Social Company Refuse to Repair Paralyzed Man's $100K Exoskeleton, Claiming He Needs to Upgrade

[Orgasmo]

This is some shady shit. They sold him a 100 grand exoskeleton and is trying to milk him dry in his desperation.

"Oh don't have money to upgrade to our latest model? No worries, just stay paralyzed and cry over the now useless old unit."

Behold, private biotech/healthcare meets planned obsolescence!

A former jockey who was left paralyzed from the waist down after a horse riding accident was able to walk again thanks to a cutting-edge piece of robotic tech: a $100,000 ReWalk Personal exoskeleton.

When one of its small parts malfunctioned, however, the entire device stopped working. Desperate to gain his mobility back, he reached out to the manufacturer, Lifeward, for repairs. But it turned him away, claiming his exoskeleton was too old, 404 media reports.

According to Straight, the issue was caused by a piece of wiring that had come loose from the battery that powered a wristwatch used to control the exoskeleton. This would cost peanuts for Lifeward to fix up, but it refused to service anything more than five years old, Straight said.

"I find it very hard to believe after paying nearly $100,000 for the machine and training that a $20 battery for the watch is the reason I can't walk anymore?" he wrote on Facebook.

As this infuriating case shows, advanced medical devices can change the lives of people living with severe disabilities — but the flipside is that they also make their owners dependent on the whims of the devices' manufacturers, who often operate in ruthless self-interest.

Paralyzed Man Unable to Walk After Maker of His Powered Exoskeleton Tells Him It's Now Obsolete

Michael Straight said Lifeward refused to repair his $100,000 exoskeleton, which only had a minor issue with its battery.

futurism.com

 

[jefferz]

"the issue was caused by a piece of wiring that had come loose from the battery that powered a wristwatch used to control the exoskeleton"
Here's a picture from original article. If the picture is what is actually wrong, It's an off the shelf blattery that's less than $5. He could have had it replaced, or had fixed by someone. There's nothing proprietary about that battery.
Yes, the company that made the product are assholes. But this guy is also blowing this way out of proportion. You can order a replacement battery off of Amazon.

 

[EndlessCritic]

"Fortunately, Lifeward eventually capitulated and Straight was able to get his exoskeleton repaired — but that was only after an intense campaign in which he went on local TV, got highlighted in a horse industry publication, and gained steam on social media. If it weren't for that, he could still be struggling to find a way to get his mobility back again."

 

[Poon Goon]

got highlighted in a horse industry publication,

It probably sucks not being able to walk, but being highlighted in a horse industry publication is a dream that only the luckiest out there will ever get to realize.

 

[nhbbear]

I hope he becomes an evil genius and builds his own suit and then wreaks havoc on the execs of this company. Total carnage

 

[NoSmilez]

I am a bit disappointed I was expecting him to be like the chick in Aliens when she got into that gigantic contraption

 

[Scerpi]

"the issue was caused by a piece of wiring that had come loose from the battery that powered a wristwatch used to control the exoskeleton"
Here's a picture from original article. If the picture is what is actually wrong, It's an off the shelf blattery that's less than $5. He could have had it replaced, or had fixed by someone. There's nothing proprietary about that battery.
Yes, the company that made the product are assholes. But this guy is also blowing this way out of proportion. You can order a replacement battery off of Amazon.

I'm with you here...

A basic electronics repair shop could have fixed that for less than $50.

It looks like the battery was somehow attached to a cover? Surprised the battery lasted 10 years anyway and it should have been made to be replacable for $100k. I mean.. what if it died in an inconvenient location? Should be able swap out easily.

And this company can fuck off as well... lol. I bet the higher ups were pissed off at the warranty department when they realized how simple a fix this was and the shit ton of negative press they received because of it.