NASA innovations are used by private companies to produce vastly improved artificial limbs. Special foams that make astronauts safer now cushion prosthetics for increased comfort; diamond coatings that increase the life of space vehicle parts prolong the life of prosthetic joints; and innovations in robotics power advances that allow prosthetics to operate more like real limbs.
Diamonds are among the hardest substances on Earth. They are also among the best thermal conductors and electric insulators and are transparent to visible, infrared, and ultraviolet light. All these properties would make diamonds ideal for a range of industrial applications — except they're too expensive. NASA engineers found a way to deposit carbon ions so they "grow" into a thin diamond-like carbon film, which enhances the strength and durability of the underlying material.
Learn more about how NASA helped develop technology that impacts artificial limbs within your city's medical environment!