this post was submitted on 02 Oct 2024
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692
Paralyzed Man Unable to Walk After Maker of His Powered Exoskeleton Tells Him It's Now Obsolete (futurism.com)
submitted 1 month ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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A former jockey who was left paralyzed from the waist down after a horse riding accident was able to walk again thanks to a cutting-edge piece of robotic tech: a $100,000 ReWalk Personal exoskeleton.

When one of its small parts malfunctioned, however, the entire device stopped working. Desperate to gain his mobility back, he reached out to the manufacturer, Lifeward, for repairs. But it turned him away, claiming his exoskeleton was too old, *404 media *reports.

"After 371,091 steps my exoskeleton is being retired after 10 years of unbelievable physical therapy," Michael Straight posted on Facebook earlier this month. "The reasons why it has stopped is a pathetic excuse for a bad company to try and make more money."

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[–] [email protected] 192 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Fortunately, Lifeward eventually capitulated and Straight was able to get his exoskeleton repaired — but that was only after an intense campaign in which he went on local TV, got highlighted in a horse industry publication, and gained steam on social media. If it weren't for that, he could still be struggling to find a way to get his mobility back again.

Uhg, needed bad PR before they changed their mind

[–] [email protected] 35 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

got highlighted in a horse industry publication

Wait what?

Edit: duh, he was a jockey. I should let the moment of confusion settle before replying.

[–] [email protected] 31 points 1 month ago

Sorry

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Horses are relentless.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

Yeah, gaining public attention is definitely what saved him here. Who would ever spend $100k on an exoskeleton if the company is only going to support it for 5 years, and won't even help with a minor repair?