Superpower of Bionic Technology

During an ice-climbing expedition to Mt Washington, the founder of BionX, Dr Hugh Herr, had a series of unfortunate events that led to the amputation of his leg.

As an elite climber, Dr Herr had no idea what his future might look like when told he would never climb again. For most people, that would have been the end of their adventurous days, but Dr Herr had no intention of giving up his passion for climbing.

Against multiple doctors’ advice, once his prosthetic leg was fitted, he used the principle of “mind over matter” to keep his ambitions alive. After redesigning better prostheses for climbing, Dr Herr was able to reach an elite climbing level again.

He didn’t stop there though. Dr Herr now heads up the Biomechatronics Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and co-drives the university’s Center for Extreme Bionics. Through his research he is rapidly advancing a field of biology which will allow prostheses to interface with the existing human anatomy, effectively allowing the robot to become a part of the person. This will give prosthesis users a heightened perception and awareness of their amputated limb.

Dr Herr is extremely confident that in the next few years scientists in human bionics will be able to create even better high-functioning and aesthetically compelling bionic shoes and bionic legs that are also cost-efficient.

View the original article from Medgadget here.