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CATEGORIES:Departmental Seminars in History and Philosophy of
  Science
SUMMARY:From craft to mass production? Design\, manufactur
 e and patents for artificial limbs\, 1890–1925 - J
 ulie Anderson (University of Kent)
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20150305T153000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20150305T170000
UID:TALK57278AThttp://talks.cam.ac.uk
URL:http://talks.cam.ac.uk/talk/index/57278
DESCRIPTION:Nineteenth-century artificial limb design and prod
 uction was a craft based industry. A single prosth
 esis – a complex construction of wood\, leather an
 d fabric – often took longer than six weeks to pro
 duce\, and each one was individually designed and 
 made for the wearer. The medical profession distan
 ced itself from this work\; instead limb makers an
 d fitters took out patents on components and devel
 oped new technology to improve the limb's function
 . The First World War altered this process. As the
  need for limbs increased with the growing number 
 of amputee soldiers\, methods of mass production a
 nd standardisation were employed. Yet while the Mi
 nistry of Pensions sought standard limbs\, the com
 petition between the 22 manufacturers it contracte
 d to provide them created distinct complications\,
  as designs\, methods of attachment\, and intricat
 e internal machinery were patented. Using a range 
 of sources\, including medical manufacturers' cata
 logues and limb fitters' promotional material\, th
 is paper will assess the changing environment of a
 rtificial limb production from the late 19th centu
 ry to the period following the First World War\, f
 ocusing on the impact of the Ministry of Pensions'
  interventions on the design\, production and pate
 nting process.
LOCATION:Seminar Room 2\, Department of History and Philoso
 phy of Science
CONTACT:Richard Staley
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