Prosthetic Hunting Hand
Finally, to fire the gun, the hunting hand is equipped with a cable activated trigger finger. The trigger finger is designed with an off-center cable mount, so the cable pulls the finger back. The trigger finger's joint also has a backstop so that it cannot over extend. To prevent accidental firing of the gun, the trigger finger is spring-loaded open. This way as the hunter moves, the finger cannot fall and hit the gun's trigger. If the trigger finger was not equipped with the spring, the hunter may also be able to squeeze the trigger to easily, accidentally firing the gun; however, the spring-loaded finger causes the finger to stay off the trigger until strong, intentional force is applied to the cable.
The hunting hand will once again enable Veterans to safely enjoy hunting.
When aiming and shooting a gun, most gun's grips/stocks are angled ~30 degrees, so the hunting hand is angled to match. The angled hand provides a more natural grip on the gun so the user can aim and shoot the gun comfortably.
For this CAD challenge I had to design a prosthetic hand that would improve the life of Veterans. For full contest details see: VA Innovation Creation Series: Challenge #1
The hunting hand was made so Veterans would be able to shoot a gun while hunting. A Veteran with an upper extremity amputation may have lost his dominant hand, which would disable him from easily using a gun. The hunting hand is very simple and is designed to be compatible with most guns.
Another of the 3D CAD challenges I participated in was the VA Innovation Creation Series: Challenge #1 hosted by GrabCAD.
Hunting hand side view
To grasp the gun with the hunting hand, the bottom three fingers (middle, ring, and pinky finger) are able to move. These fingers are hinged together at the top of the hand's palm and the hinge is controlled by a turnbuckle on the back of the hand. The turnbuckle, when spun, opens or closes the the hand, which provides an easy way to quickly tighten the grip on the gun's grip/stock so that the gun is secure in the hunters hand. The turnbuckle also allows the hunting hand to be compatible with many gun grip/stock sizes, since it can easily be adjusted to fit any size. In addition to grasping the the grip/stock the hunting hand also provides side to side support on the gun using the thumb. The thumb is stationery, that way when the turnbuckle is tightened, the grip/stock is secured between the fingers and the thumb, keeping the gun from slipping out of the hand's grasp as well as keeping the gun stable for shooting accuracy.
Hunting hand
Hunting hand front view
To view my challenge entry visit: https://grabcad.com/library/hunting-hand-1 or view it below on this webpage.
An interactive 3D view of the hunting hand is available under "files" on my challenge entry page.
I received an Honorable Mention for my hunting hand entry (Challenge results).
Results:
