A Japanese-developed robot suit complete with its own mechanical limbs is helping paralyzed patients walk again.

The robotic exosuit called HAL for "Hybrid Assistive Limb" was recently tested on paralyzed patients at the Center for Neurorobotic Movement Training in Bochum, Germany.

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HAL moves when its user's brain sends signals throughout the spinal cord and the nerves surrounding it, and then to a part of the body like an arm or a leg.

Paralyzed patients with damaged spinal structures and those whose signals from their brains are too weak to reach specific body parts will still be able to use HAL.

The HAL exosuit will be able to pick up these weakened signals through several sensors attached to a patient's skin, all the while activating motors located in the pelvic and knee-joint regions.

This enables the suit to connect to the person's nervous system, helping the individual regain some mobility.

Dr. Thomas Schildhauer, medical director at the Bergmannsheil, a university hospital in Bochum, said HAL is different from other normal exoskeleton systems in that the patient has direct control of the exoskeleton.

 "The patient is in 'direct control' of the robot and is not passively moved by the robotic exoskeletal system," he said.

The suit is already being used by several paraplegic, quadriplegic, stroke patients, and muscular dystrophy patients in controlled trials.

Schildhauer is surprised by the amount of functional gain the suit gives patients. He cites an instance where a wheelchair bound patient was able to walk short distances after training with HAL for five times a week for three months.

HAL has seen success among patients with spinal cord injury. Other patient groups are still under formal investigation.

Dr. Yoshiyuki Sankai, developer of the HAL suit, designed the robot suit "for the benefits of humankind in the field of medicine, caregiving, welfare, labor, heavy works, entertainment and so on."

HAL is designed to assist the disabled and elderly in their daily tasks. It can also be used to support workers with physically demanding jobs such as disaster rescue or construction.

HAL is used mainly by disabled patients in hospitals, and can be modified so patients can use it for longer-term rehabilitation.

TagsHAL, Cybernetic, Hybrid Assistive Limb