New Prosthetic Socket Designs for Transradial Amputee: Experiment without Healthy Subjects and Amputee

Abstract

The socket is the most critical component of the prosthesis because it plays an important role in fitting of residual limbs of an amputee and transferring loads to prosthetic devices. In a humid environment, forces occurring inside the prosthetic socket due to reduced ventilation, long-time overloading, and changes in the volume of the residual limb's size represent the main reasons for the higher rejection rate of wearing prosthesis. Therefore, the study affords two prosthetic socket designs for transradial amputations (Elliptical Spring shaped and Mustard inspired sockets) with certain design considerations and attributes to overcome the stated rejection reasons. The first design is inspired by the helical spring, and the other design is inspired by the morphology of the mustard flower's petals. The vibration transmissibility of the 3D printed sockets without needing human subjects is achieved experimentally by using affordable techniques and tools to assess and validate the designs, primarily. Index terms: iDynamics App, prosthetic socket, residual limb, transradial amputation, vibrations