Robot suits for stroke and injury rehab
It may seem like science fiction, but Stockholm’s Danderyd hospital is the testing ground for three robot suits to help people suffering from stroke or other serious disabilities to walk again.
The Hybrid Assistive Limb, or Hal, is an exo skeleton that fits over the body from the waist down, with controls on the back. It’s designed to help people with physical disabilities not just to walk, but also to rehabilitate so they can walk on their own again.
Stockholm’s Danderyd Hospital is testing three of the suits, the first clinical tests in Europe. The suit picks up nerve signals from the body through electrodes along the legs. Those are amplified by the suit and turned into motion. The project was started here by Robotdalen, a company that looks for advanced technology out in the world to bring back to Sweden.
