A French man with quadriplegia who has been able to walk again with an automated bodywork said walking was a great achievement for him after he had been immobile for years.
French scientists who developed and unveiled the system last week use a system of sensors implanted near the brain that send signals to the exoskeleton to move the patient's legs and arms.
Speaking to the media on Monday in the French city of Grenoble, the 30-year-old patient, who only gave his first name, Thibaut, said he had to re-learn how to use his brain when he began experimenting with the body's exoskeleton.
"Since I haven't moved in two years, I had to re-learn to use my brain," Thibaud said.
"At first, walking was very difficult, and now I can stand for two hours in the exoskeleton and I can walk very long, that's an achievement for me."
In a two-year experiment, two recording devices were implanted on both sides of the Tipo head between the brain and skin, covering the brain region that controls sensation and movement functions.
The recorder contains 64 electrodes to collect brain signals and transfer them to a decryption algorithm (Reuters) |
Each recorder contained 64 electrodes to collect brain signals and transmit them to a decoding algorithm. The system translated brain signals into the movements the patient thought, and sent his orders to the exoskeleton.