The SoftHand Pro-H: A Hybrid Body-Controlled, Electrically Powered Hand Prosthesis for Daily Living and Working

In this article, we study the feasibility of applying the SoftHand technology to a prosthetic device that is suitable for activities of daily living (ADL) and, in particular, some important objectives such as doing work, performing home chores, and participating in hobbies. These applications have specific requirements, such as high grip power; grasp versatility; ruggedness; resilience; resistance to water, dust, and temperature; durability; power autonomy; and low cost. Alternatively, factors like the multiplicity of gestures or aesthetics are less dominant. The intuitiveness of control by the user is a particularly relevant and specific objective of our work. While multiactivation-modalities prostheses use sophisticated myoelectric control to afford versatility and dexterity, most state-of-the-art work-oriented prostheses are body powered (BP). BP prostheses (BPPs) are intuitive to use, have low cost, do not require batteries or motors, and provide useful built-in, sensorless feedback to the user.