We’ve seen 3D-printing used to make incredible objects, ranging from buildings, to teeth and even fooditself, but now bionic limbs are picking up with the launch of the world’s first medically certified 3D-printed artificial arm.

Bristol-based Open Bionics has developed the Hero Arm after extensive trials with NHS England. Now, for the first time, it’s available commercially. But what makes it so unique? See the arm in action below and read on to discover what sets it apart from the rest...

3D printing is a lot quicker and cheaper

From receiving the model to outputting a finished Hero Arm would take about six hours of continuous work but there are hurdles such as checks and quality assurance that make it more like 48 hours to complete one limb.

But on top of that, 3D printing is cost effective compared to traditional prosthetic limbs, making it cheaper for everyone.

What it means to be medically certified

Medical certification is the seal of approval for the Hero Arm, as it protects users from products that might otherwise cause them harm or injury.

“What we’ve done is gone through the medical certification process so that we can sell our product in Europe and the USA,” explained Open Bionics CEO Joel Gibbard.

“This has meant ruthlessly documenting our development process, recording everything that we’ve done, putting the product through all sorts of different tests to make sure, for instance, it’s not going to cause skin irritation, even if worn for prolonged periods of time, that it’s fit for purpose, that it works as advertised and that people are going to be able to use it as an everyday prosthesis.”