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

Engineers at the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials 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.

  • Reuters
1 min read
Video
A Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials researcher presses down on a stiffness-variable morphing wheel to check its stiffness in Daejeon, South Korea November 5, 2024, in this still image taken from video. Reuters TV/via REUTERS
SOUTHKOREA-WHEELS A Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials researcher presses down on a stiffness-variable morphing wheel to check its stiffness in Daejeon, South Korea November 5, 2024, in this still image taken from video. Reuters TV/via REUTERS Picture: Reuters TV

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