Twelve research institutions from seven European countries are involved in the Robo-mate project, which hopes to test a robotic suit that can be worn by factory employees within three years.
They say the machine could reduce the number of work-related injuries. One expert warned employers would need to be convinced the equipment would not pose safety issues of its own.
Manufacturers including Italian carmaker Fiat and the French vehicle recycler Indra are working with the teams. The companies will suggest situations in which the tech could prove useful and have also said they would help test it. The EU has committed 4.5m euros (£6m; £3.8m) to the scheme.
The project aims to address the fact that many manufacturing tasks are difficult to automate. For example Indra has to deconstruct many different types of car, and at present humans, rather than robots, are the only ones capable of handling the complexity of the choices involved. Because of the weights involved, this can put staff at risk of developing medical problems.
"People have to manipulate parts or components that weigh more than 10kg [22lb]," said Dr Carmen Constantinescu, from Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute, one of the organisations involved.
"These activities are not carried out just once per day, but are repetitive.
"An exoskeleton with a human inside represents a new type of research for the manufacturing industry.