Water cleaner exoskeleton wins silver manus® with bearings and linear slides

The food industry, landscaping, and agriculture: Those who work with high-pressure cleaners in industry are familiar with equipment that is so heavy that back pain is inevitable. Aufratech provides relief. The French company has developed EXO N, an exoskeleton for high-pressure cleaning tool users. The goal was a reliable, robust, efficient solution that protects user health.

At the core of the exoskeleton design is a control system that enables the user to guide the attached lances while keeping his back straight. The engineers have succeeded in implementing a slim design. They have grouped as many functions as possible around an igus drylin aluminium shaft  with drylin R linear slide bearings and corrosion-free iglide J3 polymer plain bearings – including translational and rotational guidance.

Another advantage is that the AWMR-25 shaft's hollow structure, allows integration of the hydraulic control hose and the steel water spray lance, so the valve body can be moved to the rear of the lance and the system balanced around the user's centre of gravity. Finally, the polymer materials of which the bearings and bushings are made also dissipate vibration, ensuring more comfort for system users.