Disney Themed Prosthetic Limbs For Kids Are 3D Printed
Power and incredible technology are only as great as the hands that wield them. That’s a big reason why Disney and Marvel have partnered with groundbreaking UK prosthetic developers Open Bionics to craft some phenomenal kid-friendly artificial limbs befitting amazing children.
It’s a deliberate approach against the grain by Open Bionics to defy the status quo of crafting prosthetics that appear so seamlessly natural, that no one observing at a distance would know they aren’t true flesh and blood. During the Techstars-powered Disney Accelerator Demo Day, Open unveiled the product of their enrollment in the three-month entrepreneurial program that provided them with $120,000 in capital and Disney’s executive leadership’s watchful mentorship: a line of functional electronic artificial arms styled after the unforgettably powerful hands of Marvel’s Iron Man, Disney’s own FROZEN regal Princess Elsa, and a STAR WARS-inspired Jedi knight.
The debut of the project marked Open’s opportunity to court investors, fellow entrepreneurs, leading industry minds and Disney executives with working prototypes of their inventions and services.
In addition to the Walt Disney Company’s direct consultation, Open also benefited from royalty-free access to Disney, Marvel and Lucasfilm characters. Oh, and their team was assisted by both Walt Disney Animation Studios aides and the xLAB division of legendary Industrial Light & Magic.
The Open Bionics team prized affordability of their prosthetics above all else – a principle greatly benefited by not having to pay licensing fees to borrow elements of Disney’s intellectual properties. The resulting 3D-printed artificial hands are fantastic mechanical replicas that can transform a child who might otherwise be plagued by self-conscious insecurities into Marvel’s greatest technological prodigy Tony Stark, Disney’s ice-commanding monarching with a glittering blue and white hand, or a Jedi knight prepared to wield a formidable lightsaber.
via – Open Bionics
