New bionic fingertip can ‘feel’ texture

Using a bionic finger, researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology In Lausanne (EPFL) have developed a way for amputees to feel texture. It is an innovation that could potentially lead to better prosthetics. "The stimulation felt almost like what I would feel with my hand," said amputee Dennis Aabo Sørensen in an EPFL statement released on Tuesday. Using the EPFL device, Sørensen has become the first person in the world to feel texture using a bionic fingertip. In experiments, he was able to distinguish between rough and smooth textures with 96% accuracy. To achieve this breakthrough, researchers Silvestro Micera, from EPFL and SSSA (Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna), and Calogero Oddo from SSSA surgically connected their bionic fingertip to the upper arm of an amputee. When the fingertip is passed over a textured piece of plastic, sensors generate electrical signals that mimic the activity of real human nerve cells. Just like the real thing ...