In Episode 31 of the Exoskeletons and Wearable Robotics Podcast, Dr. Tom Sugar and I return to a topic that we haven’t touched on the website in some time: books on or related to exoskeletons. We go through a good selection of texts, ranging from newly updated engineering textbooks and influential classics to accessible STEM books for younger readers. We even included the hands-on EduExo Pro handbook at the last moment. We discuss what each publication offers, who it is intended for, and how today’s resources can guide learners from their first introduction to wearable technology to advanced research and development.

YouTube Chapter Markers:

• 00:00 Welcome: Why an Episode About Exoskeleton Books? + Patreon Supporters and Community Thanks
• 01:52 Wearable Exoskeleton Systems, 2nd Edition: What Changed?
• 08:29 The Gold Standard: José Pons’ Wearable Robots
• 12:45 Wearable Robotics: Systems and Applications
• 17:16 Biomechatronics and Human–Robot Integration
• 20:10 Superpower? — Wearable Technology for Young Readers
• 23:06 Building Homes for All — Exoskeletons and Future Construction
• 24:20 A Candid Review of Another Exoskeleton Book
• 25:27 EduExo Pro – Learning Exoskeletons by Building One
• 27:27 A Reading Path from Middle School to Graduate Research + How Exoskeleton Publishing Has Evolved

Audio Version:

While the video version offers a little bit more clarity regarding which book we are talking about, as usual, the podcast is available on all major audio platforms (such as Spotify) and is directly embedded in this post as well:

Short Transcript:

The discussion opens with the newly published second edition of Wearable Exoskeleton Systems: Design, Control and Applications, which Tom helped edit and author. The first edition appeared in 2018, but the field has changed enough since then to require substantial revisions. Some chapters were removed, others were added, and the new edition expands its treatment of soft robotics, prosthetics and orthotics, wearable sensing, performance assessment, lessons learned, and emerging trends. It also combines perspectives from academic researchers and companies with direct experience developing exoskeleton technology. Bobby and Tom contributed a chapter surveying the different exoskeleton systems now available.

Tom describes the new edition as most appropriate for college students, graduate students, engineers, industry professionals, and people considering an exoskeleton startup. Although motors, sensors, batteries, control systems, open-source projects, and educational kits have become much more accessible, building a wearable robot is still considerably more complicated than purchasing a basic electronics or robotics kit. The book therefore attempts to offer both a high-level overview and enough technical depth to address the real challenges of designing, controlling, evaluating, and safely integrating exoskeletons with their users. Its contributors are not simply observing the field from a distance; they bring hands-on development experience.

The hosts then turn to José Pons’ influential 2008 book, Wearable Robots: Biomechatronic Exoskeletons. Bobby credits this book with helping transform him into a believer in exoskeleton technology. Its first half provides a framework for understanding the field, including its history, applications, terminology, and the different ways mechanical systems can align—or deliberately avoid aligning—with the anatomical joints of the human body. The second half moves into detailed research projects and highly technical case studies. Bobby acknowledges that some of this material reached beyond his own level when he first read it, despite his bioengineering background, but he still considers the book the gold standard and one of the best starting points for serious study.

Another major research collection discussed is Wearable Robotics: Systems and Applications by Jacob Rosen and Perry Ferguson. Its chapters cover upper-limb exoskeletons, rehabilitation after stroke, rigid and soft systems, hand devices, lower-limb robotics, spinal-cord-injury applications, prosthetics, sensing, and control. While examining the book, Bobby realizes that Professor Rosen’s laboratory created the first exoskeleton he ever personally wore: a large, red, wall-mounted upper-body rehabilitation system at UC Santa Cruz. Tom recognizes many of the researchers represented in the book and concludes that it is best suited to senior-level university students, graduate students, and readers prepared for mathematically demanding material.

The conversation broadens with Marko Popovic’s Biomechatronics. Unlike a book focused exclusively on exoskeletons, it examines the larger relationship between biological systems, mechanics, electronics, neural interfaces, prosthetic limbs, orthotic devices, physical augmentation, and rehabilitation. This leads Bobby and Tom into a discussion of how the language surrounding the field has evolved. Bobby recalls that an early version of Exoskeleton Report was connected to the term “biomechatronics,” while Tom favored “wearable robotics” because it could encompass more than conventional exoskeletons. Over time, wearable robotics itself has become a broader category covering many forms of technology worn on or integrated with the human body.

Not every useful book requires advanced mathematics. Bobby introduces Superpower? The Wearable-Tech Revolution, a lively and accessible book that presents wearable technology to younger readers. He praises it for making a complex subject understandable without isolating exoskeletons from other emerging technologies. Instead, wearable robots appear as part of a changing ecosystem that includes human-machine interfaces, additional robotic limbs, and other forms of technological augmentation. Although the ideal audience may be middle-school students, Bobby argues that the book can also benefit older students, parents, educators, and even entrepreneurs who need to understand how the public may perceive wearable technology.

The same author’s newer book, Building Homes for All: Technology for a Fair and Green Planet, places exoskeletons within the future of construction. It brings wearable robotics together with advanced materials, 3D printing, autonomous construction and inspection robots, and other technologies that may transform how buildings are created. The book draws on interviews and contributions from researchers and companies familiar to podcast listeners and uses strong illustrations to make the subject appealing to younger audiences. Bobby and Tom also briefly discuss another exoskeleton book that recently received a second edition. Bobby welcomes its continued publication but offers a candid assessment of the first edition, noting its lack of diagrams and its comparatively linear organization.

The final major publication discussed is the handbook accompanying the EduExo Pro educational kit. Bobby discloses that he expects to become a distributor for the system, while also explaining that he has watched the project develop for roughly a decade. What began as a much smaller handbook has evolved into a structured introduction to exoskeleton concepts, an assembly guide, and a collection of practical laboratory activities. Students build an upper-body shoulder-and-elbow exoskeleton combining powered and passive elements, attach sensors, examine inputs and outputs, and connect the educational system to more refined industrial applications. Bobby positions it between conventional textbooks and hands-on engineering, making it appropriate for high-school students and students in the first years of college.

By the end of the episode, Bobby and Tom have assembled an almost continuous learning pathway: accessible books that introduce children and middle-school students to STEM, construction, and wearable technology; an educational system that lets high-school and early college students build an exoskeleton; and advanced texts for university students, graduate researchers, engineers, and industry professionals. They emphasize that wearable robotics requires knowledge of motors, controls, sensors, biomechanics, and human safety, making this range of educational resources especially valuable. Although fewer general books may be appearing than in the past, the publications that do exist are becoming more specialized, focused, and technically refined. The episode closes with thanks to supporters and a reminder that the podcast is part of a greater educational effort that also includes the Exoskeleton Report website, weekly newsletter, device catalog, and introductory guides.

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