Yearly Archives: 2013

“Call it an exoskeleton or a bionic suit, but for paraplegics, it’s freedom. This innovative device, developed by a quadriplegic Israeli scientist, relies on sensors that anticipate shifts in the user’s balance and translates them into movements like walking and standing. Already available in Europe, the suit had its prime-time debut on an episode of Glee and is being reviewed by the FDA for use in the U.S.”

TIME Magazine has named the ReWalk as standing tall among the world’s top 25 inventions for 2013.

Developed by Argo Medical Technologies, the ReWalk is a commercial bionic walking assistance system that uses powered leg attachments to enable paraplegics to stand upright, walk, and climb stairs. The system is powered by a backpack battery, and is controlled by a simple wrist-mounted remote which detects and enhances the user’s movements. The device underwent clinical trials at MossRehab in suburban Philadelphia.

Technion brainchild

Technion alumnus Dr Amit Goffer is that “guy in Israel.” Goffer, a quadriplegic, explains, “In 1997 when I was injured and became confined to a wheelchair, I looked around and wondered, ‘How come the wheelchair is the only solution?’ I was just astonished by that. After studying the problems involved, I started to design the device at home.”

When Radi Kaiuf, a paraplegic for 21 years as a result of a war injury sustained during Israeli army service, met Goffer at a rehab center and heard about the device, he thought, “I would go to the ends of the earth for something that could help me stand up again.”

ReWalk enables a person who is paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair, to stand up and walk. Kaiuf was skeptical at first. Would he really be able to stand up, look people in the eye, and walk? “A person in my condition can’t imagine that he will ever walk again. The first time I stood up and walked it was phenomenal.”

The user commands the system and controls when he wants to take a step, to stop, to stand, walk about at his own pace, climb stairs and drive. Goffer explains, “It shifts a person from wheelchair-user status to crutch-user status, which is the whole difference. It helps a paraplegic to regain his self-esteem and be included back into society.”

ReWalk has definite health benefits and will reduce healthcare costs. Kaiuf explains, “For our health we are supposed to stand for two hours a day. ReWalk has helped me in a number of ways: my internal organs are functioning better and I haven’t had any pressure sores.”

Goffer earned his Technion BSc in Electrical Engineering, then served in the army, completed his master’s and PhD degrees and worked as an engineer before founding Odin Medical Technologies in 1994 (Medtronic Navigation Israel), a company that makes intraoperative MRI systems.

Together with Goffer, Argo’s team includes other Technion grads in leading positions. Company Operations Manager, Itai Levinson, an Industrial Engineering and Management alumnus proudly explains, “We are developing and manufacturing the first commercially viable upright walking assistance tool. ReWalk is a combination of innovation on a multidisciplinary level, incorporating cutting-edge technology from mechanical and control engineering, electronics and computer science.”

Argo plans further development on ReWalk so that a quadriplegic, like Goffer, will also be able to use it. Goffer smiles and adds, “Developing medical devices requires education and experience; everything was based on the basic education that I received at the Technion – which is priceless.”

The arising of hope

The original ReWalk is available in two versions – the ReWalk I and the ReWalk P. The ReWalk I is intended for use by medical institutions for research or therapy, and is used under the supervision of a healthcare professional, such as a physical therapist. The ReWalk P is a personal unit, intended for personal use by patients at home or in public. The ReWalk system is priced at approximately US$85,000 per unit. An updated version of the system, dubbed ReWalk Rehabilitation 2.0, was unveiled in January 2013. The ReWalk 2.0 features improved sizing, allowing taller individuals to wear it more comfortably, and enhanced controlling software.

A World 1st – Exoskeleton marathon winners.

On 8 May 2012, paralyzed British woman Claire Lomas used a ReWalk to become the first person ever to finish a marathon using a bionic assistance suit. Lomas, who was paralyzed from the waist down in a 2007 riding accident, completed the London Marathon in 17 days with her ReWalk system. Later in 2012, Lomas became the first person to take the ReWalk suit home to assist her in everyday tasks.

The “Glee” of mobility

Over 13 million North Americans watched the Christmas episode of the popular Fox TV series Glee, when paraplegic student Artie stands up and walks with the help of an exoskeleton device he is wearing. Artie explains, “It’s called the ReWalk™, some guy in Israel invented it!”

Technion City

Technion City

Home to three Nobel laureates, the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology is ranked sixth worldwide for entrepreneurship and innovation. Israel’s Technion has made an impact in all fields of applied science and technology, including electronics, information technology, water management, nanotechnology, life sciences and chemistry, clean-tech, materials engineering, and aerospace engineering.

