Many transfemoral amputees use subatmospheric suspension using a hand pump rather than an automatic pumping system such as the Harmony or electirc pump. Stan Patterson recommends a distal air chamber as a vacuum accumulator when using a hand pump. The Smart Pump is a component designed by Clint Accinni, which is a modular distal air chamber. According to Clint it is super easy to install and eliminates the difficult and time consuming fabrication of an air chamber. Once the prosthesis is complete with the Airpuck, it can be easily converted to a "Smartpuck" electronic pumping system if necessary or desired. The Smartpuck has the same dimensions and uses the same fabrication dummy and attachemnt system as the Airpuck. Build height for either component is 1 3/4 inches. By the way, Clint says the Samrtpuck does alot more than just pump air. It collects lots of data which can be used for assessment and outcomes. All of the Smartpuck functions are controlled through a mobile phone app. For more information Contact Clint Accinni.

I spoke to David Boone for half an hour about the Edison Vacuum System.  He explained the ins and outs of it and there ae plenty!  For a start, this pump has "adaptive control".  That means the transtibial amputee is intimately linked to the prosthesis with high vacuum when walking.  But when he wants to sit, the vacuum eases up. Same thing when he wants to just stand still and chill.  Then if he starts moving around, the vacuum goes back up for better suspension and control.  Add to that the ability for the prosthetist to fine tune the level of vacuum for each activiity. There is also enough on-board memory to store the whole previous week of data.  The system is super quiet and has a battery that lasts several days in between charges. I found it interesting when David commented that he foresees that transfemoral and upper limb amputees might be able to use the Edison puimp with no gel liner; just with socks orf maybe even directly against the skin.  He said this could be possible because the level of vacuum can be lowered to avoid hickies. David emphasized that the many features of the Edison are not added just to load up the system with extras but, rather, that they are there to"meet the unmet needs of the amputees". 

The above review and comments are based on my interview with the manufacturer and do not represent my endorsement or recommendation of the product.  I encourage comments to this blogpost by users with experience with the product.  If you have a component, material or technique related to elevated vacuum and would be like to be interviewed for a review, please let me know by e-mailing me through this blog.