SKIRMISHER

Just in case, you know, you’ve fed your hand into a meat grinder or something, inventor David Gow would like to reassure you he’s got you covered with a cool replacement: the iLimb.

For £8,500, the wearer gets a hand that, for the first time, bends its fingers to grip objects, says inventor David Gow, an engineer with Lothian NHS in Scotland.

The i-LIMB has a flexible wrist and rotating thumbs. ‘And it’s the first to come to the market that has bending fingers just like your own,’ said Mr Gow.

Lighter than a real hand, the device capitalises on the brain’s determination to try to move a limb even when it has been lost. The brain thinks it is still there and sends signals to the nerves and severed muscles.

These are intercepted by delicate sensors and used to move tiny motors hidden in the artificial fingers. While traditional prostheses have only one motor, allowing limited movement, the i-Limb has five, with one concealed between the base and knuckle of each finger.

Covered in artificial skin, the one-size-fits-all hand has already won the approval of patients on both sizes of the Atlantic, including Iraq war veterans.

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Stuart Hill of Touch Bionics shows the cute way to use the iLimb to wave goodbye to your real hand.

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