At Technion, excellence in education in science and technology is a strong basis for a  culture of entrepreneurship and a definitive position at the evolving frontiers of multidisciplinary science.

The Technion offers three- and four-year undergraduate programs leading to a BSc in engineering or science. Architecture demands five years. An MD is conferred after six years of study and one year of internship, with a BSc in Medical Sciences awarded after three years.

The Center for Pre-university Education (mechina) provides a second chance to students who do not meet Technion’s entrance requirements. Equal opportunity programs prepare new immigrants, demobilized soldiers, and minority groups for Technion’s rigorous curriculum.

All faculties offer advanced degree courses including Master of Science (MSc), Master of Engineering (ME), Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).

Interdisciplinary graduate studies are offered in Autonomous Systems, Biotechnology, Energy, Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Polymer Engineering, Quality Assurance and Reliability, and Systems Engineering.

In response to the newly discovered natural gas and petroleum reserves in israel’s territorial waters, Technion also offers a Master’s of Engineering specializing in Natural Gas and Petroleum Engineering.

Technion International is charged with overseeing academic relationships with foreign partner institutions worldwide, and serves as an umbrella for Technion’s international programs and foreign students.

From the Antarctic to Nigeria, Technion footsteps are imprinted in collaborative scientific research, education and entrepreneurship. Research agreements with international academic institutions include Johns Hopkins University; Cleveland Clinic; l’Ecole Polytechnique; Cambridge University; Manchester University; the Universities of Melbourne and Sydney; the Technological Universities of Berlin and Aachen; the Universities of Nanjing, Peking, Tsinghua, Xidian and East China University of Science and Technology; and the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

Each year the Technion welcomes internationally renowned scientists and postdoctoral students on campus.

The student exchange program hosts overseas undergraduate and graduate students and encourages Technion students to study abroad. The summer internship program allows students to gather cutting-edge skills at high-tech companies in the U.S.

 

“Albert Einstein brought to the Technion an educational culture whose motto is to learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow.”

A new era of research and innovation in science, engineering, and life sciences is opening in China with a joint venture between Israel’s prestigious Technion Israel Institute of Technology and Shantou University (STU) to build a new academic facility in Guangdong Province.

The Technion Guangdong Institute of Technology (TGIT) – sponsored by the Li Ka Shing Foundation (LKSF) with a US$130 million grant – will represent unprecedented cooperation between the People’s Government of Guangdong Province and Shantou Municipal Government, Technion, and STU.  Guangdong Province and Shantou Municipal Government will set aside RMB 900 million (approximately US$147 million) to fund construction and initial operations, as well as 330,000 square metres for the campus to be located next to STU.

The US$130 million grant from LKSF is the largest ever to the Technion and one of the most generous in the history of Israeli higher education. It will be allocated for strengthening the Technion’s home campus in Haifa, for the benefit of its students and researchers, to enable the Technion to fulfil its leading role in TGIT.

Mr Li Ka-shing, Chairman of the LKSF, spoke at today’s ceremony in Tel Aviv to formalise the memorandum of understanding for the establishment of TGIT. The agreement was signed by Technion President Professor Peretz Lavie and STU Provost Professor Gu Peihua, and will soon be brought for the approval of the Technion’s and Chinese statutory authorities.

TGIT will begin offering undergraduate programmes in civil and environmental engineering and computer sciences in the 2014 academic year.  The establishment of an innovation centre, connecting industries in Guangdong with Israel’s technological creativity, will bridge Israeli technology into China and promote joint research and innovation.  The language of instruction at the TGIT will be in English and its faculty will be recruited from international researchers and scientists in universities around the world.

Beginning in 2014, TGIT will join STU to conduct life sciences research based on Big Data to tackle the pressing social and livelihood issues like inadequate healthcare system and services, as well as improvements of clinical diagnosis procedures.

By 2020, the institute will offer courses in other engineering-related fields, from mechanical to aerospace engineering.

The partnership between Israel and LKSF began in 2011, with a visit from LKSF executives to Technion and a reciprocal visit of the Technion President Prof Lavie to the LKSF headquarters in Hong Kong.  That visit to Israel also resulted in an investment from Mr Li’s private venture capital company Horizons in Waze – a revolutionary GPS navigation technology. The profits from the recent sale of Waze to Google became part of the donation to Technion.“In a world of fluid boundaries, the transformative power of technology waves like a magic wand, bringing new models and opportunities to many frontiers and generating new solutions to entrenched problems,” said Mr Li during today’s signing ceremony.  “But we all know the wands are only as powerful as the wizards who use them, and the magic comes from the genius within.  Our responsibility is to invest in education to unlock that genius and enable the continuing realisation of human potential, building a society rich in knowledge and securing a sustainable quality of life for all.”

