Final Project

Bionic Hand

Slide

Presentation

1. Project Description

This project is a 3D-printed, muscle-controlled bionic hand designed to assist individuals with upper-limb disabilities or amputations. It features five individually actuated fingers and a rotating, tilting wrist. The hand is controlled using ECG electrodes placed on the user's forearm to detect muscle signals (EMG-like control). These signals are processed by an ESP32-based control unit and transmitted to another ESP32 inside the bionic hand.

2. System Architecture

The system is divided into two main modules:
Sensor Module (Forearm-Worn): Reads muscle electrical activity using ECG electrodes and sends control signals.
Hand Module: Receives commands and actuates servos to move fingers and wrist accordingly.

3. How It Works

User contracts forearm muscles.
1. The ECG sensors detect the signal, processed and interpreted by an ESP32 microcontroller.
2. Signals are sent wireless to the hand’s ESP32 unit.
3. The hand receives the signals and moves the corresponding servo motor(s) for each finger or wrist.

4. Components

Category	Material	Purpose
Microcontroller	ESP32-WROOM module	Central controller for both sensor unit and hand unit, handling signal processing and servo control
Actuators	Servo motors (7x)	Five for finger movement, two for wrist rotation and tilt
Power	5V power Supply + LiPo battery	Portable power sources for both the hand and the wearable sensor module
Mechanical	Plastic cord (nylon or fishing line)	Acts as tendon to transmit servo pulling force to finger joints
3D Print Material	Filament (PLA)	Used to 3D print the hand structure, finger segments, wrist components, and enclosures