Hi-Tech ExoSkeletons for Soldiers; Rico’s Roughnecks Need Not Worry (Yet)

By Michael Santo
Contributing Writer, RealTechNews

Of course, the Roughnecks in the title would be the ones from either Robert Heinlein’s book Starship Troopers, or the cartoon (Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles), which was made after the horrible Paul Verhoeven film, not the film itself, which depicted the soldiers without powered armor (love Dina Meyer, but hated the movie, so I had to get that in). The real-life idea here is technology to let soldiers carry up to 220 lbs. in backpacks over all types of terrain. A design team at the University of California, Berkeley, under the lead of Professor Homayoon Kazerooni has completed work on their first prototype, Bleex 1 (Berkeley Lower Extremity EXoskeleton) and are working on Bleex 2.

In the bitmap above you can see Bleex 1 on the left, the powered armor from the Starship Troopers cartoon in the center, and the proposed Bleex final on the right.

Bleex 1 consists of a pair of hydraulically powered leg braces, more than 40 electronic sensors, a control computer, and an internal-combustion engine providing power from an attached backpack. The plastic and carbon-fiber braces are affixed rigidly to the soldier through a customized pair of standard Army boots, with more compliant and giving connections at the chest and waist.

The 2-hp engine turns a pump to pressurize the hydraulic system with 1,000-psi fluid. Hydraulics power the actuators, giving the exoskeleton its muscles and letting it move. The engine also turns a generator for electricity. The device carries about a quart of gas, enough for 15 min of high-powered walking.

Key to controlling Bleex 1 is the lack of operator controls. Instead, Berkeley researchers clinically analyzed the human gait and programmed the robotic legs to follow that pattern. The wearer simply moves his limbs, and the suit detects that movement and powers the suit to follow.

“The pilot is not ‘driving’ the exoskeleton,” says Kazerooni. “Instead, the control algorithms in the computer constantly calculate how to move the exoskeleton so that it moves in concert with the human.” Source: Machine Design

We Say: Cool, though bulky. Like I said, the Roughnecks need not worry, much less a Mad Cat from MechWarrior. Maybe I watch too many movies, but after seeing the experience of flamethrower operators on the beach in Saving Private Ryan, I’m not sure I want that gasoline on my back, though.