Jose Delgado Jr. has long been familiar with prosthetics since he was born missing a severe amount of his left hand. One of his most recent models, a myoelectric prosthesis, cost thousands of dollars and affords him a weak grip powered by his forearm muscles. 3D printing on the other hand offered a prosthetic with a seemingly comic book, superhero inspired name, the Cyborg Beast. With a total cost of $50 for the prosthetic (printer sold separately) Delgado’s new 3D printed prosthetic hand proved more functional and stronger than his latest myoelectric hand.
The design for the Cyborg Beast arrived after a consolidated creative effort, derived from the Robohand by Ivan Owen and Richard van As. The final product requires a few hardware pieces, Velcro and padding. Yet with these extra materials, the price still sits at $50 versus the “high-tech” myoelectric prosthetic over $40,000.
With Cyborg Beast Delgado can now trust using his left hand to drive. At some point in the near future, it will seem absurd for those with access not to take such full advantage of 3D printing. As is the case with the Cyborg Beast, 3D printing not only offers a functional replacement, but an improvement over what until recently would be considered cutting-edge technology. More stories in mainstream media hail 3D printing as the technology of the future, yet it is apparent that 3D printing is here now, ready for the willing.
