Exoskeleton -- Engadget

exoskeleton posts

Video: Power Loader has giant freaking robot arms!

by Vladislav Savov posted Oct 1st 2009 at 4:51AM

We've seen our fair share of useful but ugly and pretty but pointless robotic concoctions, but nothing quite like this. The Power Loader suit, which was directly inspired by the mech outfits in Aliens, is in our humble opinion an exoskeleton done right. With two massive protruding arms, capable of lifting 220 pounds without a sweat, direct force feedback for intuitive control, and even powered legs, we're inclined to believe what we're seeing here is a tiny glimpse of the awesome mech-dominated future we've been waiting so long for. Also known as the Dual-Arm Power Amplification Robot, this is produced by Activelink, a Panasonic subsidiary, and you might be shocked to discover that there are plans afoot to commercialize it by 2015. Entrancing video after the break.

Continue reading Video: Power Loader has giant freaking robot arms!

Cyberdyne said to be mass producing $4,200 HAL robotic suit

by Darren Murph posted Apr 11th 2009 at 10:02AM

Years after the HAL (Hybrid Assistive Limb) suit first debuted, it seems that Cyberdyne's pride and joy is about to get really real. According to a report over at HPlus Magazine, the company is linking up with Daiwa House in order to "begin mass production" of the cybernetic bodysuit. You already know what it does -- inflates the ego, boosts your strength and scores you loads of nerd dates -- but here's the crucial part: $4,200. Of course, there's no hard date on when the first of the 400 annual units produced will be made available, but we'd probably get up with someone about a pre-order if you're serious about going bionic.

[Thanks, Phil]

New robotic exoskeleton aims to help farmers combat age, mutant plants

by Donald Melanson posted Jan 13th 2009 at 9:50PM

Well, it looks like there's been yet another development in the exoskeleton arms race between the US and Japan, with this latest entrant from the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology promising to help farmers and gardeners deal better with old age and increasingly unwieldy crops. This one weighs in at a somewhat hefty 55 pounds but, like most such exoskeletons, it's able to offload most of its own weight thanks to the use of eight motors and 16 sensors, which also, of course, help to give its wearer some super-strength. Better still, the researchers say the suit could be available in as soon as three years, and cost somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000.

[Via Engadget German]

Honda introduces new walking assist machine, doubles as bionic wedgie maker

by Tim Stevens posted Nov 7th 2008 at 7:44AM

For a company most famous for its wheeled products, Honda certainly seems quite focused on things to help people get about on their own two feet, introducing another new prototype machine with just that in mind. Unlike the earlier Walking Assist Device, which is intended just to help patients re-learn how to walk, the new (and cunningly named) Walking Assist Device with Bodyweight Support System is for anyone who needs a lift -- even those who are perfectly healthy. To use it you basically straddle a bicycle seat with robotic legs, tie it to your shoes, and then (gingerly) go about your business, uncomfortably demonstrated in a video after the break. The legs support your body when you crouch and give little tugs on your feet when you walk, making bipedal mobility less of a strain. A Honda engineer said "It reduces stress, and you should feel less tired." Less tired, yes, and less exercised too. We envision a future where spindly robotic legs shudder under the weight of our grossly obese frames -- but maybe we've seen Wall-E too many times.

[Via Associated Press]

Continue reading Honda introduces new walking assist machine, doubles as bionic wedgie maker

Video: ReWalk exoskeleton helps paraplegics walk

by Darren Murph posted Jul 22nd 2008 at 3:53AM

ARGO Medical Technologies' ReWalk has been out a few months now, but it's tough to really appreciate what this thing can do unless you see a patient utilize one on video. Hailed as a "quasi-robotic ambulation system," the wearable device was specifically created to assist those with lower-limb disabilities and give them back upright mobility. In the video waiting in the read link, one particular individual relies on the ReWalk to stand up and move about after being stricken to a wheelchair for 20 years -- no need to take our word for it, though, real live proof is but a click away.

[Via MedGadget]

Original Project Grizzly suit being auctioned off

by Darren Murph posted Jul 7th 2008 at 2:10PM

Troy Hurtubise has certainly auctioned off a few grizzly fighting suits before (not to mention the Halo-inspired Trojan), but this is likely your one and only shot at procuring the original Project Grizzly Mk VI suit worn by Troy himself in the generally unknown cult classic Project Grizzly. The suit is being offered to the highest bidder as the Grizzly Proof exhibit in Toronto shuts down, and while the starting bid sits at $500, it'll take upwards of 40 grand before Mr. Hurtubise's debts associated with the suit are cleared. C'mon, you know that's all the reason you need to throw your hat into the ring.

[Thanks, Cantraider]

Honda's Walking Assist Device beginning medical testing

by Donald Melanson posted Jun 30th 2008 at 2:26PM

Honda's been busy showing off its Walking Assist Device at trade shows and whatnot for some time now, but it looks like it's now finally getting down to some actual trials of the contraption, with it set to begin some collaborative testing with the Shinseikai Medical Group at Kasumigaseki-Minami Hospital tomorrow. They will reportedly be using the device in rehabilitation training to help people learn to walk again, during which time the "compatibility and effectiveness" will be evaluated. In case you missed it, the Walking Assist Device uses some of the same technology that Honda originally developed for its ASIMO robot, including an array of sensors and motors that promise to keep the wearer upright and, eventually, give them a fighting chance against the machines.

Berkeley Bionics' HULC exoskeleton lets you effortlessly carry 200lbs

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted May 31st 2008 at 6:17AM

Sorry, but squats are so 20th Century. Instead, strap on the HULC -- Human Universal Load Carrier -- exoskeleton and effortlessly carry an extra 200lbs. HULC not only increases your human payload, but it also "decreases [your] metabolic cost". In other words, it seems Berkeley Bionics developed this thing for extremely lazy people, those who lose their breath easily, or for those on what they call "long duration missions". This is no joke, though -- the company is taking orders for the suit already.

