Hilti already have something similar, although their version is passive, using adjustable-tension springs and dampers so there are no motors, cabling or switchgear to fail. Yours for just $2200 [eek]
The local Hilti rep called by today to drop off some consumables I'd ordered, and he had one of these gadgets on his van. After I spotted it, he told me that the project to develop it had been 100% driven to reduce litigation against employers by what he described as 'lame, powder-puff wimps who shouldn't be working in construction'. The UK's insidious ambulance-chasing compensation culture is particularly driving sales, with larger contractors buying these things in bulk, and making the wearing of them mandatory for employees having to lift practically anything heavier than a two-pound bag of sugar above shoulder height. The argument is that any subsequent claim against them for RSI etc. can be successfully defended by the employer by proving every conceivable effort to make life easier for these chancers. The hammering in of a nail on every site in the UK now is accompanied by ludicrous piles of paperwork - method statements, CoSHH, HSE, datasheets, risk assessments and so on, all for the same reasons - a virtue-signalling arse-covering exercise for that eventual day in the courtroom. $2200 is a cheap option by comparison.
He also jokingly said that Hilti are also working on something to tuck these people up in bed and give them a goodnight kiss on the forehead.
Kevin
