Cutting edge prosthetics with improved sense of touch among 100 new discovery projects to receive government funding

Researchers from across the UK backed to advance projects which could spark new life-changing developments.

£80 million for curiosity-driven UK research projects

100 ambitious UK research projects which could each be the seed of a life-changing discovery have today received backing from Science Minister Lord Vallance as he underlined the importance of supporting curiosity-driven research to improve lives and grow the economy.

Researchers at 39 institutes from Aberdeen to Exeter are being supported by a share of £80 million to take forward potentially transformative ideas, in fields from healthcare to clean energy and artificial intelligence to quantum computing. Projects include a new prosthetic arm which can help identify different textures and a ‘biomarker’ tool which could detect blood clots earlier and help prevent serious illness.

One of the 100 projects supported by UKRI’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), conducted at the University of Bristol, will develop tailored neuro-signals for prosthetic arms to improve the sense of touch for those who have lost limbs. Dr Ben Ward-Cherrier will seek to tackle a key limitation of existing prosthetics in registering the texture and slipperiness of items that users touch.

Integrating a natural-feeling sense of touch into artificial arms would boost the quality of life for millions of amputees and others born without limbs across the world, while also supporting robotics.