Create the Future Design Contest
From: NASA Tech Briefs - 11/2011

Electronics Category Winner

iPecs

The College Park Industries iPecs (Intelligent Prosthetic Endo-Skeletal
Component System) is a medical research device that will provide researchers
with a tool to accurately measure human locomotion or gait parameters on
users of lower limb prostheses. The iPecs measures forces and torsionmoments
that can then be wirelessly transmitted in real time to a PC interface. This
wireless capability of the iPecs will, for the first time, allow
environmentally unencumbered re search to be conducted outside of the
laboratory, providing insight into what a prosthesis user experiences on a
daily basis. 

Read the entire article at:
http://contest.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/1926

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Electronics Category Honorable Mention

SSB Hearing Aid

The most common form of deafness occurs as a diminished ability of the ear to
detect certain tones and separate some tones from others. The difficult tones
are usually in the higher pitches. Single Sideband (SSB) technology can shift
the pitch of any audible sound to any other pitch without latency.  

Read the entire article at:
http://contest.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/1200

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Medical Category Honorable Mention

X-Fingers Functional Artificial Fingers

X-Fingers enable finger amputees to control the move ment of each replaced
phalange. The devices move as quickly as real fingers, restoring considerable
strength and dexterity. The devices are body-powered and no batteries or
motors are needed, enabling uninterrupted use. The devices replace 1 to 10
missing fingers lost at any length. No surgery is needed; they can be applied
and removed like a glove. Once applied, a cosmetic cover fits over the
assembly for added realism. 

Read the entire article at:
http://contest.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/1287