Wallace and Gromit-style ‘robotic’ TROUSERS could help frail older people walk without falling
Robot pants didn’t work well for Wallace and Gromit, but scientists have come up with pants that could help weak, elderly people walk without the risk of falling.
Inventors have created “exo-leggings” from soft, breathable material, unlike the stiff robotic exoskeletons often used to help paralyzed people walk.
The pants are designed for people with healthy bodies and reduce the amount of energy used when walking by about 12 percent, a study shows.
Anyone could use them, just like an electric bicycle, to provide some extra power, for example when climbing a particularly steep hill.
But researchers believe they will make older people more stable when they walk, by helping them regain their balance when their center of gravity moves toward their standing leg as they step out with the other leg.
Robot trousers didn’t work so well for Wallace and Gromit (pictured) – but scientists have come up with a pair of trousers that could help frail, elderly people walk without the risk of falls
The pants (pictured) help with the slight sideways movement people make when walking, before moving their body back to a central point. A cable attached to the pants helps perform these movements by pulling on the wearer’s thigh
The pants help with the slight sideways movement that people make when walking, before moving their body back to a central point.
A cable attached to the pants helps perform these movements by pulling on the wearer’s thigh.
The exo leggings’ ability to prevent falls has not yet been studied, but researchers plan to test the pants on older people.
The researchers tested how well the pants improved balance, and will test in future studies whether they actually reduce falls.
The pants were tested on 10 men, five of whom had never worn the pants before, in 12-minute tests.
The energy used to walk was assessed using a respirator, which measures calories burned based on how much carbon dioxide someone exhales compared to the oxygen they inhaled.
The technology, like similar exosuits and shorts, could in the future allow soldiers and warehouse workers to work longer without tiring.
In a new version of the technology, the cable attached to the pants is already tucked into a lightweight backpack, so people don’t have to be strapped to a treadmill when wearing the leggings.
Dr. Myunghee Kim, co-author of a study on the exo-leggings, from the University of Illinois, said: ‘These could help an able-bodied person who is tired climb a difficult hill or continue on a difficult walk.’
Dr. Guik Lee, another co-author from Chung-Ang University in South Korea, said: ‘The trousers will be especially useful for frail elderly people who need help walking, and could prevent them from falling by helping them to regain their balance.’
People take about 5,000 steps a day, covering a distance of 4 kilometers, and walking is one of the activities we do, apart from exercise, that requires the most energy.
The pants (pictured), which weigh approximately 600 grams, come with shoulder straps to keep them in place and are expected to be widely available in the next two to three years. But they require a full day of training on a treadmill before use because, unless a person learns to reduce their own lateral gait, pulling on the cable can feel a bit like walking through water.
That’s why there’s so much interest in using technology to make it easier, with ‘exosuits’ reminiscent of the Iron Man movie seen as a possible solution.
These exosuits are becoming lighter and lighter.
In 2019, scientists from Harvard University presented a pair of shorts that could be used to boost both walking and running.
The new pants, which weigh about 600 grams, come with shoulder straps to keep them upright and are expected to be widely available in the next two to three years.
But they require a full day of training on a treadmill before use because, unless a person learns to reduce their own lateral gait, pulling on the cable can feel a bit like walking through water.