Functional and Subjective Assessment of Spinal Exoskeletons: From Development of Battery of Tests to Experiments with Low Back Pain Patients

Spinal exoskeletons have recently emerged as a potential tool to prevent and treat low back pain (LBP) in workers that are involved in heavy load handing and other demanding jobs. However, the widespread use of these devices is still limited. Notably, discomfort and hindrance of movement is often reported by the end-users. Therefore, there is an increasing interest to explore functional and subjective aspect of exoskeleton use. In this paper, we will present a novel battery of tests that was designed to comprehensively assess the effects of spinal exoskeletons on functional performance, discomfort and task difficulty. Next, we provide evidence that specific populations, such as LBP patients, may respond differently to the use of exoskeletons, which should be considered during design and development. Finally, we briefly summarize the findings from a study that investigated the effects of one of the state-of-the-art exoskeletons, by using the previously developed functional test battery.