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5-Year-Old Without Fingers Receives Custom ‘Robohand’ Made Using 3D Printer and $150 in Parts

Feb. 7, 2013 7:23am Liz Klimas

A 5-year-old South African boy is learning to use a new prosthetic hand made specially for him thanks to a 3D printer and the work of two men 10,000 miles apart with the common goal of creating prosthetics for finger amputees.

South African Boy Liam Gets 3D Printed Prosthetic Hand

Liam using his “robohand” to pick up objects. (Image: YouTube screenshot)

Liam was born with Ambiotic Band Syndrome and therefore had no fingers on his right hand. Richard Van As in South Africa, who lost four of his own fingers in an accident in 2011, worked to help create a custom prosthetic for the boy that would also serve for the basis of creating a prototype for a prosthetic of his own.

Liam was born without fingers on his right hand. (Image: Coming Up Short Handed)

The journey of this prosthetic for Liam began in 2011 when Van As was researching prosthetics for himself after his accident and came across a design by Ivan Owen, a costume/prop maker living in Washington state. According to the about section of their blog — Coming Up Short Handed — they have been working together to design affordable prosthetics ever since, mostly via Skype and through email.

Ivan Owen and Richard Van As have met in person to work on their prosthetic designs but most of the work was done via Skype and email as they live 10,000 miles away from each other. (Image: Coming Up Short Handed)

Liam’s “robohand” is the final product of their initial work. Popular Science has more on what went into creating the device:

The result is a way to blend low-tech mechanics and fast prototyping with 46 parts — sixteen 3-D-printed pieces, 28 off the shelf (which included nylon cord, nuts and bolts, elastic, and rubber thimbles). The 3-D parts were made possible by Makerbot, which donated two 3-D printers, one each for Van As and Owen so they could swap CAD files as they refined the designs.

In a recent blog post, the men said that they’ve posted the designs on Thingiverse, an open source site where 3D printer designs can be shared, and they’ve been receiving requests from others wanting help with their devices.

Liam is only a few days into using his new prosthetic. Just three days after receiving the final device, Liam can pick up objects as small as a coin.

Liam stacking coins with his prosthetic hand. (Image: YouTube screenshot)

Watch Liam use his robohand:

Here’s an earlier look at the formation of Liam’s hand:

Aside from major equipment and tools, the parts to create the hand cost $150. Liam’s hand was produced with no charge to his parents. The group is seeking more funds to replenish what was raised before in order to keep new projects going.

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Comments (36)

Apexduck
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 10:09pm
Too bad Obamacare will make these sort of “home remedies” punishable with jail time. Thou shall not go around the government insurance process or the government ordained healthcare providers. Goons! Seize that boys hand!

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sizzlinsexybeckster
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 9:35pm
Great! That hand will come in handy when he smacks those perverts in airport security.

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LakeHartwellSailor
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 3:09pm
Gotta hand it to em……

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- PATTY HENRY
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:48pm
  Devices like this will make monkeys out of the MEDICAL THUGS who have been soaking us for
  a decade with their THEFT called Medical equipment!! OH how much fun it is to watch….who would have ever conceived of a 3D …whatever it is!???? I remember picking up the phone and saying
  ” please ring xyz” of course I was 2 years old…but I remember. WHO knows where this will lead!!!
  I like the gun-producing 3D… confiscate that Obama !
  
  Report this comment
silentme63
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 2:26pm
in any hospital the cost would be six million three hundred thousand dollars…

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Joss
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 2:24pm
What a zero class thing to say. Piss off.

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- westtitus
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 5:05pm
  I don’t think it was a bad thing to say, it was the truth. I have a handicapped son and everything costs thousands and thousands of dollars and they shouldn’t.
  
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Saff SGT
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 2:19pm
i want the printer that makes AR15s and 100 round magazines, we will need them soon

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Ghandi was a Republican
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 12:52pm
I wonder if his little buddies wish they they were born without fingers now. He just became the coolest kid in school. It’s more than fingers they did for this little boy.

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- DiscGo
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 1:06pm
  That is beautifully put.
  
