LIVINGSTON, Scotland, June 10 /PRNewswire/ - Touch Bionics, developer of the world’s first commercially available bionic hand, announced today that the team behind the development of the i-LIMB Hand has won the 2008 Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award, the UK’s premier award for innovation in engineering.
Last night, Touch Bionics’ i-LIMB Hand was announced as the overall winner of the 2008 MacRobert Award at the Academy’s Annual Awards Dinner in London, beating out innovations from three other finalist companies.
The MacRobert Award, first presented in 1969, recognises the successful development of innovative ideas in engineering. It seeks to demonstrate the importance of engineering and the role of engineers and scientists in contributing to national prosperity and international prestige.
“We are over the moon to have won the 2008 MacRobert Award, which is a huge honour for any engineering-oriented company,” said Touch Bionics CEO Stuart Mead. “To be selected ahead of three other excellent innovations is a real testament to the tremendous level of hard work and incredible engineering skill that has gone into the development of the i-LIMB Hand.”
Launched in 2007, the i-LIMB Hand is a first-to-market prosthetic device with five individually powered digits. With over 20 years of research and development behind it, the i-LIMB Hand looks and acts like a real human hand and represents a generational advance in bionics and patient care. Since the launch, more than 250 patients worldwide have been fitted and Touch Bionics is rapidly expanding across the globe.
The key innovation behind Touch Bionics’ i-LIMB Hand is the multi-articulating finger technology, which has underpinned the product’s resounding commercial success since its launch. The i-LIMB Hand is developed using leading-edge electronic and mechanical engineering techniques and is manufactured using high-strength plastics. The result is a next-generation prosthetic device that is lightweight, robust and highly appealing to both patients and healthcare professionals.
Originally founded by the MacRobert Trusts, the Award is now presented by The Royal Academy of Engineering, a prize fund having been established with donations from the MacRobert Trusts, The Royal Academy of Engineering and British industry.
High resolution product shots available for media use at: http://www.touchbionics.com/professionals.php?pageid=71§ion=10
About Touch Bionics
Touch Bionics is a leading developer of advanced upper-limb prosthetics. In 2007, Touch Bionics brought to market the i-LIMB Hand, a first-to-market prosthetic device with five individually powered digits. The company continues to develop leading-edge technologies for the treatment of patients with upper-limb deficiencies. For more information, visit www.touchbionics.com
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CONTACT: Touch Bionics media contact: Danny Sullivan, inmedia Public
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