14 DAY TRIAL // You might now know this due to the misleading portrayal in films and cartoons, but prosthetics, in addition to not being all that kind on your amputated limbs, don't usually look all that great either.
San Francisco-based design studio UNYO, however, wants to address at least part of that issue, the visual value to be exact.
So it has begun to offer its services for 3D printing custom fairings and accessories that will wrap around prosthetics and make them look more elegant and personal, like any part of you should.
For now, UNYO is only offering leg fairings, but there's no reason for it to stay away from prosthetic arms forever, even if those are more complicated and in need of more freedom of movement than legs.
So you'll still need to see a specialist to make your actual replacement foot or leg, but then you'll get a covering from UNYO (designed with input from yourself) and feel a bit more like yourself, a bit more in control of your image.
There are two ways to obtain a UNYO fairing: to buy one, or to enter a contest that could conclude with a freebie.
Unfortunately, prices aren't exactly marvelous. A fully tailor-made fairing costs around $2,000 / €1,460, while a child's fairing goes for $995 / €726.
It's a lot of money, but we suspect that there will be at least a few people eager to have total control over the shape, decorations and process.
Maybe in the future there will be partnerships between prosthetic engineers, doctors and design studios, allowing patients to get good-looking replacement limbs right off the bat. For now, though, it takes a bit more personal involvement and effort to get something like that done.
“We design for the whole person and address their wants and needs as opposed to simply appending technical functionality,” explained Eythor Bender, UNYQ’s co-founder and CEO.
“Amputees don’t have to make fashion compromises anymore, and we can scale our craftsmanship without depending on individual skills to deliver consistently high end design that is beautifully made and to each customer’s specifications.”
If UNYO ever starts making fairings for arms, the first recipient will probably be that new FDA-approved arm. It can perform several commands at once, allowing for more complex motions than normal, even if it's still pretty slow.
So while you won't be seeing any mechanical/cybernetic arms like in Deus Ex or Star Wars in the near future, you can at least make them look as good.