Human Assist Devices
Making work handling heavy objects safe with pneumatic balancers
THEME
Fact Report 〉Facing the issues of human labor in production sites
While aging progresses, industrial accidents caused by work handling heavy objects in manufacturing sites have become a social issue. The weight of objects handled is limited by law based on gender and age, but on the other hand, labor shortages are also an issue at sites where workers are limited, and productivity also declined due to sudden leave during the COVID-19 pandemic. Improvements in the work environment are required to resolve these chronic and sudden issues in the industrial world.
MISSION
Aiming for sites where everybody can work with peace of mind
There is a lot of work handling heavy objects at places such as factories and construction sites, and more than half of the industrial accidents that occur involve back pain. We wanted to support the physical factors of the burden on workers and fatigue with our technology, so we developed the PAW (PowerArm) pneumatic balancer unit, which applies CKD’s fluid control technology. The PAW has a mechanism that monitors the mass of the workpiece constantly, with pressure adjusted automatically to match. If mass is below the upper limit, it continues to balance automatically at all times even if weight or posture changes. It can handle workpieces weighing up to 80 kg in any direction with the workpiece balanced on the end of the arm, and is used to transport heavy objects. The PAW is so light and smooth that it surprises first time users, and can be handled easily by anybody because it moves in line with human movements. The PAW established the basic structure of “Human Assist”, including a gentle design that is not oppressive and does not harm people, and the fact that even if the compressed air supply or power is cut off, the workpiece will not fall and the worker will not be injured. Introducing it to the market has led to requests for more personal support.
APPROACH
We listen to users’ opinions and feed them back into products
The newly added CAW (Compact Arm) is a small human assist device that can hold heavy tools and other objects weighing up to 15 kg. We developed this product to reduce the burden on the lower back, shoulders, arms and wrists due to repetitive, hard work such as tightening and grinding with tools. This is an indispensable presence for heavy work, has excellent performance and can be installed easily on existing workbenches, imbued with the hope that it will be used with fondness for many years. Spring balancers, which are often seen at manufacturing sites, are very convenient because they hold tools and other equipment in a position where they are easy to use, but when they are used, they must be pulled from the balanced position and the worker has to continue to work while pulling the tool constantly. We use many of these products at CKD manufacturing sites too, but women especially have complained of pain in their arms and wrists when continuing to work for a long time. By installing CAW prototypes in assembly processes, having people actually use the devices, and repeating the process of “receiving impressions and providing feedback”, we were able to develop a product realizing the ideal performance and design for people at manufacturing sites.
Demonstration test
Flexible operation
VISION
Products that always help people in a changing social environment
It is clear that the declining birthrate and aging population will continue into the future, and we expect that there will be even more desire for improvements to workplace environments in an aging society of labor shortages and greater female participation. In addition, we also think that new needs will be created by the shift to smart factories. We will respond flexibly to changes in the social environment, incorporate further needs, and further develop human assist products using CKD’s technologies. In addition, we will continue to work to contribute to the maintenance of safe and secure work environments for all workers and the improvement of productivity.
