FROM INDUSTRY 4.0 TO BIONIC PROSTHETICS: RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

The Centro Protesi Inail is a facility accredited by the Italian Health Service, which has been treating people with motor disabilities since 1961 and uses cutting-edge technologies to make customised prostheses and orthopaedic devices, to which it provides rehabilitation training for the correct use of the device. At Trieste Next, the Centro Protesi Inail presents its 'Orthopaedic Workshop 4.0' philosophy, highlighting how the creation of an orthopaedic device, whether for everyday life or sports use, is the result of continuous experimentation with new materials and increasingly innovative construction techniques, which not only increase the quality of prostheses but also aim to reduce the production’s environmental impact. Finally, a look at the latest frontier in prosthetic control, represented by bionic prostheses: intelligent devices that aim to go
beyond the traditional concept of prostheses and can give the patient a feeling of natural
control of the artificial limb.
Since 1961, the Centro Protesi Inail has been treating people with motor disabilities, mainly injured at work, for whom it creates customised orthopaedic prostheses and aids, supported by a rehabilitation training for the proper use of orthopaedic devices and psychosocial assistance. As part of its institutional mandate, the Centre carries out research and experimentation activities in order to introduce innovative solutions that improve orthopaedic aids and consequently facilitate the quality of life and the social reintegration of people with disabilities.