Recently I had the opportunity to go to New York City as part of the first Big Hero 3 US edition, and of-course my trusty 3D printed bionic arms came with me.
Here’s how it went.
‘Metal Detected’ 
One of the most common questions I get asked when travelling is often:
“How does airport security work?” Surprisingly smooth sailing, contrast to what you might think!
A couple years ago, bionics, especially mechanical looking ones, weren’t seen very often in airports. When I first started testing prototypes and travelling with them alongside Open Bionics there were plenty more questions, searches and side eyes at the new technology which is fair enough!
Now though, they are much more widely known and there are plenty more people wearing such devices, and because mine are 3D printed bionic arms, it means they are mainly plastic anyway!
In the US and the UK (I’ve noticed thus far), they understand prosthetics to the point where now, you can just walk through the detector with the prosthetic attached! There is a search afterwards for safety reasons, but – fun fact:
Bionic arms needn’t be detached or dispensed with the rest of the ‘technological items’.
This was my experience throughout my trip in both the UK and the US.
BIG HERO 3!
Why was I actually in the US? Well it was for an incredible cause.
Open Bionics has a clinic in NYC and that’s where all three kids taking part in Big Hero 3 were getting their custom 3D printed bionic arms made. I couldn’t resist a visit to meet the families at the clinic on 5th Avenue.
What’s the Big Hero 3? Let me break that down for you…
The Big Hero 3 is a fundraising campaign which started in the UK, where three families fundraise to cover costs of bionic arms together with support from donors, the Open Bionics Foundations, press, and their own shared networks.
Fronted by Sarah Lockey, the Big Hero 3 has been revolutionary in tackling the financial burden of high-tech equipment, seeing triple the Hero Arms funded and supported at once, is often, much, much shorter time than if you were fundraising alone.
Check out us meeting the Big Hero 3 families at their fit check appointment with Open Bionics clinician Daniel Green
This was the first one in the US and it was remarkably successful, and I come along to every Experience day held at the lab and Hero Arm delivery day at the end of the BH3, to meet the kids, give them advice, meet the families, chat to them about it and answer any questions!
It is really such a joy to attend these days, and at the US clinic I got to sit in the room where the kids were moving the fingers of a bionic hand for the very first time. I can’t even explain how rewarding that is, and it’s so sentimental for me too, because I remember when I was in that very position, 9 years old and operating the prototype for the very first time. A prototype for the very thing that has evolved into this device that kids everywhere are experiencing now.
Other shenanigans… 
The fun in New York didn’t just stop there. The last time I was here was 5 years ago, in the Big Apple there was plenty of exploring to do…
On the first day we ended up walking from the top of Manhattan to the bottom. Checked out Little Italy on the way too, where I had a proper Italian coffee.
We went to The Summit which is a building made from mirrors and glass up in the sky. That was definitely a cool experience.
I even took on the subway for the first time and only got a little bit lost.
Conclusion 
In this blog we covered:
- Travelling as a cyborg!
- The Big Hero 3 + first one in the US
and
- Other fun bits in NYC!
I’m so grateful to be able to attend events like this, moments like seeing kids moving bionic fingers for the first time and the hero arm becoming available in more and more countries and more successful crowdfunding campaigns, it’s just one step closer to making them accessible everywhere!
Hopefully I’ll be back, see you soon New York!
Love,
Tilly x
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