Blogger Comment: Many people with m.s. suffer from a loss of feeling in their feet. It looks like this device could be helpful to walking without "scuffing" for instance which would help prevent stumbling and falling.
This is part of a 30-part series called "Game Changers." This special series investigates the most remarkable advancements in science, energy and health — and how they will impact the way we live. This series is brought to you by Samsung's Galaxy S3.
Sensastep is a breakthrough assisted walking device that helps individuals who have lost feeling in their legs or feet walk normally again.
Inventor Jon Christiansen devised the technology after he was involved in a freak boating accident. He says that diabetes sufferers, Parkinson's disease patients and even stroke victims stand to benefit.
How It Works
Photo courtesy of Jon Christiansen
Insole with sensors.
The first element, an insole with sensors, tracks your gait. When pressure is applied, a transmitter wrapped around the ankle and attached to the insole picks up special tones.
Photo courtesy of Jon Christiansen
An earpiece that receives signals from the ankle transmitter.
The transmitter sends signals to a device that goes over the ear. The earpiece can distinguish tones used for the heel and toe because they are transmitted at different frequencies.
The tones vibrate a cochlear nerve which, over time, the brain learns to interpret as walking signals.
Christiansen says he is still shopping deals with prosthetic manufacturers but that commercial production is almost certainly imminent.The company has also approached the military, although Lt. Gen. Paul K. Carlton, Jr., M.D.,
who serves as Director of the Texas A&M Health Science Center, Office of Homeland Security, said that for the time being, most leg-related injuries in combat are too severe for a Sensastep-based therapy.
Watch a demonstration video below:
This Small Insole Helps People Walk Again - Business Insider
No comments:
Post a Comment