Soft suits that make walking easier

How far are soft exosuits from everyday use by people with walking difficulties or by workers?

Soft exosuits are light, soft wearable robots that add force at the hip or ankle. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared ReWalk's ReStore soft exo-suit in June 2019 for sale to rehabilitation centres, for stroke therapy. In 2024 Skip and Arc'teryx announced MO/GO, powered pants described as an everyday product, with rentals near hiking destinations first. The published studies that were checked are short and mostly test single sessions, and show benefit that varies by walker. Long-term benefit, payer coverage and home use are not shown in the sources reviewed.

AI illustration · Illustrative scene, not a photograph of the specific device or experiment.
WHERE WE AREPilots

Close. Early pilots are running in the real world.

The pilot stage is chosen because one soft exosuit has FDA clearance for sale to rehabilitation centres, and a consumer product has been announced. The sources reviewed show only small studies, mostly of single sessions, and no payer decision for everyday use. The shipping status and user numbers for the consumer product were not confirmed.

The tech tree

Everything recorded on Vrulum that this future needs, oldest foundations at the top and the goal at the bottom. Lines show what each step requires.

What it takes: Soft suits that make walking easier Unlocked Being researched Locked
  1. 2017Soft exosuitsPilot and early commercial Unlocked.
  1. 2017Soft exosuit improves walking in people after stroke (lab study)Done Unlocked.
  2. 2019FDA clearance for sale to stroke rehabilitation centresDone Unlocked.
  3. 2019Published peer-reviewed results of the ReStore multi-centre trialIn progress Being researched.
  4. 2019Lower energy cost of walking and running in lab testsDone Unlocked.
  5. 2023Effects tested across walking ability after strokeDone Unlocked.
  6. 2024Consumer powered pants announced with rental launchIn progress Being researched.
  7. Date not recordedPayer coverage for everyday useNot started Locked.
  8. Date not recordedUse at home or in the workplace shown in trialsNot started Locked.
  1. GoalSoft suits that make walking easierGoalRequires: Soft exosuits, Soft exosuit improves walking in people after stroke (lab study), Lower energy cost of walking and running in lab tests, FDA clearance for sale to stroke rehabilitation centres, Published peer-reviewed results of the ReStore multi-centre trial, Effects tested across walking ability after stroke, Consumer powered pants announced with rental launch, Payer coverage for everyday use, Use at home or in the workplace shown in trials. Locked.

The road so far

4 of 8 steps done, 2 in progress.

  1. Done · Jul 2017Soft exosuit improves walking in people after stroke (lab study)

    Harvard's Wyss Institute tested a soft exosuit that assists the weaker leg in seven post-stroke patients on a treadmill, as reported by the Harvard Gazette. The published paper reports better ankle clearance during swing, more push-off by the affected leg, less asymmetry between legs and lower energy cost. The untethered suit was also tested overground, but the article gives no number of participants and no control group for that test. [1][2]

  2. Done · Aug 2019Lower energy cost of walking and running in lab tests

    Kim and colleagues reported that a portable hip exosuit reduced metabolic rate by 9.3 per cent for treadmill walking at 1.5 metres per second and by 4.0 per cent for running at 2.5 metres per second, compared with no suit. These are abstract figures for specific speeds and do not show gains for people with mobility loss. [3]

  3. Done · 4 Jun 2019FDA clearance for sale to stroke rehabilitation centres

    ReWalk announced on 4 June 2019 that the FDA had cleared the ReStore soft exo-suit for sale to rehabilitation centres across the United States. The company says data from its multi-centre study were submitted in the 510(k) application. The announcement is a company release, and the launch price was $28,900 with leasing options. [5]

  4. In progress · 4 Jun 2019Published peer-reviewed results of the ReStore multi-centre trial

    ReWalk said in June 2019 that it expected to publish the results of its multi-centre study later that year. The published paper was not found in the sources reviewed for this page, so the trial's size and outcomes are not confirmed here. [5]

