Techno trousers!
I'm amazed I haven't been following this for some time. I mean, how could I fail to notice someone building working strength enhancing robot exo-suits? But no - the first I heard about it (about this team - I knew vaguely about some US folk having battery issues) was when I saw the BBC video yesterday.
It's a whole body integrated suit, with a battery life of about 2 hours and 40 minutes. It uses skin patches to listen for nerve impulses, and follows your intended movements. It doesn't look all that bulky, and it seems pretty strong (the prof says in the video it can make you "like 5 times stronger"). The researchers who came up with it are these guys, and they have an ominously named spin off company to market the thing :)
Looks to me like a much cooler alternative to walking with a stick for the arthritic.
It's a whole body integrated suit, with a battery life of about 2 hours and 40 minutes. It uses skin patches to listen for nerve impulses, and follows your intended movements. It doesn't look all that bulky, and it seems pretty strong (the prof says in the video it can make you "like 5 times stronger"). The researchers who came up with it are these guys, and they have an ominously named spin off company to market the thing :)
Looks to me like a much cooler alternative to walking with a stick for the arthritic.