Professor Gu said Technion had shown the world what the future university should do in order to deliver values of regional, national and international significance.

He said economies in Guangdong and China are undergoing structural changes,to which industrial and technological innovations were critical factors for success.

“What Technion has done to advance the Israeli economy through student and staff research and innovation is an example for Chinese universities to follow,” Professor Gu said.  “If many universities in Guangdong and China do the same as Technion has been doing in Israel, an innovation-based economy will emerge.”

Professor Gu forecast that in 10 years’ time, TGIT will become the best technological school in Guangdong Province, and in 20 years, one of the best in China, with a number of new technologies and associated start-up companies being developed by TGIT’s staff and students.

In 30 years, TGIT will be recognized internationally for excellence in education and research, with special characteristics of technological innovation and entrepreneurship, and will have become the high-tech powerhouse in Guangdong Province, he predicted.

Professor Lavie described the partnership as “a major breakthrough and an opportunity to strengthen ties between Israel and China.”

“When you combine the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit of Israel with the unbelievable scale of China, you have a great partnership,” he said.  “We hope that by combining our research methodologies with the scale and resources of China, we will create a major research institute that will help not only China and Israel, but also mankind in general.

“We believe in globalisation.  We believe that cross-cultural dialogues are essential.  Opening up Technion and Shantou to these cultural dialogues is very important,” Professor Lavie said.

During the campus construction phase, the inaugural group of TGIT students will spend the first two years of studies at Technion in Israel, and will all come back to Shantou in their third year, in order to cultivate the culture of innovation locally.

Founded in 1912, Technion has earned a global reputation for its pioneering work in nanotechnology, life sciences, stem cells, water management, sustainable energy, information technology, biotechnology, materials engineering, aerospace and industrial engineering.  It is one of the top 100 universities worldwide, based on the prestigious Shanghai ranking, and one of the only 10 universities in the world that have built and launched satellites. Three Technion professors have won Nobel Prizes in the past nine years. A year ago, together with Cornell University, the Technion won an international competition to establish a research institute in the heart of New York.

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A viewing of the ReWalk by Argo Medical Technologies – a revolutionary robotic system that allows paraplegics to walk

The Technion Senate has approved with an overwhelming majority the establishment of a cooperatively run institute of technology with the University of Shantou in the Guangdong Province. The decision stated that, “The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Technion and Shantou University on September 29, 2013 will be the basis for the comprehensive agreement between the two institutes to establish the Technion-Guangdong Institute of Technology (TGIT), and that the members of the Senate congratulate the President and Senior Administration for their initiative and ingenuity in developing strategic ties with the University of Shantou and the Li Ka-shing Foundation.”

Following the decision of the Senate to approve the Memorandum of Understanding with China, the Executive Committee approved the appointment of Professor Paul Feigin to a new administrative role at Technion: Vice President for Strategic Projects.

Over the past six years, Prof. Feigin has served as the Senior Executive Vice President of the Technion and headed the international agreements for the establishment of the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute in New York, as well as the Technion-Guangdong Institute of Technology in China.

Professor Feigin, a statistician by training, has held various administrative positions at the Technion, including: the Dean of the Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, a member of the Technion Research and Development Foundation Board of Directors, and as a member of the university’s Executive Council.

“International partnerships with universities worldwide contribute to the realization of Technion’s vision: to be counted among the elite group of the world’s leading science and technology universities,” said Technion President Professor Peretz Lavie. “Professor Feigin, who has greatly contributed to creating international partnerships including the establishment of the Technology Institute in China and the Technion-Cornell Innovation Center in New York, will continue to promote these agreements and bring them to fruition. I thank him for his many contributions to the Technion as Senior Vice President over the last six years and wish him continued success in his new role.”

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A First in Israel: Technion Introduces a Three-Dimensional Immersive Learning Experience in Architecture Studies.

Technion inaugurated a brand new visualization laboratory, the first of its kind in Israel, in the Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning, with the President of the Technion, Professor Peretz Lavie, and the Dean of the Faculty, Professor Yehuda Kalay.

The new visualization lab is a research and learning facility, which allows one to “enter” three-dimensional digital simulations (models) of buildings, cities and landscapes, whether they physically exist or are in the planning stages. The lab includes a concave screen eight meters wide that can project a uniform and continuous image using three synchronized projectors. The state-of-the-art laboratory equipment allows reseA 3archers and students to interactively control the model or image, using seven surveillance cameras, sensors and a wireless controller (wand controller), which facilitates a virtual “Trip” of the displayed environment.

