Festool Exoskeleton

[Ollie78]

Well, now it looks like we can become festool powered cyborgs. The future is clearly now !
https://www.festool.co.uk/campaigns/microsites/exoactive#ExoActive
I nearly spat out my coffee, then checked if it was April 1st.
However, upon looking at it I thought it might be helpful for people with injuries or elderly people, will need the leg upgrade pack for full on Roujin Z elderly rampages.(sorry, bit of an obscure reference, its an anime)
Will it come with built in cup holder ?

Ollie

 

[Inspector]

Cup holder no. A shaking assist at the end of a bathroom break option is available.

Pete

 

[TRITON]

Too late, Hilti have had one out for a year at least.

 

[MikeK]

Too late, Hilti have had one out for a year at least.

The Hilti version is passive. It uses springs and pulleys to manage the load. The advantage is no external power, but the disadvantage is any power assist exerted by the springs and pulleys must be returned by the user. Consider the difference in power required to draw and hold a compound bow as compared to a long bow. The pulleys certainly help, but the user still has an input power requirement.

The Festool version is a collaboration with exoIQ and is powered. It will not give superhuman strength, but adds about 5KG of force to each arm and requires less power input from the user to achieve the same movement and holding power.

Both versions are expensive, with the Hilti in the €2K range and the Festool expected to be about €2.5K when it is released later this year.

 

[TRITON]

Righto.


Certainly going to make jobs like core cutting considerably less tiring.

 

[mwinfrance]

At 2.5K (I showed the Festool site to SWMBO, she works with old folks, stroke victims, handicapped people , Alzheimer patients, cancer patients etc, a lot with weakness or mobility issues, mostly in their own homes ) I thought it would be around 10 or 15K .She's asleep now ( 02.00am here ) up again at 07.00am.She already said that at 10K her service would be interested, and so would some of her patients / clients. When I tell her in the morning that it is more like 2.5K per unit. At 2.5K they'll be pre-ordering by the end of the week. One of my neighbours is a stroke victim ( since his early 50's, he's now 65, his symptoms , weak arm on the right side, was a very athletic guy, he'd buy one in a heart beat. Likewise the guy with the house opposite to ours, 78 years old, weakness in arms and legs.If Festool make something similar to assist walking they will make a fortune in the medical devices market. It isn't a miracle device, but every bit of help with weakness, even 50N helps. My computer chair ( sitting in it typing this ) is a medical lab examination chair, was being thrown out by our local lab as it had a tiny ( 4cm ) tear in the clear vinyl over cover, which I repaired.I asked if I could have it, it weighs around 150kg hydraulic lift, tilt etc.They had to scrap it as "non conforming" due to the tear..list price is €3.800.oo plus 20% tax. Medical equipment is where the money is, Festool can "pivot" into that with this device.

Excellent for horticultural , gardening , fruit picking, loads of possibilities, the more I think about it, the more I want one, would help with my torn rotator cuff injuries which never really got me back to 100%.A version to take some strain of ones back would be welcome, currently eating oxy' like Greg House due to two lower back slipped discs in early Dec 2022 ( due to a fit of post covid coughing whilst getting up from sitting in a restricted space ) If it would help with that they can take my money right now.

 

[ajs]

 

[mwinfrance]

The gun equipped models from the matrix movies would be nice.

 

[MikeK]

When I tell her in the morning that it is more like 2.5K per unit. At 2.5K they'll be pre-ordering by the end of the week. One of my neighbours is a stroke victim ( since his early 50's, he's now 65, his symptoms , weak arm on the right side, was a very athletic guy, he'd buy one in a heart beat. Likewise the guy with the house opposite to ours, 78 years old, weakness in arms and legs.

I doubt the Festool (exoIQ) system would be a good fit for mobility enhancement for your wife's patients. The system is intended to provide relief for repetitive movements in a production or manufacturing environment and appears to be too bulky to be comfortable for long periods of time.

The Festool site states it is as easy to put on as a rucksack. How many of those you mentioned would be capable of putting on a rucksack and strapping the system to their arms with out assistance? I couldn't find any information on the total weight of the system, but I have used some heavy rucksacks.

 

[mwinfrance]

They have auxiliaries / assistants who visit for an hour or more every day to help with things like that, ( putting it on, taking it off etc ), almost all of them ( I've met many, I fix things for them for free , run errands etc for free ) would love even the 10 or 20 minutes of autonomy and feeling of not being quite so helpless or handicapped. even if many of them could only use it while the assistants was around . Festool could always make more than one model. I can think one one who would love it just to be able to water their own houseplants for 10 minutes while the assistant is there to clean and cook. ATM they cant raise their arms with even a litre of water in a container to chest or shoulder height to pour it into the plant pots on their window sills or shelves.It is the small "victories" which make their day from many of them, and the inability to do the smallest things which frustrate them.When I ripped my rotator cuff I couldn't raise my arms past my waist if I was holding my coffee cup. Now, after my recent back injury ( with the aid of weights and exercises, and a bullworker ) I'm trying to get back to where I can lift 100kgs like I could until I coughed my way into a double slipped discs. Monday last I could lift my new ( still in box tracksaw ) above my head ( about 5.5 kg )once or twice, today, I can pump it up there 10 times each arm for 3 reps in 10 minutes. Small victory, but it makes me smile.I can take it out of its box for good, but not until I can put it onto the shelf where it will live without thinking about it, shelf is at my head height , I'm 1.87m.

 

[dzj]

Yup, they're coming for our jobs now.
In a sneaky, roundabout way.

 

[Adam W.]

Fun for hackers.



Just saying.

 

[AES]

I have no medical qualifications at all, and I'm not really disabled, but looking at the info from that Festool site, if I was needing to do repetitive work above my head - in my case - then I would think about that very seriously indeed. I now have to pay someone to do such work, and with the labour rates here, it wouldn't take all that long to get up to the equivalent of two and a half grand.

 

[Keith 66]

Hope it works better than this prototype,

 

[paulrbarnard]

Too late, Hilti have had one out for a year at least.

Yeah but it’s red…

 

[Keith 66]

Everyone knows red ones are faster....

 

[baldkev]

Cup holder no. A shaking assist at the end of a bathroom break option is available.

Pete

Festool often factor in multi use etc.... for instance the shaker feature could be helpful when you arent in the bathroom too All the single guys will be walking around with festool apparel soon
Edit to add: will it be speed controlled pete? And as Adamw said, itd be a hackers wet dream
2nds edit: maybe festool will offer a choice of free subscriptions, either fine woodworking or a certain adult website

 

[baldkev]

Im on a roll! Maybe @petermillard could get one from festool to demo / advertise in his youtube vids and we could all suggest suitable experiments?

10 minutes would definitely be enough

 

[Ollie78]

I think it could be great for some of the people @mwinfrance mentions.
Maybe you should sign up to the test and let some of them have a go on it.

It is quite a sad situation that because something is a medical device or used in the care industry it has to be excruciatingly expensive.
Obvously things like Imaging machines and such require vast investment cost and they don't sell many so you can see why they cost millions.
I know stuff has to be made to a high standard but the fact that it was assumed to be 10k by someone in that industry is very telling.
I hadn't really looked at the price they just sent me an email about it but I would have guessed about the right price from a tool purchasers perspective.

Ollie

 

[TRITON]

Wait till it develops a fault and the poor worker is left with his hands sticking up, unable to disengage and switch it off

Yeah but it’s red…

I only buy Razer gaming gear, mouse,headset,keyboard.