Wearable Robot
Description
Construction wearables robots are devices, generally including a computer or advanced electronic device, worn on a construction worker’s body, clothing, or personal protective equipment, designed to collect and deliver data about the worker's environment, activities and biometric conditions. The technology has the ability to detect and warn the workers of the potential for injuries or reduce the seriousness of an injury when one occurs. Objectives are achieved by providing portable and timely access to sensors, computers and electronics. In the construction industry, the application of wearable robots is still at the beginning stages (Awolusi, Marks et al. 2018). In the last decades, connectivity has seen a decrease in its costs which has rendered connectivity to be ubiquitous in the construction sites. Therefore, connected wearable devices are potentially becoming a trend in the future. Wearable robots in the construction industry can be used in different areas such as health monitoring, exoskeleton, hazard warning, etc. Wearable technology will realize its objectives in numerous ways:
- Devices can provide audible or vibration alarms to warn workers when they are too close to danger, such as moving equipment or a leading edge.
- Devices may warn the individual of a hazardous physical movement — such as bending, twisting, reaching or lifting.
- Devices may caution a worker when they are nearing exhaustion.
- Devices can alleviate muscular and skeletal joint stress by assisting with lifting or working overhead.
- In emergency situations, devices can alert emergency personnel and lead rescuers to the injured worker’s location.
A such, wearable technology presents the opportunity to improve safety, reduce injuries, improve efficiencies and enhance the quality of life for construction workers. The hardware of the wearable robot interface can be programmed in different ways. Sensors or devices on the wearable robots can receive verbal, behavioral, or other signal inputs to facilitate productivity, specific types of movement or personal security (Techopedia). A wearable robot is designed based on the shape and function of the human body. The wearable robot can be single or combinations of devices. It can also be embedded in other wearables or clothing such as watches, gloves, hard hats or vest.
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In the health monitoring area, wearable technology can help to monitor physiological data from the workers to monitor their health and wellbeing while working. The collected data includes heart rate, heart rate variability, respiratory rate, body posture, body speed, body acceleration, body rotation and orientation, angular velocity, blood oxygen, blood pressure, body temperature, activity level, calories burned, and walking steps (Awolusi, Marks et al. 2018).
Construction work is physically demanding. And the construction activities usually include heavy lifting, carrying, forceful exertions, pushing, pulling, vibrations, awkward work position, and other high physical required motions(Cheng, Migliaccio et al. 2012). Frequently performing these motions may lead to muscle fatigue, less productivity, or even work-related injuries. The exoskeletons are metal frameworks fitted with motorized muscles to increase the wearer’s strength. The exoskeleton can help workers to lift objects, and feel much lighter, reduce the risk of work-related injuries and improve compliance(Thilmany 2019). For example, the EksoZeroG exoskeleton provides up to 36.0 lb. (16.3 kg) of lift force for heavy tools. It means that if workers lift up to 36 lb with the exoskeleton, and the load can be moved effortlessly(Ekso 2019).
Benefits & Barriers
- Real-time connection
- Health monitoring
- Body support
- Construction safety
- Budget and cost
- Privacy
- Battery
- Maintenance
- Extra burden of the wearer
Business Value Proposition
The wearable robot is a broad term and includes a wide range of wearable devices. In general, wearable robots can help people overcome disabilities or shortcomings and perform their jobs efficiently (GreaterPhoenix, 2018). In the construction industry, the employment of wearable technologies have the potential to significantly improve safety, work efficiencies, life quality of construction workers (Galbraith, 2019). The health monitoring devices can monitor the health index of workers or keep workers in a comfortable environment. The exoskeleton can help workers to lift and finish other high physical demanding tasks, and reduce their risk of muscular injuries. The proximity warning systems, e.g. wearable sensors and devices, can provide proactive collision warnings to workers-on-foot and equipment operators about imminent hazards and threats. The real-time notifications can significantly enhance situational awareness of workers and provide them enough time to react to the detected hazards.
