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Renowned authority in all things regarding the future of healthcare reality today, The Medical Futurist, takes an informed look at the rapidly growing global exoskeleton market and devices such as the German Bionic Cray X that are already effectively preventing worker injury and fatigue.
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Preventive equipment to limit worker injury and fatigue
Indeed, beyond rehabilitation, a trend seems to be forming to equip workers with exoskeletons. A small-scale pilot experience of about 40 exosuit-assisted workers found promising results. Those workers reported that the exoskeletons provided a reduction of 73% in lower back discomfort, and lowered work effort by 30%. Moreover, 80% felt that these mechanical add-ons could prevent injuries of the lower back. With some $100 billion in medical bills attributed to worker injuries in the U. S., it makes sense for employers to explore new methods to assist workers and limit healthcare hazards.
With this in mind, companies are developing exoskeleton solutions to assist workers and prevent injury. For example, the exoskeletons from German Bionic allow a worker to easily carry around weights of up to 36 kg, while they also help prevent common lifting injuries.
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Then there’s the weight of the device itself which could be a hindrance. German Bionic’s apogee comes in the form of an 8kg backpack, which might not be totally comfortable to wear all day long. They also need charging; meaning the workplace will need additional batteries or exoskeletons as substitutes when the batteries need recharging.
Given the novelty of such devices, there might be unforeseen challenges as well as new research has found. Researchers investigated the neurocognitive ‘cost’ to exoskeleton users, and concluded that the exoskeleton’s advantages were offset when a user was tasked with a cognitively-demanding task.
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“While exoskeletons hold great promise in alleviating physical loads in the workplace, these findings can guide the development of decision support tools for ergonomists to determine when/how and during what tasks exoskeletons should be used on the factory floor to maximise worker safety,” the researchers said.
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For battery-powered models, a battery hot-swap feature would help alleviate the hindrances of depleted batteries. The now retired Cray X from Bionic had such a feature. “You can pull out the [spent battery] for a new one, place the old one on the charger […] and then you can just move on,” Marius Kiss, Head of Mechanical R&D at German Bionic, told Engadget. “You could potentially work like eight hours without having to take off the exoskeleton.”
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So does this mean that in the future, we can expect to see exoskeletons become as common as our current wearables? Eric Eitel, German Bionic’s Head of Communications, surely thinks so. “I really see everyone on the street wearing an exoskeleton in one form or another,” Eitel said. “But I think that the exoskeletons that we are looking for in the future are the active ones. I see them being a lot slimmer, smarter, and connected.”
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Written by Dr. Bertalan Meskó & Dr. Pranavsingh Dhunnoo
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