The hybrid assisted limb (HAL) for Care Support, a motion assisting robot providing exoskeletal lumbar support, can potentially reduce lumbar load in repetitive snow-shoveling movements

Miura, Kousei; Kadone, Hideki; Koda, Masao; Abe, Tetsuya; Endo, Hirooki; Murakami, Hideki; Doita, Minoru; Kumagai, Hiroshi; Nagashima, Katsuya; Fujii, Kengo; Noguchi, Hiroshi; Funayama, Toru; Kawamoto, Hiroaki; Sankai, Yoshiyuki; Yamazaki, Masashi

doi:10.1016/j.jocn.2017.11.020

Cited by 45 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…The use of the HAL for care support has been suggested to decrease lumbar load [22,23] and decrease muscle activity in the lower back [13] during repetitive lifting tasks, suggesting its use has the potential to reduce the risk of lower back pain and improve lifting performance. Similarly, the use of the MS has been reported to reduce muscle activity in the lower back and may reduce local muscle fatigue [12,24] when lifting heavy weights. However, these results were obtained from speci c and limited movements in an experimental environment, and no study has examined what kind of work these robots can actually be used for when they are installed and incorporated into working operations in nursing homes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of Care Tasks for the Use of Wearable Transfer Support Robots – An Observational Study at Nursing Facilities Using Robots on A Daily Basis

Kato

Yoshimi

Tsuchimoto

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: To reduce the physical burden of caregivers, wearable transfer support robots are highly desirable. Although these robots are reportedly effective for specific tasks in experimental environments, there is little information about their effectiveness at nursing care facilities. The aim of this study was to identify care tasks and operations suitable for the use of these robots among caregivers in nursing facilities where these robots have been in use on a daily basis.Methods: A 1-min observational time-motion analysis was conducted to examine care tasks and operations in two nursing facilities where wearable transfer support robots, namely Muscle Suit or HAL®, Lumbar Type for Care Support, have routinely been used on a daily basis for more than 24 months.Results: Analysis of the care tasks and their time ratio while wearing the equipment revealed that both robots were conspicuously used for direct care in over 70% of transits, especially during transfer assistance and toileting care. Furthermore, these robots were used intensively in the morning along with wake-up calls to care recipients, where pre-assigned wearers used them as part of their “routine work.”Conclusions: We found that these wearable transfer support robots enabled effective performance of care tasks and operations in nursing facilities where these robots have been used on a daily basis for an extended period of time. These results may lead to the effective implementation and sustained operation of other types of care robots in the future.Trial registration: UMIN Clinical Trials Registry no. UMIN000039204. Trial registration date: January 21, 2020. Interventional study. Parallel, non-randomized, single blinded.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of Care Tasks for the Use of Wearable Transfer Support Robots – An Observational Study at Nursing Facilities Using Robots on A Daily Basis

Kato

Yoshimi

Tsuchimoto

et al. 2020

Preprint

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“…It can be hypothesized that assistive devices function by reducing the force requirements or increasing the strength capability of the worker, thus reducing the relative workload and ultimately the level of fatigue that develops. One high-quality RCT (Lotz, Agnew, Godwin, & Stevenson, 2009) using multiple measurements, one low-quality RCT (Iwakiri, Kunisue, Sotoyama, & Udo, 2008), one high-quality CCT (Bazazan et al, 2019), and three low-quality CCTs (Miura, Kadone, Koda, Abe, Endo, et al, 2018; Miura, Kadone, Koda, Abe, Kumagai, et al, 2018; Rashedi, Kim, Nussbaum, & Agnew, 2014) that used subjective ratings presented positive effects. One low-quality CCT (Majkowski et al, 1998) that used ILF and mean power frequency as fatigue outcomes showed no effect.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interventions to Mitigate Fatigue Induced by Physical Work: A Systematic Review of Research Quality and Levels of Evidence for Intervention Efficacy

