Too Cool For Crutches

We have become very well acquainted with the four wheeled walker with seat and brakes. The walker combines the safety of the wheel locks with the convenience of a place to rest.

This new concept crutch combines the convenience of a place to rest with . . . well, a little bit of style I guess.

The design doesn't show much of a nod to ergonomics in the handle design or placement of the forearm pads, but the two crutches do stick together and lean against things.

I don't see this design gaining status as medically necessary or having a HCPC code assigned, but it is nice to see some innovation and style in the development of DME.

Pack Up, We're Out of A Job.

Even Competitive Bidding announcements couldn't have killed off the rehab industry as entirely as this recent press release. Israeli industrial design and engineering firm Argo Medical Technologies, has announced the development of the ReWalk Exo-Skeleton.

The exo-skeleton concept is not new, UC Berkeley and Sarcos have prototypes focused on military applications. While impressive, they are bulky and not suitable for everyday living conditions.

The Argo Medical exo-skeleton brace type device is designed to attach to the body of a person with a spinal cord injury and allow that person to stand and walk. Using motors, sensors, and rechargeable batteries, attached to the brace frames and a backpack, the ReWalk is designed to allow users to walk safely with the aid of crutches. A video demo can be seen on Argo's web page.

Besides showing off the new product, Argo also dedicates some room on the website to justifying the financial impact this type of product will have. With the first two years of paraplegia estimated to cost insurance companies 285,941 dollars, the possibility to offset costs promised by the ReWalk at 120,000 dollars per year makes the device rather attractive.

This device would not only make wheelchairs obsolete, it would also kill off the standing frame industry. Argo is hoping to have this device on the market by 2009, do you see a HCPC code assigned to this product in the future? But the real question is: Will this device be included in a competitive bidding carve-out?

Can Your Wheelchair Read Your Mind?

Ambient made waves a little while ago when they announced the ability to control a wheelchair by thought. They have recently expanded the application to the technology to include communication devices, access to the internet, or darn near anything else that can controlled via voice.



Controlling a wheelchair or creating an augmentative communications device may be the ultimate purpose of the technology, but these lofty ideas will not likely pay the bills. Hopefully the technology can be made available to applications with wider appeal and fund the development of the intended goal.

EyePod

Reuters is running a story on a Japanese University that has created a switch to control an iPod via a series of blinks. The movement of the skin around the eyes is read by a series of sensors attached to eyeglasses or headphones.

"Wink strongly for one second with one eye to rewind, use the other to skip to the next song, or close both eyes to pause and play, Taniguchi told Reuters in an e-mail interview.

But what if users accidentally blink only to find themselves in a completely different soundtrack?

"It doesn't happen at all. This system doesn't malfunction even if the user eats, talks, walks and runs," Taniguchi wrote, saying there were differences in movement between an accidental and an intentional blink or wink."

This type of switch means:

1. You can independently rock your playlist even if you can't use that cool 'click wheel'.
2. Ipod accessories and options will start showing up on Invacare and Sunrise Medical invoices.
3. The switch may be adaptable as another drive option for power chairs. Lots of possibilities with that!