These kids are first in world to get special Marvel superhero bionic arms
By James Gamble
Two British children born with partial limbs are the first to be fitted with Spiderman bionic prosthetics developed with help from Marvel and Disney.
Kaden Taylor and Safiyyah Uddin are now able to perform everyday tasks with their specially designed, 3D-printed prosthetics, designed to emulate their favorite superheroes.
The custom-made Peter Parker and Gwen Stacey Spider-Man bionic arms - developed by robotics company Open Bionics - feature myoelectric sensors that detect muscular contractions generated from muscle groups in the arm.
Safiyyah, from East London, had always longed to become more independent and perform activities with both hands.
The eight-year-old, who was born with her arm missing below the elbow, is ecstatic with her pink Hero Arm - which matches her favorite character, Gwen Stacy, aka Spider-Woman.
Safiyyah said: “Sometimes it’s hard holding two books with one hand, and sometimes I drop things.
"I wanted a Hero Arm so I can hold things with both hands."
When Safiyyah first saw her Hero Arm with its Gwen Stacy design, she immediately identified the stencil of her favorite character.
“I love the design, and that you can see the Spider-Man logo and Gwen on the side," she said.
The first thing Safiyyah did with her new arm was to go for a bike ride; saying she loved how her arm matched the colors on her bike.
Asked what she uses the Hero Arm for at school, Safiyyah excitedly explained: “I use it for lots of things: taking my pencils out, my books, carrying my bag and I play cello with it."
The intelligent Hero Arm works by using myoelectric sensors to detect underlying muscular contractions generated from specific muscle groups in the arm.
These muscle contractions are read via sensors on the skin and are then amplified and converted to intuitive bionic hand movements.
Kaden Taylor was similarly born with part of his hand missing, though his mother Colette Taylor explained that her son had always been reluctant to wear any prosthetics.
However, upon being shown the Spider-Man Hero Arm, the nine-year-old from Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, told his mother he would like one.
Taylor got Kaden the prosthetic as a surprise, and her son was shocked and elated when he opened his bionic arm.
Taylor explained that she had always been adamant that she would never hide Kaden's limb difference and would leave the choice of whether to wear an artificial limb up to him.
Despite his previous reluctance to wear a prosthetic, the Spider-Man Hero Arm allows him to ride his bike with more confidence.
“Kaden has never worn any prosthetics… we’ve always offered him options and he always refused," Taylor said.
"But when I showed him the Hero Arm, he shouted, 'Yes please!'"
After inspecting his new prosthetic for the first time, little Kaden exclaimed: “The design is very artistic… I can’t believe I’m the first person in the world to get this!"
As well as the colorful aesthetic based on his favorite superhero, Kaden can now perform two-handed activities with newfound confidence.
“At the moment when he rides his bike, he falls off quite a bit, gets scratches and bruises," Taylor added.
"Having a Hero Arm will make a big difference in things he can do."
Within an hour of being fitted with his new Hero Arm, Kaden was able to enjoy his lunch with both hands, open a packet of crisps, pick up fruit and enjoy a smoothie.
Samantha Payne, co-founder of Open Bionics, said her team was now on the lookout for a 'Miles Morales' - a modern-day Spider-man character, to wear another prosthetic linked to the character.
She said: “We’ve been working with Disney and Marvel for close to a year to create three Spider-Man looks, and we are all beyond excited to see them brought to life by the cool kids Safiyyah and Kaden.
"We are now on the lookout for our Miles Morales.
"If you know a super-fan with a below-elbow limb difference, we want to speak with them."
For more information about the Hero Arm see https://openbionics.com/