Ekso Bionics walking machine for paraplegics

Engineers at Ekso Bionics, in Berkeley, California, are developing an "exoskeleton," or Ekso walking suit to be used by paraplegics in rehabilitation and perhaps, in the future, such machines may be used in everyday living. Debuting in rehab centers this year, Ekso plans to have a model ready for at-home rehabilitation by the middle of 2012.

The company that is producing the Ekso walking machines began in 2005 with the ExoHiker, an exoskeleton-type machine designed to allow a person to carry weights of up to 200 pounds with minimal physical exertion. Carrying such a large weight with bionic legs seemed largely inefficient and energy costly, until engineers had a breakthrough in weight redistribution that cut the energy costs by three fold.

After this achievement, Ekso partnered with the military and Lockhead Martin building weight-bearing machines. They soon realized that these machines could be utilized to move the actual legs of the wearers. Upon this revalation, they began work on the Ekso bioskeleton, a major achievement in biomechanics because it utilizes the advanced balancing required for the biomechanics of walking. The Ekso exoskeleton is currently undergoing tests to prove that it can sustain the number of steps required for approval by the FDA. Challenges for the future include the making sure the Ekso can handle the mechanics of such complicated tasks as sitting down and walking up/down stairs.

This development is interesting because it ties into the complicated nature of biomechanics and how to mimic these processes in machines.

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-03/23/ekso-bionic-exoskeleton-being-tested-in-uk