VOA常速英语2015--助行走外骨骼机器人（在线收听）

助行走外骨骼机器人

Powered suits that could help paralyzed people walk and others lift and carry heavy loads with ease have been an inventor's dream since late 19th century. But they had to wait until the 21st century for the advanced materials, motors and power sources to bring them closer to practical use.

With the press of a button, this young man with severe spinal cord injury is able to walk again, thanks to the Walking Assistive Exoskeleton Robot.

只需按下按钮，这位患有脊髓严重受伤的年轻人就能再次行走，这要多亏了这款步行辅助外骨骼机器人。

The 20-kilogram aluminum and carbon fiber device has four battery-powered motors that can run for up to three hours. Inventor Wu Cheng-hua, from Taiwan’s Industrial Technology Research Institute, says it has successfully been in tests on 12 patients.

这个重20公斤的铝、碳纤维制设备有四个电池驱动马达，能运转三个小时。发明者吴成华来自台湾工业科技研究所，他说这款设备已在12位患者身上试验成功。

“We have learned from our research process that patients whose injuries [are] below the fourth chest joint are able to use our robot to stand, walk and sit down,” he said.

“我们从研究过程中了解到，那些在第四个胸关节下受伤的患者能够使用我们的机器人站立、行走和坐下。”

Since walking contributes to muscle exercise, Wu says patients receive some additional benefits.

由于行走有助于肌肉锻炼，吴说患者还得到其他的益处。

“In the clinical process, we would check their bone mineral density, and we found that the bone mineral densities of these patients had been improved, which is a positive index for their health,” he said.

“在临床中，我们会检查患者的骨密度，我们发现这些患者的骨密度得到改善，这对他们的健康来说是个积极的指标。”

Wu says his exoskeleton may be available for consumers by 2018.

吴说他的外骨骼设备可以在2018年之前向消费者推出。

Meanwhile, baggage handlers at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport will soon start testing a similar device, developed by the Japanese firm Cyberdyne.

同时，东京羽田机场的行李员将很快开始测试一款类似的设备，它是由日本生化人公司开发的。

When a person wearing the exoskeleton called HAL bends to lift a heavy object, the machine detects the movement, says developer and CEO of Cyberdyne Yoshiyuki Sankai.

当人穿着名为HAL bends的外骨骼设备举起重物时，机器就能检测出运动，生化人公司CEO山海嘉之如是说。

“This robot suit detects the signal from the human nerve system to support the waist's movement," Sankai said. "It self-adjusts the level of support it provides to reduce the load on the human waist, while being very light and compact."

“这款机器人服装能检测出人的神经系统，从而支持腕部的运动，它能自动调节所提供的支持水平，从而减轻人体腕部的负荷，而且重量很轻且很方便。”

The battery-powered device weighs only 3 kilograms and can run for up to three hours. During next six months, Haneda Airport will test three exoskeletons as well as several small cleaning and baggage transport robots.

这款电池动力设备重量只有3公斤，能运行三个小时。在未来6个月内，羽田机场将测试三个外骨骼设备，以及几款小型清洁和行李运输机器人。