Very likely the device never existed or however was never used by the (Spanish) Inquisition, and surely not in the way it is described in the article.
Unlike the "iron maiden" that was probably "invented" in the 18th or even 19th century, this invention seems more recent, it seems that the first mention (and reproduction) of the Judas Cradle is dated 1983, by someone who organized a show (and created many "torture museums") of these reproductions.
Ippolito Marsili (Hippolytus de Marsiliis), cited as the "inventor" of the device, was a lawyer and law professor in Bologna at the end of the 15th century/begin of the 16th century and didn't invent anything, he simply wrote describing several methods of torture (but not AFAIK Judas Cradle):
Unlike the "iron maiden" that was probably "invented" in the 18th or even 19th century, this invention seems more recent, it seems that the first mention (and reproduction) of the Judas Cradle is dated 1983, by someone who organized a show (and created many "torture museums") of these reproductions.
Ippolito Marsili (Hippolytus de Marsiliis), cited as the "inventor" of the device, was a lawyer and law professor in Bologna at the end of the 15th century/begin of the 16th century and didn't invent anything, he simply wrote describing several methods of torture (but not AFAIK Judas Cradle):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippolytus_de_Marsiliis