The present study investigated the effect of a passive lower-limb exoskeleton
on lumbar load and verified the effectiveness of biomechanical analysis for
evaluating the physical burden while wearing the exoskeleton. Twelve healthy
male participants performed an assembly task under three conditions: standing
and high and low sitting while wearing the exoskeleton. We mainly analyzed the
joint compression force computed using the musculoskeletal model based on
measurements obtained from a motion capture system and force platform. While
wearing the exoskeleton, the lumbar joint compression force increased. Analysis
of the joint compression force can determine the increase in the lumbar load
when wearing an exoskeleton, which is not possible using the traditional
analysis of posture and muscular activity. Therefore, biomechanical analysis
based on a full-body musculoskeletal model provides valuable information in
evaluating the effect of the exoskeleton that attempts to prevent
musculoskeletal disorders.Comment: 46 pages, 10 figure