Robotic Exoskeleton: Meet The Man Learning To Walk Again

A former soldier who was paralysed following a bomb attack in Iraq is learning to walk again with the help of a robotic exoskeleton.

Chris Baker (33), a former Lance Corporal in the Royal Engineers, suffered a broken back after his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in 2004.

He worked as a close protection driver in Iraq, driving Iraqi vehicles.

The explosion fractured his back but, since it went undiagnosed, he was paralysed from the waist down four years after the incident in 2008.

He said: “It felt really alien going back up to 6ft tall, I could look people in the eyes...realise how tall I was again which is a sensation I’ve lost over the years.

“When I walked for the very first time it felt like I was just floating across the room.

“It still does, I’ve just got more used to it."

The robotic suit is helping to bring an end to years of chronic pain and mental health problems.

Now Chris has plans to climb Pen y Fan in Wales with the help of the exoskeleton.

He said: “I’ve climbed Pen y Fan as a scout, and in the army and now it would be fantastic to get back up there again in my third life as a disabled person.”