Hybrid Assistive Limb
Hybrid Assistive Limb is developed by Japan’s Tsukuba University in collaboration with the robotics company Cyberdyne. HAL is one of the world’s first and best available robotic remedial equipment that can lead to the possibility to walk. Nervous and cerebral disorders are the major cause of lower limb disabilities. In such cases brain cannot order to move the limbs through the ordinary neural pathways. HAL helps in moving the wearer’s limbs according to his intentions like “I want to stand up” or “I want to walk”, along with that it enables the timely physical feedback response of the feeling “I could stand up” or “I could walk”. Gradually the movements strengthen the muscles and the feedback’s accelerate the learning by the brain. Currently HAL stands alone as the one and only remedial device that can make it remember or teach the brain how to move limbs.
How it works ?
When a person intends to move his body, various signals are transferred from brain to muscles through the nerves. This signals or impulses leak on the skin surface and the bio electric signals are absorbed by the HAL to compensate adequate muscle power and assists in the movement.
Let’s hope such innovations be encouraged by the higher authorities and making such worthy technologies available to the needy hands worldwide for making the life colorful to the most possible extent.
Orginally written by Ajay Balachandran for mad-garage.com
