Advanced Arm Dynamics

30th Annual Texas History Day

Advanced Arm Dynamics (AAD), an upper extremity prosthetics provider, recently played a role in the 30^th Annual Texas History Day Contest; albeit, one behind the scenes.  When the business was approached by a group of 8^th graders from a Texas middle school who were creating a play on the history of innovation in prosthetics to perform as their submission for the contest, the AAD team was more than happy to help. They worked with the students over a period of months, which included showing them various prosthesis and how they work, introducing them to patients, providing a tour of the facilities and lab, and even lending them four prosthetic arms to use when performing their play. 

After first winning their school and the Dallas Fort-Worth regional competitions, the students were among the 1,000 students out of 45,000 who were allowed to compete at the state-level this past weekend at the 30^th Annual Texas History Day Contest, the official affiliate of the National History Program, which was held at the Texas State History Museum in Austin. The students received 4^th place out of the 45,000 state competitors.

The theme of this year’s Texas History Day was “Innovation in History.” For their submissions, students in 6^th through 12^th grade had a choice of submitting performances, Web sites, historical papers, documentaries or exhibits in accordance with the theme.

  PHOTO CAPTION (Left to Right): Rebecca Gold, Shelby Johnson, Amy Lytle, Corinne Kowald

 

About Texas History Day

Texas History Day, the official Texas affiliate of the National History Day program, is a yearlong education program that culminates in an annual state-level history fair for students in grades six through twelve. It provides an opportunity for students to develop their knowledge of history and their critical thinking, analytical reading and writing, presentation, media design, and public performance skills through creative and original papers, performances, documentaries, web sites or exhibits.  The Texas State Historical Association coordinates the Texas competition, which involves over 45,000 young Texans statewide. The 2010 event was co-hosted by the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum and The University of Texas at Austin College of Education. Over 1,000 students participate in the state level History Day contest with approximately 60 students representing Texas at National History Day each year in Washington, D.C.

Hydraulic hand promises Hulk handshakes

Injured soldiers and people with disabilities might one day benefit from a hydraulic hand that doubles finger strength. Scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory say a "mesofluidic" hand could be used to remotely disarm explosives and manipulate IEDs.

Mesofluidics is the study of applying pea-size hydraulics to applications requiring significant power in a limited space.

So far, the team at the Tennessee laboratory has developed an artificial finger made up of 25 moving parts. It can deliver 20 pounds of pinch force, about double that of a human finger, while remaining lightweight and rugged.

Key innovations were a small, 200 psi hydraulic pump that produces about 30 watts of hydraulic power, as well as miniature high-performance valves that control motion.

The next stage in development is a full hydraulic hand. It could have prosthetic applications similar to DARPA's Revolutionizing Prosthetics Program--described in this "60 Minutes" video--which aims to create an artificial arm with full motor and sensory functions.

Prosthetic technology hasn't advanced much in decades, but current wars and new technologies are changing that. Prosthetics maker OrthoCare Innovations is working with the Oak Ridge team to use mesofluidics for boosting strength in weakened elbows and knees.

But a more intriguing use would be telerobotics. Though robots have been developed for mine detection and disposal, the hydraulic hand could have unparalleled dexterity as a remote-controlled device.

An artist's rendering of a mesofluidic "glove."

(Credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

The Oak Ridge scientists are designing a glove with a mesofluidic exoskeleton that will be linked to a remote hydraulic hand with force feedback. Users would be able to roughly feel what the remote hand is manipulating.

That might save some lives--and prevent some expensive robots from getting blown up.

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