Walk Assist

Walking Assist Device with Stride Management System

Most people think of Honda as an automobile company. But our main focus is and always has been human mobility. And innovation is our engine.

Honda has two walking assist prototypes that are currently being tested, our Stride Management Assist device and our Bodyweight Support Assist device.

  • Stride Management Assist

    When walking is a struggle, you need a leg up. And that’s literally what Honda’s prototype Stride Management Assist device is designed to provide. A motor helps lift each leg at the thigh as it moves forward and backward. This helps lengthen the user’s stride, making it easier to cover longer distances at a greater speed.

    A lightweight, simple design with a belt worn around the hips and thighs was created to reduce the wearer’s load and to fit different body shapes.

    • For those with weakened leg muscles who are still able to walk
    • Lengthens stride
    • Regulates walking pace
  • Bodyweight Support Assist

    Imagine how much easier it would be to perform a physically demanding activity with a "lighter" body. That's the effect achieved by the prototype Bodyweight Support Assist being developed and tested by Honda.

    Honda's second experimental walking assist device helps support bodyweight to reduce the load on the user's legs while walking, going up and down stairs, and in a semi-crouching position. This could lead to reduced fatigue and less physical exertion.

    • Supports a portion of a person's body weight
    • Reduces the load on muscles and joints

More than 130 patents have been applied for pertaining to the walking assist devices, which are currently being tested in real-world conditions to evaluate their effectiveness. Eventually, other applications may be found for such a device, including everyday activities such as sightseeing.

As a company that values mobility, Honda began research into a walking device in 1999. The cumulative study of human walking, along with research and development of technologies conducted for Honda’s advanced humanoid robot, ASIMO, made these developments possible.