Besides the safety benefit, the usage of wearable robots also brings financial benefits to employers. According to OSHA, it is estimated that employers pay nearly $1 billion per week for direct compensation costs to workers(OSHA 2019). The expenses include compensation payments, medical expenses, legal services. However, the injury or death of workers also causes indirect costs, such as personnel replacement, investigation fee, safety measures, low productivity, etc. (OSHA 2019). Moreover, the actual cost of each injury or death case can be burdensome. As innovative safety measures, wearable robots are expected to enhance the safety level of construction sites and reduce the compensation cost as a result.
Although wearable robots started to be applied in construction safety, their potential usage is still under exploring. More functions of wearables can be explored to assist human works. The construction site will become safer and more comfortable with wearable technology. A more user-friendly working environment is expected to be established in the future.
Other Industries
Healthcare: The healthcare industry widely uses wearables. Due to direct contact with the human body, wearables are ideal for health monitoring and assistance. Wearable technology applies to disability assistance. For example, MyoSwiss launched Myosuit that aims to provide a new approach to physiotherapy and rehabilitation training. The Myosuit with exo-muscle can help provide extra support to people when they are walking or performing other motions. To personalize the suit, a training session for the Myosuit is designed to adjust it for the user every time. It is suitable for patients with stroke, after orthopedic surgery, muscle weakness, brain injury(MyoSwiss 2019).
Mining: In the mining industry, a dark working environment could increase the risk of potential risks of unexpected collisions. Thus, the safety of workers is commonly concerned, and wearable technology can be used as a useful tool for an underground environment. Mine Rescue Alarm (MRA) is designed for underground mining workers to alert them the imminent threats(MRA). It contains a temperature sensor and a motion sensor. When the hazard is detected, the MRA will provide the loudest distress alarm to the worker as well as a visual flashing LED warning(MRA).
Entertainment: Wearable robots are widely used in the entertainment industry, such as smartwatch. With the development of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), the immersive experience involved more and more wearable devices such as HTC Vive, Hololens.
Sports: For sports training, a wearable robot is an ideal solution to collect information from athletes. The collected data is usually used to evaluate the performance of athletes and help them to monitor their movements. Adidas launched the miCoach Elite System (MLS) for soccer players and coaches. The motion-sensing devices are embedded with clothing, to measure athletic performance includes speed, acceleration, power, distance, and heart rate(Mischke 2018).
Manufacturing: The exoskeleton is widely used by assembly line workers, especially in car manufacturing. The wearable exoskeleton dramatically reduces the load and help support assembly workers’ arms when they are screwing in bolts overhead(Brown 2018).
Related Technologies
Fabrication: Mechanical Piping
News and References
Awolusi, I., E. Marks and M. Hallowell (2018). "Wearable technology for personalized construction safety monitoring and trending: Review of applicable devices." Automation in construction 85: 96-106.
Brown, B. (2018). "Robotic exoskeletons help Ford employees build cars worldwide." Retrieved September 16, 2019, from https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/ford-workers-exoskeleton-vests/.
Cheng, T., G. C. Migliaccio, J. Teizer and U. C. Gatti (2012). "Data fusion of real-time location sensing and physiological status monitoring for ergonomics analysis of construction workers." Journal of Computing in Civil engineering 27(3): 320-335.
Ekso. (2019). "Work Without the Weight." Retrieved August 19, 2019, from https://eksobionics.com/eksoworks/eksozerog/.
Mischke, J. (2018). "Wearable Technology: The Latest Trend in Professional Sports." Retrieved September 16, 2019, from https://www.wearable-technologies.com/2018/05/wearable-technology-the-latest-trend-in-professional-sports/.
MRA. "Mine Rescue Alarm." Retrieved September 15, 2019, from https://graceloneworker.com/MRA.pdf.
MyoSwiss. (2019). "The myosuit-A Multifunctional Training Device." Retrieved September 12, 2019, from https://myo.swiss/myosuit/.
OSHA. (2019). "Business Case for Safety and Health." Retrieved September 12, 2019, from https://www.osha.gov/dcsp/products/topics/businesscase/costs.html.
Techopedia. "Wearable Robot." Retrieved August 8, 2019, from https://www.techopedia.com/definition/15325/wearable-robot.
Thilmany, J. (2019). "Exoskeletons for Construction Workers Are Marching On-Site." Retrieved August 8, 2019, from https://constructible.trimble.com/construction-industry/exoskeletons-for-construction-workers-are-marching-on-site.
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