Professor Ivan Vujaklija of Aalto University in Finland is not trying to build a better robotic hand, but a better interface between the person and the prosthesis. According to the researcher, today’s robotic hands are already highly capable, but they are not good prosthetics. The aim is to support users for 30, 40 or 50 years, not just ten.
Controlling prostheses with muscle signals dates back to the 1950s, and traditional systems use only two electrodes, one to open the hand and one to close it. More advanced commercial systems use around 8 to 12 electrodes and algorithms that recognise movements such as pointing or rotating.
Vujaklija’s team uses a dense grid of around 200 electrodes wrapped around the forearm, providing much more detailed muscle data. The work is supported by Helsinki University Hospital (HUS) and industry partners, and the researcher says clinical trials could come sooner than he would have predicted five years ago, largely thanks to advances in artificial intelligence.
The prosthesis is on display in the ‘Designs for a Cooler Planet’ exhibition in the Marsio building on the Otaniemi campus until 30 October 2026.
