I Am Iron Man
Car and Driver|August 2018

Automakers hope fatigue-reducing exoskeletons will prevent on-the-job injuries.

Greg Fink
I Am Iron Man

NO, IT’S NOT MADE by Stark Industries, but that shouldn’t stop you from feeling a little bit like Iron Man every time you strap on the Levitate Airframe, a mechanical exoskeleton worn by workers at car-manufacturing facilities, such as BMW’s plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Intended to prevent on-the-job injuries and curb employee fatigue, exoskeletons limit the amount of strain placed on specific parts of the body. Ford employees wear the similar Ekso Bionics EksoVest at the Flat Rock and Wayne, Michigan, plants; Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, and Volkswagen are also investing in exoskeletons.

This story is from the August 2018 edition of Car and Driver.

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