Bionics: Ray of Hope to Mankind

 

Mr. Rinu J. George¹, Mrs. Shiny T. Sam²

¹Associate Professor (Child Health Nursing), Shri Shankaracharya College of Nursing,

Amdi Nagar, Hudco, Bhilai, (C.G.)

²Assistant Professor (Medical Surgical Nursing), Shri Shankaracharya College of Nursing,

Amdi Nagar, Hudco, Bhilai, (C.G.)

 

ABSTRACT:

Bionics is a field were science, technology and engineering blends in various proportions to make equipments which resembles natural organs, functions, processes. It not just has the ability to project resemblance but even surpassing the original function in aspects of durability and period of working and validity. It’s a hope to mankind, diseased and for those who are needy, but have to die or suffer because of non availability of recourses.

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION:

Have you ever imagined of an artificial hand which will shake hand with someone when you just think of doing that. Isn’t that wonderful to buy a kidney from a medical store when you or someone need a kidney transplant, bionics is all about this, not just in medical field but in various sectors. [Authors words]

 

Bionics or biologically inspired engineering is the application of biological methods and systems found in nature to the study and design of engineering systems and modern technology¹ The word bionic was coined by jack e. Steele in august 1958, being formed as a portmanteau from biology and electronics. In medicine, bionics means the replacement or enhancement of organs or other body parts by mechanical versions. Bionic implants differ from mere prostheses by mimicking the original function very closely, or even surpassing it.²

 

 

Origin of Thoughts:

Due to a lack of suitable organs available for transplantation, some on the waiting list may never receive a transplant. one of the focuses of medical technology research is to create machines that can take up the function of current organs and potentially can last longer. Another problem is that, as the body ages, organ function generally declines leading to poor quality of life in old age. There are many diseases that increase in prevalence with age such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, poor vision and decrease in brain function.^3,4

 

A Look Back to Ideas:

The transfer of technology between life forms and manufactured objects is, according to proponents of bionic technology, desirable because evolutionary pressure typically forces living organisms, including fauna and flora, to become highly optimized and efficient. a classical example is the development of dirt- and water-repellent paint (coating) from the observation that practically nothing sticks to the surface of the lotus flower plant (the lotus effect).

 

bionics is thus distinct from bioengineering (or biotechnology), which is the use of living things to perform certain industrial tasks, such as the culture of yeasts on petroleum to furnish food proteins, the use of microorganisms capable of concentrating metals from low-grade ores, and the digesting of wastes by bacteria in biochemical batteries to supply electrical energy.⁵

 

Mimicry of nature is an old idea. Many inventors have modeled machines after animals throughout the centuries. Copying from nature has distinct advantages. Most living creatures now on the earth are the product of two billion years of evolution, and the construction of machines to work in an environment resembling that of living creatures can profit from this enormous experience. Although the easiest way may be thought to be direct imitation of nature, this is often difficult if not impossible, among other reasons because of the difference in scale. Bionics researchers have found that it is more advantageous to understand the principles of why things work in nature than to slavishly copy details.⁶

 

Detailing Bionics:

while the technologies that make bionic implants possible are developing gradually, a few successful bionic devices exist, a well known one being the australian-invented multi-channel cochlear implant (bionic ear), a device for deaf people. since the bionic ear, many bionic devices have emerged and work is progressing on bionics solutions for other sensory disorders (e.g. vision and balance). bionic research has recently provided treatments for medical problems such as neurological and psychiatric conditions, for example parkinson's disease and epilepsy⁷ in 1997, the colombian prof. alvaro rios poveda, a researcher in bionics in latin america, developed an upper limb and hand prosthesis with sensory feedback. This technology allows amputee patients to handle prosthetic hand systems in a more natural way⁸

 

Types of Bionic Devices and Areas of Scope:

Auditory bionics:

Cochlear implants, auditory brainstem implants and auditory midbrain implants are the three main classes of neuroprosthetic devices for people suffering from profound hearing loss. auditory bionics create an artificial link between the source of sound and the brain—in this case, with a microelectronic array implanted either in the cochlea or the brain stem.

 

Orthopedic bionics:

According to the world health organization, more than 1 billion people (approximately 15% of the world’s population), are living with some form of physical disability, and about 190 million adults have a major functional difficulty. Orthopedic bionics are designed to restore motor functionality (not necessarily sensory functionality) to the physically challenged. Bionic limbs are replacing prosthetic limbs, which were standard fare for more than 100 years. Despite notable innovations that resulted in lighter devices and better designs, prosthetic limbs did not provide the necessary functional restoration that bionic devices now do.

 

A bionic limb is interfaced with a patient’s neuromuscular system for limb control—flexing, bending and grasping—using the brain. a similar functional pathway exists here: the damaged peripheral nerves are bypassed and a new electronic pathway connects the mechatronic limb with the brain.⁹

 

Hope:

The advancement of bionics in the field of medicine and human science is throwing light if hope to the entire mankind. Even though prosthesis a very beneficial equipment for for an amputee it never an soul connection with the body and it take various time period to establish and interface with body and the prosthesis

 

CONCLUSION:

This article gives you a very brief idea about the field of bionics and some possibilities of bionics

 

REFERENCE:

1.     Twenty-First Century's Fuel Sufficiency Roadmap By Dr. Steve Esomba, Published 2012

2.     En.Wikipedia.Org. 2020. Bionics. [Online] Available At: <Https://En.Wikipedia.Org/Wiki/Bionics> [Accessed 2 December 2020].

3.     Abouna Gm. Organ Shortage Crisis: Problems and Possible Solutions. Transplant Proc. 2008; 40: 34-38

4.     Kenney Ra. Phisiology Of Aging. Clinics in Geriatric Medicine 1985; 1: 37-59

5.     Wikimili.Com. 2020. Bionics - Wikimili, The Free Encyclopedia. [Online] Available At: <Https://Wikimili.Com/En/Bionics> [Accessed 2 December 2020].

6.     The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Bionics,  Encyclopædia Britannica, February 13, 2019, Available on Https://Www.Britannica.Com/Technology/Bionics Accessessed on 2/1/2021

7.     Medicalxpress.Com. 2020. Bionic Suit Helps Paralyzed Patients Stand And Walk Again. [Online] Available At: <Https://Medicalxpress.Com/News/2018-04-Bionic-Paralyzed-Patients.Html> [Accessed 2 December 2020].

8.     Downloads.Cs.Stanford.Edu. 2020. [Online] Available At: <Http://Downloads.Cs.Stanford.Edu/Nlp/Data/Jiwei/Data/Vocab_Wiki.Txt> [Accessed 2 December 2020].

9.     Bionics: A Step Into The Future, Https://Aabme.Asme.Org/Posts/Bionics-A-Step-Into-The-Future

 

 

 

Received on 07.01.2021          Modified on 25.01.2021

Accepted on 10.02.2021      ©A&V Publications All right reserved