Study of the Movements of Active Upper Limb Prostheses

The absence or amputation of an arm presents a significant difficulty, greatly reducing an individual’s autonomy and hindering daily tasks. Current prosthetic devices fail to address user needs, particularly due to insufficient tactile feedback, which limits their grasping capabilities. This paper conducts a thorough literature review on active upper limb prostheses, analyzing movement dynamics and user requirements. It emphasizes key shortcomings in existing prostheses regarding user satisfaction during daily activities and highlights factors contributing to the high rate of device abandonment. The overarching goal is to drive advancements in prosthetic development by improving user satisfaction and creating a prosthetic hand that more closely mimics natural human function. A collection of criteria for upper limb prosthetics is suggested, informed by movement analysis and tailored to user requirements. The objectives are to (i) offer recommendations to enhance prosthetic performance by considering both hand functionality and technical characteristics; (ii) introduce a prosthetic design that optimizes dexterity and mobility; and (iii) refine methods for evaluating user satisfaction with prosthetic devices, thereby offering a clearer understanding of user experience and device performance. These improvements could lead to prostheses that offer greater utility and user satisfaction.