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The main objectives of rehabilitative treatment in the amputee patient are the psychophysical recovery of the patient through protetization and, finally, their socio-labor reintegration. To be able to measure the achievements obtained with the rehabilitative treatment we need to have objective assessment measures (functional assessment scales) that will allow the use of standard terminology. The objective of this study is to review various scales of assessment of the amputee. The scales have been classified as universal (Barthel Index, Pulses Profile, Functional Independence Measure, and Edinburg scale) and specific: for members (Enneking scale and Locomotion Score in Rheumatoid Arthritis) and for amputees (Day scale and the questionnaire Prosthetic Profile of the Amputee). This study seeks to discover the design parameters and the acceptance of the population that uses prosthetic devices and their environment (family, work and health personnel) towards new technologies in terms of prostheses to discover and understand the functioning of the Uncanny Valley in the Ecuadorian environment, to avoid falling into it. The results will be adequately delimited and tabulated by intelligent computer systems.

Most of the upper limb prosthetic devices are controlled using biological signals, mainly EMG. The main problem with these systems is that the hardware needed for treatment and acquisition of the biosignals are not clear. This paper has presented the design of an interface for acquiring real-time electromyographic signals for a prosthetic upper limb system, considering the stages of acquisition, digitalization and presentation of the information, using a high-speed and high-resolution system. The digitalization system uses a 24-bit, 256-kSPS, 8 channel ADC whose information is read with a SOC ZYNQ-7000 based system, PYNQ. Using the advantages of the PYNQ, the Programmable Logic of the device, ensures the parallel synchronous acquisition, while the Processing System handles the datacasting and the communication of the information.

This document presents the development of a low-cost, right limb transhumeral prosthesis prototype, which incorporates basic movements to recover the performance of some activities of daily living for people who have suffered an amputation of the limb above the elbow. Firstly, the anthropometry of the patient’s limb is defined, which will set the prosthesis’s dimensioning. Afterward, a mechanism is established that meets the required degrees of freedom, and finally, the prosthesis prototype is designed considering materials, dimensions, and geometry for each part. It is mainly used 3D printing by deposition with ABS material, and conventional manufacturing processes with chip removal. The elements were designed, taking into account the anthropometric measurements of a 45-year-old transhumeral amputation patient with a height of 1.61 m, a 3D scan of the healthy arm, and the stump was performed with the Eva Artec scanner. The results consist of a prototype prosthesis with 4 degrees of freedom: flexion-extension of the elbow with a range of movement of 120°, prone supination with a range of movement of 180°, flexion-extension of the wrist with a range of movement of 60° and in the ulnar-radial deviation with a range of movement of 70°, with a total weight of 1.65 kg. The transhumeral prosthesis adapts to the prototype of the “MAKI 3.0” hand prosthesis, which has only one degree of freedom and a weighs 326 g.

Electromyographic signals are widely used in the study of control systems for prosthetic devices, but the way they are acquired hinders the replicability of the studies performed, generating a large variation between each measurement of the signals. One of the main problems in the acquisition of myoelectric signals is the location and repositioning of the surface electrodes, this is something that could be solved by analyzing the most common distributions and configurations of electrodes and rethinking the design of the acquisition systems, forms or methods for that are more comfortable for the patient. In this research, a prototype was built that has the acquisition points of standardized signals, which is easy to use and provides greater autonomy to the users of these systems. To develop this device, the design of the idea using the “Patient Journey Mapping” methodology, which allows finding interdependencies and friction points in the whole process of using the prototype of SEMG signal sensing, the solution is subsequently designed, building the prototype and the system for the tests performed on it.

Galápagos is one of the most pristine archipelagos in the world and its conservation relies upon research and sensible management. In recent decades both the interest in, and the needs of, the islands have increased, yet the funds and capacity for necessary research have remained limited. It has become, therefore, increasingly important to identify areas of priority research to assist decision-making in Galápagos conservation. This study identified 50 questions considered priorities for future research and management. The exercise involved the collaboration of policy makers, practitioners and researchers from more than 30 different organisations. Initially, 360 people were consulted to generate 781 questions. An established process of preworkshop voting and three rounds to reduce and reword the questions, followed by a two-day workshop, was used to produce the final 50 questions. The most common issues raised by this list of questions were human population growth, climate change and the impact of invasive alien species. These results have already been used by a range of organisations and politicians and are expected to provide the basis for future research on the islands so that its sustainability may be enhanced.

In Ecuador, as in the world the most commonly used prostheses are only aesthetic, and the problem with the people that uses them is that they don’t feel fully comfortable and independent with their activities, so in looking for solving this problem, researchers have designed different active prostheses but as the technology advances, these equipment gets more complex, heavy and expensive, so the people who need them doesn’t feel acceptance. The goal of this and the further investigations is development of a new design that can properly integrate the top technologies in a skeletal design which makes natural movements and will improve the quality of life of the people who uses it. This paper analyses the different designs on the available prosthesis and extract from them the best characteristics of the upper limb prostheses design.

Galápagos is one of the most pristine archipelagos in the world and its conservation relies upon research and sensible management. In recent decades both the interest in, and the needs of, the islands have increased, yet the funds and capacity for necessary research have remained limited. It has become, therefore, increasingly important to identify areas of priority research to assist decision-making in Galápagos conservation. This study identified 50 questions considered priorities for future research and management. The exercise involved the collaboration of policy makers, practitioners and researchers from more than 30 different organisations. Initially, 360 people were consulted to generate 781 questions. An established process of preworkshop voting and three rounds to reduce and reword the questions, followed by a two-day workshop, was used to produce the final 50 questions. The most common issues raised by this list of questions were human population growth, climate change and the impact of invasive alien species. These results have already been used by a range of organisations and politicians and are expected to provide the basis for future research on the islands so that its sustainability may be enhanced.