Cognitive Exoskeletons: Harnessing AI for Enhanced Wearable Robotics in Shipbuilding

In recent years, manufacturing has been undergoing major changes in search of more flexible and intelligent solutions, powered by Industry 4.0. While automation is what drove previous progress in industry, not every process can be automated, therefore, there is still a need for humans to carry out more complex tasks. Thus, in order to increase productivity and efficiency, while maintaining flexibility, robots can assist operators in their tasks rather than replace them. This paper proposes techniques for achieving seamless Human – Robot Collaboration (HRC), with wearable robots equipped with cognitive abilities that make them aware of their environments and the tasks the operator is performing. The main focus is on semi-active exoskeletons with adjustable torque and how they can be made autonomous. Their awareness is powered by computer vision techniques, mainly using an RGB-D camera and can automatically adjust the level of assistance they provide to the operator based on what they perceive, rather than having the operator control them directly. Consequently, they do not only improve the workload of the operator, but this assistance is offered without requiring specific actions from the user. This solution mainly focuses on the shipbuilding industry and the various tasks the workers have to perform in which exoskeletons can aid them. Finally, a welding use case is presented demonstrating the various functionalities.