Remember the 6 Million Dollar Man? The hit show of the 70s is a bit of a reality in 2008. A Naugatuck man is one of the first in Connecticut to receive a bionic hand.
Robert Lingl, 49, lost his hand in a truck accident 18 years ago. Thursday, he was given a new bionic hand with five independently moving fingers. The prosthetic device, called the i-LIMB, is placed on Lingl's wrist.
Sensors in the i-LIMB read impulses from muscles in Lingl's arm. Those impulses trigger finger movements, which will allow Lingl to do everything from grip a door knob, to pick up a phone, to move a computer mouse.
Lingl said he's looking forward to finally being able to enjoy the use of a hand once again. The father of five wants to get back into fishing and playing other sports.
Fewer than 350 amputees across the country have been fitted with the new i-LIMB. The technology was introduced last year, and is being used on soldiers wounded in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
