Talk about meeting fiction with reality. What we saw in movies is coming true now!
A Japanese company Cyberdyne Inc. (does this sound familiar?) has developed a cyborg-type robot suit called HAL (Hybrid Assistive Limb), that can expand and improve physical capability.
HAL is primarily developed to upgrade the existing physical capabilities of the human body but it has many other applications. Currently HAL is used by people with weakened muscles and by some people with disabilities due to stroke and/or spinal cord injury.
When a person attempts to move, nerve signals are sent from the brain to the muscles via motoneuron, moving the musculoskeletal system as a consequence. At this moment, very weak biosignals can be detected on the surface of the skin. HAL catches these signals through a sensor attached on the skin of the wearer. Based on the signals obtained, the power unit is controlled to move the joint unitedly with the wearer’s muscle movement, enabling to support the wearer’s daily activities.
This is what we call a ‘voluntary control system’ that provides movement interpreting the wearer’s intention from the biosignals in advance of the actual movement.
Not only a ‘voluntary control system’ HAL has, but also a ‘robotic autonomous control system’ that provides human-like movement based on a robotic system which integrally work together with the ‘autonomous control system’. HAL is the world’s first cyborg-type robot controlled by this unique Hybrid System.
Currently it is only available in Japan with a price tag of US $1,000 per month (including $300 for maintenance/update) for individuals. Pricing for institutional users will be much more expensive (approx. 3 times).
It is very light weight because its exoskeleton supports its own weight and it can multiply the original strength by a factor of 2 to 10.
For more details visit the company’s website.
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