This visualization lab – the first of its kind in Israel – is among the leading laboratories in the world that can share a virtual immersion experience with up to 20 participants. It is the brainchild of Professor Yehuda Kalay, and was founded in collaboration with five new Technion faculty members. Its establishment was headed by Assistant Professor Daniel Orenstein, who currently serves as the Academic Director of the laboratory, and architect and Assistant Professor Dafna Fisher-Gewirtzman, who planned, designed and oversaw its construction.

To mark the opening of the new visualization lab, Technion has hosted an international workshop this week – VIZWORLD – which included seminar lectures, demonstrations, and discussions with guest scholars from Israel and abroad.

“Unlike other artifacts, one may only experience buildings, cities, and landscapes through a physical presence ‘in’ the environment,” said Professor Kalay. “Usually, we must wait for the building to be built in order to experience it. This lab will enable such an experience before the building is completed, so that we can detect and fix errors in the design process itself. This is especially important when designing environments with complex geometries, made possible through current digital design tools, or for landscape rehabilitation projects requiring multi-year planning.”

“The lab will be used for research by faculty members and graduates pursuing advanced degrees, and will be integrated as a teaching tool in the faculty’s studio courses,” added Assistant Professor Dafna Fisher-Gewirtzman. “We anticipate that the usage of the laboratory will lead to new work processes in the studio, and open up new research direction.”

The Technion has inaugurated a new and unique program for Russian speaking students: Freshman Year in Science and Engineering in the Russian language, integrating an intensive Hebrew language course. From their second year onwards, these students will be able to assimilate into Technion’s regular Hebrew study tracks at the university’s 18 faculties, together with their Israeli counterparts. The first cohort, consisting of 22 students aged 17-25 arriving to Israel from Russia, the Ukraine, Belarus and Moldovia, began their studies at Technion this month. The project is managed and run by the Technion International School, and was developed in cooperation with the “Massa” and “Nativ” organizations, in conjunction with the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for the Hebrew portion of the program.

“Your arrival here is a pioneering move,” said Technion President, Professor Peretz Lavie, “I wish my grandfather, who arrived to Israel from the Ukraine at age 17, could have lived to see you all here today. Tour the country and enjoy its rich culture, its peoples and its beautiful landscapes. Eat falafel and learn Hebrew. You were all hand-picked for this program. You are an elite group of young men and women, and it is my greatest hope that you’ll want to stay here at the end of your studies.”

The Director of the “Nativ” organization, Ms. Naomi Ben-Ami, briefed the new students on Technion achievements and on the range of options available to them here. “The screening process for Technion admittance began six months ago,” she said. “This was a professionally managed process that selected the very best candidates. You all made a very good and courageous decision in coming here.

Dr. Sarah Rubinstein from the Ministry of Education welcomed the students and reminded them that this year will also highlight improving their grasp of the Hebrew language: “This year you will study in Russian and learn Hebrew, and in the coming years we hope that you’ll all be able to integrate into the study tracks of any Technion faculty of your choosing.”

“The students in the Freshman Year program take a four-month Mechina (pre-university) program in the Russian language that includes studies in mathematics, physics, and Hebrew. Upon completion of this stage, they will go on to study four Technion academic courses that provide the basis for engineering and science required at each of Technion’s faculties,” explained Ariel Geva, the Managing Director of the Technion International School. “In addition, students will take an intensive Hebrew language course throughout the year, totaling 400 study hours. After successfully completing their first year, these students will then be able to go on to pursue their studies at any of Technion’s engineering and scientific faculties according to their grade point average.”

Professor Arnon Bentur, the Head of the Technion International School, said: “One of the main goals of this program is to encourage students to integrate into the university as regular Technion students. If they do so, they will be eligible for financial assistance from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption – full funding of their studies at the Technion. In addition, we are recruiting students who are not eligible for aliyah benefits, to come to study at the Technion for its high academic quality.”

The students chose to share their experiences with the ceremony attendees in an original manner. Five of them went up on stage and told their stories sequentially, summarizing their personal absorption process to Israel. “In the first three months after arriving to Israel, we toured many different beautiful places, from the Galilee to the Negev,” they told us. “We saw the Kinneret, Jerusalem and the Shomron. On the way, we visited five top universities, were exposed to lectures, and were given a synopsis on the study options available to us. After we arrived to the Technion, we all made a unanimous decision – we’re staying here.”

“Media creators and tech companies have a lot to gain from a strong, collaborative working relationship, and I am proud that Cornell and the Technion will be training the next generation of tech talent in New York City to work with the media industry. We will reap the benefits of that partnership in the form of job creation and global competitiveness.”

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