“The concept of going with a soft system is you can make the system very lightweight, very nonrestrictive, that has a minimal impact on the biomechanics of a person while they walk and is able to deliver a boost in addition to what the wearer’s muscles are normally doing,” Walsh said. “The question then is … can we have a positive effect on a person’s mobility?”

"They [Wyss] are doing a high level of fundamental research that, generally, small companies cannot afford to do. They are making it work for that individual situation. We are going to be able to take it through the FDA, through the reimbursement processes, and manufacture it at a price point with the quality control and functional level that can meet a mass audience. That is why it's a good marriage."

Harvard’s Biodesign lab threw out the clunky metal components and are building soft exoskeletons instead, using regular clothing fabric. Their device, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), looks a bit like a pair of spandex pants strapped to a climbing harness. Cables snake from a motorised belt down the user’s legs, following the curve of the user’s muscles. Take a step, and the machine works in harmony with the wearer’s calf muscles to drive the body forward. Counterintuitive as it sounds, the soft exosuit reduces the energy expended through walking by about 23%.

The soft-suit is similar to ReWalk's hard exoskeleton systems for people with spinal cord injuries, but the soft suit design transmits power to key joins of the legs with cable technologies and fabric-based designs, the company said. The company is collaborating with researchers at Harvard University's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.