Advanced wearable robot eases heavy lifting and other injury-causing tasks for workers

In research published in Advanced Intelligence Systems, scientists have developed an innovative, soft, wearable robot to help workers avoid job-related injuries while lifting, lowering, and carrying objects.

While many available wearable robots are limited to supporting a single degree of freedom of the body (meaning the body can only move in one direction at a given joint), the new robot, called WeaRo, operates through multiple degrees of freedom, allowing for complex movements.

In tests, WeaRo effectively reduced the muscle activation levels of lumbar, biceps, and triceps muscles by a maximum of 18.2%, 29.1%, and 27.0%, respectively, without constraining users’ movements. With batteries, WeaRo weighs under 11.5 pounds (5.2 kg).

“The significance of this study lies in developing a comprehensive methodology that encompasses movement analysis, wearable robot design, and effectiveness validation to reduce work-related injuries,” said corresponding author Dongjun Shin, Ph.D., of Yonsei University, in the Republic of Korea.