These devices are gonna make us more powerful, more independent. angel gasps [angel] i wanna know what breakthroughs are being made. Its aadio that captures your thoughts in real time. Im improving the human body by implanting devices into it. At will forge the future to look ma im a robot the cyborg revolution. spirited theme music my name is angel giuffria, and i am a cyborg. A combination of human and machine that acts as one. I was born without part of my left arm, and ive been wearing a prosthetic device as long as i can remember. They used to call me the bionic baby. This was my first ever multiarticulating hand. It was the big jump from this one grip pattern, this tripod, to being able to change the grip. When i flex the muscles, lets you move the hand. As my arm muscles move, they affect two electrodes resting on my skin, which allows me to control my bionic hand. Four years ago, i gomy cuent prosthetic hand and its been a real game changer. It gives me finer motor movement, and multiple ways to grasp things. As someone whos started to merge with a machine, i can see that it both defines me, and i define it. But i wanna find out how cyborg tecology like this will evolve for the entire human species. How far will the merging of man and machine go . And what will our cyborg future look like . My first stop on this path to the future is a personal one. At the Johns Hopkins applied physics lab, they are developing bionic limbs even more advanced than mine. Costing upwards of 120 million to develop, the modular prosthetic limb or mpl, is state of the art. Im really excited about today, because we get to see the mpl hand system, which is something ive wanted to see for almost a decade. I think ive dreamt about seeing this hand. Engineer Robert Armiger is combining robotics, neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence to make devices that will change lives around the world. Its here in real life [robert] thats right. Unlike my prosthetic arm, the npl is designed to be upgradeable and it can be customized. Its also more dextrous. Weve really tried to build in to this hand, all of the movements of the human hand. So see that each of the fingers, has basically the abity to separate or sead the fingers here. These two are coled together, this one moves independently. Its fixed. All the fingers have a drive that flexes each finger, and then theyve got this mechanism that allows em to passively curl around an object as well. Thats cool. I didnt know that existed. It even has a powered flexible wrist. I want flexion extension so badly. I dont have flexion extension, i only have rotation, which is fun for a party trick, but i cant actually bend the wrist, so when im trying to put my hand in my mouth and stuff, i have to lift my shoulder. So when i see stuff like the flexion extension in that wrist, it makes me really excited that i could have it for my hand one day. Bobby lets me test drive the mpl. First, he places arm band sensors on me. Like my prosthetic arm, these bands contain electrodes, which record and transla the mule activity in my little arm. We use electrodes that can pick up whats called the biopotentials of the human body, its sort of the electricity that is flowing through your body to send commands to and from your brain. With eight times as many electrodes as my arm, these bands allow for much finer pattern recognition from my muscles. Instead of just piing up gross muscles, so these big Muscle Movement its picking up smaller, fin things. Today, im getting a feel for some novel gestures and new capabilities. All right, so when youre ready, youre gonna start recording. No movement orest state. Okay. hand whirs well thats okay, its learning the first time. So it may sort of confuse what youre doing, cause its never seen this pattern before. Youre introducing something new. A computer inside the mpl reads the Muscle Movements from my arm and translates these complex patterns into movement in the robotic hand. This is really cool. The machine is learning more about me, and fast. So im sending different muscles, impulses, trying to see how much control i can have over it, of the slow and fast. Ill try do this one. Thats cool. laughs this cyborg future emerged through the needs of wounded veterans and other amputees. Johnny matheny is one of the individuals that we has spent probably the most time with the modular prostheticimb, and he has really been able to show the capabilities of the arm, cause he has a surgical procedure that not only allows us to map the arm or attach it directly to his bo, but then hes had the nerves in his arm rewired so that his control is natural and intuitive. So whats next for it . The fingertips are set up with active sensors inside of each of the nodes. What weve been working towards is some of the sensory feedback or stimulation to your arms. So youll be able to actually feel what that the hand is touching. Ok. laughs my brain is melting. Without any feedback from my prosthetic hand, i cant tell how hard im grasping an object. Like holding a styrofoam cup or trying to grab an egg, where youre like, dont crush it, dont crush, dont crush it, dont crush it. The team at Johns Hopkins is working on this very difficult problem. Bobbys colleague, dr. Luke osborn, is enhancing the mpls features with something called the edermis. This incredible techlogy promises to simulate the sensation of touch. Think about how much we rely on our sensation of touch, not just for grabbing objects, but also interacting with other human beings. Edermis was made to mimic the way our natural skin behaves and essentially we have different layers, and within those different layers, we have different receptors. [angel] inside the skin, nerves detect pressure, pain, heat, stretch, and vibratn. The edermis is made from flexible fabric and rubber, and inside of it, tiny sensors detect various stimuli and translate them to the bodys nerves. Time to t it on . One or my osthesis . On your prosthesis. Uh, yeah ive never really had that kind of feelings on the side, from touch and stuff. So its also a little scary, but exciting. When i press on your fingertip, i can see the actity on the screen. If you re to grab an object, we could see what the sensor activityould look like if you were to naturally pick up something. hand whirs gasps