Not a robot as we imagine it, autonomous and capable of doing things on its own, but un robot come serve. A mechanical assistant for people with reduced mobility.
It’s called Twin, that’s what you call a robotic exoskeleton for the lower limbs (the legs, that is) and is the most recent result of the joint work of the Italian Institute of Technology with the Inail Prosthetic Center in Budrio, in the province of Bologna.
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The legs are controlled with an app
During the presentation of the new version of the Twin at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Milan it was recalled that “to date, exoskeletons constitute the only device that allows the achievement of autonomous walking for patients with motor deficits resulting from spinal cord injuries due to trauma or neurological pathologies” and that “this is where the scientific interest of Inail and IIT towards these technologies with the aim of creating devices that allow the reintegration into social and working contexts of seriously injured people”.
In practice, and as can be seen from the images, Twin is one external structure that is applied to the legs and is able to enhance the physical capabilities of those who use it: it can be worn daily for a few hours to stand (it is known that assuming the upright position brings great benefits on a musculoskeletal, circulatory, psychological level and also on the functionality of the system digestive system of those who use a wheelchair) and can be used in rehabilitation clinics during physiotherapy sessions. All the controls are in fact grouped in an Android app that is installed on the tablet included in the scope of delivery of the device: the interface allows you to control the exoskeleton in the execution of the various activities, to set the kinematic parameters and to choose between different stride execution modes.
Mode which are 3 in total:
Walkdesigned for patients with absent motor functionin which the exoskeleton imposes a walking pattern according to the programmed parameters;
Retrainfor patients with partial impairment of the motor function, i.e. able to carry out a more or less autonomous movement but with difficulty in some phases of the step (the exoskeleton supports the patient’s movement with more or less intensity, directing him towards an optimal reference trajectory);
TwinCarefor patients with partial motor impairment e differentiated between the two limbsin which one leg is healthy and can move independently, while the other requires help, more or less important, in some phases of the step.
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Even those who no longer walk walk
One of the most interesting aspects is that Twin (whose new version has more powerful engines and is lighter) is able to provide sufficient energy to allow people with reduced or even no movement capabilities, such as in cases of complete spinal cord injuries, to maintain an upright position and even walking, standing and sitting. It must be done with the aid of crutches or walkers, because the IIT exoskeleton is not self-balancing, but it is undoubtedly a notable paradigm shift for those with such deficits: the motors activate the knee and hip joints, imposing legs a fully configurable movement pattern in terms of length and type of stride and walking speed.
The drums of the Twin exoskeleton has an autonomy of approximately 4 hours and requires approximately 60 minutes to recharge and its developers are now waiting for the CE marking, which however will have to take place in collaboration with an industrial entity to then start marketing the product. Which, according to what IIT told us, “will enter the market in lower than average cost ranges of the exoskeletons already on sale”.
Matteo Laffranchi, head of the Rehab Technologies laboratory of IIT and Inail, explained that “at the beginning of this project we had several exchanges with hospitals and patients which led to the creation of a series of key technologies for allow the use of the exoskeleton in semi-autonomy to people with complete spinal cord injury. Years later, we have managed to expand the use of Twin to people with different types of motor disabilities and we have introduced a series of features and technologies designed for the clinical use of Twin, which allow measure the patient’s status and the progress of therapy”.
@capoema