The arms were inspired by Tony Stark's Iron Man suit. David Aguilar and his four robotic arms made of Lego pieces. (Image Credit: Reuters/Albert Gea)
David Aguilar has built a robotic prosthetic arm (named after Iron Man's suit) for himself made of LEGO Brick pieces. He has been suffering from a rare genetic condition where he was born without a right forearm. The 19-year old bioengineering student at the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya in Spain has already built four of these prosthetic arms and has aspirations to build more for those who need them.
Aguilar used his favorite toys from his childhood to make his dreams come closer to reality. He built a red and yellow robotic arm in 2017 out of LEGO Bricks with an elbow that bends and a grabber that can flex with a whirring electric motor. He named it after Iron Man's suit, MK I as Tony Stark calls it, Mark I. Since then, Aguilar made improvements to MK I with an additional three arms, each one improving with functionality. MK IV is his latest one - colored after the Iron Man's red. All his creations are on display in his residence on the outskirts of Barcelona.
Aguilar explains how his robotic arms work and how he puts it all together.
He's also got some pretty decent competition with the prosthetic arm. In 2015, Robert Downey Jr. gave a 3D printed robotic arm to a child who had a partially developed right arm. Amputee Christina Stephens created a prosthetic leg just like the robotic arm, it was made out of LEGO Bricks and had some great results.
David Aguilar and one of his robotic arms inspired by the Iron Man superhero comic books. (Image Credit: Reuters/Albert Gea)
After graduating, Aguilar hopes his ambition to create more prosthetic limbs at an affordable price takes off. He also goes by the name Hand Solo.