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The first industrial powered exoskeleton for production workers in the European Union (EU) was unveiled by researchers in the EU&#8217;s <a style="color: #000080" href="http://www.robo-mate.eu" target="_blank">Robo-Mate project</a>, claimed a <a style="color: #000080" href="http://phys.org/news/2015-06-exoskeleton-industry-unveiled.html" target="_blank">media report</a>.</article>

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The first industrial powered exoskeleton for production workers in the European Union (EU) was unveiled by researchers in the EU&#8217;s <a style="color: #000080" href="http://www.robo-mate.eu" target="_blank">Robo-Mate project</a>, claimed a <a style="color: #000080" href="http://phys.org/news/2015-06-exoskeleton-industry-unveiled.html" target="_blank">media report</a>.
Project partners presented the first prototype at Fraunhofer IAO in Stuttgart on 12 June.
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A powered exoskeleton is a form of external supporting frame that can actively assists workers engaged in heavy industrial work (e.g. construction), particularly production and assembly work, which can be physically demanding. The Robo-Mate exoskeleton protects workers&#8217; backs and supports their posture, while helping them lift heavy objects.
By means of motors and sensors, it reduces the effective loads to a fraction of their actual weight, while also preventing postural damage. Even with advancements in robotics, many tasks remain too complex for robots, cannot be standardised or simply require human flexibility. One example is the disassembly of motor vehicles and <a style="color: #000080" href="http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2014/05/shipbreakers/gwin-text" target="_blank">ship breaking</a>, with the removal of individual components being a demanding task.
These tasks can greatly strain workers, particularly when performed for eight hours at a stretch. Workers engaged in production and disassembly tasks often lift and carry several tonnes of material in a day., resulting in damage to the spine and long-term health problems.
In addition to the worker&#8217;s personal suffering, this also creates high costs for healthcare systems, with employers facing the disadvantages of lost productivity and manpower through sickness, early retirement, high attrition and difficulty in recruiting new staff.
The most established fields of application for the use of powered exoskeletons lie in urban search &amp; rescue (USR), military operations and medical rehabilitation. Japan itself is leading in this field with the <a style="color: #000080" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HAL_(robot)" target="_blank">Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL)</a> system, which was developed jointly by Tsukuba University and Cyberdyne.
These are already being <a style="color: #000080" href="http://www.vrworld.com/2014/12/12/hal-work-robots-led-qr-web-geography-headlines-tokyo-dec-12/" target="_blank">field tested by the Obayashi Corporation of Japan</a> for use in construction. Meanwhile, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering is <a style="color: #000080" href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22329803.900-robotic-suit-gives-shipyard-workers-super-strength.html#.VYC8hmB7SlI" target="_blank">testing the use of powered exoskeletons in shipyards</a>.
In addition, <a style="color: #000080" href="http://arstechnica.com/science/2015/04/an-unpowered-exoskeleton-decreases-the-energy-required-for-walking/" target="_blank">unpowered exoskeletons</a> are also emerging as another segment of this new industry. The <a style="color: #000080" href="http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/products/exoskeleton/FORTIS.html" target="_blank">FORTIS exoskeleton</a> by Lockheed Martin has been <a style="color: #000080" href="http://defensetech.org/2014/08/22/navy-uses-exoskeletons-for-shipyard-maintenance/" target="_blank">deployed by the US Navy for use in shipyard maintenance</a>.
<h3>Robo-Mate Prototype</h3>
Commenting on the first Robo-Mate prototype, Dr Wernher van de Venn, coordinator of the Robo-Mate project and head of the Institute of Mechatronic Systems at Zurich University of Applied Sciences in Switzerland explained: &#8220;Our exoskeleton prototype consists of modules for the arms, the trunk of the body and the legs.&#8221;
The arm modules actively support workers when lifting heavy loads by using motors. These deliver a tenfold reduction in the force acting on workers when lifting an object. Dr Carmen Constantinescu, a member of the team, said, &#8220;A car seat weighing 15 kilograms feels like 1.5 kilograms when workers lift it with the help of the exoskeleton.&#8221;
The trunk module is designed principally to stabilise and protect the back and spinal column, helping workers keep their torso straight when carrying loads,  lifting objects or engaged in bending actions. This is designed to protect the spine from twisting and slipped discs.
The leg modules of the exoskeleton supports the legs using two modules that stabilise the inner thighs from the trunk module. When workers carry out tasks in a squatting position, which can put the thighs under great strain, the leg modules stiffen and form a kind of seat. This minimises the strength workers have to exert.
More research &amp; development is required before the Robo-Mate exoskeleton can become an everyday presence in factories, whether in Europe or abroad.  One task is to make the exoskeleton and its use safe for its users and their environment.
Another issue is the matter of acceptance: &#8220;The only way this kind of support can be successful is if workers themselves accept the technology,&#8221; says Prof. Dr. Michiel de Looze, partner for human-robot interaction at TNO, the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research TNO.
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<a style="color: #ff0000" href="http://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/robots-the-next-growth-sector-in-southeast-asia-6280/">Robots: The next growth sector in Southeast Asia?</a>
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The first industrial powered exoskeleton for production workers in the European Union (EU) was unveiled by researchers in the EU’s Robo-Mate project.


EU-designed industrial exoskeleton unveiled

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