Progress Towards the Development of a Highly Functional Anthropomorphic Transhumeral Prosthesis

This paper presents progress towards the development of a gas-actuated anthropomorphic arm prosthesis with 21 degrees of freedom and nine independent actuators. The system is designed to utilize the monopropellant hydrogen peroxide as a gas generator in order to power the nine pneumatic-type actuators. The design incorporates four actuators to provide direct-drive actuation of the elbow joint and three wrist degrees-of-freedom, while the remaining five actuate an underactuated 17 degree-of-freedom hand. This paper describes the prosthesis design, including the design of small-scale high-performance servovalves that enable implementation of the monopropellant concept in a transhumeral prosthesis. Video frame sequences of the prosthesis under closed loop control demonstrate its functionality in performing tasks representative of activities of daily living.