Category: Exoskeletons

Exoskeleton companies like Ekso Bionics are making huge strides in the worker safety and productivity space with suits that can make workers safer on the manufacturing or factory floor. These exosuits are becoming more and more common as mobility and cost concerns become less and less of an issue. 

Manufacturing industries are increasingly turning to exoskeletons to ensure their workers perform tasks smarter, more efficiently, and in a safer manner. What was once only seen in sci-fi movies of the future, the exoskeleton is fighting its way into industry, to be sure, but also into the everyday lives consumers.

Increasing Safety With Fewer Injuries

Injuries associated with moving and lifting heavy workloads are a main concern of human resources departments, labor unions and government regulators. Up till now, Band-Aid approaches have included:

• Lightening the workload
• Reducing the time to move heavy items
• Improving ergonomics

However, even with these in place, worker injuries are still occurring. Enter: exoskeletons – the next in a generation of game-changing solutions.

Past years have brought exoskeletons that were high-precision, wearable braces. But many recent and ground breaking advances in the field of robotics have allowed exoskeleton companies to craft intelligent solutions that remove the heavy loads off the backs of humans. Some even allow the wearer to pick up and move hundreds of pounds without stress on the body.

Many industries use exoskeletons to improve safety. The agriculture industry, for example, involves high levels of manual labor, so farmers are using exoskeletons to lighten their loads. Logistics firms, as another example, are using exoskeletons to help their workers move faster and more efficiently for fulfillment and warehousing applications.

Exoskeleton companies are creating exosuits that provide:

• Full-Body Support for lifting or carrying heavy tools and materials around a site, thereby reducing strain on much of the body.
• Crouching Support for tasks involving crouching or standing for long periods of time through ergonomic support.
• Arm Support: There are two types — Power gloves strengthen grip and increase endurance, while arm support limbs act as a third arm, alleviating the strain of lifting and using a heavy tool by making it basically weightless.

Back Support that uses the correct posture and lifting techniques every time, alleviating pressure and preventing straining.

More Productivity

A growing number of warehouses, factories and construction sites are integrating exoskeleton devices into their daily operations to reduce injury, of course, but to also increase productivity. Such exoskeletons are designed to augment, restore or reinforce human performance. 

According to MachineDesign, exoskeletons bring worker centrality to the factories of the future, helping to support workers and improve the quality of their working hours. Ever since the First Industrial Revolution, manufacturers have been harnessing technology to make things better, cheaper and faster. Now, with the Fourth Industrial Revolution in front of us, the focus is evolving from pure technology to the creation of humanized technology. 

Assisting human workers as they perform repetitive and manual tasks is a key goal of exoskeleton companies in light of a globally-aging workforce and the fatigue associated with such manufacturing tasks. Exoskeletons — the emblem of worker centrality – are helping companies respond to this challenge in new and innovative ways.

For example, arm support exoskeletons are lightweight, breathable, and ergonomically-designed to adhere to the human body just like a second skin. As such, this wearable exoskeleton offers advanced and consistent anti-gravitational assistance during manual, repetitive and strenuous tasks. Because it moves with the wearer and effectively transfers weight away from the wearer’s shoulders, it leads to a 30 percent reduction in strain on the main shoulder muscles, thereby reducing the strain of performing overhead tasks, such as assembling, drilling, operating vibrating hand tools, and retrieving products from higher shelves and conveyor lines.

The result? Reduced muscular effort, improved posture, more productivity, and improved well-being.

The Challenges of Exoskeletons

While exoskeletons allow for enhanced ability, mobility has always been a particular design challenge. Powering the exoskeleton means the worker has to be tethered to some kind of power source. However, today’s newer designs have lower power requirements, using only small battery units that can last for up to eight hours on one charge. In addition, batteries can be hot-swapped, with little to no downtime required.

Exoskeletons of a few years ago indeed improved the wearer’s capabilities; however, they slowed down their movements. Workers had to be trained on how they could get the exoskeleton to move as they wanted it to. Today, predictive algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) now mean there’s no latency between the movements of the worker and the response of the exoskeleton. The result? Exoskeletons can function intuitively in real-time depending on the movements of the user, just about eliminating the learning curve, says Control Engineering.

Contact Ekso Bionics

Interested to learn how exoskeleton companies like Ekso Bionics are helping factories and warehouses improve worker safety and performance? Just contact us at 510-984-1761 or request a free demo online. 

Lifting heavy items happens to be one of the top causes of injury in the workplace. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says more than 36 percent of injuries involving missed days of work resulted in back and shoulder injuries. Cumulative trauma and overexertion were the biggest factors in these injuries.

