Out of all my projects, this one has to be the one I am most proud of. At 10 years old, Julian Reynoso was involved in a deadly car accident leaving extensive burns across his body. In addition, he lost significant portions of both hands, making his life extremely difficult for a growing boy. From 2018-2019, a Cal Poly SLO senior project team had worked with Julian to build him a bionic prosthetic hand. I highly encourage you to read more about this remarkable young man and the senior project team through this article.

I was unfortunately not part of this team. Instead, I happened to work for Julian's uncle, Adolfo, during my internship at Cokreeate. He mentioned that Julian did not use the prosthetic hand that the senior project team made for him since it was very heavy and slow. He then tasked me with designing a hand for Julian to help him navigate his daily life. He is a growing boy who is bound to run around and play, so he needed something light, portable, and durable. Additionally, he needed something that could grow with him. That's when I began my research. 

Immediately I was intrigued by the anatomy of the human hand. It was there that I drew inspiration for flexible hinges in order to create an a prosthetic that strongly resembles a hand. I also decided to use a string tensioning system to simulate the tendons which control the fingers. The following video details my daily design updates as recorded from my snapchat. 

In the end, I unfortunately did not get to see the project to completion. I had just gotten the hand to a spot I felt good about but then it was time for me to return back to Cal Poly so this project was put on hold indefinitely. Hopefully one day I will get to see this project through and help change Julian's life for the better.