Thursday on Ch4 at 21.00
How to Build a Bionic Man follows psychologist Bertolt Meyer, who has a bionic hand himself, as he meets scientists working at the cutting edge of research to find out just how far this new technology can go.
Meanwhile, a team of roboticists create a complete 'bionic man' for the first time, using nearly $1 million-worth of state-of-the-art limbs and organs - the products of billions of dollars of research - borrowed from some of the world's leading laboratories and manufacturers.
What's inside Channel 4's bionic man?
Eye (University of California)
A pair of glasses fitted with a camera transmits images to a microchip inserted directly onto the retina. The retina picks up the implant's electrical pulses, which the brain interprets as shapes and patterns. Although retinal implants have been in development for years, they generally suffer from poor resolution – but the technology continues to evolve.
Ear (Macquarie University, Sydney)
A cochlear implant stimulates nerve fibers in the inner ear, generating signals that can be interpreted by the human brain. Unfortunately the bionic man doesn't really have ears, and has just an internet chat bot program for a brain (so the cochlear implant isn't really being used at all), but you get the idea. It possesses limited artificial intelligence, relying on standard speech recognition and speech synthesis to respond to spoken words.
Heart (SynCardia, Arizona)
More than a thousand patients have received SynCardia's battery-powered artificial heart, but it is still only a temporary solution until a donor can be found.
Pancreas (De Montfort University, Leicester)
An experimental gel-like sack containing insulin that liquifies and hardens to release or retain insulin depending on blood glucose levels. Inventor Joan Taylor (Professor, De Montfort University) believes it is around seven years from general use.
Kidney (University of California)
A silicon nano-scale filtration system powered by the patient's blood pressure, that uses a small bio-reactor containing renal tubule cells from a healthy kidney to perform the job of the real organ. Clinical trials are set for 2017.
Legs (Rex Bionics, New Zealand)
The Rex robotic exoskeleton gives the bionic man its balance and ability to walk. It's one of a handful of devices being developed around the world that augment human strength. Rather than replacing the human legs, it is worn almost like a pair of pants.
Foot and ankle (MIT, Massachusetts)
The iWalk BiOM ankle mimics the actions of the calf muscle and Achilles tendon. It was developed by Professor Hugh Herr, who lost his legs to frostbite in a climbing accident. Unlike the Rex exoskeleton, this is a prosthetic that is designed to take the place of the lower leg.
Courtesy: Squeaky the Squirrel Boards IE
How to Build a Bionic Man follows psychologist Bertolt Meyer, who has a bionic hand himself, as he meets scientists working at the cutting edge of research to find out just how far this new technology can go.
Meanwhile, a team of roboticists create a complete 'bionic man' for the first time, using nearly $1 million-worth of state-of-the-art limbs and organs - the products of billions of dollars of research - borrowed from some of the world's leading laboratories and manufacturers.
What's inside Channel 4's bionic man?
Eye (University of California)
A pair of glasses fitted with a camera transmits images to a microchip inserted directly onto the retina. The retina picks up the implant's electrical pulses, which the brain interprets as shapes and patterns. Although retinal implants have been in development for years, they generally suffer from poor resolution – but the technology continues to evolve.
Ear (Macquarie University, Sydney)
A cochlear implant stimulates nerve fibers in the inner ear, generating signals that can be interpreted by the human brain. Unfortunately the bionic man doesn't really have ears, and has just an internet chat bot program for a brain (so the cochlear implant isn't really being used at all), but you get the idea. It possesses limited artificial intelligence, relying on standard speech recognition and speech synthesis to respond to spoken words.
Heart (SynCardia, Arizona)
More than a thousand patients have received SynCardia's battery-powered artificial heart, but it is still only a temporary solution until a donor can be found.
Pancreas (De Montfort University, Leicester)
An experimental gel-like sack containing insulin that liquifies and hardens to release or retain insulin depending on blood glucose levels. Inventor Joan Taylor (Professor, De Montfort University) believes it is around seven years from general use.
Kidney (University of California)
A silicon nano-scale filtration system powered by the patient's blood pressure, that uses a small bio-reactor containing renal tubule cells from a healthy kidney to perform the job of the real organ. Clinical trials are set for 2017.
Legs (Rex Bionics, New Zealand)
The Rex robotic exoskeleton gives the bionic man its balance and ability to walk. It's one of a handful of devices being developed around the world that augment human strength. Rather than replacing the human legs, it is worn almost like a pair of pants.
Foot and ankle (MIT, Massachusetts)
The iWalk BiOM ankle mimics the actions of the calf muscle and Achilles tendon. It was developed by Professor Hugh Herr, who lost his legs to frostbite in a climbing accident. Unlike the Rex exoskeleton, this is a prosthetic that is designed to take the place of the lower leg.
Courtesy: Squeaky the Squirrel Boards IE