Community Prosthetic Fitting Initiative — Design Refinement Discussion
Hi to the engineers and contributors! We're coordinating a community prosthetic fitting initiative and would love to bring your expertise into our design refinement process.
Background
Based on current open-source prosthetic landscape research, we've identified several active projects:
- MichiganNeuroProsthetics/BlueBionics — Open-source 3D-printed prosthetic arms for kids (Silverhand series, C++/GPL-3.0, 3⭐, 6 forks)
- turing-lab/GalileoHandMechanical — Low-cost (<$100) DIY 3D-printed bionic hand with myoelectric control (Guatemala-based, HTML/GPL-3.0, 2⭐, 1 fork)
- Percyus14/Open-source-prosthetic-arm — Raspberry Pi-based open-source prosthetic with 3D printed parts
Goal
Establish a regular design refinement discussion thread to:
- Share fitting challenges and field feedback from community users
- Iterate on modular/parametric designs for better accessibility
- Coordinate volunteer efforts across the Boston-Cambridge-Somerville metro area
- Align on standards for 3D-printable files, electronics integration, and testing protocols
Discussion Topics
- Standardizing modular connector systems across different amputation levels
- Material selection for durability and comfort in community-fit devices
- Simplifying assembly instructions for non-expert volunteers
- Integration of low-cost myoelectric control (surface EMG) options
- Playing to each project's strengths for a coordinated ecosystem
Community Event Planning
We're organizing a central community fitting event in the Boston/Cambridge/Somerville area. Volunteers from all three cities need a convenient, accessible meeting point. Primary candidate:
- O'Connell Branch Library (Cambridge, 48 Sixth Street, 02141) — wheelchair accessible, open Mon/Fri 10am-6pm, Tue-Thurs 10am-8pm
Meeting Format: In-person working sessions + virtual check-ins for distributed contributors
Who should join: Mechanical engineers, 3D printing specialists, occupational therapists, prosthetic users, and community organizers
Next Steps
- Schedule first working session at the community venue
- Establish a shared design repository/documentation standard
- Identify 2-3 priority design challenges to tackle in Q1
Thank you for your work making prosthetic technology accessible!
Community Prosthetic Fitting Initiative — Design Refinement Discussion
Hi to the engineers and contributors! We're coordinating a community prosthetic fitting initiative and would love to bring your expertise into our design refinement process.
Background
Based on current open-source prosthetic landscape research, we've identified several active projects:
Goal
Establish a regular design refinement discussion thread to:
Discussion Topics
Community Event Planning
We're organizing a central community fitting event in the Boston/Cambridge/Somerville area. Volunteers from all three cities need a convenient, accessible meeting point. Primary candidate:
Meeting Format: In-person working sessions + virtual check-ins for distributed contributors
Who should join: Mechanical engineers, 3D printing specialists, occupational therapists, prosthetic users, and community organizers
Next Steps
Thank you for your work making prosthetic technology accessible!