Physiological impact of powered back-support exoskeletons in construction: Analyzing muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, ergonomic risks, and stability

IF 9.6 1区工程技术 Q1 CONSTRUCTION & BUILDING TECHNOLOGY Automation in Construction Pub Date : 2024-09-12 DOI:10.1016/j.autcon.2024.105742

Amit Ojha , Yogesh Gautam , Houtan Jebelli , Abiola Akanmu

{"title":"Physiological impact of powered back-support exoskeletons in construction: Analyzing muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, ergonomic risks, and stability","authors":"Amit Ojha , Yogesh Gautam , Houtan Jebelli , Abiola Akanmu","doi":"10.1016/j.autcon.2024.105742","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Powered back-support exoskeletons (BSEs) are emerging as ergonomic interventions in construction to reduce musculoskeletal injuries by actively enhancing user strength. However, their adoption remains slow due to limited understanding of potential physiological impacts, including muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, joint hyperextension, and fall risk. This paper empirically investigates the potential physiological risk associated with the powered BSEs during construction tasks. A user-centered experiment assessed the impact of powered BSEs on muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, ergonomic posture, and stability during common construction activities. The results indicated that the powered BSEs significantly decreased muscle activity for back and abdominal muscle groups by an average of 60 %, reduced metabolic costs by 17 %, and lowered ergonomic risks by 50 % without impacting stability. This study contributes to the understanding of the physiological impacts of powered BSEs in construction, providing empirical evidence of their effectiveness in reducing muscle fatigue, metabolic costs, and enhancing ergonomic safety.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":8660,"journal":{"name":"Automation in Construction","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":9.6000,"publicationDate":"2024-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0926580524004783/pdfft?md5=21d4f32183d13892ebb01ae5213c366b&pid=1-s2.0-S0926580524004783-main.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Automation in Construction","FirstCategoryId":"5","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0926580524004783","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"CONSTRUCTION & BUILDING TECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Powered back-support exoskeletons (BSEs) are emerging as ergonomic interventions in construction to reduce musculoskeletal injuries by actively enhancing user strength. However, their adoption remains slow due to limited understanding of potential physiological impacts, including muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, joint hyperextension, and fall risk. This paper empirically investigates the potential physiological risk associated with the powered BSEs during construction tasks. A user-centered experiment assessed the impact of powered BSEs on muscle fatigue, metabolic cost, ergonomic posture, and stability during common construction activities. The results indicated that the powered BSEs significantly decreased muscle activity for back and abdominal muscle groups by an average of 60 %, reduced metabolic costs by 17 %, and lowered ergonomic risks by 50 % without impacting stability. This study contributes to the understanding of the physiological impacts of powered BSEs in construction, providing empirical evidence of their effectiveness in reducing muscle fatigue, metabolic costs, and enhancing ergonomic safety.

查看原文

微信好友朋友圈 QQ好友复制链接

本刊更多论文

建筑施工中动力背撑外骨骼的生理影响：分析肌肉疲劳、代谢成本、人体工学风险和稳定性

动力背撑外骨骼（BSE）正在成为建筑业的人体工学干预措施，通过积极增强使用者的力量来减少肌肉骨骼损伤。然而，由于对其潜在的生理影响（包括肌肉疲劳、代谢成本、关节过度伸展和跌倒风险）了解有限，其应用仍然缓慢。本文以经验为基础，研究了在施工任务中与电动 BSE 相关的潜在生理风险。以用户为中心的实验评估了电动 BSE 在常见建筑活动中对肌肉疲劳、代谢成本、人体工学姿势和稳定性的影响。结果表明，电动 BSE 明显减少了背部和腹部肌肉群的肌肉活动，平均减少了 60%，降低了 17% 的新陈代谢成本，降低了 50% 的人体工学风险，同时不影响稳定性。这项研究有助于人们了解电动 BSE 在建筑施工中的生理影响，为其在减少肌肉疲劳、降低代谢成本和提高人体工学安全性方面的有效性提供了经验证据。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文去求助

来源期刊

Automation in Construction 工程技术-工程：土木

CiteScore

19.20

自引率

16.50%

发文量

563

审稿时长

8.5 months

期刊介绍： Automation in Construction is an international journal that focuses on publishing original research papers related to the use of Information Technologies in various aspects of the construction industry. The journal covers topics such as design, engineering, construction technologies, and the maintenance and management of constructed facilities. The scope of Automation in Construction is extensive and covers all stages of the construction life cycle. This includes initial planning and design, construction of the facility, operation and maintenance, as well as the eventual dismantling and recycling of buildings and engineering structures.

期刊最新文献

Robust optimization model for traceable procurement of construction materials considering contract claims Editorial Board Rutting extraction from vehicle-borne laser point clouds Self-supervised monocular depth estimation on construction sites in low-light conditions and dynamic scenes Automated reinforcement of 3D-printed engineered cementitious composite beams