full life and productivity for millions worldwide.
Our product is myoelectonrically controlled upper extremity prosthesis created by an experienced group of medical, rehabilitation and engineering experts that is cost-effective, innovative and manufactured mostly by 3D printing technologies.
Partial or full upper extremity amputations affect nearly 3.6-5.0 people worldwide; it is hard to give an accurate estimate, since most of these people live in developing countries. The number of upper extremity amputations in Hungary is about 200-250 yearly, most of them with a trauma (accident) background. The bone structure of the majority of patients would allow them the use of highly functional upper extremity prostheses, but the price of these devices is extremely high – starting from around 6 million HUF – and it is only partly or not at all covered by state insurance. The goal of our development is to provide an affordable, but functionally compromise-free solution for these patients both in Hungary and internationally to promote the reintegration into active society, and the workforce.
Cutting-edge technology in service of everyday life
The advanced functions of Ember Arm make handling everyday routine possible for patients with genetic and acquired limb loss. The base structure and the outer covering are 3D printed fully tailored to the needs of the patient. It provides uniqueness to the patient in material, colour, size or anthropomorphic appearance.
The other giant benefit is that the patient does not have to learn the permanent muscle functions of the arm; the gestures of the prosthesis can be taught with the use of an artificial intelligence software. With the help of the prescribed movements, the classification parameters are easy to recalibrate and download to a microcontroller in the arm. The arm will then execute the decision-making based on the new parameters about specific gestures. The prosthesis knows many functions needed in everyday life (e.g. carrying, holding, adaptive adjustment of gripping force in various environments etc.), the settings for these are simple, available in a mobile app. Among the innovative solutions are the vibration responses when touching objects, the save grip on amorphous objects, and the easy reparability.
Cost-value ratio – unique product category
We have considerable benefits over our competitors. One of the most important is the outstanding cost-value ratio: devices with similar functionality can cost ten millions of forints, and prostheses at similar price points cannot be fully customized. Ember Arms is a completely new product category, since it is optimized for everyday activities (AoDL – activities of daily living), the quantity of available settings of freedom allow for precise movements; however, the final cost is only a fraction of the products manufactured by large industrial companies.
Learning module – adherence, reliability
Our unique and niche solution is “Training-Prosthesis”. It aims to allow for post-amputation rehabilitation to start early, in the first week weeks after operation. It allows the preparation of the client for the usage of the final customised device. The “Training-Prosthesis” differs from the final version in the number of motors and adjustable movement patterns (since having unlimited movement patterns is not relevant yet). The learning module is supported by a gamified VR application, that not only increased adherence, it provides an opportunity for objective feedback for the physiotherapist or rehabilitation expert. The development is based on the internationally acclaimed SHAP test. We aim to not only decrease the number of prosthesis loss, but to provide exact feedback to the physiotherapist/technician/provider with the status of the device. This data will be important both for the provider and the financer (Eg. NEAK, insurance companies).
Inbuilt Artificial Intelligence – limitless in movement
The AI controlling the arm allows it to learn unique movement and gripping patterns. While other products have a limited number of movements, the result of our development is a device capable of an arbitrary number of movements, providing clients with optimal functions. The vibro-tactile feedback further aids the user. This function only provides information about the battery status of the device in our competitor’s products; the vibro-tactile feedback of the Ember Arm increases adherence in the user by creating the sensation of touch.
Gripping amorphous objects – increasing functionality
The individual movement of all five fingers in an important feature, because it allows the gripping of amorphous objects. All fingers have individual motors and the shape of joints allow the hand to mould to the surface – this way, the hand can grip difficult shapes and non-solid objects as well.
Unique design – a break from tradition
Our competitors follow two main approaches in design and outer appearance. One option is creating an appearance very close to real hands and arms, and other is the futuristic, “robotic” appearance. We believe that our clients should not have to compromise in creating their new body image. There will be an option to keep the “robotic” design, but the clients will be able to choose an anthropomorphic appearance as well with an aesthetic covering. The development background of the University of Pécs orthopaedic-engineering course supports the local implementation of the technology.
Members of our development group
- Devaraj Dhakshinamurthy, development leader: “Engineering is about creating practical solutions to the problems society faces. I aim to use my expertise in robotics to help provide affordable devices to the people who need them.”
- Csaba Csóka, the manager of Pro-Limb, the company developing and manufacturing Ember Arm, has a 30-year expertise in the field. He is the founder of Corvus Med, the company dealing with manufacture and sales of healthcare equipment and operating specialised clinics for the rehabilitation of disabled patients. He is one of the oldest representatives of Ottobock in Hungary.
- Dr. Luca Tóth is a medical expert, the contact of clinical studies, the leader of the PTE Neurorehabilitation workgroup, researcher. She has been working with exoskeletons and connected human studies in practice for years.
- Dr. Péter Maróti is the project leader, product developer medical researcher and the development leader at the University of Pécs 3D Printing and Visualization Centre. He has multiple years of experience in the implementation the medical uses of 3D printing technologies and visualization (VR) techniques.
- János Mendler is a leader of the CAD design group, a senior mechanical engineer. He is a 3D designer, the expert in advanced machine industry design applications. His main field of expertise is 3D computer based (3D CAD) design, model making, form design and product development; creation, reworking and digitizing machine designs; designing educational materials, identifying geometric and physical characteristics.
- Dr. Ádám Schiffer, senior firmware developer engineer – university associate professor. His main fields are measurement theory, signal processing, image processing, analysis of nonlinear systems, hysteresis characteristics of magnetic materials, autonomous robots.
A summary of the benefits of our product
- cost-value ratio – high functionality at an affordable price
- Learning unique movement patterns – AI control
- Learning version and professional version
- Vibro-tactile feedback
- Training: gamified mobile app
- Modular: can be attached regardless of place of amputation
- Independent movement of all 5 fingers – gripping amorphous objects
- Learning module – rehabilitation, tracking
The Ember Arm provides outstanding functionality for people with upper extremity loss. The development has many innovative, supportive, stimulating solutions that help use. It’s cost-value ratio elevates it from the competition. An important development is the existence of a device learning module with the matching prosthesis that allows for the early start of rehabilitation. It also help to identify the direction of development, an important factor for the health insurance system as well.