In the futuro «fyborg» in the near future, a person with legs paralyzed by a spinal cord injury is helped out of bed, puts on his “personal exoskeleton” and begins his day like anyone else. What is a fyborg? A “functional cyborg”, or an empowered individual through mechanical and electronic extensions not inserted into the body. Different from the cyborgbecause in this case man and machine merge together.
Bene, the fyborg is in fact already a realitygiven the development of more or less intelligent mechanical prostheses and “armors” worn to lift weights at work or capable of putting non-walking patients on their feet.
A rapidly expanding market
In the United States, several “tech” companies are developing the personal exoskeleton, or “home” version, as it has been nicknamed. It is clear: The exoskeleton market is growing exponentially and, according to different analysts, it is valued in a range between 0.7 and 2.3 billion dollars (2023-2024) with a projection to 2028 that exceeds 20 billion dollars.
Franco Molteni, clinical director of Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Research Innovation Institute, has joined the scientific board of one of these to further develop Atalante X, the exoskeleton that came into operation a year ago at Villa Beretta and the brand new personal exoskeleton announced by the company in December 2013 that it intends to make it available to people with spinal cord injuries spinal cord in the American market and then in the European one in the next few years.
The difference between the two exoskeletons is that Atalante can only be used in a “controlled” context and for rehabilitation purposes.The other one will help patients in their daily lives.
The home version of the exoskeleton opens the door to two different scenarios. «From a biological point of viewit will be interesting to observe how the neuro-sensorimotor systems are remodulated thanks to the use of the exoskeleton in an ecological situation and for previously unimaginable times” explains Franco Molteni. “The upright position, combined with the freedom to move the upper limbswhich do not have to support the body in any way, will also allow the person to re-imagine social interaction. Once again, technology is able to positively overturn the meaning of action».
One million steps taken
And let’s see then what were the results obtained at the Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Research Innovation Institute with the use in clinical practice of Atalante X, the exoskeleton that allows people with paraplegia due to a spinal cord or brain injury to walk without leaning on any support. Significant results, claim the Costa Masnaga Center (Lecco), with over a million steps taken.
You can also walk sideways and backwards
«From the very beginning, we wanted to verify what this meant for the purpose of recovering function using Atalante X in an unconventional way, walking not only forward, but also sideways and backwards”, says Franco Molteni.
«Patient feedback they struck us a lot: for them, it’s not just about recovering the path, but also the mastery of body movement in space. Another key point was the control of the trunk, which thanks to this exoskeleton is supported and pushed forward in a much more natural way, thus promoting the restoration of balance and global coordination. These two elements are biologically fundamental for reactivate neural circuits and improve cognitive and spatial perception activities».
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