Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Date of Degree Completion

Spring 2016

Department

Mechanical Engineering Technology

Committee Chair

Charles Pringle

Second Committee Member

Roger Beadsley

Third Committee Member

Craig Johnson

Fourth Committee Member

Tedman Bramble

Abstract

While, some human beings are born normal others have lost limbs at birth or through an event in their life. The main focuses will be on designing and building a better prosthetic finger, to obtain at least 2 to 6 pounds of force when it’s contracted. Calculations and specifications were solved for first in order to build the prosthetic, as the prosthetic finger was compared to past prosthetics. The prosthetic finger was first constructed as a 3D model on SolidWorks to virtually test its movements and limitations. After, the prosthetic finger was tested virtually the components specified were either ordered, machined, and 3D printed. Then the equipment needed was gathered to build and test the prosthetic finger as a whole in real life. There were several tests taken, but the two main ones were to test how it functions as a whole and how much force it can apply. The first test was a success by the power source sending a signal to the Arduino, which then activated a coding process to rotate two spiral bevel gears, which then caused a fish line wire to contract, and caused the prosthetic finger to close. The prosthetic finger was tested by the use of a load cell to obtain how much force is being applied over time. From the success of the test conclusions were made to verify that the prosthetic finger project was a success for further development and research.

Comments

Project web site: http://jose4garcia24.wix.com/grabandgo

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