TRENDING Designers compete to get paralysed people moving

TRENDING

Designers compete to get paralysed people moving

10:14, January 10, 2019

Would being able to stand up improve the lives of wheelchair users?

Designers of an exoskeleton think it will - and they've won half a million dollars to develop it.

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Video source: VCG

They're among five finalists in the Mobility Unlimited Challenge - a search for game-changing innovations to improve the lives of people with lower-limb paralysis.

An ultra-light wheelchair that uses artificial intelligence and self-balancing technology to constantly adjust its center of gravity also caught the judges’ eyes.

Another exoskeleton providing power and balance at the hips, knees and ankles was also on shortlist, as is a novel way of stimulating the leg muscles at precisely the right time to help someone walk.

The competition is run by the Toyota Mobility Foundation in partnership with Nesta - the UK's Innovation Foundation.

The ideas also included a smartphone based system to quickly power up a manual wheelchair.

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