Award Abstract # 2221166
Collaborative Research: NRI: Understanding Underlying Risks and Sociotechnical Challenges of Powered Wearable Exoskeleton to Construction Workers

NSF Org: IIS
Division of Information & Intelligent Systems
Recipient: VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE & STATE UNIVERSITY
Initial Amendment Date: August 22, 2022
Latest Amendment Date: August 22, 2022
Award Number: 2221166
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Cang Ye
cye@nsf.gov
 (703)292-4702
IIS
 Division of Information & Intelligent Systems
CSE
 Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering
Start Date: September 1, 2022
End Date: August 31, 2025 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $180,000.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $180,000.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2022 = $180,000.00
History of Investigator:
  • Abiola Akanmu (Principal Investigator)
    abiola@vt.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
300 TURNER ST NW
BLACKSBURG
VA  US  24060-3359
(540)231-5281
Sponsor Congressional District: 09
Primary Place of Performance: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
State College
VA  US  24061-0001
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
09
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): QDE5UHE5XD16
Parent UEI: X6KEFGLHSJX7
NSF Program(s): NRI-National Robotics Initiati
Primary Program Source: 01002223DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 8086
Program Element Code(s): 801300
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.070

ABSTRACT

A wide range of wearable robots are emerging as solutions to human operation challenges in the construction sector. The aim for such solutions is to reduce work-related physical injuries among workers by providing lift support, weight dispersion, and posture correction. In spite of the potential of these wearable robots in reducing the physical demands of construction workers, the current body of knowledge does not provide an adequate understanding of the risks and challenges of incorporating these robots on construction sites. Given the large number of back-related injuries in the construction industry, this research contributes to supporting the design and widespread use of powered back-support robots in the construction industry. By understanding the potential physical, psychological, and socio-technical risks of these wearable robots at construction sites, this project aims to overcome the challenges of scalable adoption of these wearable robots in the construction industry, thereby improving the safety and productivity of 7.5 million workers in the U.S. construction sector. Furthermore, this research will provide empirical evidence for manufacturers to design more adaptable, accessible, acceptable, and comfortable wearable robots for a wider range of body shapes and sizes to take into account diverse populations of the construction sector.

This interdisciplinary research seeks to integrate advances across a diverse spectrum of critical innovations, including immersive technologies, physiological sensing, wearable robots, and organizational psychology, to identify the underlying physical, psychological, and socio-technical risks of exoskeletons in the construction sector. The technical aims of this project are divided into three thrusts. The first thrust will utilize a socio-technical perspective to identify barriers and facilitators to the adoption of exoskeletons in the construction industry. The second thrust will generate an immersive and interactive virtual-reality testbed for the feasible simulation of different construction tasks executed using these exoskeletons. In particular, this thrust will develop a user-centered, simulated workspace to seamlessly examine different interactions for a safe and feasible evaluation of pertinent physical and psychological risks. The third thrust will design a novel worker-centered risk assessment framework for evaluating the physical and psychological risks of using these exoskeletons for construction workers. Specifically, this thrust will integrate artificial intelligence and objective evaluations to develop a new interpretive pipeline between physiological and psychophysiological data with local muscular fatigue, fall risk, joint hyperextension, cognitive workload, trust, and vigilance of workers during the construction tasks. These three research aims will be complemented by a comprehensive evaluation plan featuring three intermediate evaluations to ensure the reliability of the project.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Okunola, Akinwale and Afolabi, Adedeji and Akanmu, Abiola and Jebelli, Houtan and Simikins, Susan "Facilitators and barriers to the adoption of active back-support exoskeletons in the construction industry" Journal of Safety Research , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2024.05.010 Citation Details
Okunola, Akinwale and Akanmu, Abiola and Jebelli, Houtan "Detection of Cognitive Loads during Exoskeleton Use for Construction Flooring Work" , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784485293.088 Citation Details

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