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WATCH | 'Morphing' wheel could allow wheelchairs to climb stairs

14 November 2024 - 12:28
By Reuters

Engineers at the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials in Daejeon, South Korea, have developed a shape-shifting "morphing" wheel that changes its stiffness in real-time, allowing wheelchairs and other mobility devices to overcome obstacles with ease.

A Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials researcher controls a wheelchair with stiffness-variable morphing wheels in Daejeon, South Korea, on November 5 2024.
Image: Reuters TV/via REUTERS A Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials researcher controls a wheelchair with stiffness-variable morphing wheels in Daejeon, South Korea, on November 5 2024.
Researcher presses down on a stiffness-variable morphing wheel to check its stiffness.
Image: Reuters TV/via REUTERS Researcher presses down on a stiffness-variable morphing wheel to check its stiffness.
Researcher controls a wheelchair with stiffness-variable morphing wheels as it goes over an obstacle.
Image: Reuters TV/via REUTERS Researcher controls a wheelchair with stiffness-variable morphing wheels as it goes over an obstacle.

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