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New HAL Exoskeleton: A Brain-Controlled Full Body Suit To Be Used In Fukushima
An anonymous reader writes "Cyberdyne announced today an improved version of the HAL (Hybrid Assistive Limb) robotic exoskeleton at the Japan Robot Show. From the article: 'he latest version of the HAL has remained brain-controlled but evolved to a full body robot suit that protects against heavy radiation without feeling the weight of the suit. Eventually it could be used by workers dismantling the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant."
I'm afraid I can't do that Dave.
Yeah, this will end well.
Here's your Mark 1 HEV suit Gordon
Why not put a well-shielded controller instead and have the people control it remotely from a safe location? Well, it is Japan, the land of the weird ideas.
I hope they solved the icing problem that plagued a certain other robotic exoskeleton.
Otherwise, HAL might freeze over.
The same way TEPCO controlled the third-party workers, who were told not to wear radiation badges -- via optical fiber from Tokyo, of course. As for versatile, yeah, humans are not only more versatile, they are also a lot cheaper. Why invest in capable robots at all?
Not the Japanese. They love Mech stuff.
Actually, so do I. I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think so.
(well, you did mention the 80s)
"I am not an expert on radiation by any means...."
Looks like you pre-answered you're own questions.
For clarity though we'll all just assume that the photo op at a Robot Expo wasn't an example of how the system would be used at Fukushima, site of a nuclear reactor meltdown.
A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.
An exoskeleton is essentially two things. A sensor suit that perceives human bodily motions, providing sensory feedback is the first. A mechanical framework which reproduces the actions and receives physical feedback, perhaps with amplified strength is the second.
With modern telepresence technology with physical and visual sensors and displays surpassing human abilities to perceive, and for the second thing planned to be operating in a radiological hazard likely to cause failure of the human providing data input, requiring that the first thing be physically located inside the second thing is an engineering failure.
Help stamp out iliturcy.
It's much more efficient for catching tasty nuras than line and hook
Starship Troopers and the Mobile Infantry - here we come. Now all we need are better suits, pocket atomic hand-grenades, a one-world corporate-government, and an alien race to fight against.
You underestimate the ability of humans to compensate for the failings of their machines. Given a rapid enough feedback loop even a child can operate any machine beyond its design limits. We let children as young as three operate remote controlled aircraft, obviously with neither training nor experience. Some of them are even amazing at it.
Help stamp out iliturcy.
As long as the suit comes in five distinct models which can join up to become a single unit, I will be happy.
Science is all about firing a drunk pig out of a cannon just to see what happens.
Not the Japanese. They love Mech stuff.
You can buy your own mech now. With that extra $1.3 million you have laying around:
http://suidobashijuko.jp/#bto