A New Zealand company that developed bionic walking frames for wheelchair-bound people has been bought by a British company for $18 million.
Auckland-based Rex Bionics produces robotic exoskeletons for about $150,000 each.
The device, called Rex, enables the wheelchair-bound person to stand up and walk without the use of crutches.
Rex Bionics chief executive Richard Little says the medical technology company, Union Medtech, now owns the company he founded, but the exoskeletons will still be produced in Auckland and no jobs will be lost because of the purchase.
Mr Little says offices will be established in Britain, Europe and the US to continue the commercialisation of the device.