Lifting, carrying or handling objects at work often result in musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs), such as strains and sprains. The risk of injury is higher with twisting bending, heavy loads, and awkward postures. Effective ergonomic controls may reduce the risk and prevent injuries, as well as smart lifting practices and assistance by machinery such as forklifts. These can all reduce the chances of suffering from back sprains, muscle pulls, wrist and elbow injuries, and spinal injuries.

However, now there’s a new kid on the block. Exoskeletons can be worn by employees in the workplace to reduce injury in a far less invasive manner. From manufacturing to construction, these suits can be utilized for just about every application.

The Risks

Injuries from handling and lifting loads can occur in several occupations, whereby workers are exposed to risk when they lower, lift or carry objects. Risk factors include: 

• Load weight 
• Proximity of the load to the body
• Load size and shape
• Distance the load must be carried 
• Initial height of the load, as well as vertical distance lifted 
• Lifting in combination with bending or twisting 
• How long the load must be carried 
• Number and frequency of lifts performed 

Add to those heavy lifting requirements, and you’ve got injuries arising from repetitive motions as well. With employees performing over-head motions, for example, several thousand times a day in many cases, overuse injuries abound. 

Exoskeletons can solve both injury types and problems.

Reduction of Musculoskeletal Loads

From a workplace health and safety standpoint, wearable exoskeleton devices are beneficial in reducing musculoskeletal loads that would not otherwise be helped by an engineering process change, says the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. 

It’s long been known that lifting and handling of heavy materials while also supporting heavy tools are both contributors to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and fatigue. MSDs account for about 30 percent of lost time workplace illnesses and injuries. In fact, the direct costs of injuries owed to overexertion with an outside source (lifting, pushing, turning, pulling, throwing, catching) hit $13.7 billion in 2018, equal to 23 percent of the overall national burden.

Exoskeletons are designed to support the lower back or joints during dynamic lifting, stooped working postures, static load holding and general support. Many studies have measured muscle activity, spinal loading, effort and muscle fatigue. They have found that:

• Passive devices assisting with dynamic lifting reduce muscle activity by between 10 and 40 percent, reduce spinal loading by between 23 and 29 percent, and reduce overall muscle fatigue.
• Passive devices that help with static trunk bending can reduce muscle activity by between 10 and 25 percent and spinal loading by between 12 and 13 percent.

Workplace injuries affect the health of employees as well as the company’s bottom line. When there are fewer workers are injured on the job, there’s not as much need to hire and train people to fill in for those who are recuperating.

Every company’s risks are unique. That’s why it’s possible for different companies to work with manufacturers to design exoskeletons encompassing features addressing their precise needs. 

How We Help

The exoskeletons designed at Ekso Bionics solve three main problems in the workplace: 

• Fatigue 
• Injury (caused by fatigue — usually shoulder, sprains, etc.)
• Productivity (hindered by fatigue)

Fatigue is the top issue we rectify with our technology, as it can impact a variety of other workplace aspects. When a worker is fatigued, they are not as productive, and costly mistakes can happen, not to mention safety risks. Fatigue, which threatens the output your company can achieve, must be addressed first. Our exoskeletons for sale can solve that problem.

Contact Ekso Bionics

Ekso Bionics can help solve your heavy lifting issues at work with our exoskeletons for sale. To learn more, contact us at 510-984-1761.

Mobility: many of us take it for granted. But when you don’t have it, you realize just how lost, inadequate, and frustrated you feel.

People lose mobility due to many reasons, but stroke is a big one. Stroke is the top cause of serious long-term disability in this country, affecting 17 million Americans every year. More than one million survivors suffer functional limitations in daily activities as a result of their stroke, with more than 50 percent of stroke survivors having long-term walking impairment. Such impaired ambulation is associated with an increased risk of falls, limited social participation, and overall lower quality of life.

As many as 80 percent of stroke survivors have considerable gait deficits, including asymmetrical walking patterns and reduced walking speeds, thereby limiting their capacity for ambulation. Exoskeleton suits designed for mobility enhancement can correct these gait deficits. That’s a good thing, as nearly 40 percent of stroke survivors have moderate-to-severe impairments that require special care, while 10 percent more are admitted to long-term care or skilled nursing facilities and classified as unlikely to walk again.

Exoskeleton suits can also help individuals with spinal cord injuries gain some mobility, which could improve cardiovascular health, slow the loss of fat tissue, build lean muscle mass, improve bowel function, and aid in pain management. About 291,000 people in this country are living with spinal cord injuries at any one time.

For people who have experienced strokes and spinal cord injuries, it can certainly be tough to get around. But now, exoskeleton suits are helping these patients regain some of the mobility they have lost. Exoskeleton companies such as Ekso Bionics are paving the way for revolutionary advances in the rehabilitation field.

