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Biomimetics
Volume 10
Issue 5
10.3390/biomimetics10050337
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Review

A Review of Wearable Back-Support Exoskeletons for Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders

by
Yanping Qu
1,
Xupeng Wang
1,2,*,
Xinyao Tang
2,*,
Xiaoyi Liu
2,
Yuyang Hao
2,
Xinyi Zhang
2,
Hongyan Liu
2 and
Xinran Cheng
2
1
School of Mechanical and Precision Instrument Engineering, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
2
Industrial Design Department, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Biomimetics 2025, 10(5), 337; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics10050337
Submission received: 18 March 2025 / Revised: 17 April 2025 / Accepted: 22 April 2025 / Published: 20 May 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionic Wearable Robotics and Intelligent Assistive Technologies)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Long-term manual material handling (MMH) work leads to the trend of the younger onset of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs), with low back pain (LBP) being the most common, which causes great trouble for both society and patients. To effectively prevent LBP and provide support for workers engaged in MMH work, wearable lumbar assistive exoskeletons have played a key role in industrial scenarios. This paper divides wearable lumbar assistive exoskeletons into powered, unpowered, and quasi-passive types, systematically reviews the research status of each type of exoskeleton, and compares and discusses the key factors such as driving mode, mechanical structure, control strategy, performance evaluation, and human–machine interaction. It is found that many studies focus on the assistive performance, human–machine coupling coordination, and adaptability of wearable lumbar assistive exoskeletons. At the same time, the analysis results show that there are many types of performance evaluation indicators, but a unified and standardized evaluation method and system are still lacking. This paper analyzes current research findings, identifies existing issues, and provides recommendations for future research. This study provides a theoretical basis and design ideas for the development of wearable lumbar assistive exoskeleton systems.
Keywords: manual material handling; work-related musculoskeletal disorders; low back pain; wearable exoskeleton; lumbar spine assistance manual material handling; work-related musculoskeletal disorders; low back pain; wearable exoskeleton; lumbar spine assistance

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Qu, Y.; Wang, X.; Tang, X.; Liu, X.; Hao, Y.; Zhang, X.; Liu, H.; Cheng, X. A Review of Wearable Back-Support Exoskeletons for Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders. Biomimetics 2025, 10, 337. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics10050337

AMA Style

Qu Y, Wang X, Tang X, Liu X, Hao Y, Zhang X, Liu H, Cheng X. A Review of Wearable Back-Support Exoskeletons for Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders. Biomimetics. 2025; 10(5):337. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics10050337

Chicago/Turabian Style

Qu, Yanping, Xupeng Wang, Xinyao Tang, Xiaoyi Liu, Yuyang Hao, Xinyi Zhang, Hongyan Liu, and Xinran Cheng. 2025. "A Review of Wearable Back-Support Exoskeletons for Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders" Biomimetics 10, no. 5: 337. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics10050337

APA Style

Qu, Y., Wang, X., Tang, X., Liu, X., Hao, Y., Zhang, X., Liu, H., & Cheng, X. (2025). A Review of Wearable Back-Support Exoskeletons for Preventing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders. Biomimetics, 10(5), 337. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics10050337

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