Challenges and Possible Solutions for Enhancing the Workplaces of the Future by Integrating Smart and Adaptive Exoskeletons

Abstract Exoskeletons aim to improve workplace conditions in industry. The main objective is to optimize actual ergonomic situations. Additional expected positive benefits are to raise quality, flexibility and productivity. There are many attributes, depending on workplace and environmental conditions that have to be considered for the integration and employment of Exoskeletons in production. The requirements of Exoskeletons, a definition and the adjustments for smart and adaptive Exoskeletons will be presented in this paper. The new method ExoMatch presented here is an innovative approach to combine the complex context of workplaces and Exoskeletons in a schematic and process-related line of action. The aim is to support the decision of finding the most suitable Exoskeleton for different working situations, to close the scientific gap by filling the previous manual and personal-depending approach with a novel procedural objective, and a flexible automated approach. To structure all important attributes, a pre-assessment procedure, ExoScore and a preselection-method, ExoMatch of the most suitable Exoskeleton, there is a need of managing all available Exoskeletons and the specific workplaces (ExoData and UseCaseData). The conclusions are followed by an outlook of future work and required methods for planning, assess, objectify and migrate the Exoskeletons in industry.