The $4 million Mobility Unlimited Challenge supports radical improvements in the mobility and independence of people with lower-limb paralysis through smarter assistive technology. We're looking for innovative teams from around the world to build the next generation of mobility devices for people with lower-limb paralysis.

Earlier this year, the Mobility Unlimited team were excited to receive so many applications for the Mobility Unlimited Challenge Discovery Awards. Teams from all over the world applied for one of ten $50,000 grants to help them develop their great idea to be able to enter the main Challenge in August. If you've missed out on a Discovery Award, don’t worry - finalist submissions are open until August 15th!

We received nearly 100 applications from 25 different countries. Ideas were varied, covering the spectrum of mobility devices and utilising technology in truly innovative ways.

After a thorough independent assessment process, our panel of judges selected ten winners who will receive $50k of seed funding to support them to enter the main challenge in August.

Our 10 Discovery Awardees:

• Highly Mobile Robotic Exoskeleton for Upright Mobility - The Institute for Human & Machine Cognition (IHMC), USA
• Exomotion: the most advanced, full mobility wearable robotic exoskeleton - Human in Motion Robotic Inc., Canada
• Gaze-based semi-autonomy for wheelchairs - Brain and Behavior Lab, Imperial College London, UK
• Foot ++ - Foot++, USA
• Towards Life with Standing Mobility Unlimited - Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, University of Tsukuba, Japan
• Intelligent Hoverboard for Wheelchair Balancing (WCHB) - Erik Kondo, USA
• Physiology-Adaptive and Computer Vision-Assisted Soft Exoskeletons to Support Independent Living across the Continuum of Rehabilitation - Biomechatronics and Intelligent Robotics Lab, City University of New York, City College/University of Texas Medical School/TIRR Memorial Hermann, USA
• Enabling Independent Mobility and Social Play for Young Children with Mobility Impairments - University of Washington & Oregon State University, USA
• Self-balancing wheel for wheelchairs with automatic hub gear box - Aesthel, Germany
• Wheelchair with IS COG / Data capture - Phoenix Instinct, UK

We look forward to seeing these teams develop their ideas and entries over the next few months.

Missed out on the Discovery Awards? You can still enter the main challenge - get your entries in by 15 August 2018. More information on how to enter can be found here.

This blog was originally published on the Mobility Unlimited Challenge website. Read the original blog here.