Analysis and Design of a Bypass Socket for Transradial Amputations

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Prosthetics and Orthotics

Background:

• Functional performance assessment of prostheses is limited by the lack of standardized testing platforms.
• Novel mounting solutions, such as bypass sockets, are needed to enable testing by able-bodied participants, expanding the evaluation pool.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an open-source, 3D-printable bypass socket for transradial amputations.
• To propose and utilize the Assessment of Capacity for Myoelectric Control (ACMC) to quantify bypass socket effectiveness.
• To evaluate the suitability of the bypass socket for extended use in prosthesis development.

Main Methods:

• Developed an open-source, 3D-printable bypass socket for below-elbow (transradial) amputations.
• Administered the Assessment of Capacity for Myoelectric Control (ACMC) to six able-bodied subjects.
• Conducted a secondary evaluation using a subset of Cybathlon competition tasks to assess fatigue and suitability for extended use.

Main Results:

• Able-bodied participants demonstrated "non-" to "somewhat capable" performance on the ACMC with the bypass socket.
• All participants successfully completed Cybathlon-derived tasks, indicating the bypass socket's suitability for prolonged testing.
• The developed bypass socket is validated as a functional tool for prosthetic research.

Conclusions:

• The open-source, 3D-printable bypass socket facilitates the development and evaluation of upper limb prosthetic systems.
• The ACMC provides a clinically relevant method for quantifying functional performance with bypass sockets.
• This bypass socket design supports extended use, crucial for iterative prosthetic development and research.