Robotic prosthetic ankles that are controlled by nerve impulses allow individuals with lower limb amputations to move more “naturally,” improving their stability, according to researchers from North Carolina State University (NC State) and the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill. “This work focused on ‘postural control,’ which is surprisingly complicated,” said Helen Huang, PhD, the Jackson Family Distinguished Professor in the Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering at NC State and UNC.

Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a new model that predicts how certain shoe properties will affect a runner’s performance. The model represents a runner as a center of mass, with a hip that can rotate and a leg that can stretch. The leg is connected to a box-like shoe, with springiness and shock absorption that can be tuned, both vertically and horizontally.

Dr. Lee Jongwon of the Intelligent Robotics Research Center at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) has developed a wearable robot, MOONWALK-Omni, which means “to actively support leg strength in any direction (omni-direction) to help walk like walking on the moon.” Further, he has announced that a senior citizen wearing it successfully completed a wearable robot challenge to climb to the top of Mount Yeongbong (604 meters above sea level) in Korea.

The Universal Neonatal Foot Orthotics (UNFO) patented system is a corrective foot brace for the treatment of various foot conditions such as metatarsus adductus (MTA), a common condition in newborns that causes the forefoot to turn inward. It is also indicated for use for other conditions including metatarsus varus, forefoot adduction, intoeing, and skew foot.

Orthotic-friendly footwear brand, Revere, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, announced a significant step in its growth journey through a new partnership with footwear accessory brand veteran, Josh Higgins. Alongside his new capacity with Revere, Higgins will remain dedicated to his primary role as president of performance OS1st, Hickory, North Carolina, a brand in performance socks and compression bracing.