An Online Survey on the Perception of Mediated Social Touch Interaction and Device Design.

Social touch is essential for our social interactions, communication, and well-being. It has been shown to reduce anxiety and loneliness; and is a key channel to transmit emotions for which words are not sufficient, such as love, sympathy, reassurance. However, direct physical contact is not always possible due to being remotely located, interacting in a virtual environment, or as a result of a health issue.

Towards Including End-Users in the Design of Prosthetic Hands: Ethical Analysis of a Survey of Australians with Upper-Limb Difference.

Advances in prosthetic design should benefit people with limb difference. But empirical evidence demonstrates a lack of uptake of prosthetics among those with limb difference, including of advanced designs. Non-use is often framed as a problem of prosthetic design or a user's response to prosthetics.

A survey on what Australians with upper limb difference want in a prosthesis: justification for using soft robotics and additive manufacturing for customized prosthetic hands.

Upper limb prostheses are part of a rapidly changing market place. Despite development in device design, surveys report low levels of uptake and dissatisfaction with current prosthetic design. In this study, we present the results of a survey conducted with people with upper limb difference in Australia on their use of current prostheses and preferences in a prosthetic in order to inform future prosthetic hand design.

Reusable Flexible Concentric Electrodes Coated With a Conductive Graphene Ink for Electrotactile Stimulation.

Electrotactile stimulation is a highly promising technique for providing sensory feedback information for prosthetics. To this aim, disposable electrodes which are predominantly used result in a high environmental and financial cost when used over a long period of time. In addition, disposable electrodes are limited in their size and configurations.