DIY 18-ft.-High Robotic Exoskeleton

Hacx sends along a piece from PopSci that begins "Carlos Owens had handled all kinds of machines as an army mechanic, but he always dreamed of using those skills for one project: his own 'mecha,' a giant metal robot that could mirror the movements of its human pilot. Owens, 31, began building an 18-foot-tall, one-ton prototype at his home in Wasilla, Alaska, in 2004. Working without blueprints, he first built a full-scale model out of wood. Moving on to steel, he had to devise a hydraulics system that would provide precisely the right leverage and range of movement. He settled on a complex network of cables and hydraulic cylinders that can make the mecha raise its arms, bend its knees, and even do a sit-up. ... He foresees mechas having uses in the military and the construction industry, but acknowledges that right now they're best suited to entertainment. The first application he has in mind: mecha-vs.-mecha battles, demolition-derby style."

Comments

Re:Damnit, that looks awesome. I want a video of i

[Fred_A]

This guy has been around for a long while, made plenty of wild claims, and demonstrated absolutely nothing.

I don't know the history of his project, maybe it's the same guy, maybe not, but any project of that scale that starts with "Working without blueprints" is headed straight for the wall IMO.

Good good!

[denzacar]

Did you even bother to look at the video?
Like at 1:39 and 2:11 where the guy rests his hand on the robot's "knees" - while standing upright and on the same level as the robot.
Or when he puts his hands inside it at 2:29 clearly showing that robot's lower half is at about the height of the man's chest.

Do you have any idea how much is 18 feet? That is nearly 5.5 meters. Height of 3 tall men.
Or 2 Yao Mings plus a 3 feet tall midget. Or you can just have Yao Ming standing on the table and his clone standing on his head.

I've rarely seen such obtuseness.
I truly hope that you are just trolling and that IRL you have better command over your primary mental faculties.
Cause, you know, it is just no fun trying to point out a logical error to a person of diminished mental capabilities.