Bionic hand 'sees and grabs' objects automatically

A bionic hand that "sees" objects and instantly decides what kind of grip to adopt has been developed by scientists.

A computer uses a camera to assess an object's shape and size to then trigger the correct movement to pick it up.

The technology was developed at Newcastle University and has been trialled by a small number of amputees.

Dr Kianoush Nazarpour, a senior lecturer in biomedical engineering at the university, said the bionic hand can "respond automatically".

'Intuitive hand'

The device could spark a new generation of prosthetic limbs giving the wearer the ability to grip objects without the use of their brain, researchers say.

Dr Nazarpour said: "Prosthetic limbs have changed very little in the past 100 years.

"Responsiveness has been one of the main barriers to artificial limbs.

Dr. Kianoush Nazarpour has praised the "intuitive" hand that can seemingly react without thinking.

"For many amputees the reference point is their healthy arm or leg so prosthetics seem slow and cumbersome in comparison.

"Now, for the first time in a century, we have developed an 'intuitive' hand that can react without thinking."

The team, whose work is reported in the Journal of Neural Engineering, programmed the hand to react within milliseconds and perform four different "grasps" suitable for picking up a cup, holding a TV controller, and gripping objects with a thumb and two fingers or a pinched thumb and first finger.