HANGZHOU, March 19 (Xinhua) -- The cyborgs of science fiction, once symbols of superhuman abilities, are now powering China's elderly care revolution as the nation's silver economy surges.

An exoskeleton walking aid device, designed by startup RoboCT located in Hangzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province, can make hiking easier for seniors by counteracting the weight of five bottles of water with each leg lift.

RoboCT plans to launch its latest innovation late this month. It is priced at an affordable 2,000 yuan (about 276 U.S. dollars). In China's eastern tech hub, more firms like RoboCT are developing robotics aimed at assisting elderly mobility.

RoboCT's engineers noticed that many elderly people walk with bent backs, take small steps and use waist braces in nursing homes, and so they focused the device's assistance efforts on the waist, back and hips.

"The product assists with hip flexion and stabilizes the lumbar spine to help seniors walk with longer strides, quicker steps and greater stability," said Yan Hai, RoboCT's product director, in an interview with Xinhua.

Inspired by tendon mechanics, the battery-free device, which weighs 2 kg, is worn around the hips and above the knees, capturing and storing some of the energy generated by the body's own efforts, before releasing it to assist with walking.

"Exoskeleton robotics support seniors with weaker muscles, enhancing mobility through force compression and release, rotation speed and angle adjustments," said Yan. Even physically fit young people can get 30 percent assistance when wearing it.

"China's exoskeleton robots, set for significant growth in the field of elderly care, have mastered key technologies like ergonomic design, motion recognition and self-learning AI that dynamically refine movement patterns," said Chen Zhiran, director of the Digital Economy Research Office at Zhejiang Development and Planning Institute.

China's increasing elderly population faces widening unmet mobility needs, resulting in overburdened rehabilitation therapists and an annual shortfall in terms of rehab therapy graduates.

Latest data shows that by the end of 2024, China's population aged 60 and above had reached 310 million -- accounting for roughly 22 percent of its total population.

A growing number of Chinese firms have seen vast business opportunities stemming from the increasing aging population. The country's silver economy is emerging as a major growth driver, and is currently valued at 7 trillion yuan. According to a survey from data analysis provider iiMedia Research, China's silver economy is expected to reach a scale of 30 trillion yuan by 2035.

Notably, enterprises are leveraging emerging technology such as AI and robotics to pioneer a new consumption scenario tailored to the elderly. Guided by a Chinese proposal, the International Electrotechnical Commission has released a global standard for elderly-care robots.

To tap into the growing silver economy, tech firms are learning to focus on solving real elderly user challenges while employing cutting-edge technologies.

Designed for elderly convenience, RoboCT's walking assist device takes just 20 seconds to put on and doesn't require smartphone operation.

The firm is also planning to launch customized versions of this device for hemiplegic patients and spinal cord injury patients.