Smart Hand is a highly innovative, interdisciplinary project, combining forefront research from material sciences, bio- and information technologies with cognitive neuroscience to solve a major societal problem, namely; the development of an artificial hand displaying all the basic features of a real human hand.
The successful realisation of this highly visionary project requires crossing the boundaries of distinct scientific fields, merging forefront expertise of the consortium combines and use of state-of-the-art research results from relevant fields, to improve quality of life for disabilities by improving mobility and diminishing phantom pains associated with amputees.
The Smart Hand prosthesis could have major impacts on rehabilitation of amputates. People that have lived through a traumatic amputation often encounter sever depressions as a result of a distorted self-image and fear for social rejection. Further is it also common with phantom pains, forcing the amputee taking heavy painkillers and thus complicating a comeback to the labour market.
Unfortunately, does not phantom pains diminish with time. However, it has been shown that electric stimulation of the nerves has a positive and pain killing effect. We believe that a neural interface with recording and stimulating capability could significantly improving quality of life by relieving the phantom pains. Further could the functional artificial hand help to restore self-image and social acceptance by the user. An artificial hand or the robotic hand that restore functionality could be of great importance for rehabilitating disabled amputees back to work.