Robotic developer Bionik Laboratories and tech service provider Wistron said today they are partnering to design, engineer and manufacture low-price, lower-body assistive robotic technologies for the consumer medical device market.
The companies said the new development will be based on Bionik’s currently-in-development Arke lower body exoskeleton, which is being designed for rehabilitation use, and will incorporate other intellectual property from Bionik. The device will be targeted at the Asian market initially, the companies said.
“Wistron is a highly significant organization within the manufacturing industry, so having an opportunity to combine our industry-leading expertise within the robotics industry with their product development resources is incredible for us. Our years of experience in medical robotics has provided us with strong clinical data and technology to help us access this growing market of robotics technologies in the area of human assistance. We intend to continue to seek out additional partnerships that will allow us to bring our technology to a mass audience within the consumer products sector,” Bionik CEO Peter Bloch said in a prepared statement.
The device will be sold under the Bionik brand, the companies said, while Wistron will be the sole manufacturer of the device.
“This partnership with Wistron represents a tremendous opportunity for Bionik to bring our technology to a massive consumer audience. When it comes to the commercialization of consumer tech products – design, engineering, and manufacturing – Wistron is a leader. Our leading robotic technologies are already available in more than 200 facilities across the globe, but this partnership with Wistron will allow us to provide access to a much larger consumer market,” Bionik co-founder & COO Michal Prywata said in a press release.
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