Abstract
This presentation outlines the basic considerations and design objectives established for a modular artificial arm system activated by hydraulic pressure, and energized by a storage battery driving a miniature pump aggregate. The effects of physical disability and the clinical need for functional devices are presented in the light of previous experience with powered artificial limbs at the Rehabilitation Institute of Montreal and elsewhere. As a working example, the prototype hydraulic arms developed and constructed by the Northern Electric Research Laboratories are described in some detail. The engineering philosophy pointing toward the use of hydraulic power was evolved in an effort to exploit the advantageous characteristics of the pneumatic and the electromechanical system, without inheriting some of their innate drawbacks. The main function of the arms is to deliver the terminal devices to the work site; the design of a multifunctional cosmetic hand, developed specifically to be operated by external power, forms an integral part of a total-system approach.
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