5 Bionic Exoskeleton Suits of the Future
Tue, May 6, 2008
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Real Life Iron Man Suits
Image via Kotaku
As the old saying goes: the suit makes the man; never will this maxim resonate so well, than when referring to bionic exoskeleton suits. They’ll not only make you the man, they’ll make you superhuman.
Yes, picture this for a second. Imagine walking at an average speed of 20 miles an hour, lifting 300lbs weights as if they weighed only 10 and being able to leap 20-30 feet in the air. Imagine having a bionic extension that shadowed your every move.
You might be thinking that this could only be achieved in comic books, or in glossy Hollywood blockbusters like Iron man or the 1959 epic Starship Troopers. Frighteningly however, robotics has come a long way thanks to the archetypal bunch of mad scientists and inventors, working away in their laboratories.
The reality of an army of indestructible soldiers wearing exoskeleton suits may come sooner than you think. No longer are exoskeleton suits merely wearable joysticks. At long last, robotics is combining our decision-making processes with the dexterity and brute force of the machines. In other words, the mind controls the metal.
Image by Flickr user Alternate Words
However much this might sound like the plot of a bad science fiction movie, the rabbit hole goes deeper. The US Pentagon’s DARPA or Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, has invested $50 million in robotic exoskeleton projects.
The question to ask then, is will we see a bionic army, roaming the battlefields of the future or will there be some unexpected twist?
No I’m not about to prophesize an apocalyptic battle between man and machine (even though as a die-hard sci-fi fan, I think it would be kinda cool). No, brute force, contrary to popular belief is not limited to the realms of the military, but extends to the more mundane. The potential applications of powered suits are endless. Hydraulic limbs could assist people to walk, lift heavy equipment or rubble in rescue missions and aid in construction. Anything is possible after all.
So, without further ado, let’s explore some of the most incredible exoskeletons (in order of coolness) that may be seen on the battlefields of the future or helping us in our every day lives.
NEXT: The evil juggernaut: The Landwalker
5. The Berkeley Lower Extremity Exoskeleton (BLEEX)
Image Via Zamazing
The director of UC Berkeley’s Robotics and Human Engineering Laboratory Homayoon Kazerooni’s central aim was “to create an exoskeleton that combines a human control system with robotic muscle.” The project funded by DARPA, was in 2004, the most advanced exoskeletal suit. It has subsequently been overtaken by others on the list however.
How does it work?
Much like a human nervous system surprisingly. There are a series of 40 sensors and hydraulic actuators, which form a local area network. The machine therefore is able to shadow the subject’s every move.
One challenge was designing the fuel-based power actuation system, vital for sustaining soldiers on the battlefield. Unfortunately, this hasn’t yet been perfected.
Watch a video of it in action below:
NEXT: The evil juggernaut: The Landwalker
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Inspiration: Cyborgs, Robots, and Mecha - PSDTUTS Says:
July 10th, 2008 at 6:28 am[...] Visit Article [...]
May 6th, 2008 at 11:25 am
It’s always really interesting to see how a pop culture reference can bring such sharp attention to these kinds of gems that have long since been hidden away in the dark recesses of research labs. Granted, work would surely have continued to progress on these sorts of projects without the release of “Iron Man,” but just look at how much new (or renewed) public interest there is in exoskeleteon development as a result of that movie.
I know that these researchers have languished in obscurity for years, working on stuff that we’re only now getting tantalizing glimpses of, but still, the timing makes it feel like a “wag the dog” kinda setup.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
I agree with you and have thought that for years. The government along with the producers in hollywood have been doing this to the public to desensitize them.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Great roundup of the various exo skeletons around… the story has also been added at http://www.gearcult.com
May 6th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
The possibilities are intriguing.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Hey, check it out.. He can walk! Got any footage of him doing 300Lb squats?
May 6th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
excellent list of exo suits. for some reason i have zero confidence in the grizzly guy’s suit, although it looks amazing. The 4th one REX looks pretty impressive, I hope to see these things advance even more than this quickly. It seems that any progress is few and far between. Which is too bad.
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May 6th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hkCcoenLW4
May 6th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Hmmmm its not a bad idea, but if the best two or three were to get together and have a suit that could lift itself, be bullet resistant and fire pink splodgy paint balls, now that I would pay to see!
May 6th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
so i dont get it… this will allow fat people to move?
May 7th, 2008 at 3:00 am
Just what we need another fat-ass american who cant get around using his two legs.
May 7th, 2008 at 10:56 pm
So, I guess they’ve got past the problems where the earlier bionic suits snapped their operators bones then?
May 8th, 2008 at 9:15 pm
I for one welcome SkyNet as my new lord and master
May 11th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
all mechanical devices break down, have problems etc… you have to keep them up and if one breaks down on the battlefield you have to take it off and you cant carry the darn heavy thing to keep the enemy from getting it and reverse engineering it so what do you do? carry around enough c4 to destroy it before you leave…its utterly crazy to think something like this is practical… what do you do?….every army will have them eventually and you have to invent something else and so on just like everything else in war there will be no end to it and cost the taxpayers even more money.
its just stupid.
September 18th, 2008 at 6:13 am
Wow. No wonder that 10 years later iron man would become a reality.
November 30th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
One of the most stupidest suits i have ever seen for a verity of reasons:
1. When the legs bend the joints leave gaps although this could be cleaned up later.
2. The gloves are less effective and are only slightly protective.
3. The suit seems to wear him out even with him just standing there.
4. The coolest idea would have been some sort of jet pack so rather than spray a ton of baddies he can fly away.
5. There are less weapons and who would want a bloody clock on his cock!
6. The added armer isn’t necessary and it is just used to make the suit look good it is a piece designed for the army it can look like shit and no one would care!
7. The designer seems silly designing the helmet on the design from games is just silly and who would be scared of that mask which looks like a stretched out hockey mask!
In all the design is shabby and lacks usability there are almost no weapons except a spray can in an arm which is a hands on tool.
I give the weapons 1/10
I give the look of the suit 5/10
I give the idea of the suit 7/10
I give the fight power of the suit 2/10
And i give the tools positions 0/10
The overall suit is given a lame total of 15/50
With a Scorp corp rating of 15/50 this suit lacks many features and i would have preferred a more realistic idea like the Mark 2 from iron man (Film)
December 8th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
ok cool he kan walk now what?
December 23rd, 2008 at 6:07 am
All those are interesting ideas… however only one is actually near market viability (availability) and is actually practical.
Cyberdyne’s HAL suit works, isn’t retardedly expensive, and doesn’t make you ponderously fat.
I want one with a fuel cell on it