[Via Switched]

Honda to show off experimental "walking assist device"

by Donald Melanson posted Apr 22nd 2008 at 4:37PM

It's far from the only strength-boosting exoskeleton out there, but Honda's so-called "walking assist device" is one of the few that you can actually take for a test spin -- if you happen to be attending the Barrier Free 2008 trade show in Osaka, Japan next week, that is. Apparently employing some of the same technology developed by Honda for its ASIMO robot, the walking assistant is able to obtain information from hip angle sensors to help keep its wearer upright, with the device's motors also able to increase the wearer's natural stride. That, Honda says, should make the device ideal for the elderly or those with weakened leg muscles, although we're sure they could find at least a few other buyers if it ever actually hits the market at a reasonable price.

[Via Autoblog]

Popular Science blows out the Sarcos XOS exoskeleton

by Donald Melanson posted Apr 11th 2008 at 5:04PM

We were sold on (and slightly terrified of) the Sarcos XOS exoskeleton from the moment we first saw it show off its superhuman capabilities on video late last year, but if you just can't get enough of it you'll definitely want to hit up the ever-dependable Popular Science, which has now totally blown things out with the full story behind the suit, complete with some great new pics of it. As if that wasn't enough, the piece also includes some tidbits about some of Sarcos' future plans, including word that the Army plans to begin field-testing the XOS by 2009, and that the company intends to kick off a new research program this summer tasked with developing a new generator that'll be capable of powering the suit for "hours at a time." Of course, there's plenty more in the six-page feature that we're unable to sum up here, so be sure to hit up the link below for the full story.

Soft pneumatic exoskeleton trades sci-fi for wearability

by Paul Miller posted Apr 11th 2008 at 1:10AM

We love a good anime-inspired mechanical exoskeleton just as much as the next person, but most social contexts don't exactly smile upon lazy nerds doing their best impression of an AT-ST walker. That's why we're rather intrigued by this pneumatic and highly wearable soft exoskeleton put together by some folks at the University of Michigan. The suit is a hybrid system with electronics responsible for pumping the leg around, and a roboticist from the Science University of Tokyo is working on a version for the upper extremities.

[Via MAKE]

Wearable farming robot suit takes the load off

by Darren Murph posted Jan 17th 2008 at 9:20AM

Hard to believe we're seeing yet another wearable robot suit emerge from Japan, eh? All sarcasm aside, there actually is a newcomer to the curiously growing market courtesy of Shigeki Toyama and colleagues from the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology. The aptly dubbed farming robot suit is a strap-on contraption that makes lifting objects much easier than nature intended, reportedly reducing the wear and tear (read: force) placed on one's joints, knees and back by around 50-percent. Additionally, the suit will be programmable depending on the type of work being done, but we've no idea if any third-party attachments (you know, rubber band launchers, integrated HMDs, etc.) are in the works. On the real, you'll be looking at around ¥500,000 ($4,559) to ¥1,000,000 ($9,117) to ease your load, but that could dip as low as ¥200,000 ($1,823) per suit if mass production becomes viable.

[Via The Register]

Sarcos' military exoskeleton becomes a frightening reality

by Joshua Topolsky posted Nov 25th 2007 at 4:02AM

Have you been waiting for a legion of half-man, half-machine storm troopers to descend upon your city and blaze a round of hellfire in all general directions? If you said yes, that's kind of weird. At any rate, you can consider yourself one step closer to cyborg annihilation thanks to a company called Sarcos and its semi-scary exoskeleton -- which will make any regular old soldier into a Terminator-like killing machine (as far as we can tell). Sure, they demo the unit lifting heavy equipment and reducing fatigue of the user, but we know what this thing is really for -- and it doesn't involve food drops. Check the video after the break to have your mind shattered into a million delicious pieces.

Continue reading Sarcos' military exoskeleton becomes a frightening reality

MIT shows off load-bearing exoskeleton

by Donald Melanson posted Sep 20th 2007 at 12:46PM

While it isn't exactly treading new ground, MIT's new exoskeleton looks to boast more than enough robotics-enhanced super strength to garner some attention for itself, not to mention some interest from the folks at DARPA, who funded the project. As with similar systems, MIT's rig is designed to let individuals carry loads far heavier than they are normally able to, in this case taking 80 percent of the weight off an 80 pound load carried on a person's back. Unlike other systems, however, MIT's exoskeleton only requires a very small one watt power source, as opposed to the much larger gasoline engines used on some other rigs. The system apparently isn't quite perfected just yet though, as it currently "impedes the natural walking gait of the person wearing it," something MIT says it plans to improve.

[Via The Register]

Dean Kamen's robotic prosthetic arm gets detailed on video

by Darren Murph posted May 20th 2007 at 12:51AM

While you'd heard the whispers of a robotic prosthetic arm being crafted by Dean Kamen and his engineering colleagues, very little details have since surfaced on the project. Thankfully, a video was captured during a recent conference in Honolulu, Hawaii where Dean was addressing the FIRST Robotics competition. During the speech, however, he segued (ahem) into a brief glimpse at what's been going on behind the scenes with the device. Shown as "Gen X - Separate Exo Control," the robotic arm was seen demonstrated by team members grasping a water bottle from a friend, picking up an ink pen and turning the wrist over in order to write, and even scratching his nose. Kamen explained that haptic response was paramount, and the "fully completed" prototype sports 14 degrees of freedom (and actuators) and weighs less than nine pounds. Click on through for the captured demonstration.

[Via BoingBoing]

Continue reading Dean Kamen's robotic prosthetic arm gets detailed on video