Helping With Mobility After Stroke

Exoskeletons give people who have had a stroke more opportunity to build up muscle strength and enhance range of motion. The long-term goal of rehabilitation is for the patient to be successfully reintegrated into the community, with recovery of walking ability as the top functional objective. This is achieved through task-specific, progressive, repetitive training based on the principles of motor learning. With targeted rehabilitation, the hope is to reorganize the brain to relearn skills that were lost as a result of the stroke.

Exoskeleton-assisted physical therapy is extremely promising for many people post-stroke. Tools such as these allow people to actively take part in their recovery while enjoying their life to the fullest.

Helping With Mobility After Spinal Cord Injury

Innovative devices such as those by exoskeleton companies like Ekso Bionics help individuals with spinal cord injuries gain some mobility when used in conjunction with physical therapy, training, and assistance from a caregiver.

One of the biggest benefits of an exoskeleton suit, of course, is that it allows people with paraplegia to walk again, having lost the brain function to do so. But this can come with many secondary effects as well. Being able to walk again is a huge stress relief for the individuals and their families. According to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, those who are paralyzed are 2 to 3 times as likely to develop depression as the non-disabled are, with the highest risk of suicide occurring withinthe first five years of diagnosis. Caregiver depression is a related illness that arises from the stress of taking care of a person with paraplegia.

What Ekso Bionics is Doing to Help

Ekso Bionics offers a wearable suit, called EksoNR, which was developed exclusively for use in rehabilitation centers and clinical settings to help patients gain back their mobility sooner. EksoNR is the first exoskeleton FDA-cleared for stroke, brain injury, and spinal cord injury, designed to ensure the most natural gait by re-teaching the brain and muscles how to properly walk again.

In addition to helping patients with stroke, it can also help patients with spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, aneurysm, hypoxia/anoxia, ischemia, and brain tumors.

EksoNR is currently being used in more than 270 rehabilitation centers around the world, under the guidance of trained personnel.

New technologies such as exosuits are increasingly making their way into rehab centers so that stroke and spinal cord injury patients can improve mobility.

Contact Ekso Bionics

To learn more about how robotic exoskeletons can aid in stroke mobility and rehabilitation, contact us at 510-984-1761.

While exoskeleton suits have been gaining notoriety in the industrial and manufacturing space to help workers perform repetitive movements without injury, they can also take the form of clinical robotics for rehabilitation. Paraplegics who have been told they will never walk again are staring that diagnosis in the face and resolving to get up out of their wheelchairs with the help of an exoskeleton suit. 

Wearable robotic exoskeletons and bionic suits are giving patients with paraplegia, as well as patients who have experienced stroke and brain injury, new hope. Years of research into practical real-world applications are now coming to fruition as these exosuits are being used in more and more rehab facilities. 

While some exoskeletons have long been used as an assistive device for those with paralysis, providing 100 percent of the power needed to walk, breakthroughs such as EksoNR by Ekso Bionics is one of the first rehab tools physical therapists can use to challenge their patients to make progress. It requires active participation, which is known to drive brain plasticity. This is the first exoskeleton FDA-cleared for acquired brain injury (ABI). 

EksoNR does this by promoting proper posture and a natural gait, so that therapists may focus on treatment. It’s an ideal solution for patients who have experienced ABI and stroke who are just beginning to walk, thanks to its high, rigid back and various progressive modes. It not only improves patient gait speed, it improves functional balance and walking distance outside of the device.

But even more than that, these suits are prolonging life. When patients are up and moving, rather than inactive in a bed or wheelchair, they’re being active, improving their overall health and enhancing their quality of life – not just for themselves but for their kids, spouses, and other family members. 

Bionic exoskeleton suits represent another step – quite literally — for robotics and wearable technology that can help paraplegics and other mobility challenged patients now and in the future.

How We’re Making Strides at Ekso Bionics

Ekso Bionics is a leader in the manufacture and application of exoskeleton suits for rehabilitation. In fact, we develop disruptive clinical robotics to address the loss of cognition and mobility, helping thousands of patients take more than 130 million steps thanks to technologies like EksoNR.

EksoNR, designed to assist patients in standing and walking during rehabilitation, aids clinicians in providing the necessary support to a patient’s legs. In turn, this device promotes correct movement patterns through all steps of recovery, challenging patients as they progress towards their goal of standing and walking again. In essence, these suits re-teach the brain and muscles how to properly walk again.

In a similar fashion, EksoUE assists a patient’s affected shoulder and arm throughout clinical rehabilitation. This was engineered for patients who suffer from upper extremity weakness or paralysis so they can recover endurance, strength, and range of motion.

