A modular twist-and-lock port attached to this customizable prosthetic lets children adapt, modify and create attachments to serve both fun and practical functions.

Developed by Carlos Arturo Torres Tovar of Umeå University in Sweden, the IKO system comes with a default three-fingered grip but it can be swapped for anything created out of LEGO by the child or their friends and family. Thanks to the versatility of the LEGO family of toys, the possibilities are virtually endless.

The attached pieces can be built out to whatever extent desired, lit up by battery power and even motorized, turning missing limbs into a unique chance for creative expression and playful interaction, letting kids build confidence and make new friends (as well as arms). From diggers and space ships to ray guns and spinning fans, if it fits in a child’s imagination it will work on this modifiable appendage.

“Arturo used Lego as the main focus of this Prosthetic project that aims at understanding the mental and psychological aspects of disabled children, especially the ones who have lost one of their limbs or were born without one. Taking a leap from the basic prosthetics that we have seen so far, Arturo’s vision is to engage the disabled kids into building something creative right on their artificial arm and also invite other friends to do so.”

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A little like Iron Man armor but much lighter and free from external power sources, these ankle-enhancing add-ons represent a step in a new direction toward practical and easily removable exoskeletons.

They may not have built-in boosters to let you fly, but by reducing the work required to walk by 7% the Walking Assist Clutch provides the equivalent improvement of taking off a ten-pound backpack, lightening the load of ordinary walkers or injured persons (stroke victims or the partially paralyzed, for instance). “I’ll tell you, it feels really cool,” Sawicki said. “There’s a comfortable sort of squishiness for the first 10 minutes. But then it becomes totally transparent. Your body just integrates it.”

As the WashingtonPost reports, “According to study co-author Gregory Sawicki, a biomedical engineer and locomotion physiologist in the joint NC State/University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering, people using the braces don’t really notice the difference — until it’s gone.”

“Instead of adding an energy source to allow your muscles to expend less energy themselves, you’re just building a system that uses less energy as a whole. But the challenge is what drew us to the problem. After 7 million years of evolution as bipeds and some tens of thousands of hours of practice throughout a lifetime, is it even possible to reduce the energy of walking?” It turns out that it is, and for far cheaper than what more high-tech mechanical suits cost. While still definitely a prototype, the production of these augmentations is already much less expensive than powered competitors, raising the question of what other enhancements could be created that utilize the body’s own energies more efficiently rather than requiring external electrical assistance.

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