Bionic

Scientists in Australia who have spent more than 10 years developing a first-of-a-kind bionic vision system are now eyeing human trials, with the hopes that it could one day help restore vision in those suffering from untreatable blindness.

The human eye is incredibly complex, so it's very hard to reverse engineer. Now researchers have unveiled the world’s first 3D artificial eye, which can not only outperform other devices but has the potential to see better than the real thing.

Amputees wishing to get a powered prosthetic hand – also known as a bionic hand – typically have to wait quite a while for it to be manufactured. Soon, however, they should be able to order a custom bionic hand that's 3D-printed within 10 hours.

Using electroactive polymers and a combination of biological and engineered parts, researchers at the University of Tel Aviv have created a bionic patch for the heart that replaces damaged heart tissue, provides electrical stimulation, and releases medication on demand.

A British woman has been fitted with what's billed as the "world’s most lifelike bionic hand." The bebionic small hand is the first in Steeper's bebionic line of advanced myoelectric hands to be specially designed to fit women and teenagers.

As a taste of things to come at next month's Hannover Messe trade show in Germany, Festo has revealed three new biomimetic creations: a small colony of ants, a gripper modeled on a chameleon's tongue and some fine flyers in the shape of some big blue butterflies.

Researchers from the Medical University of Vienna have developed a technique called "bionic reconstruction" that allows amputees to control a robotic prosthesis with their mind, when there's no neural connection left to exploit between the brain and the part of the hand that remains..

EDAG always creates a concept car demonstrating new thought for the Geneva Motor Show and the 2015 concept offers the ultimate in lightweight engineering. The "Light Cocoon" uses a weatherproof Jack Wolfskin textile stretched over a bionically-inspired trellis frame then back-lights it for effect

Italian start-up Youbionic has created a functional, myoelectric bionic hand using 3D printing and Arduino components. While still at prototype stage, the company says that its research will result in a prosthetic hand that costs a tenth or less than other models on the market.

A French startup has turned to crowdfunding to build an extremely lightweight, smartphone-controlled bionic bird could fly for over a mile on a 12-minute charge.

Bionic hands are too expensive for many amputees, such as a boy that General Electric engineer Lyman Connor met last year. Connor proceeded to design and build a low-cost bionic hand in his home workshop, which he now hopes to get to the boy, if only he can locate him.

Touch Bionics has unveiled the latest enhancements to its i-limb Ultra Revolution at OTWorld 2014 International Congress. Users can now set and assign different grips for different objects and configure the prosthetic hand via Android apps.