Getting A High-State Bionic Hand, Athens Paralympic Athletes 2004: Change My Life And Children

Bionic hand illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/The Johns Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory)

JAKARTA - Australian swimmer Jessica Smith has had an uncomfortable relationship with prosthetic body parts since childhood accidents, but her belief is challenged by British bionic hands that can be updated remotely, anywhere in the world.

The 2004 Athens Paralympic athlete was born without his left hand. His parents are advised to install prosthetics to help with his development.

However, the device actually caused an incident with a boiling mantel when a toddler, so he suffered burns 15 percent of his body.

"There's always a relationship between the fact that this prosthetic aid doesn't really help, it creates the most traumatic event of my life," he said.

But his curiosity grew when he was approached by Covvi, who is based in Leeds, North England, to try his Nexus 'hand'.

Knowing it would be an emotional challenge, Smith was paired with a device in April at the age of 37.

"I think I'm ready to try something like this," he said.

The bionic hand converts the electric impulses of the muscles in the upper arm, into a motor-driven movement in the hand, allowing the user to hold the glass, open the door or pick up the egg.

Simon Pollard, who founded Covvi five years ago, said he wanted to add bluetooth to his device, to allow company specialists to update it via apps.

"The fact that we can change some of the things customers want remotely, is a very strong and first marketed thing," explained Pollard.

Some rival bionic hands can be controlled by the app, but Pollard said the ability to speak with one device distinguishes Nexus.

To do so, anonymous data is collected for each user, a task managed by NetApp partners. Pollard said Covvi had registered 27 distributors globally, including in Australia, China, and the United States, and he aims to increase monthly production to 100.

Smith, who is a speaker and child writer, said Covvi had created a new movement for him.

"I had a few kids ask if I could do a different hand gesture, some wasn't very polite," he said. "I asked Covvi this morning, and I know it will be done in the next few hours."

He said the technology not only changed his life, but also changed the lives of his three children.

"They thought it was amazing and I was like half-human-half-robots."

He added that the 'bionic' appearance from the hand was an attraction, given his pride in differences.

"I'm not trying to hide who I am, add and expand who I am by being able to access technology that's never been available before."