Who invented the rollator?

The first rollator was invented in 1978 in Västerås by inventor Aina Wifalk. Roughly 60,000 rollators are prescribed in Sweden each year, making Sweden the country with the highest density of rollators in the world.

The rollator has the same frame as a walking frame, however, it has three or four large wheels attached to it. The model also has handlebars and a seat. The seat is for when the user needs rest to re-energise. 

At a young age, Aina Wifalk began studying to be a nurse, but when she was only 21 she suffered from polio and had to drop her studies. Instead, she retrained as a counsellor. Sometime in the 1950s, she moved to Västerås where she became a counsellor at Västerås Hospital. At the end of the 1960s, she became what was then called a counsellor for the handicapped for the local council.

In 1976 she stopped working as a counsellor for the handicapped and received sickness benefits because her shoulders had become worn out from having walked around on walking sticks for a little over twenty years. She started thinking about gentler ways to help people who have difficulty walking on their own, and in 1978 she came up with an idea for a completely new type of aid on wheels. That same year she applied for money from a state development fund in order to get help turning the idea into a finished product. The administrators for the fund saw the potential of the project and gave Wifalk financial support as well as connected her with a company, which built the first prototype. Only three years later production had started.

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Product Reviews    

  • Love it!…

    I already own a Veloped that I bought second-hand and use daily at our local country park so know how good the quality is and how useful they are. I wanted a smaller walker that would fit in the footwell of the car with the seat flipped up so I can t…

  • New grips…

    The new grips fit & work perfectly. I found they were easy to install but I do have some mechanical skills.

    I have owned my 12er for about six years and have completed 5 Marathons (26.2 mi) with it. I estimate I have walked nearly 3,500 miles with…

  • Mr Don Sutherland…

    Amazing, have used it mainly in urban areas, the crawling wheel handles kerbs effortlessly.…

  • PERFECT…

    Perfect, because you can walk upright and avoid walking with a bent back. The back improves the more you walk.
    A tip: When folding the Veloped, there should be a latch that keeps the frame locked in a folded state.
    Missing holes to put a nameplate …

  • “To Boldly Go Where No Rollator Has Gone Before”…

    I bought a Veloped Tour (with 12-inch wheels) online from Trionic in May 2020 for my 86-year-old father. To everyone’s delight, my father was immediately able to walk much faster, much further, and much more easily than before.

    One of the specific…

  • I'm absolutely delighted with my Walker.…

    The design is perfect, I think, most importantly because it allows me to walk in an upright posture, thus easing lower back & shoulder pain. Its very sturdy construction has helped my balance a lot, & I feel much more secure when out walking, & able …

  • Forest Walks Again!…

    Since getting my Veloped Trek 14er I've been able to get out about in the Forests again. Have even managed to get half way up the Black Mountains in Wales. Also able to get out and take photos again, something I love to do!…

  • I'm glad I discovered the Veloped Sport.…

    I'm glad I discovered the Veloped Sport. I knew I was going to love it the first 6 meters I tried it. We have a front drive of gravel. My older traditional rollator just could not be used in the loose gravel, the Veloped was no problem.

    I original…

  • Good concept for replacement…

    I needed to replace a brake lever because the thread for the clamping screw was worn out. I looked for the instructions on this site and have to say it was super simple to replace the lever. Simply remove the handle, pull off the brake lever, remove …

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