Background

Facts About the Human Arm

- The arm is made from three long bones, linked by a hinge joint at the elbow.

- The two bones of the lower arm are the radius and the ulna.

- The radius supports the thumb side of the wrist.

- The ulnar supports the outside of the wrist.

Fig 1.1 Anatomy of the arm

- The wrist is one of the best places to test the pulse, since major arteries come nearer the surface here than at almost any other place in the body.

- 17 intricate network of bones in your hands enables you to perform delicate and complex movements like writing or playing a musical instrument.

- The upper arm bone is called the humerus or, jokingly, the funny bone.

- The two major muscles of the upper arm are the biceps (which bends the elbow) and the triceps (which straightens it).

- The hand is made from 26 bones, including the carpals (wrist bones), the metacarpals (hand bones) and the phalanges (finger bones).

- There are no strong muscles in the           hand. When you grip firmly, most of the power comes from muscles in the lower arm, l inked to the bones of the hand by long tendons.

- The shoulder is one of the most flexible but least stable joints of the skeleton, since it is set   in a very shallow socket. But it is supported by six major muscle groups, including the           powerful deltoid (shoulder) muscle.

- Look at the inside of your wrist on a warm day and you may be able to see the radial artery   beneath the skin.

Learn more about the anatomy of the arm from innerbody.com:

http://www.innerbody.com/anatomy/muscular/arm-hand

Who we are looking to help

Muscular Dystrophy:

Fig 1.2 typical posture of a muscular dystrophy sufferer

Muscular dystrophy is a degenerative muscular disorder caused by the mutation of genes. It typically is biased on the male gender and often appears during childhood. However, symptoms of muscular dystrophy can appear during any age.
There are two types of muscular dystrophy, the first, that is seen in half the affected population is Duchenne muscular dystrophy where the symptoms like weakened muscles and the inability to walk are severe and are often completely disabling.
The second, which is Becker muscular dystrophy has the same symptoms, but the symptoms appear much slower and affect the person gradually.  The device would be more suited to assist sufferers of this type of muscular dystrophy since it requires the user to have atleast some muscular functioning.

Learn more about Muscular dystrophy from the mayoclinic.org:
Click Here
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/muscular-dystrophy/basics/definition/con-20021240

Brachial Plexus Injury (Erb's Palsy, Brachial Plexus Palsy):

Fig 1.3 Brachial Plexus Palsy symptoms

The brachial plexus is a group of nerves that sends signals from your spine to the shoulder, hand and arm. An injury to this group of nerves can severely hamper the funcitoning of the arm. Most common causes for this type of injury are through strenuous sports activities or more severely through automotive accidents. 
The Powered Exoskeletal Arm Brace will be perfect to assist sufferers of brachial plexus injuries by providing them with the power to lift objects that will aid them with daily activities.

Learn more about brachial plexus palsy through mayoclinic.org and aaos.org (American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons):

http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00077
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/brachial-plexus-injury/home/ovc-20127336