Have You Seen This? 'Bionic' woman shows off the latest technology in prosthetics

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

THE FUTURE — For most, a disembodied hand inching its way across a table would be something found only in a horror movie or stress-induced dream.

But for Tilly Lockey, removing the detachable hand from her bionic arm is a hilarious party trick and proof of the progress technology has made in the world of prosthetics.

As a guest on the UK daytime television show "This Morning," Lockey showed off her new Hero PRO bionic hands from Open Bionics. In the video, she picks up a glass and explains that she simply squeezes to close the hand and flexes to grip something. Then, arguably the coolest part of the futuristic prosthesis is shown when she removes the hand piece from her bionic arm and makes it crawl across the studio table using only her mind.

"We've posted about this on social media, and that's what everybody is (saying) like, 'This is crazy, mind blowing,'" Lockey says in the video.

OK, well, her hand moving on its own isn't really a Jedi mind trick. The 19-year-old explains that the hand movements are controlled by muscle-tracking sensors on the arm piece. If she wants her hand to grip something, she sends the message from her brain to the muscles in her forearm and the muscle sensors tell the hand piece — even if it is disconnected from the arm — how to move.

While Lockey seemed to gain some attention due to her cutting-edge prosthetic, she has actually been in the spotlight as a musician and fashion content creator for a few years. Online, she styles her bionic arms with outfits that promote inclusivity and individuality while advocating for those with limb differences.

Lockey became an amputee at just 15 months old when she contracted meningitis and had to have her arms and toes removed. At around 10 years old, she connected with prosthetic technology company Open Bionics to test products and give feedback on how they can be improved. She was joined by Open Bionics co-founder Joel Gibbard on the show as she talked about her experience using the technology.

"I wanted to do something that would have a positive social impact with technology," he said in the video, discussing his career with Open Bionics.

While its appearance makes it a cool, futuristic-looking accessory for those needing a prosthetic, the Hero PRO is also applauded as one of the most advanced bionic hands on the market, according to Open Bionics. The prosthetic hand is the lightest weight and twice as fast as any hand system in the world, is water resistant and can rotate a full 360 degrees. As a bonus for fashion lovers like Lockey, it even comes in over 50 color designs that can be swapped out to the user's liking.

So even if using the bionic hand wirelessly is eerily similar to the Addams family's pet hand Thing, it exemplifies the strides being taken in the industry to create advanced technology for prosthetic users.