Paralyzed man walks using brain-controlled robotic suit

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Friday, October 4, 2019
Paralyzed man walks using brain-controlled robotic suit

GRENOBLE, France (WPVI) -- A man, paralyzed from the shoulders down, is now able to walk using a mind-controlled robotic suit.

It may sound like science fiction, but it really happened in France.

Fonds de dotation Clinatec

The man, identified only as Thibault, severed his spinal cord after falling from a balcony.

University of Grenoble researchers implanted recording devices in his head that can transmit signals into movements, which are then executed by a robotic exo-skeleton.

For two years, Thibault has been using a video game avatar to help it understand his thoughts.

Over the course of the study, he was able to walk the distance of more than one and a half football fields.

Scientists say the technology is an experimental treatment that could help others, after it's improved.

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