Affiliates Hyundai Motor and Kia Robotics Lab heralded what they described as a new era in wearable technology, unveiling a shoulder-worn industrial robot designed to bolster a user’s upper arm strength for overhead work.

The partners positioned the X-ble Shoulder robot as suitable for a range of industries citing shipbuilding, construction, aviation, agriculture and the pair’s own main business of automotive as examples.

Along with boosting the strength the wearer can exert, the robotic device is designed to reduce muscle strain and increase safety.

X-ble Shoulder is said to be able to cut the load placed on a shoulder by 60 per cent, and reduce anterior and lateral deltoid muscle activity by up to 30 per cent. It weighs 1.9kg and is made of material used by the automotive companies in high-end vehicles.

The device generates “assistive force through the muscle compensation module” and is “expected to perform around 700,000 folding and unfolding actions yearly in industrial settings”.

Basic and adjustable versions are available for different types of work. The final models have been refined following a two-year trial in the brands’ manufacturing sites.

Initially the device will be deployed in Hyundai and Kia facilities before expanding sales to other Hyundai affiliates and third parties “from the mid-2020s onward” within South Korea. International sales are set to begin in 2026, with markets in Europe and North America set as targets.

The shoulder device is the first in the X-ble range, with the companies planning to develop other wearables under the brand.