With Inail and Sant'Anna, new studies to improve the lives of amputees
di Martina D'Onofrio
7 May 2021 - There are three projects started at theUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma in collaboration with the Inail Prosthesis Center in Budrio (BO) and with the participation of Sant'Anna High School of Pisain the field of bionic upper limb prostheses. "WiFi-MyoHand" will develop a new bionic prosthesis with sensory feedback thanks to a completely implantable and wireless neural stimulation system; "RGM5" it will develop new bionic surgery procedures for adapting the amputee's body to the most innovative prostheses and restore proprioception; "3DAID" will create innovative low-cost hand prostheses and orthoses thanks to the use of advanced rapid prototyping techniques with 3D printing.
"The launch of the projects in collaboration with Inail and Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna di Pisa is a very important moment for theUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma – has ofchiarato the general manager Ucbm Andrea Rossi - We are proud to be able to develop some of our most ambitious projects with historical and prestigious partners. At the end of a difficult year, which opens up to great future opportunities, strengthening existing scientific collaboration relationships means having the possibility of carrying out initiatives with a great future social impact, aware that the search for solutions for the health and well-being of the person is central element in our mission as a university".
- WiFi-MyoHand - Implantable system optimized for interfacing with the peripheral nervous system and the control of the upper limb prosthesis
Head: professor Loredana Zollo
Co-responsible: eng. Francesca Cordella
The project aims to restore tactile sensitivity through implanted neural interfaces and innovative fully implantable and wireless peripheral stimulation solutions. He also wants to improve prosthesis control through high-density electromyography electrode grids and advanced muscle signal processing techniques. The work of the different teams will focus on the development of a fully implantable neural stimulation system to allow the use of the prosthesis at home and highly dexterous prosthesis control in carrying out daily life tasks, thanks to the newfound tactile sensitivity.
- RGM5 - (Re)-Give Me Five, Exploring new frontiers in prosthetic surgery
Head: prof. Vincenzo Denaro
Co-responsible: prof. Vincenzo Di Lazzaro and prof. Giovanni Di Pino
It focuses on the stump of the upper limb of the amputee and works on the development of bionic surgery procedures for revision and functionalization of the stump such as Targeted Muscle Reinnervation (TMR) and osseointegration, in order to make it capable of accommodating modern bionic prostheses. The project operates simultaneously in the clinical and engineering fields linked to sensory feedback in the proprioceptive field. It also aims to activate a Bionic Surgery center at the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital which is a national point of reference for limb amputee patients.
- 3D-AID - Hand prostheses and low-cost exoskeletal robotic aids
Head: professor Loredana Zollo (CREO Lab)
Co-responsible: eng. Fabrizio Taffoni
The project intends to develop innovative and low-cost hand prostheses and exoskeletons, thanks to the use of advanced rapid prototyping techniques with 3D printing. Starting from the study of human biomechanics, the project outlines customized prosthesis and orthotic solutions for the patient, designed and manufactured through an innovative 3D printing process that integrates the enabling technologies of the IoT (Internet of Things) such as "additive manufacturing", “virtual modeling” and “cloud”. The role of the Inail Prosthesis Center in Budrio (Bo) and its branch in Lamezia Terme will be decisive in defining the manufacturing process with latest generation 3D printing and the experimental verification of the developed technologies.
