Two years after its FDA approval in 2014, the DARPA-funded LUKE arm is preparing for a commercial launch later this year. It has been named the LUKE after Luke Skywalker’s lifelike robotic hand in the Star Wars saga. “We developed the LUKE arm to change the game for amputees – creating an innovative, integrated system that offers greater functionality and independence to our wounded warriors and other amputees”, explained Dean Kamen, President of DEKA in a statement. Another new innovation is the use of foot-mounted inertial measurement sensors connected wirelessly to the arm that offer an alternative means of control.
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The company behind the arm, Mobius Bionics, believe that the product is the most intuitive on the market.
The FDA approved the LUKE arm, formerly called the DEKA arm system, because of its clinically proven ability to perform tasks – such as cooking meals, brushing teeth, and using keys in locks – that the agency said were not possible with existing prosthetic devices.
The LUKE bionic arm will be available in different configurations designed for people with forearm through shoulder-level amputations. The shoulder, elbow, and wrist are all individually powered, allowing the wearer to reach over their head and behind their back. “This innovative prosthesis provides a new option for people with certain kinds of arm amputations”, the FDA said at the time.
Developed by inventor Dean Kamen (yes, the Segway guy) and DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), the LUKE arm offers a level of dexterity and flexibility almost unheard of in prosthesis technology.
Anticipated to be available by the end of 2016, the prosthetic limb is groundbreaking.
The hand itself features four independent motors which offers the flexibility to hold a range of objects, such as a delicate egg or a heavy gallon of milk without the fear of the item slipping or breaking, the announcement explained.
DEKA worked with DARPA and the Department of Veterans Affairs Rehabilitation Research and Development Service to conduct studies to best understand the intersection of biology and engineering, in an effort to advance prosthetic technologies.
Since then, LUKE has been tested by nearly 100 amputees over 10,000 hours of usage. Force sensors in the fingers also give the wearer feedback on how hard they’re gripping.
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Mobius Bionics hasn’t revealed how much the prosthetic will cost, but it will likely be out of reach for those who aren’t well-off.
