The Dartmouth-based company that developed a bionic knee brace has been listed in a Forbes article titled, “The Top Seven Startups for Souped-Up Senior Care”.

The American business magazine praised Spring Loaded Technology’s shock-absorbent knee brace Levitation and commended its potential to meet a real need in Canada, where seniors outnumber children under 15.  

The carbon-fibre brace is equipped with a hinge that absorbs stress and assists muscle movements.  The brace is ideal for seniors who struggle with joint pain or for athletes with sports injuries.

The article came about because John Hamblin, a Halifax resident and investor in Spring Loaded, recently gave a talk at a convention on the silver economy in the U.S. He mentioned Spring Loaded in the speech, and a reporter in the audience asked him about the product afterward.

Headed by CEO Chris Cowper-Smith, Spring Loaded has raised several million dollars from such groups as First Angel Network and Innovacorp, and was named to the Lazaridis Scale-Up Program at Wilfred Laurier University in the fall.

Other companies named in the article were Rendever, which provides VR tech to seniors and Steadiwear for its product Steadiglove that helps ease motor control for people with Parkinson’s and tremor disease.