Power Armor For the Elderly

aicrules writes "The question of how to care for the growing number of people in the upper age bracket has a new answer - assistive power armor for the elderly." From the article: "The sleek, high-tech get-up looks like a white suit of armor. It straps onto a person's arms, legs and back and is equipped with a computer, motors and sensors that detect electric nerve signals transmitted from the brain when a person tries to move his limbs. When the sensors detect the nerve signals, the computer starts up the relevant motors to assist the person's motions. Sankai says the suit, dubbed 'Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) 5,' can let a person who can barely do an 176-pound leg press handle 397 pounds."

Comments

Just in time....

[Hamster Lover]

for Schwarzenegger's next movie!

They could combine the Terminator/RoboCop story line:

Prime Directives:

1. Get off my lawn!
2. Protect the elderly.
3. Uphold Medicare/Medicaid and Social Security.

muscle decay or muscle stimulation

[iamnot]

The issue of muscle loss when using such a device could go either way - the ability to move around much more actively could actually stimulate muscles. Resistance could be fine-tuned so that the muscles gradually strengthen. Often, the reason old people become so weak is that they are afraid to do things, or at least do them actively (my own grandmothers are afraid to be outside) - so having a body suit would be amazing, if they actually leave the house!!