Japan Displays Prototype Robot Suit

anaesthetica writes "A project at Tsukuba University has produced a battery-powered robot suit designed to aid the wearer in strength-related tasks, like lifting heavy objects. The suit also has the capability of propelling itself, which is potentially useful for helping the handicapped or elderly walk. The optimistic professor who lead the project stated, 'Humans may be able to mutate into supermen in the near future.'"

Comments

Mod Parent (-1, Lack of Reading Comprehension)

[merreborn]

It works by enhancing muscle movements. You move a muscle a little, the exoskeleton translates that into a much larger movement. Handicapped people (paras, quads) do not have muscle control in their handicapped limbs, so this exoskeleton can't help them.

FTA:

The 15-kilogram (33-pound) battery-powered suit, code-named HAL-5, detects muscle movements through electrical-signal flows on the skin surface and then amplifies them. It can also move on its own accord, enabling it to help elderly or handicapped people walk, developers said.

Thanks for playing.

Re:Using this technology for warfare.

[AZhun]

Alright class, in ancient history there was this Science Fiction writer, Robert A. Heinlein...

Besides the novella about the rise to power and eventual defeat of a despotic religious political movement in the US in REVOLT IN 2010, he wrote many other works.

Unlike the movies and animated TV series adopted from the original work. Heinlein's original book, STARSHIP TROOPERS, had Johnny Rico wearing his Mobile Infantry Power Suite leaping over the enemy city with rocket assisted steps, looking at his heads-up display and tossing 25-second bombs ("I'm a 25 second bomb, I'm a 25 second bomb...") into crowded movie theatres. The Power Suite was what made the Mobile Infantry different from previous ground pounders

It also went into a whole explaination of a new social order of Citizens and Residents left out of the recent entertainment video releases.

Initial use in "hot areas" could happen in weeks or months.

Two other fun reads from 60-70's and his younger reader phase are THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS for computer assisted revolution and JOB: A DIVINE COMEDY to teach not taking things too seriously.

Re:Obviously...

[nsaneinside]

For those who aren't familiar with it either, this is a Wallace and Gromit movie.

Re:Semi-useful

[GameMaster]

Not sure if you RTFA but they don't explain it quite as well in this one as they do in the last one slashdot posted about this suit. They mention that this suit measures the slight magnetic field generated on your skin when your brain tells your muscles to do something. In the previous article slashdot posted about this suit they mentioned that using this interface they can actually make the suit respond faster than your own muscles can respond to the message being sent by your brain. At that point they should have no problem making the suit feel non-existant as you wear it.

-GameMaster

"Robot suit?!"

[mbrother]

This is called an exoskeleton, not a "robot suit!"

Sheesh.

Re:Well, that's the WHOLE point

[Bender0x7D1]

Not to nitpick... well, OK, I am nitpicking...

First, it isn't so much about the weight that someone needs to carry to handle these weapons, it is the recoil. The reason a .50 cal machine gun wasn't mounted on standard Jeeps was they caused them to tip over when fired sideways. Only the HMMWV, (Humvee), can get away with it because of their wider wheel base. Also, way too much ammunition is wasted uselessly. If you don't shoot unless you can see what you are aiming at, you don't need 10,000 rounds for your M-16. This is why they took away the "automatic" setting on the M-16 after Vietnam. Shooting more bullets LOWERED the chance of a hit. Not just per round, but overall. Finally, if you can hit someone with a 5.56mm round, they are going to be dead or very injured. A 7.62 round or even a .50 caliber round isn't required.

More electronics = better chance of detection.
Infantry is supposed to be invisible. That's why they put all that fancy makeup on their faces - so they blend in. If they radiate a lot in the EM spectrum, someone is going to detect it and drop a few white phosphorus artillery rounds on them. Also, (as someone else pointed out earlier), there aren't power-ups behind every tree, and batteries weigh a LOT. Infantry is also great because they don't need much in the way of logistics. They can walk out with a heavy pack and be fine for 2 weeks. They might come back tired, dirty and hungry, but they don't need a fuel truck every 2 days to keep moving.

I agree with you that situational awareness is incredibly important, and that the best plans fall apart upon enemy contact. However, there is also a thing called information overload. If a squad leader is worried about what the rest of the platoon is doing, they aren't focused on what their squad is doing. If they are paying attention to what the individual squad members are doing, they aren't using their fire team leaders. It is a delicate balancing act. Too much info can mean the important details are missed. Not enough info can also hurt.

Personally, I think powered armor of some sort is a great idea for a Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) environment. Since there is fighting house-to-house and block-to-block, the logistics are much simpler. Also, with heavier armor, a "standard" bullet can be ignored. BTW - There is body armor out there that will stop a 7.62mm round from an AK-74 at close range (less than 10 meters), and they are pretty heavy, but not when compared to a full load on an infantryman. The real risk is keeping the wearer cool enough since no air can circulate around the torso. When considering ambient temperature during training exercises, the presence of a standard flak jacket is considered to be a +15 degree fahrenheit modifier.

For those who care, I was in the US Marine infantry for 4 years, as a rifleman and as a member of their Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team. I graduated from the Marine Security Forces school and from the Designated Marksman School (similar to a SWAT team sniper) and I graduated 3rd in my class at the Advanced Infantry School at Camp Pendelton. While I don't think I am an expert in all things military, or even infantry combat, I think I know what I am talking about.