Mechanical exoskeletons have been in development for decades, but for most of that time the focus was on creating hydraulic-powered suits that soldiers could wear to carry heavy loads. These exist mostly in the form of prototypes as the U.S. government's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and contractors try to figure out how to make them practical for military operations, in terms of cost and logistics.
But Oldt's exoskeleton—the Ekso GT, made by Ekso Bionics—and a variety of similar products from other companies have had much more impact in recent years on medical rehabilitation for spinal cord injury patients.
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