Output details

Ambidextrous arm

Performance art

‘Ambidextrous Arm’ is a collaborative research project between the school of arts and the School of Engineering and Design at Brunel University and Shadow Robot, London Robotics Company at Kinetic Art Fair London (2011). The project has since been developed as an "Ambidextrous Arm" iPhone app.

The aims and research involved in this project were both quantitative and qualitative involving engineering, ergonomics and aesthetics. There were six key research objectives that the project achieved:

a) To engineer an universal human-like arm prosthesis that is double jointed and thereby simultaneously right-handed and left-handed;

b) To engineer a more ergonomic. Flexible, less rigid and more user-friendly prosthesis by using pneumatic powered rubber muscles;

c) To engineer prosthesis as a multi-user online platform to enable access and provide therapy for amputees, as well as for possibly managing phantom limb pain;

d) To develop a GUI (Graphical User Interface) that facilitated interaction, making use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter; an augmented reality version has been developed for an iPhone app in collaboration with Scientific Humanities in San Francisco for simulation of an additional ambidextrous limb.

e) To generate new human-machine interaction that extend the library of performance motion and gesture of limb and fingers for example an “eye-in-hand” webcam to allow the arm to provide visual feedback;

f) To develop built-in haptics for more effective user experience in operating the remote limb. Force-feedback would enable a better coupling of the user and the remotely situated prosthesis.

The ultimate aim of the project was to create an intelligent arm able to sense and anticipate the user’s intentions.