Fun With Versimold

Messiah College Students Develop Ingenious & Inexpensive 3D Printed Prosthetic Hand

Messiah College Students Develop Ingenious & Inexpensive 3D Printed Prosthetic Hand

The clever students (Timothy Gover, Jessica Raboci, and Jason Yoder) at Messiah College's School of Science, Engineering, and Health have developed a prototype of an inexpensive prosthetic hand for children with birth defects or deformities. The ingenious aspect is the simplicity of the design and how economically the prosthetics can be developed.

Using a MarkerBot Z18 Replicator 3D printer with PLA plastic, the students put together the prosthetic hand using a design available from Thingverse, a marketplace for 3D printer designs, Versimold as the flat hinges, and added a curved thumb. The entire hand operates via mechanical wrist actions and allows for enough mobility to improve the overall quality of life for its user.

Check out the complete breakdown on this project PDF poster.