The verified answer
As of Sep 2026, DEPLOY verifies Harmonic Drive: 1 model, 2 deployments across 2 regions. 1 source back the record.
CategoryIndustrial Robots
Overview
Harmonic Drive SE is a German manufacturer of precision strain wave gears and mechatronic drive systems, headquartered in Limburg/Lahn. Founded in 1970 as a joint venture between United Shoe Machinery and Hasegawa Gear Works, the company traces its technology to C.W. Musser's 1955 invention of the strain wave gear.
Its gearboxes are critical components in robotic joints, semiconductor equipment, aerospace systems, and medical devices, with four out of five products being customer-specific special versions.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- 2 deployments on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
Key facts
CEO
Management Board
Supervisory Board Chair
Parent company
Revenue
Employees
Key markets
Notable deployments
Financial stage
Inventor
Global sites
Data & sources
Web sources
1
1 source backing this record.View all →
Models (1)
View all models →Harmonic Drive on the deployment map
View the global map2 verified deployments across 2 regions, newest verified Jun 2024. Explore where Harmonic Drive's robots are operating, by place and type.
View the full Harmonic Drive deployment record →
Relationships
Current leadership (3)
- Thomas Berger CEO & Chair of Management BoardSEC-verified
- Christian Reuter Management Board — Production StrategySEC-verified
- Thomas Haag CEO, Harmonic Drive SEsecondary-verified
Former / Previously (1)
- Reinhard Ernst Former CEO & Majority ShareholderSEC-verified
Safety record
No incidents on record for Harmonic Drive.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Operator customers (1)
- Harmonic Drive2 deployments
Recent coverage
Harmonic Drive in third-party press
Peer companies
- Savoye5 models
- Ambi Robotics2 models
- DENSO Corporation2 models
- FANUC Corporation2 models
- Mitsubishi Electric FA2 models
- Plus One Robotics2 models
Supplies to (5)
Actuators & motors
- UR5eby Universal RobotsHFUS-2SH Series strain-wave gears -- all six joints (HFUS-25-2SH large joints, HFUS-14-2SH small joints)supplies
- Stäubli TX2-90by StäubliHarmonic Drive strain-wave gearboxes -- JCS joint transmission in TX2-90 armsuppliesclaimed
- DENSO COBOTTAby DENSO RoboticsHarmonic Drive strain-wave gearboxes -- all six joint transmissions in COBOTTA cobotsupplies
- da Vinci (and Ion)by Intuitive SurgicalHarmonic Drive strain-wave gearboxes -- EndoWrist instrument wrist joints and robotic arm transmissionssupplies
- Atlasby Boston DynamicsHarmonic Drive strain-wave gearboxes -- wrist and elbow joint transmissionssuppliesclaimed
Outbound supply edges from this company. Each relationship appears here when verified with at least two strong sources (maker-official / IR / regulatory / standards-body / verified tier-2). Sources are append-only; corrections add new sources rather than rewrite history.
Financial state
- Reporting basis
- private_disclosed
- Lifecycle stage
- mature
- Counterparty risk class
- low
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Timeline
Every recorded move in Harmonic Drive’s history, most recent first: funding rounds, partnerships, acquisitions, supply-chain starts, key hires, and press.
Started supplyingBecame supplier to SuitX (US Bionics)
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for SuitX exoskeleton to SuitX (US Bionics)
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Ekso Bionics
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for Ekso exoskeleton to Ekso Bionics
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Asensus Surgical
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for Senhance to Asensus Surgical
Started supplyingBecame supplier to CMR Surgical
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for Versius arms to CMR Surgical
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Vicarious Surgical
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for surgical robot wrists to Vicarious Surgical
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Intuitive Surgical
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic gear for da Vinci wrists to Intuitive Surgical
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Kawasaki Robotics
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for Kawasaki arms to Kawasaki Robotics
Started supplyingBecame supplier to Apptronik
2026-08-23Supply: Harmonic reducers for Apollo to Apptronik
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Record createdJun 7, 2026
Added to the verified registry
- Deployment verifiedVerifiedJun 1, 2024
CSF Series Strain Wave Gear at Germany, Europe
- Deployment verifiedVerifiedJun 1, 2024
CSF Series Strain Wave Gear at United States (multiple hotel chains)
Sources (1)
Common questions
What is Harmonic Drive?
