- Title: Egyptian teen offers hope to disabled with new exoskeleton.
- Date: 28th February 2018
- Summary: DESIGN ON HAMADA'S LAPTOP
- Embargoed: 14th March 2018 12:08
- Keywords: Mechatronics robotics exoskeleton Egypt innovation
- Location: SHARQIYA, EGYPT
- City: SHARQIYA, EGYPT
- Country: Egypt
- Topics: Science
- Reuters ID: LVA00384GTTUF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Using improvised robotic materials, Egyptian teenager Mansour Hamada devised a prototype for a robotic exoskeleton which he says can one day help the disabled walk.
The suit is meant to translate the occupant's brain signals into movements of the affected limbs using certain brain sensors.
Exoskeleton originally means a protective or supportive shell. More recently it has come to mean an outer frame that not only supports, but also robotically simulates or enhances body movement.
Global manufacturers of robotic exoskeletons largely target paralysed people. They do not claim to be the cure, but they can be a practical aid to making disabled people more mobile.
The student believes his device could potentially be among the first of its kind in Egypt.
He says it was designed to people with disabilities, including those suffering from Quadriplegia and Paraplegia, both injuries affecting the spinal cord.
The eighteen year-old high school student says he conducted extensive research at physical therapy centres, consulted with brain surgeons, and studied mechatronics before starting his design.
Plans are in place to test the device on a disabled person next month, while professors at the Zagazig University have tested the mechanics and approved it for trial, Hamada said.
Mansour bought aluminium and metal sheets from a local dealer and cables from his village supermarket, turning a room in his modest house into a makeshift laboratory.
He manually cut up the metal sheets and cables and assembled them to form his exoskeleton, that is powered by oxygen cylinders.
In the next phase, Mansour aims to use less materials and increase its weight capacity. He has already applied for a patent.
Patent applications are only approved when applicants demonstrate novelty, creativity, and the possibility of their designs to be manufactured, according to the Egyptian Patent Office's website. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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