RoboVet, Paralyzed veteran walks again with special suit

Paralyzed Madison combat vet goes 'RoboCop' with bionic suit that lets him stand and walk
Wisconsin State Journal
STEVEN VERBURG
3 hours ago

Just under three years ago, a powerful bomb blast ripped the earth apart along a remote road in Afghanistan, leaving Army Sgt. Dan Rose paralyzed from the chest down.

Since then, Rose has plied Rocky Mountain powder on specially adapted skis, completed his first marathon in a wheelchair and surfed on ocean waves atop a longboard.

Now he’s ready to stand up and walk again — on a limited basis — with the help of a $128,000 “wearable robot” that was recently delivered to his Madison apartment.

The motorized, computer-assisted mechanism looks like something out of science fiction, but it’s a product of a growing medical robotics industry that offers new hope to some of the tens of thousands of people paralyzed by spinal cord injuries, strokes and other neurological disorders.

For Rose, it’s the next step in his rapid ascent from the deep depression and hopelessness that plagued him for months after he regained consciousness on April 27, 2011, looked through a window spiderwebbed with cracks in his upended armored vehicle and realized his legs were numb and lifeless.

Next month, several of Rose’s friends will be trained to help him safely maneuver in his robotic suit. Until then, Rose said, the manufacturer is withholding start-up instructions.
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