thats so cool lukes computer displays the pressure patterns from the edermis for this sensation of touch. When these same signals are transmitted dictly to my nerves, it gives me a sensation ive never felt before. It absolutely blows my mind. And its like, pulsing right here. This is really cool. I think seeing this just makes me realize that were on the path of doing some really, really awesome things. A bionic hand with a fine sense of touch will change lives and completely reshape the future. The potential for this technology could be not only used for rehabilitation, but also for projecting yourself into some remote environment. [angel] like a Remote Control iron man, bobby imagines a future where an arm like this could be used to perform complex tasks from just about anywhere. [narrator] in the future, advanced dextrous bionic arms are a common feature on most robots. These worker bots perform complex and delicate tasks in environments too hazardous for humans. From hundreds of miles away, skilled operatorremotely perform nuclear cleanups, fight fires and even repair the space station from the safety of earth. [angel] mechanically enhanced humans have long been popular in scifi stories and superhero comics. As a partial machine myself, im excited by the real superpowers that our cyborg future will bring. But in everyday life, making cyborg Technology Work seamlessly with the human body, its hard. When it comes to enhancing the human body with technology, balance is essential. Weight, speed, strength, these are all factors that must be considered when designing and engineering wearable robots. At ekso bionics, jason jones is taking on the daunting challenge of bringing man and machine into sync. Our main purpose is to enhance human capability through robotics primarily. So either for medical purposes, or for industrial. [angel] theyve developed several true to life exoskeletons. In my lifetime, i think youll see more of people being augmented by machines. The approach were taking is, instead of replacing people, lets make it so they can do more. If they want to, they can work in their older age because they have enhancement. Jasons colleague zach haas shows me exactly how their exoskeletons boost worker productivity. This model is already being used in factories. See how it feels. I feel like im supposed to be really, really strong now, now that i have this on. This is designed to really give super human endurance. Okay. Ill take that. So now as you go, raise your arms, youll feel it kick in. Oh okay, yep, yep. Feel it . Yep. Whats it feel like . Like my arms are free floating. There you go, thats the key word there. This free floating sensation happens with mechanical spring driven technology, which reducestrain on the arms from repetitive motion. drill whirs its so wild, i can absolutely feel the power and how it transforms industry. But for some, it might be intimidating. Do you think theres a little bit of fear in the idea of presenting some of these technologies . Yeah, a little bit of sort. Theres just this idea that, is this a robot . Am i robot n . Am i working with a robot . What does that mean . Its a machine that were now strapping to your body. Its gotta work with you and youve gotta work with this. A little bit more personal . A little bit more personal, so yeah, theres definitely more sense of trepidation there, but once people see the benefits, a lot of that disappears pretty quickly. Look ma, im a robot laughs not only do exoskeletons boost human productivity, they can also restore locomotion to those whove lost it. Im gonna get to meet somebody who uses one of these exoskeletons and has this whole interface with Technology Like i do. At the age of 32, jess mcnair experienced multiple strokes and lost the ability to walk. It affected the right side of my body. It also affected my balance and visionretty severely. Its been a journey. With theelp of physical therapist, jen macievice, this exoskeleton is changing jesss future. One, two, three, push device beeping so cool. Can you explain to me what is actually allowing you to do things . Theres basically four motors, theres motors at the hips and then at the knees, and the ankle doesnt have a motor, t it actually allows us to position her for greater balance. Thats really cool. So it allows someone to be fully weight bearing, but also supported in a frame in a proper biomechanical position. All right, jess, do you wanna start the first step with the interface over there . device beeps gentle spirited music device beeping thats so cool an onboard computer uses feedback from sensors in the exoskeleton and sophisticated gorithms process that feedback and then apply the proper amount of movement to each biomechanical joint. This coordination of man and machine represents a tremendous breakthrough. The exoskeleton is teaching jess how to improve her gait. We want them to be able to walk again, we want them to be able to step out of the device with a better walking pattern. What do you hope to see in your lifetime . The goal is to make it smaller, lighter, more adapted to the human body and less apparent. So you want it to be more of a part of you then . Exactly. Yeah. More bionic. [angel] exoskeletons like these have hble origs. Earlversionsf this technogy were unky at st and seem laughable to me today. [narrator] one may witness a scientic endeavor to convert a mans legs into those of a git. [angel] but every evolutionary path must start somewhere, and our cyborg future is advancing fast. The team at ekso would know. Theyve also developed exoskeletons to assist with punishing physical outdoor tasks. Carrying large heavy loads over long distances. Or increasing endurance, that kind of thing. [angel] these powered exoskeletons can help a person carry a 200 pound pack swiftly across rugged terrain. Incredibly, the wearer would only feel a mere fraction of that heavy weight. These here are hydraulic cylinders and they basically are kind of like a parallel muscle with they quads, so you can press down harder, if youre walking up a hill for example, itll give you a little effication. The design attempts to amplify your force. So if youre applying a certain amount of force, and it would add to that to offset the effort that youre putting into it. Thats really cool. In the back, theres electronics