3D Printers: Designing Confidence with Individualized Prosthetic Limbs

“What would happen if an industrial designer had a go at making prosthetic legs? “That’s the opening line of this great video about Scott Summit’s work using 3D scanning and 3D printing to make prosthetic limbs. Instead of the traditional design – where you try to make the limb look as natural as possible while retaining functionality – Summit focuses on the best possible limb, which includes not only optimizing its base functionality but also developing an aesthetic that appeals to the individual wearing it.

Scott Summit doesn’t have the background you might think – his work is in industrial engineering and design, not medical devices – but you wouldn’t be able to tell it from looking at his finished products. His team’s prosthetic designs – aided by the infinite customizability of 3D printing – are able to consider not just the functionality of the limb, but the person who will be using it as well.

Check out this short 3-minute video below, Designing Confidence, to find out more about this project and to see a few beautiful examples of their 3D printed work.