Airhopper

Year

2001

The idea

The design of these jumping shoes was inspired by the hopping movement of kangaroos.

The objective

The Airhopper is a kind of seven-league boot for intuitive movement by jumping.

Technical data

• Pneumatic muscles: 2

Operating principle

Kangaroos move very energy-efficiently at high speed. Their elastic tendons and muscle bands enable them to recuperate directly during a jump. With the Airhopper, humans can jump with almost as much energy efficiency as a kangaroo.

Function

The pneumatic muscle stores the vertical component of the kinetic energy as soon as the foot lands on the ground. When the next step is initiated, the muscle relaxes and releases the stored energy at just the right moment in the jumping phase. This jumping shoe design enables motion sequences that come close to natural movements in terms of kinematics, speed and force.