in here, and theres a hydraulic pump and control systems. And then you talk about mud and rain, obviously the electronics. Yeah there are pretty big challenges in those. I have those challenges myself. laughs future versions of this Cutting Edge Technology will someday be widespread. I think in the future, youll see many people wearing assisted devices on a daily basis. Im almost certain that those devices will be controlled at some level through interaion with the humans nervous system or their brain. [angel] by enhancing our bodies with advanced robotic exoskeletons, were taking a step closer to the cyborg revolution. [narrator] in the future, miniaturized power boosting exoskeletons are integrated into custom garment. With the press of a button, superhuman strength and endurance is available to everyone. This body augmentation reverses the decline of old age, restoring youthful vigor to anyone who still has a passion to work or explore. In our cyborg future, wearable machines will augment our physical selves, and Wearable Computers will augment our minds with instant access to worlds of information. I would wear wearables. Yeah. How will advanced Wearable Computers impact the way that people work, learn, and interact with their world . To find out ive come to atlanta to meet a true pioneer in wearable computing, thad starner. For me, the real killer application for these Wearable Computers is amented memory. Machines that become part of your mind, give faster access to knowledge, make you stronger in the sense that you have all this inrmation you can use to help you in your day to day life. So this was the first thing you worked on at mit . Right. St people had no idea why youd want a mobile computer, cause lapps werent even out there yet. [angel] while attending mit, he became frustrated by his inability to retain what hed learned in class. So thad built this augmented memory system to take better notes. You ready . Oh im gonna put it on . both laugh energetic electronic music so bring your fingers around like this. There we go. That is my daily suit in the year 2000. So youd have this plus a car phone, plus a seven pound lead acid battery. Do i look really stylish . Actually looks pretty good on you yo tell you the truth. both laugh though retro now, thads system had a portable computer, typing device and a heads up video display over one eye. I found that once i had thability to take notes in class and especially this rtable system, i took notes in person to person conversations. And thats one thing computers are horriblet right now is assisting you during this sort of interaction. But having a heads up display, you only use it when you need it, and it keeps your eyes in the world around you, and i find it to be really a good augmentation of the nversati. [angelthe heads up display overlays information wiin the users field of vision. The system can be used to access applications or the internet. It can also augment your surroundings with information that only you can see. Thad eventually led a team that turned this tech into a commercial product, google glass. Thats the first functional one. We had to glue a cell phone to the side of our head to get a track pad that worked. Thats wild advanced smart glasses like these are making workers more productive in Industries Like manufacturing and healthcare. And its easy to see why. Byeaming information directly into the eye, the wearer can work on complex tasks, all while absorbing crucial information, hands free. Its actually lasers in the side here, thatsouncing off. If you get just right, you can actually see a little mirror here. Its kind of hard to see. Oh yeah, yeah. And so it bounces off the lens and back into your eye. Thats so cool. Breakthrough Technology Like this is getting smaller every year. Ev now its being developed for contact lenses. The mojo lens is less bulky than smart glasses and completely invisie to others. When paired with a smartphone, they not only display information for the wearer, but also improve eyesight. In the future, well see the technology disappear, itll become widespread. [angel] to bring man and machine even closer into alignment, thad is developing another cyborg technology that actually teaches the body and brain new skills, with no training or practice required. This idea of being able to passively train these skills is something thats new, we havent heard of it before. These are whats called muscle memory gloves, and they teach you skills like how to play a piano without your active attention. How does it laughs whats happening . Okay, so lemme show you the gloves here. So what we got in here are little vibrating motors that are above the fingers. Oh, things are happening. Yep. lively electronic music these vibrating motors emit a particular sequence on my fingers. This stimulates and trains the muscles in my hand to do something ive never done before, play the piano. So she has a glove on right now, and what its doing is its using the vibration motors to actuay tap each finger in the sequence of beethovens ode to joy. Youll he that muscle memory in your brain. After the glove has trained my hand for a half hour, its time to see if it worked. I dont play the piano, so thisll be interesting. Okay. laughs soets take off the glove here. Shes gonna put her hand down, and well see if she can do it. Were kind of excited to see what happens. Youre gonna start there. piano note plays [angel] ok. So try your hand. piano plays [angel] having never learned to play the piano before, ive gotten the hang of it pretty quickly. By training the muscles in particular ways, these gloves rewire the brain, giving the user a jumpstart in developing fine motor skills for just about anything. And weve been able to do that, not just for piano pieces, but also for things like typing, for braille. [angel] muscle memory gloves are already changing lives. One of the things were excited about is the rehabilitation si of these gloves. We can help pele who have had partial spinal cord injury. [angel] like this man. The glove is even rebilitating muscleoordination for pele whove experienced strokes. You can actually stimulate the hands, such tt people regain some sensation or dexterity. I really believe that these onbody devices are gonna make us more powerful with more independence. Ngel] wea