Aubrey Sauvie, a 12-year-old middle school student from Tennessee who was born without hands, says these days she can hit her snare drum as hard and fast as she wants.
This is all thanks to a generous donation from a group of engineering students who 3D printed a custom pair of hands for the aspiring young musician.
Ten students from Tennessee Technological University created the special prosthesis for Aubrey, who was born with three congenital amputations, as part of a machine dynamics course in the spring semester.
Her mother, Jennifer Sauvie, told CNN that she had no arms below the elbows and that her left foot would have to be partially amputated.
The new prosthetics have made a huge difference for Aubrey, who started drumming in her final year of school after being influenced by her older sister, who plays drums.
“Before I had these, I had to put the drumsticks and stuff in my sleeves and just hold them in the crook of my arm, so over time they would slip out depending on how hard or how fast I had to play,” said Aubrey, who lives in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. “But with these … they stay stable and intact.”
Their band director knew of a program at Tennessee Tech called “Tech Engineering for Kids” and reached out to Stephen Canfield, a mechanical engineering professor who oversees the program.
In Tech Engineering for Kids, offered as part of Canfield’s junior engineering degree program, students work in teams to develop customized assistive technology for a child with special needs in the Middle Tennessee region.
“I have a network of medical professionals, care coordinators, therapists and the like who work with special needs children in our area. They help me identify a child and a family in need,” Canfield told CNN.
He then assigns the child to a group of students who, over the course of a semester, design, manufacture, test and deliver to the family the technology the child needs, he says.
According to Canfield, his students have developed toys and devices for children with sensory needs.
Aubrey has previously used a myoelectric 3D-printed arm from Hero, her mother said.
“She only has one, so it wasn’t really practical for holding chicken legs,” Jennifer Sauvie said.
The length difference was also a challenge, as Aubrey only used one arm when playing the drums.
“She couldn’t use the Hero Arm for drumming or percussion,” Jennifer Sauvie said.
Aubrey’s new prosthetics are more versatile, her mother added.
“The ones she’s printed now are for the drums and for holding drumsticks, but if you really wanted them to hold kayaks or whatever, you could theoretically just print out different tips and put them on the same prosthetic base,” Jennifer Sauvie said. “It’s pretty cool.”
Tennessee Tech students worked with Aubrey throughout the semester to ensure the 3D-printed prosthetic arms fit her well.
“We would send Aubrey a particular design and she would say, ‘OK, I think this is good, but it’s a little long, could you shorten it?’ or… ‘It’s a little hot on my arm, could you maybe make it a little more breathable?'” Zak Henson, a senior mechanical engineer at Tennessee Tech and co-leader of the project, told CNN.
“So now we’re trying to think, ‘Okay, how can we keep our intended design and adapt it to the new requirements?'” Henson said of the process.
The team created about six iterations of the prosthesis until they were satisfied with the finished product, said Branson Blaylock, a mechanical engineer last year and project leader.
Aubrey says she wasn’t sure if the 3D printed hands would work for her, but they ended up being a success.
“I was really excited to be able to use these and try them out,” said Aubrey, who plans to become an ultrasound technician.
She added: “They are becoming a very useful and helpful tool for my drumming.”
“She makes it look easy”
Jennifer Sauvie said she knew while she was pregnant with Aubrey that she would be born with a limb deformity.
“It was obviously very scary, but if I had known then what I know now, the pregnancy would have been much happier and more enjoyable because there really is nothing that can stop or distract you from it,” said Jennifer Sauvie.
She said her daughter participated in activities such as dancing, taekwondo, art and music.
The group of students who worked closely with the twelve-year-old on measuring and adjusting the prostheses found her an inspiration.
“When I see her do things that I just thought she would never be able to do, she’s just so determined,” said Micah Page, a mechanical engineering student at Tennessee Tech. “She just makes it look like living a life without hands is easy.”
The custom-made prosthetics should last Aubrey for the next few years before she outgrows them, Canfield said.
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