Walking is something we take for granted, but for those with limited mobility, it can often become a chore. What if we had something that could take the energy expenditure required for walking and reduce it?
That's exactly what a team of scientists from multiple universities asked, and in response, they invented a pair of exoskeleton boots that reduces the energy spent while walking by 7 percent. Even better? They've done it without the boots requiring an additional power source, such as a battery.
This isn't the first time that researchers have attempted to make walking better and more efficient. Recently, scientists have built Iron Man-like exoskeletons that help people with other tasks, such as lifting and carrying heavier weights. However, those suits don't reduce the amount of energy used in those tasks.
However, these new exoskeleton boots do. Researchers used the natural locomotion of the human foot as inspiration. Normally, the Achilles tendon in your heel and your calf maintains energy expended during walking. The boots mirror that action using mechanical springs and ratchets.
The exoskeleton takes some of the pressure off the calf muscles when walking by using a mechanical clutch that engages when the foot hits the ground and disengages when the foot is in the air. This takes the effort away from the calf, but still produces force without needing additional energy. This video explains the process.
However, there is one downside to the boots: the energy efficiency only increases when walking at a normal speed on a level surface. However, researchers plan on testing how the boots operate in other conditions, such as in climbing up a hill. Researchers also hope to add electronics that can adjust the boots' responses to other terrain with plans on eventually making the boots available commercially.
It may seem like a bad idea, from a health perspective, to make walking easier for a population that's already predominantly out of shape, but the boots could assist those with limited mobility, such as senior citizens, as well as help those who have suffered from a stroke learn to walk again.
"Why would you want to reduce energy? Don't we have an obesity problem?" asks Gregory Sawicki, a biomedical engineer and locomotion physiologist at North Carolina State University. "For a 65-year-old active person, it could really prolong their active years."
[Photo Credit: Steven Thrift]
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