Few people figure out how they want to change the world in middle school. But in eighth grade, Peter 鈥淢ax鈥� Armstrong did just that.
As part of a robotics project, his teacher prompted him to solve a problem in medicine. He talked to a family friend, a double amputee and prosthetist听and learned the most expensive and time-consuming part of a prosthetic limb is the socket, which connects to the residual limb. Since then, Armstrong has worked for years鈥攎ostly on his own鈥攖o create an alternative.
鈥淚t's something that can have a huge impact on people around the world, and can really improve their daily lives,鈥� said Armstrong, now a third-year student in 兔子先生传媒文化作品鈥檚 Department of Mechanical Engineering.
About two million Americans are amputees, and many鈥攅ven those with health insurance鈥攈ave trouble affording prosthetics. Typically, the cost of the prosthetic socket ranges from $3,000 to听$5,000听but can cost as much as $20,000 for more difficult fittings. The fitting process requires multiple trips to the prosthetist over two weeks to a couple months. In developing countries, a majority of amputees lack access to prosthetics.
In Armstrong鈥檚 system, the prosthetist selects the best fitting socket from a series of pre-manufactured plastic shells of varying sizes. Then, the inside of the shell is filled with an expanding foam that helps form a precise fit. This socket can be produced in just 30 minutes听and costs about $200. Armstrong鈥檚 successfully tested the system with three below-knee amputees so far.
In his garage, he tested different materials and designs to create an affordable and quickly-fitted socket. He patented three years ago, a system that drastically reduces the time and cost associated with fitting a prosthetic.
鈥淚'm getting to the end of the design process and realizing that I've come out with a project that has a pretty good potential to change the way that amputees are able to move,鈥� said Armstrong.
This year, Armstrong鈥檚 project is a finalist in , and, if he鈥檚 chosen as one of four winners, he鈥檒l get $25,000 to further his mission. He is hoping the grant would help fund a larger clinical trial to get more feedback on the system. Although the fitting is inexpensive compared to traditional prosthetics, it鈥檚 still hard for him to pay for it on his own.
鈥淲hat I'm trying to do is just make things easier for people who have already had more difficulties than most people normally experience,鈥� said Armstrong. 鈥淚 think that if I鈥檓 able to get this into the final stages and bring it to market, I can really improve things for a lot of people who really weren鈥檛 able to walk or weren鈥檛 able to live their daily lives.鈥�
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