One of the most promising and newest spin-off companies of the University of Pécs is Pro-Limb Ortopédtechnikai Kft., operating in the PTE 3D Printing and Visualization Center. The company was created to utilize, further develop and market a university intellectual product. The founders are the enterprising researchers of PTE and the owner-manager of Corvus-Med Kft., a medical aid manufacturing company based in Baranya.
The development of Pro-Limb Kft. is an upper extremity myoelectronic prosthesis, the Ember Arm. Myoelectronic prostheses provide a complex solution for patients who have undergone limb amputation, the users of the prostheses can use the remaining muscles to signal the sensors inside the artificial limb. The EMG sensors in the prosthesis measure and record the signals excited by muscle movement on the skin surface, and then the signals are transmitted to the electronics that drive the prosthesis.
The neuralgic point of the use of currently available bionic artificial limbs with a similar principle is their customization. Muscle signals are always unique, while the range of motion of the devices is limited. It takes a long time for users to learn to live with the prosthesis, to master the type and strength of muscle signals that trigger the desired effect from the electronics that drive the prosthesis. Ember Arm developers have reversed the user logic. A learning software controlled by artificial intelligence is being developed in parallel with the development of the 'frame', which can be individually customized for each user, produced by 3D printing. Controlled by the software, the prosthesis learns the movements of its user. To prevent the abandonment of the prosthesis, the developers use a mobile application to help practice the use of the device. The application can even be played in virtual reality, to promote the practicality of practice.
The advantages of the prosthesis include its lower weight than other, similar devices, and the fingers of the hand part of the prosthesis with special technology, which can be moved individually. With the help of the sensors at the end of the fingers, the user gets tactile (tactile) and positional information that enables a perception that is close to natural.
In addition to product development, the Pro-Limb team also pays great attention to building the business. In the past, they managed to bring in extra incubation expertise and investor capital, and now they are still in constant negotiations with their prospective investors and with the licensing and governing authorities. I will position the future price of the product in such a way that it will be significantly lower than currently available prostheses with a similar operating principle, and according to their plans, it will also be possible to apply for tb support.
The University of Pécs provides a reliable background for the company. Several of the members of the team are lecturers and researchers from various institutions of the university, and on the other hand, the equipment and design of the PTE 3D Printing and Visualization Center greatly facilitates the development work. The Research Utilization and Technology Transfer Center (KTTK) at the PTE Chancellery provided them with the primary assistance in solving the legal and labor difficulties associated with being a spin-off, and in managing the utilization of the university's intellectual property.