14 March 2025
The London Orthotic Consultancy (LOC) is excited to announce the launch of the Agilik™ smart orthosis in the UK, in collaboration with Bionic Power and global distributor Thuasne.
We are honoured to be selected as the exclusive paediatric specialist centre in the UK for the Agilik™ device. We will also be treating adult patients who can benefit from the technology, too.
The Agilik™ Smart Orthosis is a robust piece of technology that offers smart, dynamic assistance to patients through real-time gait phase detection. For the past six months, LOC clinicians have received training from engineers, clinicians, and developers at Bionic Power.
The Agilik™ is a smart, augmented lower limb orthosis designed to work within a bespoke Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis (KAFO). It provides dynamic knee assistance and resistance when needed when a person is walking.
Traditional orthotics are generally passive and offer static support, whereas the Agilik™ smart orthosis responds in real-time to the patient’s movement and adjusts functionality accordingly.
It is not an exoskeleton designed to hold a patient up and walk for them, but rather an orthosis designed to improve the user’s gait by:
The Agilik™ smart orthosis offers a range of benefits to patients, both in the short term and with long-term use. This can help patients to:
For children and adults with significant lower limb weakness, walking can be exhausting or simply out of reach. Until now, the main options have been either KAFOs (Knee-Ankle-Foot Orthoses) or powered exoskeletons—both of which come with challenges.
Traditional KAFOs provide stability, often using locked or spring-assisted knee joints, but they don’t actively help with movement, which can make walking feel stiff or awkward.
Exoskeletons are heavy, bulky, and extremely expensive, making them impractical for everyday life.
The Agilik™ device however, offers smart, powered support when you need it and freedom when you don’t. Unlike passive braces that simply hold the leg in position, Agilik™ is a lightweight, powered orthosis that actively assists knee movement at the right moments. By helping the knees straighten naturally, it reduces effort, improves posture, and makes walking smoother and easier.
LOC Director and Lead Clinician Sam Walmsley, says, “We are already trialling Agilik™ with patients, and the results have been remarkable. One child who has always walked with a severe crouch gait is now able to walk upright for the first time. The potential for Agilik™ to transform mobility is exciting, and we look forward to seeing how it can help more children and adults move with greater ease and confidence.”
The Agilik™ is designed for patients with lower limb weakness that causes an atypical gait pattern, flexed-knee gait, and stiff knee gait.
This includes, but is not limited to, patients with:
The Agilik™ is designed for both children and adults, supporting patients across a wide weight range of 20 kg to 125 kg.
The smart orthosis can also be fine-tuned to meet specific training and rehabilitation goals. This means the device is highly customisable for each patient’s changing condition and growth. The advanced software allows for personalised support, ensuring that each patient receives care tailored to their needs.
For example, to build muscle during physical therapy or personal training sessions, we can increase the resistance on the device to make the muscles work harder during swing phase extension.
All aspects of the Agilik™ Smart Orthosis can be controlled via the custom Agilik™ App. This app controls the delivery of assistance and resistance during specific phases of the wearer’s gait, which means we can:
So as a patient’s gait changes over time, we can tweak the settings and enhance long-term outcomes.
The smart-powered orthotic knee joint is integrated into a traditional, bespoke KAFO by one of our orthotists. This connects to a battery, which powers the various motors in the knee joint through different phases of the gait cycle.
Smart sensor technology within the foot shell and the knee evaluates the patient’s gait while they are walking. Motors are then engaged to assist movement when needed, making real-time gait adaptations, which:
Advanced sensors and motors allow the Agilik™ smart orthosis to measure knee angles, knee angular velocity, initial contact, and toe-off, and adjust the amount of assistance during specific gait cycle phases.
All aspects of the device are controlled through software that allows for precision tuning. Combined with our advanced gait analysis in our video vector gait laboratories on-site, this means we can offer precise configuration and maximum efficiency for each patient.
The Agilik™ smart orthosis contributes to better long-term biomechanical outcomes by dynamically adjusting assistance and resistance during different gait phases. It helps build muscle strength, improve range of motion, and increase walking efficiency over time.
The more a patient wears and gets used to the Agilik™, the more it trains them to walk more typically. This reduces fatigue and compensatory movement patterns, ultimately helping patients maintain mobility, independence, and endurance as they grow.
We are proud to manufacture the Agilik™ smart orthosis in-house at our on-site manufacturing workshop in Kingston upon Thames. This gives our patients excellent access to adjustments and repairs, ensuring that their orthosis continues to fit and function optimally over time.
Being able to offer this service directly means we can provide faster turnaround times and a more personalised experience for each patient.
We are currently taking on Agilik™ patients on a limited, case-by-case basis. If you think the Agilik™ may help you or your child, please contact us for more information or to book a consultation.