What does Harmonic Drive make?
Is Harmonic Drive publicly traded?
Who competes with Harmonic Drive?
Who is the CEO of Harmonic Drive?
How can I invest in Harmonic Drive?
Where is Harmonic Drive headquartered?
Who owns Harmonic Drive?
Where does Harmonic Drive operate robots?
How many robots has Harmonic Drive deployed?
Is Harmonic Drive a top robotics company?
Is Harmonic Drive safe?
Methodology: Verified · 1 source (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-08-21
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-08-21
Sources by quality tier
- 1
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for Harmonic Drive.Peer companies
- Savoye5 models
- Ambi Robotics2 models
- DENSO Corporation2 models
- FANUC Corporation2 models
- Mitsubishi Electric FA2 models
- Plus One Robotics2 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning Harmonic Drive from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Harmonic Drive — Over 60 Years of Strain Wave Gear Technology for Space Applications
Harmonic Drive highlights its 60+ year history supplying strain wave gears for NASA space missions, emphasizing reliability and compact design for aerospace applications.
Harmonic Drive Highlights Solar Array Drive Technology for Spacecraft Power Generation
Harmonic Drive showcases its Solar Array Drive assemblies combining harmonic gear units, torque motors, and bearings for spacecraft power generation applications.
Harmonic Drive SE: Company Profile & Global Locations
Official company profile detailing Harmonic Drive SE's history from 1955 Musser invention to global precision gear manufacturer with sites in Germany, Japan, USA, and China.
Understanding the Theory and Operation of Harmonic Drive Strain Wave Gearing
A 3-minute video narrated by Doug Olson, President and CEO at Harmonic Drive, explaining the theory and operation of strain wave gearing technology.
Global Harmonic Drives in Robotics Market 2020 to 2025 — Featuring Harmonic Drive Systems
Market research report featuring Harmonic Drive Systems as a leading player in the harmonic drive gears for robotics market, alongside competitors like Leaderdrive and Zhejiang…
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/harmonic-drive.md
- RSS feed: /companies/harmonic-drive/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/eb7f2420-dd29-4f78-abe9-b1ca76fc9ab9
- Revision history: /companies/harmonic-drive/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Savoye5 models
- Ambi Robotics2 models
- DENSO Corporation2 models
- FANUC Corporation2 models
- Mitsubishi Electric FA2 models
- Plus One Robotics2 models
Video
Buy now: http://www.solidworks.com/makers20 Learn more: https://discover.solidworks.com/3dexperience-solidworks-makers 3D model, parts list and more details ► https://howtomechatronics.com/how-it-works/harmonic-vs-cyclo
Harmonic Drive® Strain Wave Gears – the ORIGINAL for over 50 years To this day, gears from Limburg an der Lahn are the undisputed pioneers that set the standar
This is a free preview of one lesson in the "Robotic Drives and Physics" course available on Jet Pack Academy and new for winter of 2019. In this lesson, Ian ex
This video briefly demonstrates a high-speed positioning test of a robotic actuator based on a strain wave gear from Harmonic Drive. The average input speed rec
In over 40 years of operation, Harmonic Drive AG has developed into a prestige solution provider for high precision drive technology with around 400 employees a
Discover how HONPINE’s high-precision harmonic reducer joint modules are powering the next generation of humanoid robots! Designed for smooth motion, ultra-low
Visit us on www.harmonicdrive.en As a gear technology leader in the field of high precision drive technology, Harmonic Drive AG is continuously developing soph
Last week at Informa Markets MD&M West show in Anaheim, CA, our sales engineer Henry Kim spoke with Informa to discuss our latest and greatest product offerings
Backless less than 1arc Min Harmonic Drive Robotics Gearbox Robot Gearbox Harmonic Gearbox Low Backless Gearbox Low Backless Servo Gearbox Indexer
Heat Index
Serious50/100
A composite of competitive footprint, funding, press velocity, active partnerships, and supply-chain edges. Different from the Intelligence score below (which is per-form-factor productization). Non-robotics companies cap at 25.
Reality vs attention
Harmonic Drive draws attention at the 58th percentile but verifies reality at the 53rd percentile among industrial_robot robots. Hype Gap +4.9, 15th widest among industrial_robot robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Clean safety record across 2 verified deployments. Limited public funding data for capital position assessment.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Sep 6, 2026