Bringing AI to support your walk

Robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and assorted devices were among the top picks at the Bengaluru tech summit. One of the biggest draws among these was a device by Bengaluru based startup Bionic Yantra -- REARS (Robotic Exoskeleton Assisted Rehabilitation System). The device will be launched for commercial use soon.

It is an exoskeleton that offers a fall safe solution to aid patients unable to walk. The product is aimed to offer doctors enough data points about the patient’s health condition and can be used in multiple use-cases. From the patient’s perspective, it can make the post-operative physiotherapy less painful and taxing, the founders said.

Shiva Nagarajan and Vaidy Narayanan, founded Bionic Yantra in January 2017, to manufacture robotic exoskeletons for those unable to walk because of injuries and ailments.

Two and a half years on, after a lot of research and tie-ups with a host of hospitals such as Nimhans, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and Sakara hospital, the product is ready for the launch. It can also be used for patients undergoing physiotherapy, post-surgery.

“Currently, patients need to be lifted physically. REARS revolutionises this function, with the robot holding you in place and moving with you. The exoskeleton walks as it is programmed with the human gait.”

Referring to the few days post-surgery as the ‘golden period’, Nagarajan say, “The chances of recovery are better when you start therapy during this period. In the West, doctors start therapy 2-3 weeks after the operation.”

The key factors that make it stand out are -- the unweighing system, which allows fragile patients not to bear their full body weight. This essentially means that a person with fractures on both legs can start rehabilitation quickly with this device.

Moreover, he says that the power to the motors can be calibrated to the healing process. They add that the device works for stroke, spinal cord injury, obesity, dual fracture, and other injuries.

The founders state that getting a patient to walk quickly is very important. “If you delay that process, the body could lose its ability to heal quickly. Doctors are apprehensive and about the patients falling,” says Nagarajan.

REARS is equipped with sensors to map multiple data points, including walking speed, steps taken, range of motion of the knees and hips and provides a report at the end of every session. “The data helps understand the patient’s progress, and also detects patterns through machine learning and artificial intelligence tools,” he says.

Presently, the product is focussed on hospital care and plans to develop cheaper devices for use at home in the near future. They also plan to create a gait profile of people.

“ This is going to be an interesting project as every person has a different style of walking. There are many use cases to it,” said the founders.