Steven Collins: New prosthetics should be better than the real thing

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A mechanical engineer explains how more and better data is helping to create new prosthetics unlike any before.

For years prosthetic limbs were merely functional devices, but recent advances in robotics and neuroscience are transforming the very meaning of the word "prosthetic."

Steve Collins is a mechanical engineer who is helping to lead that transformation to the benefit of people who've had an amputation, stroke or battlefield injury. The field has come a long way since the days of strap-on wooden legs.

Collins says that, rather than trying to merely mimic what the body does, he's working on new ways of discovering prosthetic limb designs that outperform unimpaired bodies. His team uses advanced robotic systems that record and analyze the wearer's response, continually tuning their mechanical assistance to optimize performance and make them better than ever before.

Join host Russ Altman and Steve Collins for a glimpse into the changing world of prosthetics on the latest episode The Future of Everything radio show. You can listen to The Future of Everything on Sirius XM Insight Channel 121, iTunes, Google Play, SoundCloud, Spotify, Stitcher or via Stanford Engineering Magazine.
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