United to win: Japanese company provides robotic suits to aid Ukraine’s war-injured rehabilitation

Japanese high-tech robotics manufacturer Cyberdyne will provide Ukraine with 46 robotic exoskeleton suits for the rehabilitation and recovery of people who have been seriously injured as a result of the war.

Kyodo reports this.

What is the solution?

Cyberdyne has received an order for $2.4 million to supply 46 HAL robotic suits as part of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) project to assist Ukraine in recovery.

^{Photo: Cyberdyne}

How does it work?

As noted, the HAL suits, Hybrid Assistive Limb, are designed to improve, support, and regenerate the patient's physical functions by detecting and responding to signals sent from the brain to the muscles to initiate movement.

Cyberdyne reports that the suit uses sensors attached to the surface of a person's skin and allows patients to walk or lift heavy objects even with significantly weakened muscles.

HAL kits are expected to arrive at medical institutions in Kyiv by March next year and be used to treat people with spinal cord injuries or other muscle problems.

Such suits are already used in more than 20 countries.

For reference:

Exoskeletons are special suits that increase a person's strength using an external frame. The peculiarity of these devices is their lightness and ability to repeat all human movements mechanically.

It was reported that Kyiv received the first equipment worth more than 3 million hryvnias within the international technical assistance initiative "Emergency Recovery and Reconstruction Project." In particular, the Government of Japan, through the International Cooperation Agency (JICA), provided 34 computers.

It should also be noted that on November 16, the Agreement between the governments of Ukraine and Japan on information security was signed. Its purpose is to create a legal framework for the exchange of information between the state bodies of the two states.

Also, in 2024, Ukraine will receive 100 generators from Japan—some of which the country transferred already on November 16.

In addition, Prodrone, a Japanese manufacturer of industrial drones, is preparing to supply its products to Ukraine for use in humanitarian demining operations.

It is worth adding that Japan will provide Ukraine with 4.5 billion US dollars this year and will continue to assist throughout the agreement's ten-year term. The total amount of assistance from March 2022 will exceed 12 billion dollars.