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Diego Roswell
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 12:42pm
We’re sorry but the POLITBURO feels that high capacity prosthetics (hands with more than one finger and one thumb) are too dangerous and must be regulated to government employees only at this time.

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Zenonic The Great
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 10:38am
Beautiful!

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thegreatcarnac
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 10:32am
I am glad for the boy. I am also in awe of that “printer”. That is great.

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theonlynana
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 9:17am
Once again “Blaze” has come up with a story first in the am to make ones day. The boy is just so damn cute and brave. TY

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mcmeador
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 9:10am
Does Glenn Beck own a huge share in a 3D printer company? I’m pretty sure I’ve ever seen so many 3D printer stories in one place.

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- Muddywood
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 2:19pm
  Because it’s the future. It will change everything.
  
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bimzer
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:58am
A real question, is he 3D printer used in in this process and therefor all 3D printers, SLA, FMD, or perhaps all machine tools subject to the Medical Device Tax? How about any manufacturing asset potentially involved in the manufacture or distribution of devices?

How low can you go? Raw Materials? Or just retail?

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- T-2
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 9:09am
  Don’t give them any more tax ideas…Crap, i think i just trigger the tracking by using the words tax and idea.
  
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- MGrilla
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 10:13am
  I’m sure it won’t be long before a screw driver counts as a medical device. Their going to need all the revenue they can get since there’s ” no spending problem in Washington”.
  
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HigherRoad
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:50am
Yes, they DID make that! God-given ingenuity at its best!

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- Calm Voice of Reason
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 12:26pm
  And no small credit due to the ecology of the Open Source hardware community! Go Free Culture!
  
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- HigherRoad
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:27pm
  VERSEOFREASON–Why don’t you tell Him that when you stand before His Judgement Throne?
  
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- Dad1
  Posted on February 9, 2013 at 4:06am
  This is Liams dad I am replying to the idiots comment not yours Higherroad I agree with your comment fully , Hey bud that is my son you have just called evil , I DONT TAKE LIGHTLY TO PEOPLE making comments and remarks about my kid , he is not evil nor the device that he is wearing , this child has lived for 5 years doing what he can with just one hand its amazing how he copes , he has always got a smile on his face never lets anything get him down ,do you know what it is like to sit and watch your two other brothers play baseball and cricket and you cant hold a bat to play with them , or they are sitting playing playstation and you cant really hold the controller properly no wait you dont , you have all your limbs and fingers and toes so how could you , my advice to you is keep your mouth shut until you actually know what you are talking about you idiot .
  
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biohazard23
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:14am
Awesome. :)

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- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:33am
  Morning BIOHAZARD, that it is.
  
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NoMoMrNiceGuy
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:12am
Way cool

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bikerdogred1
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:11am
Off course they will have to pay a tax to obamacare,because that is a medical device 2.7%.That is a great kid and I wish him the best of luck.

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- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:34am
  Considering the medical device taxes, he should count his lucky stars that he is in South Africa.
  
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DZ-015
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:01am
Gotta hand it to them; this is great.

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ginger100
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:47am
Priceless

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justangry
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:38am
I need one of those printers. Walmart fishing lures suck.

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Moozmom
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:34am
Very exciting article!
I can see it all now: Government begins suing adults with these types of applicances because the applicance might not be “safe” according to the government. This blessing of an applicance will be looked upon as a curse by government officials until they can find a way to tax it out of existence.

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- AZgirl9000
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:52am
  Yes, we definitely need to put a stop to people helping people. (These two men DID build this!). Obama and Pelosi’s Obamacare Medical Device Tax is a great start. Let me wet my pencil here… we only got $150 in parts. Uh, sounds like too many people could be helped with this. Let’s add a federal tax of let’s say $16,000 per device. Yeah, that sounds about right. We should be able to squash this type of innovation pretty quickly.
  
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sparkyrules
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:30am
TY Blaze:) Carry on.

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Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on February 7, 2013 at 7:29am
Now this is the kind of stories I love to read, it shows how American ingenuity can help so many others from the youngest to the oldest, despite the growing madness of Obama.

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- AbrahamsSheepdog
  Posted on February 7, 2013 at 8:02am
  Wholeheartedly agree.
  
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