The Daily Telegraph Friday 16 August 2019 *** 5
Science strides forward with invention of ‘robo-shorts’
By Sarah Knapton SCIENCE EDITOR
WHILE robotic trousers may have
gone famously wrong for the animated
characters Wallace and Gromit, scien-
tists are claiming to have taken a step
forward with the development of new
“robo-shorts” that could help the frail
to walk again.
Exosuits, which aid movement, have
been available in the past but they were
generally bulky and could not vary
speed, making them less practical for
everyday use.
But the researchers have developed
new shorts that allow the wearer to
move about – and crucially switch from
walking to running – without losing
performance.
The exosuit was developed by the US
military to help soldiers patrol forlengthy periods in rugged and uphill
terrain while wearing bulky equip-
ment. The device works through a se-
ries of electronically activated pulleys
and thigh wraps attached to a belt that
helps lift the legs at the hip joint, mak-
ing each step slightly easier.
In treadmill tests, the shorts reduced
effort in walking by 9.3 per cent and in
running by 4 per cent – equivalent to a
person walking or running with up to
17lb less weight. Sometimes soldiers on
patrol must carry up to 100lb in equip-
ment. And as the shorts can work onvarying gradients, they could also be
harnessed by climbers to help them
uphill, or to help the elderly climb the
stairs at home.
Dr Conor Walsh, a founder of the
Harvard Biodesign Lab in the US, said:
“We were excited to see that the device
performed well during uphill walking,
at different running speeds and during
testing over the ground outside, which
showed the versatility of the system.”
Incorporating the ability to walk and
run in a single device has proved tricky
in the past as the two movements aremechanically different. The shorts are
controlled by an algorithm that knows
when a user moves from walking to
running or vice versa, and adjusts ten-
sion on the legs accordingly. As the
body’s centre of mass changes when
running or walking, sensors detect
when the wearer has accelerated or
slowed down.
Dr Philippe Malcolm, assistant pro-
fessor at the University of Nebraska,
Omaha, said: “Once a gait transition is
detected, the exosuit automatically ad-
justs to assist the other gait.” The re-searchers previously developed a
multi-joint suit that moved both the
hip and ankle during walking, and a
medical version aimed at improving
gait for stroke survivors is used in hos-
pitals across Europe and the US.
Experts believe that the shorts will
open the door to implants that can acti-
vate muscles without the need for an
external exosuit.
The research, conducted at Harvard
University’s Wyss Institute for Biologi-
cally Inspired Engineering, was pub-
lished in the journal Science.‘Human swan’ to
become an osprey on
epic flight to Africa
By Sarah Knapton
A CONSERVATIONIST who became
known as “the human swan” after risk-
ing being shot, electrocuted and at-
tacked by bears to follow the birds’
4,700-mile migration route is to repeat
the feat with ospreys.
Sacha Dench, 41, a distant relative of
Dame Judi Dench, will next year make
a 6,000-mile journey between Scot-
land and west Africa, crossing 15 coun-
tries by paramotor – a powered
paraglider – to follow the birds of prey.
Dench, who made the original flight on
the trail of the Bewick’s swan from the
Russian Arctic to Britain in 2016, is
hoping to find out why some ospreys
fail to return to Scotland after leaving
their nests on their annual migration.
Unlike swans, ospreys migrate on
thermal updrafts to reach altitudes of
thousands of feet, and then take long
glides to their next thermal.
During their autumn migration they
cross high mountain ranges, seas and
deserts, making the new journey
longer and more treacherous.
Miss Dench said: “I’m really excited
about this new expedition. The osprey
is a magnificent bird and an impressive
flier. To get inside the head of the ani-
mals we are trying to bring back, and
try to see the world as they do, will be
an eye-opener for scientists and con-
servationists.
“The last expedition taught me there
is nothing like showing up and talking
to local people, to help learn what the
problems really are, but also to come
up with a plan – with them, and some-
times really quickly – for how to solve
them.”
Osprey were once extinct in Britain
but they were reintroduced in the Fif-
ties and there are now about 250 breed-
ing pairs in Scotland and an estimated
25 in England and Wales.
However, about half of chicks fail to
reach the breeding age of three, and
many young birds die in their first year.
Miss Dench is hoping to find out why
many do not return to Scotland.
Historically, ospreys were killed be-
cause they were seen as a threat to
trout and salmon stocks and were shot
by gamekeepers and sportsmen. More
recently agricultural practices led to
the destruction of habitat and nest sites
and the birds have also fallen foul of
taxidermists and egg collectors.
Miss Dench is travelling from Scot-
land as it would be impossible to make
the trip from Africa to Scotland on the
return migration because of head-
winds and lack of thermals.
She will be following a group of
tagged ospreys, and the journey, which
begins in September next year, will be
live-streamed.Editorial Comment: Page 15Red for Ruth Andrew Strauss and his sons, Luca and Sam, aged 11 and 13, rang the five-minute bell at Lord’s yesterday. They
wore red to support the Ruth Strauss Foundation, set up in memory of the ex-England cricketer’s wife, who died of cancer.ADRIAN DENNIS / AFPRobotic clothing could
help the frail to walk again,
while also giving soldiers a
leg up on the battlefield
Sacha Dench, a
distant relative of
Dame Judi, will make
a 6,000-mile journey
between Scotland
and west AfricaNews
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