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Students from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) received a total of four awards at the 8th China International College Students’ “Internet+” Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition: a gold prize, two silver prizes and a bronze prize.

The Fleming MedLab team that won gold is a medical robotics start-up focusing on stroke rehabilitation. It was co-founded by Edwin Ty Pak-sing, a CUHK master’s student in physics, and Kelvin Heung Ho-lam, a CUHK PhD graduate in biomedical engineering. Using patented technologies based on neuroscientific principles and soft robotics, they developed Fleming Ankle, a lightweight, easy-to-use, medical-grade, wearable robot that helps stroke patients rebuild neural pathways and regain mobility. Sensors in the device can analyse the wearer’s intention to walk by detecting muscle movements and the electrical current inside those muscles, so that the soft robot at the ankle joint exerts force to support the patient’s movement. It has been clinically proven that stroke patients who regularly use the device for walking training can recover the function of damaged nerves by 30% to 70%, depending on the severity of the disease. At the same time, therapists can track patients’ rehabilitation progress through the device’s software, predict the prognosis and formulate appropriate rehabilitation plans. Fleming Ankle is ready for a soft launch in the first quarter of 2023, in cooperation with rehabilitation centres, physiotherapy clinics and hospitals. The price is expected to be 10 times more affordable than similar products on the market.

CUHK Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Sham Mai-har said, “CUHK is a leading, comprehensive research university in Asia, advocating the creation of value through research and innovation. Since 2014, CUHK has supported more than 170 start-up companies/projects and some of them have grown into successful businesses, including three quasi-unicorns. The University will continue to apply its world-class research discoveries to generate a translational impact on a local, national and global scale.”

The competition was jointly hosted by the Ministry of Education, the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the National Intellectual Property Administration, the National Rural Revitalisation Administration, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League and Chongqing Municipal People’s Government, and organised by Chongqing University. It aims to encourage colleges and universities to strengthen the cultivation of innovative and entrepreneurial talents, promote knowledge transfer and the integration of production, education, research and usage, and create an innovative, entrepreneurial atmosphere in society.