As an engineer, building things was Liang Kaiyu’s hobby in his spare time. When he saw that a foreign engineer had developed an autonomous e-bike, he decided to build one himself. But when testing his self-built automatic electric motor in January 2020, an explosion occurred, and he lost his left leg below the knee. About two months after the accident, he got his prosthetic limb (假肢).
On short-video platforms, Liang saw many people with physical challenges who live no differently from other people. They ride bicycles, dance and even ski, using their prosthetic limbs. Inspired by them, Liang started to post videos about his daily life to inspire more people. Since then, he has used his engineering skills to make his prosthetic limb more comfortable and powerful than a real leg.
He tried to upgrade his high-tech prosthesis, including fitting a shock absorber and putting in a charger port. One of the latest upgrades is the addition of colored LED lights to his running blade. The LED lights can be connected via Bluetooth to a smartphone and change color as they react to music. Through design, modeling and manufacturing, he made a device that can connect the socket (承窝) of the leg with the prosthetic knee. With the small device, he can take the leg off in one second. Moreover, to better learn about the structure and system of the prosthetics, he took apart some secondhand prosthetic limbs that were made in China and abroad, which cost him a lot of money.
“These high-tech prosthetics are comfortable and safer to wear. They can boost confidence with every step. But the only thing is that the cost is unaffordable for most families,” Liang says. He adds that due to the small group of consumers, there are few companies in China investing in the research and development of such prosthetics. To advance functional performance and help amputees (截肢人士) maintain or regain their freedom of movement, Liang has provided his experience and suggestions for several prosthetics companies.
“If there is a good opportunity, I want to make high-tech prosthetics accessible and affordable to more amputees in China,” Liang says.
【小题1】What happened to Liang in January 2020?| A．He fell off an autonomous e-bike. | B．He got injured in an accidental explosion. |
| C．He suffered from serious knee pain. | D．He lost his left leg in a motor race. |
| A．A kind of LED light that has been designed to do a particular job. |
| B．A Bluetooth that has been designed to do a particular job. |
| C．A piece of equipment that has been designed to do a particular job |
| D．A smartphone that has been designed to do a particular job. |
| A．They give users limited freedom of movement. | B．They take much time to produce. |
| C．They are quite heavy for amputees to wear. | D．They are too expensive. |
| A．Creative and helpful. | B．Humorous and patient. |
| C．Generous and cautious. | D．Honest and courageous. |
