New powered exoskeleton video

Kevin H.

Gimme sometin' to shoot

Mr_Rose

'bout time they figured out the shoulders.

Now we just need teleoperated robot hands as end effectors instead of those stupid hook thingys. Then the guy won't have to "step out" to do something with his hands.

Big Dookie

I like the picture here, because it looks like he's flipping off the cameraman.

In any case, pretty cool. I'd like to see him doing more "combat" stuff, but it's an interesting demo. I'm surprised how agile he is in that thing. Now they just need a portable power supply and a jetpack, and we'll be in business.

corcorigan

Big Dookie wrote: »

I like the picture here, because it looks like he's flipping off the cameraman.

In any case, pretty cool. I'd like to see him doing more "combat" stuff, but it's an interesting demo. I'm surprised how agile he is in that thing. Now they just need a portable power supply and a jetpack, and we'll be in business.

Make it IED-proof, cheap, easily usable, to not break when it's too dusty/humid, to not need endless servicing in the field, and also to have some sort of enemy it's useful against.

Then we'll be in business.

Mr_Rose

corcorigan wrote: »

Big Dookie wrote: »

I like the picture here, because it looks like he's flipping off the cameraman.

In any case, pretty cool. I'd like to see him doing more "combat" stuff, but it's an interesting demo. I'm surprised how agile he is in that thing. Now they just need a portable power supply and a jetpack, and we'll be in business.

Make it IED-proof, cheap, easily usable, to not break when it's too dusty/humid, to not need endless servicing in the field, and also to have some sort of enemy it's useful against.

Then we'll be in business.

Or you could just use it as a missile/ammo/equipment loader and halve vehicle turn-around times...that way you also don't need very many suits/operators for an appreciable improvement in effectiveness.

From there I'm sure someone will improvise armour/weapons in the field, which will get back to someone higher up etc.

Also, why IEDs specifically? I'm sure a lot of soldiers would appreciate the ability to simply walk through AK fire/small buildings with impunity and return fire with what would otherwise be a crew-served weapon.

Not to mention all the myriad non-military/civillian uses....

devoir

Curious as to how it compares to all the various other projects out there, like the Berkley one.

TL DR

You can armor the thing as much as you want, it's still not going to be fast enough or have thick enough skin to be able to just wade through a firefight.

Stormwatcher

that was fucking awesome.

RoundBoy

I swear, i hope I live to see fully-realized combat exoskeletons.

I welcome our new exoskeleton enhanced overlords

Incenjucar

They really needed to use more interesting tests.

Being able to out-lift a bunch of engineers and an old reporter isn't very impressive.

Oh noes, 70 pounds! :P

Still, very cool.

SirToasty

Incenjucar wrote: »

They really needed to use more interesting tests.

Being able to out-lift a bunch of engineers and an old reporter isn't very impressive.

Oh noes, 70 pounds! :P

Still, very cool.

Do you think you could lift 70 pound weights at the rate that the guy with the suit is doing it? And with one hand?

Axen

Cool. As far as power armor goes, whether or not it could be truly practical in combat I still don't think I would fuck with a guy wearing it.

Blake T

I can't wait for the time moment where we can successfully battle Alien Queens.

TL DR

It just seems like a big strong bullet sponge. That will likely cost millions of dollars.

But it will be fantastic for posing on aircraft carriers in front of mission accomplished banners.

Forever Zefiro

God I want one of my own.

My own custom powersuit is my dream of all dreams

Spoit

Hurt and Burn wrote: »

It just seems like a big strong bullet sponge. That will likely cost millions of dollars.

But it will be fantastic for posing on aircraft carriers in front of mission accomplished banners.

Except the video was mostly talking about non-combat uses like carrying heavy equipment

Incenjucar

SirToasty wrote: »

Incenjucar wrote: »

They really needed to use more interesting tests.

Being able to out-lift a bunch of engineers and an old reporter isn't very impressive.

Oh noes, 70 pounds! :P

Still, very cool.

Do you think you could lift 70 pound weights at the rate that the guy with the suit is doing it? And with one hand?

