The notion of a person losing their ability to control their movements is hard to relate to, without a doubt. Those who suffer from paralysis or locked-in syndrome, a condition where an individual is aware and awake but cannot move or communicate, now have a new shot at mobility. The world's first exoskeleton, the MindWalker, aims to do just that. By just using the mind, a connection between brain activity and machine creates a rather miraculous result.

MindWalker is being funded by the European Commission and developed by a variety of universities and companies. Although in development for three years and first demonstrated October of 2012 to their consortium partners at the University of Twente, throughout the past eight weeks the official clinical trial has been occurring. A man named Antonio Melillo has been one of the first to try out the device, after suffering a car crash resulting in complete leg paralysis two years ago.

There are three main elements to the project. The exoskeleton itself holds the patient's body up and will move their legs once instructed. Now, the ability to learn how to use the contraption is aided by the second element, a virtual-reality setting. Finally, the third component, mind-reading. An EEG cap is worn on the head, where points of electrical activity are measured with electrodes attached to various areas on the scalp. Although amazingly possible to control movement through thought alone, wearing a pair of glasses containing diodes is the most efficient.

Flickering diodes on each lens of the glasses flash at different frequencies in the user's peripheral vision. The occipital cortex of the brain processes each flashing light. Measurements from this cortex identify which side of the glasses the person is focusing on. When focusing on either the right or the left diode, the exoskeleton then walks the patient accordingly. To be more specific, the left diode starts the walk while the right stops it, all under one second!

During the process Melillo stated "It's great, such an amazing sensation...Not just walking but even being able to stand upright". It is touching to know that such innovations are within our grasp, and for those who never thought they would walk again, can. The MindWalker team has plans to commercialize the product within five years, hopefully giving them enough time to refine and smooth everything out. So with a pun intended, get a move on!