ReviewJournal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation2020
The exoskeleton expansion: improving walking and running economy.
Review in Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06041100 (Assessing the Long-term Effects of Wearing a Lower-limb Exoskeleton on Physical Activity and Quality of Life in Pre-frail Adults - a Feasibility Study), which is not on this map. Cited by 126 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Assessing the Long-term Effects of Wearing a Lower-limb Exoskeleton on Physical Activity and Quality of Life in Pre-frail Adults - a Feasibility Study
Who cites it
126 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Use of Lower Limb Exoskeletons as an Assessment Tool for Human Motor Performance: A Systematic Review.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Pooled it
- A systematic review on the usability of robotic and virtual reality devices in neuromotor rehabilitation: patients' and healthcare professionals' perspective.BMC health services research · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of an actuated ankle exoskeleton on walking stability in healthy adults: a controlled laboratory study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2026Trial
- Walking with a Passive Hip Exoskeleton and Wearables: Gait Characteristics and Metabolic Power in Senior Adults.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Trial
- A passive exoskeleton can assist split-belt adaptation.Experimental brain research · 2022Trial
- Gait training with a wearable curara® robot for cerebellar ataxia: a single-arm study.Biomedical engineering online · 2021Trial
- The adaptive role of the knee joint in maintaining the orbital stability during slope walking.Royal Society open science · 2026Article
- Why inverse simulations overestimate optimal ankle exoskeleton assistance: the role of bi-articular coordination and joint stiffness.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Dynamic stability is tied to gait assistance when walking with a hip exoskeleton.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Enhancing sit-to-stand transitions and walking efficiency in older adults with a soft robotic suit.Nature communications · 2026Article
- User preference-based human-in-the-loop tuning of exoskeleton assistance during walking.npj biomedical innovations · 2026Article
- Exoskeleton frontal and sagittal plane hip torque improves propulsion and transient stability during walking in individuals with hemiparesis.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Diff-MomentFormer: Generative Diffusion-Augmented Transformer for End-to-End Joint Moment Estimation.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Exploring Variable Achilles Tendon Loading Via Active Acoustics.IEEE sensors journal · 2026Article
- Exoskeleton robotics: from rigid structures to bio-integrated systems.Frontiers in neurorobotics · 2026Review
- Interaction-based rapid heuristic optimization of exoskeleton assistance during walking.Communications engineering · 2025Article
- IFIANet: Frequency Attention Network for Time-Frequency in sEMG-Based Motion Intent Recognition.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- A Biomimetic Treadmill-Driven Ankle Exoskeleton: A Study in Able-Bodied Individuals.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Evaluating Machine Learning-Based Classification of Human Locomotor Activities for Exoskeleton Control Using Inertial Measurement Unit and Pressure Insole Data.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Human-in-the-Loop Optimization of Hip Exoskeleton Assistance During Stair Climbing.IEEE transactions on bio-medical engineering · 2025Article
66 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Since the early 2000s, researchers have been trying to develop lower-limb exoskeletons that augment human mobility by reducing the metabolic cost of walking and running versus without a device. In 2013, researchers finally broke this 'metabolic cost barrier'. We analyzed the literature through December 2019, and identified 23 studies that demonstrate exoskeleton designs that improved human walking and running economy beyond capable without a device. Here, we reviewed these studies and highlighted key innovations and techniques that enabled these devices to surpass the metabolic cost barrier and steadily improve user walking and running economy from 2013 to nearly 2020. These studies include, physiologically-informed targeting of lower-limb joints; use of off-board actuators to rapidly prototype exoskeleton controllers; mechatronic designs of both active and passive systems; and a renewed focus on human-exoskeleton interface design. Lastly, we highlight emerging trends that we anticipate will further augment wearable-device performance and pose the next grand challenges facing exoskeleton technology for augmenting human mobility.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.