Megahed

Cavuoto

2019

Hum Factors

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Objective:We present a literature review on workplace physical fatigue interventions, focusing on evaluating the methodological quality and strength of evidence.Background:Physical fatigue is a recognized workplace problem, with negative effects on performance and health-related complaints. Although many studies have focused on the mechanisms and consequences of fatigue, few have considered the effectiveness of interventions to mitigate fatigue.Method:A systematic review of the workplace safety literature for controlled trials of physical fatigue interventions was conducted. Data on intervention type, subject characteristics, targeted tasks and body locations, outcome measures, and study design were extracted. The methodological quality for each study was evaluated using the PEDro scale, and the level of evidence was based on quality, amount, and consistency.Results:Forty-five controlled trials were reviewed, examining 18 interventions. We categorized those interventions into individual-focused ( N = 28 studies, nine interventions), workplace-focused ( N = 12 studies, five interventions), and multiple interventions ( N = 5 studies, four interventions). We identified moderate evidence for interventions related to assistive devices and task variation. There was moderate evidence supporting no fatigue attenuation for the garment change category of interventions. The interventions in the remaining categories had limited to minimal evidence of efficacy. The heterogeneity of the included trials precludes the determination of effect size.Conclusion:This review showed a lack of high levels of evidence for the effectiveness of most physical fatigue interventions.Application:Due to a lack of high levels of evidence for any category of reviewed physical fatigue interventions, further high-quality studies are needed to establish the efficacy of others.

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“…The wearer can even run and jump without difficulty. Thus far, the HAL for Care Support has been reported to reduce lumbar loads and improve task performance in repetitive lifting and snow-shoveling movements [17,18]. However, our search of the literature revealed no studies evaluating lumbar load during patient transfer movements using the HAL for Care Support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Successful Use of the Hybrid Assistive Limb for Care Support to Reduce Lumbar Load in a Simulated Patient Transfer

et al. 2021

Self Cite

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To determine whether the hybrid assistive limb (HAL) for Care Support can reduce lumbar load during a patient transfer. Overview of Literature: The prevalence of work-related low back pain (LBP) among nurses is high. In particular, transferring patients poses a high risk for LBP due to the large lumbar load. Attempts to reduce the lumbar load are crucial to avoid the risk of LBP. Therefore, we investigated the effects of the HAL for Care Support. Methods: Nineteen volunteers (16 men, three women) lifted a 60-kg doll from a seated position to a standing position. The first transfer was performed without the HAL for Care Support, and the second was performed with the HAL for Care Support assistive robot. We evaluated transfer performance, the visual analog scale (VAS) score for lumbar fatigue, and electromyogram analyses of the trunk and hip. Results: Four participants (two men, two women) succeeded with the HAL for Care Support even though they were unable to perform the task without it. The mean lumbar fatigue VAS score for all participants without the HAL for Care Support was 62 mm, while that with it was 43 mm. With lumbar assistance from the HAL for Care Support, subjective lumbar fatigue during the transfer decreased significantly. A power analysis indicated adequate statistical power to detect a difference in the VAS score for lumbar fatigue (0.99). The activity of the left gluteus maximus alone increased significantly during transfers with the HAL for Care Support. No adverse events occurred during use of the HAL for Care Support for transfers. Conclusions: The HAL for Care Support was able to reduce lumbar load in a simulated patient transfer.

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The hybrid assisted limb (HAL) for Care Support, a motion assisting robot providing exoskeletal lumbar support, can potentially reduce lumbar load in repetitive snow-shoveling movements

Cited by 45 publications

References 13 publications

Identification of Care Tasks for the Use of Wearable Transfer Support Robots – An Observational Study at Nursing Facilities Using Robots on A Daily Basis

Identification of Care Tasks for the Use of Wearable Transfer Support Robots – An Observational Study at Nursing Facilities Using Robots on A Daily Basis

Interventions to Mitigate Fatigue Induced by Physical Work: A Systematic Review of Research Quality and Levels of Evidence for Intervention Efficacy

Successful Use of the Hybrid Assistive Limb for Care Support to Reduce Lumbar Load in a Simulated Patient Transfer

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