A child is born without a hand, and his poverty-stricken family can’t afford a prosthetic. As he grows up, he is unable to ride a bicycle with friends, and they make fun of him for his disability.
Enter e-Nable, a nonprofit that uses 3D printing technology to develop low-cost prosthetic hands. The organization has distributed them to poor children in 37 countries since its founding is 2013. While not fully functioning prosthetics, e-Nable’s hands do allow children to complete normal tasks, such as grabbing a water bottle or grasping the handlebar of a bicycle.
The nonprofit showcased its creation Thursday at the first-ever Capitol Hill Maker Faire in Washington.
John Wong, of e-Nable, said the hands can be made for $35, a far cry from the $6,000-$10,000 price tag of a standard prosthetic. The organization, which provides the hands for free, relies on donations and receives help from organizations such as the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America in the “tedious work” of assembling the prosthetics.
For poverty-stricken children with no other opportunities for a prosthetic, Wong said e-Nable is their “one and only hope.”
The best part, according to Wong, is that children no longer get made fun of for having a disability. He said e-Nable’s greatest success is its ability to change children’s attitudes, allowing them a sense of normalization when they receive the prosthetic.
“[The child’s] demeanor immediately changes,” Wong said. “It’s really psychological.”
The 3D hand was one of more than a dozen inventions showcased at the fair, hosted by the Congressional Maker Caucus and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The fair was a prelude to the National Maker Faire, being held Friday and Saturday at the University of the District of Columbia.
The event spotlights the National Week of Making, which runs from June 12-18 and intends to celebrate innovation, creation and invention.
“During National Week of Making, we celebrate the tinkerers and dreamers whose talent and drive have brought new ideas to life, and we recommit to cultivating the next generation of problem solvers,” President Obama wrote in a proclamation.
Simply put, the week celebrates cool stuff, like e-Nable.
Also at Thursday’s fair: 3D virtual reality. A booth featuring the D.C. Virtual Reality Meetup community highlighted efforts to bring the burgeoning technology to video games, movies and even business.
One D.C. Virtual Reality Meetup member, Matthias McCoy-Thompson, hopes his own product, Agora, can revolutionize the way businesses conduct meetings by giving them the opportunity to use virtual reality.
Using 3D technology, Agora would allow businesses to present virtual presentations that could be uploaded to a mobile phone and watched through a headset. McCoy-Thompson used construction companies as an example, saying they could construct 3D models of their large industrial products and present them to contractors using Agora’s software. McCoy-Thompson said he believes the product can cut down on business travel.
“That’s why we think these large enterprise contracts, like industrial hardwire, make sense, because it’s $10 million contracts and therefore the cost of a $500 or $1,000 headset is negligible if you are able to profit from it,” he said.
It might be facing an uphill battle, though. Many thought teleconferencing would cut business travel, but it’s had a minimal effect.
But McCoy-Thompson likens his product to an “experience,” not just a simple business meeting. He believes the 3D optics in his product makes users feel like they are virtually in the same room, unlike other technology.
Agora is fine tuning its product and hopes to hit the market in three-six months.
McCoy sees large potential in virtual reality technology.
“In the long-term, we think this can be used for everything from training, industry and general business meetings,” he said.
Attendees at this weekend’s National Maker Faire can expect to see a wide array of creations both similar and different to e-Nable and Agora. The event promises interactive displays that include 3D printers, interactive computers, homemade robots and electronic instruments, among others.
The fair intends to show that creating new products doesn’t have to be limited to the extremely creative or innovative. By showcasing libraries that have received funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Capitol Hill fair highlighted that the ability to create might be in one’s backyard.
An example: The Maker Lab at the Chicago Public Library, which serves as an introduction to the methods and technology of making new products, offering free workshops and access to technology.
Sasha Neri, a librarian from the Maker Lab, said the lab receives visits from all types of people: doctors looking for an introduction to 3D printing, budding entrepreneurs trying to bring the latest technology to their startup companies, simple craft makers looking for devices to make items such as earring or invitations and those just interested in learning more.
Neri said the library’s goal is not to be the go-to spot for creating new products, but to introduce others to others in Chicago.
“It’s a really healthy scene,” Neri said. “We have a really great maker ecosystem in Chicago and it’s really about letting people know what exists.”
Even kids are tinkering.
The University of Michigan library runs a weekly after-school program that introduces elementary and middle school students to a wide array of innovation and technology.
Interestingly, sewing is catching the kids’ eyes. Sewing, of all things, according to Michigan professor Kristin Fontichiaro. Even more surprising, Fontichiaro said both boys and girls are showing interest and enjoyment in sewing.
“We take a really broad definition of making,” Fontichiaro said of the program, which also includes introduction to complex topics such as robotics and mobile app development.
Rep. Mark Takano, co-chairman of the bipartisan Congressional Maker Caucus, told the Washington Examiner that the day-long Capitol Hill Maker Faire was an effort to “familiarize members of Congress with the maker community and what makers do.”
The California Democrat said events such as the fair introduce Americans to the possibilities of new technology. As an example, he noted that Square, the credit card reader that connects to phones and tablets, was first introduced in the community.