For the length they showed in that video? At my peak, when I used to haul around bags of concrete and logs and so forth? Yes. It would just hurt like fuck afterwards and I would lose feeling in my hand for awhile. :P

I'm not saying it's not very impressive, I'm saying that the demonstration was kind of funny in its chosen subjects and materials.

TL DR

Spoit wrote: »

Hurt and Burn wrote: »

It just seems like a big strong bullet sponge. That will likely cost millions of dollars.

But it will be fantastic for posing on aircraft carriers in front of mission accomplished banners.

Except the video was mostly talking about non-combat uses like carrying heavy equipment

I was responding to the idea of using it in combat. Now if you could get the technology to the point where it wouldn't be too large to fit through a door (lol urban combat) and provided an increased degree of mobility.

As to applications as a cargo loader, there aren't many situations I can think of where this would be better than wheeled loading equipment.

corcorigan

Hurt and Burn wrote: »

Spoit wrote: »

Hurt and Burn wrote: »

It just seems like a big strong bullet sponge. That will likely cost millions of dollars.

But it will be fantastic for posing on aircraft carriers in front of mission accomplished banners.

Except the video was mostly talking about non-combat uses like carrying heavy equipment

I was responding to the idea of using it in combat. Now if you could get the technology to the point where it wouldn't be too large to fit through a door (lol urban combat) and provided an increased degree of mobility.

As to applications as a cargo loader, there aren't many situations I can think of where this would be better than wheeled loading equipment.

Urban combat in that? Hehe. You'd be killed by a house falling on you after you tried walking through a wall. Or you'd fall over a pothole.

Definitely more useful as a cargo loader. However, we already have specialist equipment for that...

DiannaoChong

you dont have to get out to use your arms, that s the first thing it showed, the arm "floats" while your arm is away and you can do things normally.

Frieght moving like on an aircraftcarrier is a pretty awesome application for this.

Also I see this as being 5x as badass when 10 soldiers go running up a field in a shelled out city and run out of the suits and duck to the side while the suits keep running and providing cover (coming to anime/video games in 2 years)

TL DR

Now removing the soldier from the robot might help its combat viability, but until the thing is proof against small arms, it's just an easy way for someone with $9 to blow up an American military $OSNAP.

Ideally, I'd want to see it armored against most personal firearms and small explosives, and have modular weapons points, to enable customization for different environs.

In minutes you could regear from cannon or heavy machine gun to scattergun and flamethrower as the desert gives way to jungle... or something.

Also, jets. And laser swords, but I'm flexible on this point.

Axen

Heres a mock-up of the U.S. Army's powered armor.



Certainly looks cool, but they still have years to go before its ready for service.

ben0207

Call me when it has energy shields and can dual wield.

Urian

I will join the military when I can wear that. Good god yes. Oh my yes.

The Black Hunter

It will be used for labour tasks.

Loading missiles onto aeroplanes for example.

Regicid3

Aliens need to invade already because all this research will have money poured into it and we can finally be awesome.

The_Lightbringer

The Black Hunter wrote: »

It will be used for labour tasks.

Loading missiles onto aeroplanes for example.

The Exoskeleton in Aliens was also built for labour tasks such as lifting heavy crates. Space Marine Terminators were originally used by engineering crews on dangerous outerspace missions.

Gihgehls

But those aren't real.

TL DR

Gihgehls wrote: »

But those aren't real.

The point was that dynamite ain't just for mining and winning peace prizes.

FreddyD

Hurt and Burn wrote: »

Gihgehls wrote: »

But those aren't real.

The point was that dynamite ain't just for mining and winning peace prizes.

I wanted to see if he could punch something with that thing on. He could probably put a dent in steel plate.

devoir

I'm curious as to whether he can exert a significant amount of pushing force, as in the kind to push a car.

ben0207

devoir wrote: »

I'm curious as to whether he can exert a significant amount of pushing force, as in the kind to flip a Warthog.

Szechuanosaurus

The Black Hunter wrote: »

It will be used for labour tasks.

