With the help of additional support from the IT company Cisco, they were able to hand over 350 hand prostheses in Kyiv.
In Ukraine, the demand for hand prostheses has grown exponentially since the war. Delft researcher Gerwin Smit has designed a 3D-printed hand prosthesis that is affordable and easy to produce for underfunded countries, TU Delft wrote in his statement.
This hand prosthesis is already used in India, so the Indian technology company Vispala donated the 3D printed hand prosthesis designed by Smit to the war victims in Ukraine. With the help of additional support from the American IT company Cisco, they were able to hand over 350 hand prostheses in Kyiv.
Affordable
Biomechanical engineer Gerwin Smit is the designer of the so-called Hundred Dollar Hand. It is a prosthetic hand that can be easily and affordably produced by 3D printing and laser cutting. Because 80 percent of people who need a hand prosthesis live in underfunded countries. Smit’s reliable and functional prosthesis offers a solution for these people.
Gerwin Smit: “I am glad that we can contribute to this wonderful initiative. And I hope that with the help of the Movendi Foundation we can raise enough money to make another donation to Ukraine.”
Distribution in India
Vispala, a social enterprise, created the design for the Hundred Dollar Hand last year, and since 2021 hundreds of them have been made and distributed across India. In the meantime, Gerwin Smit and his team are monitoring the use of these prosthetic hands and gathering feedback to see how they can be made even better.
Hardware, software, tests, interesting and colorful news from the world of IT by clicking here!
