Exoskeleton for Paraplegics Demonstrated at FIFA World Cup

Juliano Pinto, a 29-year-old man with complete paralysis of the lower trunk, performed the symbolic kick-off at Corinthians Arena (Sao Paulo, Brazil) during the opening ceremony of the FIFA 2014 World Cup.

The demonstration was the debut of the Walk Again Project, an international consortium of more than 150 scientists and engineers, led by Brazilian neuroscientist Dr Miguel Nicolelis, of Duke University (Durham, NC, USA). The demonstration was held to present recent advances in the field of brain machine interfaces (BMIs). Juliano was wearing an EEG headset that recorded brainwave activity; a backpack computer translated the electrical signals into commands the exoskeleton can understand.

The robotic suit is powered by hydraulics, and a battery in the backpack allows for approximately two hours of use. A “skin” that consists of flexible printed circuit boards, each containing pressure, temperature and speed sensors, is applied on the soles of the feet, and allows the patient to receive tactile stimulation when walking with the exoskeleton. When the robotic suit starts to move and touches the ground, signals are transmitted to an electronic vibration device on the patient's arm, which stimulates their skin.

After extensive practice, the brain starts associating the movements of the legs with the vibration in the arm. In theory, the patient starts to develop the sensation that they have legs and that they are walking. Eight Brazilian patients 20-40 years of age paralyzed from the waist down, including Juliano, trained for months to use the exoskeleton at Dr. Nicolelis’ lab in Sao Paulo (Brazil). The suit has been named BRA-Santos Dumont, which combines the three-letter designation for Brazil and Alberto Santos-Dumont, the aviation pioneer who was born in the country's southern state of Minas Gerais.

“Football is a very big deal. The World Cup is the world's largest sports competition, the ultimate sharing opportunity. We proposed to the government that instead of a regular musical or typical opening ceremony that has been done in the past, we could surprise the world by doing a scientific demonstration instead,” Dr. Nicolelis said in an interview with CBS News. “Sports can be a huge avenue to reach out to people that would never actually pay attention to science news. I always wanted to show kids in Brazil how important science can be for society.”

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