Being mobile while maintaining balance is no easy task, especially for the elderly or injured. EU research has looked into getting there, ultimately without crutches.
Maintaining balance and avoiding falls can be very challenging for the elderly, spinal cord injury patients or workers performing difficult, strenuous tasks. Key examples are very common in the construction industry, lifting heavy loads, mountain rescue or simply for moving around if impaired physically.
Further details: Robotic exoskeletons get the balance right