  5. Done · Sept 2023Effects tested across walking ability after stroke

    Sloot and colleagues tested a portable soft ankle exosuit in 19 people with chronic stroke-related hemiparesis during five minutes of overground walking. All participants gained ground clearance. Slower walkers also gained propulsion and speed, while faster walkers did not change propulsion. Effort, stability and energy cost did not get worse. [4]

  6. In progress · 26 Jul 2024Consumer powered pants announced with rental launch

    Skip and Arc'teryx announced MO/GO in July 2024. The article describes it as powered pants and a hybrid soft and rigid system. It gives a launch cost of $4,500 and a soft launch as rentals near hiking destinations in late summer or early autumn 2024, with shipments planned for later that year. It reports 40 per cent energy assistance to the quadriceps and hamstrings, which was not independently tested in the sources reviewed. The current price, shipping status and user numbers were not confirmed in the sources reviewed. [6]

  7. Not startedPayer coverage for everyday use

    ReWalk's chief executive said that current gait training reimbursement codes 'enable immediate penetration and sales growth'. This is a company statement, not a payer decision. No Medicare or commercial payer policy for the ReStore suit was found in the sources reviewed. [5]

  8. Not startedUse at home or in the workplace shown in trials

    The reviewed studies tested short walking sessions. No trial of home use, of daily use over months, or of use by older adults or workers was found in the sources reviewed. [1][4]

Why it matters

A soft suit that lowers the effort of walking could help people with weak legs keep moving. Whether it helps in daily life, and whether health systems will pay for it, decides whether it reaches many people. The sources reviewed do not test use by workers who carry loads.

What stands in the way

  • Long-term benefit is not shown. The main studies test single sessions or short walks, so they do not show whether walking improves over weeks or months of use.
  • Benefit depends on walking ability. In the 2023 study, faster walkers did not change their propulsion, so the suit may not help everyone who wants it.
  • Price may limit access. ReWalk's launch price for the clinical suit was $28,900, and MO/GO was announced at a launch cost of $4,500.
  • Payer coverage is unclear. The sources reviewed contain a company statement about gait training reimbursement codes, but no payer decision for the ReStore suit was found.
  • The Harvard team said it wants to personalise assistance to specific gait abnormalities and to investigate assistance at other joints, such as the hip and knee.

Signals to watch

  • Peer-reviewed publication of the full ReStore multi-centre trial results, with participant numbers and outcomes.
  • A payer or national health system decision that covers soft exosuits for gait training, with a named billing code.
  • A controlled study of several months' use showing a lasting gain in walking, not only a gain within a single session.
  • Confirmed shipping dates and user numbers for MO/GO, and any independent test of its energy claims.
  • A trial of home use or use by older adults, or by workers carrying loads, reporting outcomes.

Sources

  1. peer reviewed paper
    A soft robotic exosuit improves walking in patients after stroke
    L. N. Awad, J. Bae, K. O'Donnell et al.. Science Translational Medicine, 1 Jul 2017.
  2. news
    Robotic suit promotes normal walking in stroke patients
    Benjamin Boettner. Harvard Gazette, 27 Jul 2017.
  3. peer reviewed paper
    Reducing the metabolic rate of walking and running with a versatile, portable exosuit
    J. Kim, G. Lee, R. Heimgartner et al.. Science, 1 Aug 2019.
  4. peer reviewed paper
    Effects of a soft robotic exosuit on the quality and speed of overground walking depends on walking ability after stroke
    L. H. Sloot, L. M. Baker, J. Bae et al.. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 1 Sept 2023.
  5. company announcement
    FDA Issues Clearance for the ReStore Exo-Suit, the First Soft Robotic System for Stroke Therapy
    ReWalk Robotics (press release, reprinted by BioSpace), 4 Jun 2019.
  6. news
    Alphabet X spinoff partners with Arc'teryx to bring 'everyday' exoskeleton to market
    Brian Heater. TechCrunch, 26 Jul 2024.

Last reviewed 21 Oct 2026.