reet Journal eastern edition, Sabolich’s use of pressure sensors in artificial feet is explored. To create an awareness of pressure, Sabolich places pressure transducers in the toes and heels of artificial feet. The greater the surface pressure against them, the larger the signal sent on to electrodes that touch the existing portion of a person's leg. Signals from the front and back of the foot go to the front and back of the person's leg, respectively. Researchers report that the user can learn to interpret the varying intensity of signals on the leg as messages that convey the full range of pressure along the foot. One user named John Halavack used the leg to break the record in the 100-meter dash in the Special Olympics. His only comment was “I never knew that feeling the ground could help me run faster.” The performance of the new prostheses is so effective that users report that they experience sensation in entire limbs again--even in their missing portions. Doctors call this phenomenon cerebral projection. Its existence plays an essential role in the natural performance of an artificial leg. Because of cerebral projection, a person using a prosthesis can apply the gas or brake pedal of a car with the same accuracy as a person who has a real leg. The final area in which advancement is being made is seen in the comfort of an artificial limb. The Tracer CAD system, outlined in the May 25th issue of The Des Moines Business Record, is allowing for a better fit of prosthetic limbs. The Tracer CAD is a computerized method of measuring and creating a socket. This program is able to measure with accuracy never seen before. With an error of only one-millimeter, it is helping amputees find a better fitting prosthetic limb. Instead of making a plaster cast, the Tracer Cad is able to measure and relay the information to the production computer, which in turn makes the limb. This new found comfort is making the limbs l...
