The Journal of Biomechanics<\/em>.<\/p>\nThe research was funded by the Canadian Standards Association Undergraduate Research Scholarship and two grants \u2014 the Undergraduate Student Research Award and Discovery Grant \u2014 from the Government of Canada\u2019s Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.<\/p>\n
Research participants performed two one-hour sessions of lifting, transferring and lowering boxes during a simulated warehouse pallet stacking task. The participants did not wear the exoskeleton during the first session but did wear it in the second session.<\/p>\n
During the two sessions, conducted around eight months apart, participants were instructed to be as productive as possible.<\/p>\n
Unlike earlier studies in which movements were restricted to bending forwards, tasks involved twisting, bending and stretching all sides of the body, \u201csimilar to something seen in an Amazon warehouse or an assembly line,\u201d says Ratke.<\/p>\n
Sensors placed on various parts of the body collected and transmitted information on muscle activity and body movement. The research team compared the two sets of data to see the exoskeleton\u2019s impacts on muscle fatigue, exertion and co-ordination all over the body but particularly in the lower back.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe participants perceived less exertion and they completed tasks faster with the exoskeleton on,\u201d says Ratke. \u201cWe found that they moved more boxes when they wore the exoskeleton, representing an increase in productivity by roughly six per cent.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says participants when wearing the exoskeleton had different movement patterns, however more research is needed to understand how this may be related to injury risk.<\/p>\n
Associate Professor of Kinesiology Shawn Beaudette says he is encouraged by the results of the study, which adds to the growing body of literature supporting the use of back supporting exoskeletons during physically demanding tasks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe demographic we’re targeting \u2014 assembly line workers, people on the shop floor \u2014 have lower back pain and dysfunction coming from cumulative use and overload,\u201d says Beaudette, who led the six-member research team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re hoping to validate an assistive technology to help offset that damage,\u201d he says, adding that \u201cmusculoskeletal disorders are one of the most impactful burdens we as Canadians face in our day-to-day lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
But it may be too early to endorse the use of back-support exoskeletons across the board, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough the results of this work are promising, it is hard to assume a one-size-fits-all approach,\u201d says Beaudette. \u201cAdditional work is needed to assess the potential benefits of back-support exoskeletons across a wide range of tasks, and workers to support widespread adoption.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to Beaudette and Ratke, the research team included Associate Professor of Kinesiology and Canada Research Chair in Neuromuscular Mechanics and Ergonomics Michael Holmes, then-undergraduate Queen\u2019s University student Hannah McMaster, PhD in Applied Health Sciences student Chris Vellucci (MSc ’23) and University of Waterloo postdoctoral fellow Dennis Larson.<\/p>\n