Robotic leg to help physically challenged walk

C Shivakumar

Chennai:

Now physically handicapped individuals, who have been confined to wheelchairs or could not walk, has something to cheer about.

A Chennai-based innovator has come out with a new technology that could provide a new lease of life to physically handicapped people who can’t walk.

The project, supported by Department of Scientific Industrial Research’s Technopreneur Promotion Programme (TePP), has already won accolades for STM Veerabahu, who has been honoured as one of the top 20 technology innovators of India under the age group of 35 by Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s magazine Technology Review.

The magazine selected Veerabahu as one of the hottest technology innovators this year for developing robotic wearable legs which will assist individual’s suffering from polio attack, weakened muscles in legs or spinal cord injuries to walk.

Veerabahu told Express that the device is a four-strap attachment to the body. This is fixed to the body and it carries the individual.

The device has a rechargeable battery and is designed to hold a weight of 85 kg, says Veerabahu, who did his masters from Anna University in electrical drives and embedded control.

Interestingly, Veerabahu is now planning to capitalize on his innovation by starting the commercial production of the device by the end of this year. His firm Cybernoid Technologies will launch it in the market.

And Veerabahu says the price is not astronomical. “It will cost more or less of a wheel chair in the range of Rs 65,000 to Rs one lakh,” he says. Initially the target is to produce 3,000 of such devices. “We are open to have a tie-up with the state or Union government. My first job is to repay the investors and add value to the system,” says the Canada returned Technopreneur.

He says the robotic wearable legs can help the disabled to sit, walk and climb stairs. The objective was to help the disabled in performing their daily routines,” says Veerabahu, who did his schooling in St John’s Villivakkam.

Veerabahu says a similar innovation is also going on in Berkley University for defence purpose. “The Americans are planning to use it to create super soldier under the $ 1 billion programme. It is yet to hit the market. My innovation is only for public good and I have till now spent Rs 15 lakh, including the Rs 5.5 lakh grant from the TePP. Although, Veerabahu is seeking funds for the commercial production, he is also pinning his hopes on the second round of funding by TePP worth Rs 45 lakh.

Interestingly, this is not the only innovation by the scientist. Veerabahu also developed an eyebrow-controlled wheelchair, which won him an award from Confederation of Indian Industry.