Segway inventor develops slimming machine

The inventor of two-wheeled travel machine the Segway has applied for a patent for a new weight loss machine that could be used to treat morbidly obese people.

Inventor Dean Kamen is working with a team from Aspire Bariatrics, of Philadelphia, on a machine that features a pump capable of sucking excess food and drink directly out of the stomach.

The machine would potentially mean people could eat what they want, before emptying their stomach by connecting the pump to a valve that had previously been surgically installed in their abdominal wall, according to The Independent.

The paper reported that the makers hope to use it to treat the morbidly obese, and to provide an alternative to a gastric bypass.