Robotics, Robots | featured news

An artificially intelligent, wearable robot enables paraplegics to stand upright and walk.

It may not look like a character from the Transformer franchise, but a tiny robot made in the US is able to change shape. Built at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), it uses magnets to mimic molecules that fold themselves into complex shapes.

Researchers from three of the US's leading universities are teaming up on a $10m project to revolutionise robot production.

Walking is one of the many things in life that most of us take for granted. Now, for those who can’t, a technological marvel could prove miraculous. A Defense Department program to develop super-strong soldiers has led to a wearable robot that enables paraplegics to walk. At 10 leading rehab facilities from Honolulu to Atlanta, Ekso Bionics' Iron Man-style exoskeletons have been quietly tested over the past year, to resounding success.

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