June 21, 2015Robo-Mate exoskeleton aims to lighten the load for industry

Robo-Mate is the first industrial exoskeleton

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The development of powered exoskeletons has so far been largely restricted to the laboratory, the military, and areas such as rehabilitation therapy. This kind of technology also has obvious potential in industry, where constant heavy lifting is still very much a part of many working lives. Recently in Stuttgart, the Robo-Mate project unveiled an exoskeleton designed specifically for industrial use that can make 10 kilos feel like 1.

One of the often overlooked benefits of modern technology is how much backbreaking labor workers are spared. It isn't too long ago that even so-called high tech industries required an astonishing amount of lifting and carrying. Even plastics factory making small household items required as much manual labor as a metal works turning out petrol engines. Mechanisation and automation have done away with a lot of this, but according to the Work Foundation Alliance, 44 million workers in the EU alone still suffer from musculoskeletal disorders. In some industries, workers still lift 10 tonnes a day.

The reason why this still happens on a daily basis is that not every task lends itself to automation. Some involve making things on a very small scale or others involve complicated, unpredictable moves, like dismantling a car, that are well beyond even the most advanced robots. The result is human beings literally having to do the heavy lifting, with all the physical wear and tear that implies. It also has knock-on effects for employers trying to retain workers, health care systems, and even the ability of countries to keep jobs from going abroad.

Robo-Mate project began in 2013 as a consortium of twelve research institutes and companies in seven European countries. The idea is to produce a powered exoskeleton that acts as a support frame that can reduce the physical workload for assembly and disassembly work by a factor of ten.

The Robo-Mate exoskeleton is made up of series of inter-supporting modules for the arms, trunk, and legs. The arm modules actively support the wearer's arms, taking the load, so it feels only a tenth of its real weight. Attached to the arm modules is the trunk module, which supports the back and spine and prevents twisting or slipped discs. Meanwhile, the leg modules support the inner thighs and act like a seat while squatting, so holding the load requires no additional strength.

According to the project team, the key to developing the exoskeleton was using software to simulate tasks involving assembly and disassembly, and then identifying the stresses placed upon the body. This allowed the team to sort out what tasks the exoskeleton is suitable for by considering it and the body as a single unit.

The first prototype of the Robo-Mate exoskeleton was unveiled in a demonstration at Fraunhofer IAO in Stuttgart on 12 June, but the team says that a great deal of work still needs to be done. Currently the safety requirements of the exoskeleton are being evaluated and streamlined case for the unit is being developed as part of an effort to make it more acceptable with workers as an everyday tool.

“We’re not looking to make superheroes," says Dr. Leonard O`Sullivan, a specialist in ergonomics and product design at the University of Limerick in Ireland. "We want to develop a helper that supports production workers in their everyday work and keeps them healthy."

Source: Robo-Mate

Robo-Mate外骨骼旨在减轻工业负荷

Robo-伴侣外骨骼的目的是减轻负载industry

ROBO-Mate是第一次工业外骨骼

图片廊（8图像）

动力外骨骼的发育有这么迄今已在很大程度上仅限于实验室，军队和地区如康复治疗。这种技术也有在行业中，不断的繁重仍然是非常多的工作生活的一部分明显的潜力。最近在斯图加特的ROBO-伴侣项目推出专为工业用途，可以使10多斤感觉像1

其中一个经常被忽略的现代技术的好处是多么繁重的劳务工都不能幸免设计的外骨骼。这是不是很久以前，即使是所谓的高科技产业需要的提升和携带的惊人数量。即使是塑料制品厂制造的金属作品转向了汽油发动机需要尽可能多的体力劳动家庭小用品。机械化和自动化都免掉了很多本，但根据工作基础联盟，有44万工人在欧盟仍独自从肌肉骨骼疾病受苦。在某些行业，工人依然举起每天10万吨

之所以这样，仍然发生每天是不是每一个任务适合于自动化。有些涉及到使事情在一个非常小规模的或其他人涉及到复杂的，难以预料的举动，就像拆解一辆汽车，那是远远超出即使最先进的机器人。其结果是人类从字面上不得不做繁重，所有的物理磨损暗示。它也有雇主想留住工人，卫生保健系统，以及国家甚至继续工作，从出国的能力连锁反应。

ROBO-伴侣项目开始于2013年作为十二个研究机构和公司在七个欧洲国家的财团。我们的想法是，以产生动力服充当支撑框架可以由十倍降低装配和拆卸工作的物理工作量。

所述机器人-伴侣外骨骼由一系列相互支承模块的的手臂，躯干和腿。手臂模块积极支持佩戴者的手臂，走的负载，所以感觉其实际重量只有十分之一。安装在臂的模块是躯干模块，它支持背部和脊柱，并防止扭曲或滑倒光盘。同时，腿部模块支持的大腿内侧和行为像同时下蹲一个座位，所以抱着负载无需额外的力量。

据项目组，重点开发外骨骼是用软件来模拟涉及装配和拆卸任务，然后识别放在身体的压力。这允许团队梳理什么任务外骨骼是适于通过考虑它和主体作为一个单一的单元。

的ROBO-伴侣外骨骼的第一架原型机首次亮相于6月12日的示威弗劳恩霍夫IAO在斯图加特，但球队表示，大量的工作还有待完成。目前，外骨骼的安全要求进行评估，简化的情况为单位正在发展成为一个努力，使之更容易接受与工人作为日常工具的一部分。

“我们不要求你做超级英雄，说：”