Loading missiles onto aeroplanes for example.

Also piling dead bodies into mass graves or onto burning pyres.

Gihgehls

devoir wrote: »

I'm curious as to whether he can exert a significant amount of pushing force, as in the kind to push a car.

I don't see why not, as long as he had the leverage and the traction needed to push the car instead of himself... over.

Inglorious Coyote

Incenjucar wrote: »

SirToasty wrote: »

Incenjucar wrote: »

They really needed to use more interesting tests.

Being able to out-lift a bunch of engineers and an old reporter isn't very impressive.

Oh noes, 70 pounds! :P

Still, very cool.

Do you think you could lift 70 pound weights at the rate that the guy with the suit is doing it? And with one hand?

For the length they showed in that video? At my peak, when I used to haul around bags of concrete and logs and so forth? Yes. It would just hurt like fuck afterwards and I would lose feeling in my hand for awhile. :P

I'm not saying it's not very impressive, I'm saying that the demonstration was kind of funny in its chosen subjects and materials.

Well, at the begining they had him doing 500lb pulldowns, and he said he would do them till he got bored. That is pretty impressive.

Mr_Rose

Inglorious Coyote wrote: »

Well, at the begining they had him doing 500lb pulldowns, and he said he would do them till he got bored. That is pretty impressive.

Yeah, but that really depends on the pilot of the machine. I for one know that I would get bored of effortless 500lb pulldowns after about ten reps, because what's the damn point if it's not doing anything useful?

Now, motorcycle-tossing, that I could get behind....:P

Inglorious Coyote

Mr_Rose wrote: »

Inglorious Coyote wrote: »

Well, at the begining they had him doing 500lb pulldowns, and he said he would do them till he got bored. That is pretty impressive.

Yeah, but that really depends on the pilot of the machine. I for one know that I would get bored of effortless 500lb pulldowns after about ten reps, because what's the damn point if it's not doing anything useful?

Now, motorcycle-tossing, that I could get behind....:P

Well, I was more talking about how a 500lb pulldown was effortless...

devoir

Gihgehls wrote: »

devoir wrote: »

I'm curious as to whether he can exert a significant amount of pushing force, as in the kind to push a car.

I don't see why not, as long as he had the leverage and the traction needed to push the car instead of himself... over.

That's what I meant. Whether he can position his entire body to exert that kind of force in a direction other than just direct lifting.

Smudge

Punching in this case has little to do with how strong those motors are, but instead simple momentum. Mass * Velocity.

The arm has more mass due to the exoskeleton itself, how much more I don't know, but I would say that robot arm looked like it weighed at least 2x what a normal arm would weigh, so maybe 3x the mass involved, but not much more speed. The human tissue controlling the arm movement speed is a real limiting factor to punching.

So a punch would be maybe 3x as strong. PUSHING power against a resistive force would be much better.

These power suits unfortunately won't let us be super fast or jump super far, as those are factors of our SPEED, and not our strength.

In a fight you would not be winning by punching but instead by just crushing your opponent. I would not want to fight even this early prototype. Where would you grab it where it could not somehow pinch you against itself and cut things off like a vice. Plus it seemed to be only slowing down reaction speeds by a small amount.

I really think you could design some pretty damn strong armor onto this prototype. The suit seems like it would have adequate strength to move with it, but you would probably give up your strength advantage for lifting and such (due to the weight of the armor). The biggest concern for usability is how much POWER does this thing suck up? Would batteries be practical for it?

Mr_Rose

Smudge wrote: »

The biggest concern for usability is how much POWER does this thing suck up? Would batteries be practical for it?

This has always been the biggest single problem with exo-suits of all kinds, since at least the beginning of the last century (that and getting the shoulders to work properly); as the video states, that was the next problem they were going to look at, now that the "easy" part (the structure and control interface) was done. Of course, various solutions exist in prototype, but they aren't exactly in mass-production yet...though, if people weren't so damn leery of the "n" word, I'd concentrate on getting a radiothermal generator to "recharge" a hydrogen fuel cell or something.