FES (functional electrical stimulation) tricycling, developed by the University College of London and the University of Glasgow, stimulates paralysed muscles by passing short pulses of current through electrodes on the skin.

A stimulator synchronizes the stimulation with the pedal position while the person has a ‘throttle’ to control how much stimulation is applied – rather like a motor bike with the legs as the engine.

Professor Nick Donaldson believes that this “recumbent tricycle” –available within a year– could help get people with Spinal Cord Injuries back into exercising safely and in a funny way, while giving them greater mobility.

The tricycle is just one of a number of exhibits on display at the ‘Celebration of UK Engineering Research and Innovation‘.

Via BBC News.