Globe reporter Pippa Norman tests a pair of powered pants designed by tech company Skip in collaboration with Arc’teryx, at the start of the Grouse Grind in North Vancouver, B.C.Tijana Martin/The Globe and Mail
I’m climbing the stairs of the Grouse Grind trail in North Vancouver wearing a pair of exoskeleton pants when my legs suddenly feel incredibly heavy, as if they’ve just been reunited with gravity.
What has really happened is that the electronics attached to the sides of the powerful pants I’m wearing have been turned off, forcing me to carry the full weight of my body again without any assistance.
At this point, I’ve been wearing the exoskeleton for about a half hour and become so accustomed to its support, I hardly realized the extra push it was providing.
These superhuman pants are the result of a collaboration between San Francisco-based tech company Skip and outdoor-gear company Arc’teryx, headquartered in North Vancouver. They’re the first iteration of what Skip is calling “Movewear,” or clothing designed to make moving easier.
Skip is one of several companies carving out a commercial market segment for exoskeletons. The technology isn’t necessarily new – the devices are being used by the military to enhance soldiers’ capabilities, workers to reduce their risk of repetitive strain injuries and patients with mobility impairments to assist with rehabilitation.
But unlike these specialized-use cases, commercial exoskeletons are designed with the layperson in mind and available to order online by anyone who wants one – and can afford it.
To a passerby, the electronics on the sides of my legs are the only outwardly strange characteristic of my pants. The devices look like boomerangs whose angles change with the bend of my knees as I walk, making subtle robot-like sounds as they do.
The pants are the first iteration of what Skip is calling “Movewear.” It’s based on technology already applied to specialized-use cases, such as the military.Tijana Martin/The Globe and Mail
The rest of the exoskeleton is hidden under a pair of lightweight athletic pants, and features cuffs tightened around my thighs, calves and ankles, which are working with the electronics to support my joints.
The whole setup is controlled by a few buttons, allowing me to turn the exoskeleton on, off and move between up to five levels of power. Its support is most noticeable when walking uphill, helping lift my legs for each step, but it also makes walking downhill feel easier, providing resistance as I step down to alleviate some of the pressure on my knees.
Canadian Anna Roumiantseva, one of two co-founders at Skip, said she and her fellow founder, Kathryn Zealand, dreamt up their first product with their grandmothers in mind, to help when their range of mobility limits them in everyday life. Their goal, Ms. Roumiantseva said, is to “build something that can be super approachable, super understandable, like a pair of pants, and just help people move.”
Commercial exoskeletons are like pedal assist on an e-bike. Unlike their medical-grade counterparts, these devices can’t help a paralyzed person walk – just like how pedal assist on an e-bike doesn’t work without pedalling. But they should make it easier to do movements someone is already doing, especially if they suffer from joint pain, muscle weakness or cardiovascular fatigue.
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Skip’s pants, for example, are designed to make users feel up to 30 pounds lighter when they’re cranked up to maximum assistance. While the current version can feel bulky and awkward at times, Tess Jarrett, head of operations at Skip, said the design is getting slimmer with every new version thanks to feedback the company receives from customers who pay to try the pants for a day.
Other companies, such as China-based Hypershell, have opted for a lighter, pants-free design. Their exoskeleton sits atop a user’s clothes and its motors are positioned at the hips, instead of the knees. The company advertises it as the ideal device for outdoor adventures, boasting its ability to withstand a broad range of temperatures and weather conditions.
Toby Knisely, content manager at Hypershell, said the company was launched by three founders in 2021, partly owing to their affinity for science fiction. Sales kicked off in January and despite featuring young, athletic models on its website, he said most of the company’s customers are older adults looking for an extra boost in activities that used to come more easily to them.
“There are still young people that buy it, but they’re more interested in the tech itself. They want to try out the coolest new tech, whereas the majority of people who have that money to spend are in their adulthood and have more of the need for it,” he said.
Price is probably the biggest obstacle to making exoskeletons more commonplace in the consumer market. While many companies say they’re focused on continuing to scale and innovate their technology to make it lighter and cheaper, they’re not there yet.
The most basic version of Hypershell’s exoskeleton costs $1,299, without accessories such as additional batteries or charging ports. Dnsys, another China-based company whose flagship design is similar to Hypershell’s, starts its basic version at approximately $1,380.
Skip’s powered pants are the most robust and expensive product, clocking in at nearly $7,000 for the pants, cuffs, robotic motors, batteries and charger. The pants and exoskeleton can be worn separately or together, and the product is only available for preorder at the moment.
Arash Arami, an associate professor at the University of Waterloo who has been working in assistive robotics for about 10 years, said exoskeleton technology has become lighter and more widely available – and he expects this trend to continue.
As with any robotic device, using an exoskeleton does come with some inherent risks, he said, such as the potential for skin damage from too much or improper use and falling from loss of balance. But these are issues that Dr. Arami said most well-thought-out designs should address.
Powered clothing is the future, said Jojo Li, co-founder of Dnsys.
“Imagine bringing the actual suits you see in sci-fi movies and video games into real life, something you can really afford,” she said.
To inch closer to this, Dnsys is spending a lot of time perfecting the algorithms of the AI its exoskeletons use to predict the type of activity a user is performing and automatically provide the appropriate amount of power, without the user having to toggle between modes, said Nick Tang, head of marketing.
Dr. Arami said it’s not difficult to imagine a future in which the devices can track and predict a person’s movements in a symbiotic way.
“Maybe they become part of us. One way to think about it is the idea of Cyborg. The other way is that these are clothes that you’re wearing and then they augment your abilities,” he said.
For now, Skip is focused on conducting research on a range of new prototypes designed to support people living with Parkinson’s disease, co-founder Ms. Roumiantseva said. She envisions an entire line of “Movewear” that can be mixed and matched by users to suit their needs that day.
Mr. Knisely said Hypershell’s goal is to have exoskeletons break into the mainstream, lessening the number of stares and questions users get while wearing them in public.
Making life easier for everyday people is Ms. Li’s goal too, at Dnsys. That, and bringing science fiction to life.
“Our mission is simple. We want to upgrade humans.”