Application of Exoskeletons in Construction to Mitigate Heavy Workloads
Presenter: Carisa Harris, PhD, in collaboration with the California Labor Lab
Learn more at our website: https://www.coeh.berkeley.edu/24cll0925
About this webinar: Construction workers perform a variety of tasks that require repetitive motion, sustained forces, and awkward postures associated with increased risk of musculoskeletal pain, fatigue and injuries. A recent systematic review examined thirty-five research articles that evaluated the 1-year prevalence rates of musculoskeletal disorders among different construction trades and found that the lower back region (51.1%), the knee (37.2%), and the shoulder (30.4%) had the highest prevalence of pain among construction workers. Passive arm support exoskeletons have been proposed as an intervention that could reduce fatigue among construction workers performing shoulder-intensive tasks. This presentation will provide an overview of a 5-year grant that evaluated the efficacy of passive arm support exoskeletons and will finish with a glimpse of the next 5 years.