How it Works

We can only speak for ourselves here at Ekso, but here’s what our EksoNR technology offers: 

• Data Capture: Session-specific walking times, distances, and symmetry data are saved to a secure, cloud-based dashboard for analytics. 
• Posture Support: Bearing their own weight with proper postural alignment, patients can maximize treatment time. 
• Clinician Control: Modify assistance levels and specify training targets in real-time for each leg based on patient goals and feedback. 
• SmartAssist Software: Customized motor support for varying impairment levels in both swing and stance walking phases, from patient-initiated movement to full assistance.
• Adaptive Gait Training: Sensors and software monitor and regulate leg movement to reduce compensatory gait patterns. 
• Pre-Ambulatory Tools: PreGait is a suite of programs to help patients weight shift, balance, squat, and step in place prior to walking.

Contact Ekso Bionics

Ekso is the most widely-studied exoskeleton for rehabilitation, with more than 1,800 patients participating in more than 100 investigator-led clinical studies. Learn how Ekso Bionics enhances patient experiences and functional outcomes across all levels of care. Contact us at 510-984-1761.

Stroke, the top cause of serious long-term disability in this country, affects 17 million Americans every year. More than one million survivors suffer functional limitations in daily activities as a result of their stroke, with more than 50 percent of stroke survivors having a long-term walking impairment. Such impaired ambulation is associated with an increased risk of falls, limited social participation, and overall lower quality of life.

Disruptive clinical robotics like those developed by Ekso Bionics are becoming mainstays in rehabilitation centers all across the country. In fact, our wearable technology has helped thousands of stroke patients take 130 million steps and counting, backed by a goal of rethinking rehabilitation: getting stroke patients to regain their full mobility.

After a stroke, the long-term goal of rehabilitation is for the patient to be successfully reintegrated into the community, with recovery of walking ability as the top functional objective. This is achieved through task-specific, progressive, repetitive training based on the principles of neuroplasticity and motor learning. With targeted rehabilitation, the hope is to reorganize the brain to relearn skills that were lost as a result of the stroke.

Exoskeleton Suits: Aiding in Recovery

Robotic exoskeleton suits used during rehab can help greatly with ambulation by providing earlier mobility and thus, restored independence. Such suits can enhance post-stroke gait training, guiding weight shifts, and improving step patterns and cadence. The end goal is to enable patients to stand up and walk earlier in the process than ever before. 

For gait rehabilitation after stroke, patients can don a wearable device such as a robotic exoskeleton suit with anatomically-aligned motors that offer assistance during ambulation. Therapy progression is a key part of rehab, and exoskeleton technology encourages progress and documents improvements. Ideal exoskeleton suits for stroke patients will include options for control of the lower limbs while facilitating pre-gait training, balance training, transfers, and stepping.

Another benefit to exoskeleton devices in stroke rehabilitation is the potential to empower, encourage, inspire, and motivate patients. Gait training sessions in the exoskeleton include meaningful walking time, which in turn boosts patient morale, enthusiasm, and motivation. The use of exoskeletons also results in increased steps per session, better gait balance, and symmetry, and improved functional independence.

As many as 80 percent of stroke survivors have considerable gait deficits, including asymmetrical walking patterns and reduced walking speeds, thereby limiting their capacity for ambulation. Nearly 40 percent of stroke survivors have moderate-to-severe impairments that require special care, while 10 percent more are admitted to long-term care or skilled nursing facilities and classified as unlikely to walk again. This is why the need exists for development of mobility-training strategies for survivors of severe stroke. Exoskeleton suits are a major component of that goal.

How Ekso Bionics Helps

Here at Ekso Bionics, we offer a wearable suit, called EksoNR, which was developed exclusively for use in rehabilitation centers and clinical settings to help stroke patients gain back their mobility sooner. EksoNR is the first exoskeleton FDA-cleared for stroke, brain injury, and spinal cord injury, designed to ensure the most natural gait by re-teaching the brain and muscles how to properly walk again. 

It is currently being used under the guidance of trained personnel in more than 270 rehabilitation centers around the world.

According to the CDC, each year, 795,000 people in the U.S. have a stroke, with 610,000 of those being first or new strokes; about 185,000 strokes (one in four) are repeat strokes. In many cases, stroke patients will get a few weeks of inpatient rehabilitation therapy, where rehab clinicians are forced to focus on getting their patients to walk again in whatever capacity possible due to the time constraints. This usually leads to the use of a walker, cane, or brace.

Stroke patients using wheelchairs are even worse off. They don’t get the support they need to work on their walking skills, plus, because they are sitting all day long, this impairs bowel and bladder function, reduces bone mass, and throws blood pressure off-kilter. An exoskeleton suit can put them in a load-bearing, standing position, which offers multiple benefits for proper bodily function.  

The sad reality is that many stroke patients never learn how to walk normally again. But the increased use of exoskeleton suits can help correct aberrant movements while increasing the pace of the user.

Contact Ekso Bionics

To learn more about how robotic exoskeletons can aid in stroke rehabilitation, contact us at 510-984-1761.