Innovating for the Next Century: 2023 China International Care & Rehabilitation Expo Opens with Focus on High-Quality Development
Today (May 21) marks the 33rd National Day for Assisting Persons with Disabilities, as the China International Welfare Expo grandly opens. Themed “Innovation Empowerment, Win-Win Cooperation, and Well-Being Enhancement for the Next Century,” the expo showcases cutting-edge innovations in rehabilitation assistive devices to comprehensively promote the high-quality development of undertakings for persons with disabilities.
On the occasion of the 33rd National Day for Assisting Persons with Disabilities, the 2023 China International Welfare Expo & China International Rehabilitation Expo opened on May 21 at the Shougang Exhibition Center in Beijing. Hosted by the China Disabled Persons’ Federation, co-organized by the Assistive Devices Center of the China Disabled Persons’ Federation and the Beijing Disabled Persons’ Federation, and co-sponsored by Guangzhou Poly Jinhhan Exhibition Co., Ltd., this three-day event marks the 15th edition of the expo since its inaugural holding in 2007.
In recent years, under the close care and high attention of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, China’s cause for persons with disabilities has flourished, and the provision of assistive technology services has improved significantly. Various regions have established and implemented subsidy systems for basic assistive device fitting or launched pilot programs, raising the basic assistive device fitting rate for persons with disabilities to over 85%. Meanwhile, technological innovation in assistive devices has been vibrant both domestically and internationally, and China’s rehabilitation assistive device industry has developed rapidly, providing increasingly robust support for the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. The exhibition features five zones: Mobility Aids, Prosthetics and Orthotics, Rehabilitation Training Equipment, Barrier-Free Facilities and Elderly Care, and Communication Disorder Rehabilitation/Low Vision.
The expo covers an exhibition area of 25,000 square meters, with more than 300 companies from 14 countries and regions, including China, Germany, the United States, and Japan, showcasing cutting-edge global rehabilitation concepts and new technological products to the industry. Additionally, international pavilions from Canada and Japan made their appearance at the event, where numerous leading enterprises and institutions presented advanced research and development in rehabilitation assistive devices as well as clinical services, thereby promoting exchanges within the domestic and international rehabilitation assistive device industry.
Concurrently, the Expo coincides with the Centennial Celebration of Rehabilitation International held in Beijing. As a parallel event to the celebration, the Expo features a special “Centennial Exhibition of Rehabilitation International,” hosting domestic and international guests attending the centennial festivities to showcase China’s achievements in the development of assistive technology for persons with disabilities and to promote international exchange and cooperation in the field of disability affairs.
The current Welfare Expo showcases a wide array of cutting-edge technological applications, leading the trend toward intelligent assistive devices and comprehensively presenting the latest scientific and technological achievements in the rehabilitation assistive device industry.
In the Mobility Aids Exhibition Area, intelligent mobility products such as smart mobility robots and flexible exoskeleton robots were showcased, offering new travel options for people with disabilities. In the Prosthetics and Orthotics Exhibition Area, intelligent prosthetic limbs, including bionic hands and dexterous smart legs, extensively incorporated emerging technologies such as bionics, brain-computer interfaces (BCI), artificial intelligence algorithms, and AI recognition. In the Rehabilitation Exhibition Area, visitors experienced the latest rehabilitation solutions, such as BCI-based hand function rehabilitation robotic systems and 3D immersive smart rehabilitation systems. The Accessibility Facilities and Elderly Care Exhibition Area featured highly anticipated new products, including bedridden incontinence care systems and AI sign language multimedia services. Meanwhile, a wide array of new assistive devices were launched in the Communication Disorder Rehabilitation/Low Vision Exhibition Area, including real-time captioning glasses, eye-tracking control systems, and bionic hearing aids.
At the exhibition, the Innovation Showcase Zone for Assistive Devices was dedicated to meeting the service needs of persons with disabilities and presenting the latest R&D achievements in China’s assistive technology sector. It highlighted new designs, products, and concepts in the field of assistive devices for persons with disabilities. The “Wellbeing Innovation Hub” zone brought together leading research institutions and technology enterprises, showcasing cutting-edge results including applications of intelligent rehabilitation technologies, exoskeleton robots, information accessibility solutions, and haptic feedback technologies.
In addition, regional exhibition groups from Beijing, Shandong Province, Shenzhen, and Jizhou District of Hengshui City in Hebei Province made stunning appearances, showcasing the latest development achievements and distinctive advantages of various industrial clusters in the rehabilitation assistive devices sector.
The Welfare Expo will focus on independent innovation in assistive technology, adaptation services for assistive devices for persons with disabilities, and rehabilitation for children with disabilities, hosting more than 30 events including workshops, academic exchanges, and technical training sessions.
On the opening day, major events including the 13th Low Vision Rehabilitation Forum, the First Jishan Disability Assistance Public Welfare Forum (2023), the Launch Ceremony of the 2023 Shenzhen Assistive Device Creative Design Competition, and the Chinese Association of Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons 2023 Comprehensive Academic Annual Conference were unveiled, with the venue filled to capacity. Digital activities for prosthetics and orthotics,The First “Assistive Devices on Campus” Forum was held at the exhibition venue and simultaneously live-streamed online, maximizing the breaking ofTranscending time and space, we present a series of grand feasts of academic exchange to the industry.
As a large-scale and influential event in China’s rehabilitation assistive devices industry, the Welfare Expo welcomed on its first day large groups of professional visitors from multiple sectors, including disabled persons’ federations, civil affairs departments, medical rehabilitation institutions, elderly care providers, special education organizations, and trade agencies. Over the three-day exhibition period, more than 100 professional buyer delegations are expected to attend.
Meanwhile, the exhibition attracted a large number of visitors with disabilities and elderly individuals, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere. On-site activities included rehabilitation science popularization, assistive device trials, and discounted purchases of assistive products for people with disabilities and incapacitated seniors, aiming to promote new policies and concepts in assistive technology services.
