--- description: Find out why Permobil Explorer Mini is one of the best inventions of 2021 title: Permobil Explorer Mini: The 100 Best Inventions of 2021 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d4bb371e0ebd1e2/698a1e93457a52f0c5d65af1/best-inventions-2021-Explorer-Mini-04.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 10, 2021 # Mobility for the Littlest Kids Permobil Explorer Mini by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Kimberly Teske Fetrow Children who are slow to walk because of diseases like muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy or Down syndrome have been shown to benefit cognitively and socially by moving around with the help of a motor. The problem: most motorized wheelchairs are too big for the tiniest kids. As a result, some parents of such children have been stuck modifying toy cars to help them out. Enter [Permobil’s Explorer Mini](https://www.permobil.com/en-us/products/power-wheelchairs/permobil-explorer-mini "undefined") ($2,695): a U.S. Food and Drug Administration–cleared motorized device built expressly for kids ages 1 to 3\. Kids can control the chair, available only with a prescription, via a joystick. The idea, says Amy Morgan, a pediatric physical therapist and Permobil project manager, is “to jump-start \[kids’\] physical development.” _—Jesse Will_ **Update, November 10** _This piece has been updated._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112517/permobil-explorer-mini/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112517/permobil-explorer-mini/"},"headline":"Mobility for the Littlest Kids","datePublished":"2021-11-10T11:11:21.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:55:53.119Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112517/permobil-explorer-mini/","keywords":["list","franchise","best inventions","Best Inventions 2021"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d4bb371e0ebd1e2/698a1e93457a52f0c5d65af1/best-inventions-2021-Explorer-Mini-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d4bb371e0ebd1e2/698a1e93457a52f0c5d65af1/best-inventions-2021-Explorer-Mini-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112517/permobil-explorer-mini/","name":"Mobility for the Littlest Kids"}}]}] ```