Arm-Machine Interface
A family down the street moved when I was a young child. I remember standing on the sidewalk, watching the movers haul the stuff out of their house and pack it into the truck.
One of the professional movers intrigued me. He had mechanical arms, but didn’t let that stop him. He was in there, hauling away with the best of them.
Even though he didn’t have hands, he was very skilled with the prosthesis. There might have been something he couldn’t do with his hooks, but there was nothing about packing and moving a house full of possessions that fazed him. Even folding baby clothes and neatly placing them in a box was done just as fast and deftly as anyone I’ve ever seen.
I spoke to him briefly. He said that he was a veteran of Korea.
That isn’t him, obviously. Instead it is Sergeant Mary Dague, a veteran of a much different war, that took part someplace very far from Korea. Her story is here.
I was thinking of that mover from long ago, and about Sgt. Dague’s efforts that are occurring right now, when I read this blog post. Sensors placed on a large muscle group can be used to send signals to a wearable computer, opening doors or controlling an MP3 device.
The mover I encountered would be in his mid-90’s now, if he is still alive. But I bet Sgt. Dague will be able to find some use for inventions such as this.