The Utah Arm came out in 1981 and has seen many improvements since. The Legacy Software however, is still in it’s original generation with only a few updates. While this user interface was revolutionary in it’s time, it is dated and is slated to be replaced soon with an updated app and desktop software. In the mean time, this tutorial is a good overview of the settings and function. 

Initial Arm Setup:

To set up and test the elbow, turn on the arm by pushing the button in the forearm on the left side toward the right. To turn it off it’s right side to left side. If there is no initial motor engagement, it may be out of power and will need a new battery. Gain pods on the arm are only for the arm to make it more or less difficult to flex and extend. We recommend they be set to a 7 and then covered so that the patient won’t reset them. 

The button on the right side of the humeral section is the manual elbow lock and unlock button. The arm will connect via Bluetooth to your computer or there is a data port on the back side of the elbow to plug the arm directly into your PC. You will need to order that USB cable separately if you don’t already have one available.

The arm will have three wires coming from the top: Hand, Elbow, and Switch (Hand/Wrist Switch). Those can be attached to the client’s socket or to test electrodes if you are testing the arm separate from the patient. Typical contractions will produce up and down movement in the arm. A hold in place for a moment will lock the elbow and switch to the terminal device. Quick co-contraction will unlock the elbow and switch control from the terminal device back to the elbow.  

Settings for hold times and signal adjustment can be done in the software, see the following tutorial. 

Video Tutorial