From Concept to Validation: An Active Exoskeleton for a Healthier Workplace

Nowadays, work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are still the first cause of occupational diseases in industrialized countries. This thesis aims to present a framework where robots do not substitute the worker but provide assistance in order to assure that ergonomics are always mantained during the daily job. Particularly, a combination of both portable exoskeletons and cobots benefits in reducing the biomechanical load of the worker. This work starts by presenting a series-elastic actuator that will be subsequently employed in a portable shoulder exoskeleton. The latter is presented in its design and tested to assess its capabilities in assisting flexion/extension of human workers during weight lifting and carrying-load tasks. Finally, a framework for a synergy between a human wearing the previously assessed exoskeleton and a cobot is presented, and its benefits in terms of reduction of occupational effort are assessed.