Using a Spring-Loaded Upper-Limb Exoskeleton in Cleaning Tasks: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

In the next few years, exoskeletons for workers’ support are expected to be key players in the global industrial market. Interventional studies to explore the exoskeletons’ effectiveness in real and realistic simulated scenarios have to be carried out in the wide variety of use cases. This work introduces a preliminary comprehensive assessment of a spring-loaded upper-limb exoskeleton, carried out using both instrumental and perception-related metrics in a realistically simulated job activity. Results show that the MATE exoskeleton significantly alleviates the strain in the shoulder and reduces the perceived effort in the investigated task. Questionnaires indicated well-above-threshold usability and acceptability indices. Short-term evidence of strain reduction induced by the use of exoskeletal vests paves the way for systematic assessment across different use-cases.