Tony Stark used exotic composites, metal alloys, and other Hollywood-only make-believe materials to build his armor-plated Iron Man suit. But researchers at Harvard University’s Wyss Institute, constrained by the limitations of reality, took a different approach with a muscle-enhancing exoskeleton that could one day be as comfy to wear as your favorite pair of jeans.
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Amputees may one day regain actual feeling thanks to Darpa and researchers at Case Western University who have created what we thought was once only possible in science fiction. As a part of DARPA’s Reliable Neural-Interface Technology (RE-NET) program, CWRU’s flat interface nerve electrode (FINE) system has demonstrated that it can provide enough sensation to each individual finger to give amputees the ability to feel their way around, just like Luke Skywalker.
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DARPA’s no stranger to bionic limb research, however two new projects under the agency’s RE-NET program focus on improving amputees’ link to their prosthetics. RE-NET aims to develop the technology that will connect artificial limbs to existing nerves and muscles. Once that’s achieved, users will be able feel with the prosthetic as well as move it as they would a real arm or leg, unlike another project focused on one-way control. Head past the break to watch videos documenting the clinical trials of both studies — the arms in the clips aren’t quite the life-like limbs DARPA promised back in 2006, but they sure are mighty impressive.
Source: DARPA RE-NET
This isn’t an ignominious box you’re looking at — it’s the potential future of military sensors. The device is DARPA’s first reference design for a ground sensor based on ADAPT (Adaptable Sensor System), a modular Android processing core that does the hard work for surveillance gear. The mobile technology inside is miserly enough to run on its own power, and smart enough to simplify both networking and remote control. More importantly, it should be cheap: DARPA expects to cut sensor development times from several years to less than one, with lower costs to match. The agency starts field testing the ground sensor this summer, and it’s already contemplating air- and sea-based ADAPT designs. Catch an example of DARPA’s airborne sensor experiments after the break.
Filed under: Misc
Source: DARPA
We’ve seen a variety of artificial exoskeletons that can augment a person’s strength and even help disabled people walk again. Their main disadvantage is that they’re quite bulky and heavy. That’s why DARPA is working on a similar suit, except this one’s meant to be worn like an undergarment.
As indicated in the concept image above, the Warrior Web suit is designed to help soldiers carry additional load while supporting injury prone areas such as the ankles, knees and hip joints. The idea is to provide all this while still allowing the soldier to wear the usual clothing and armor. The video below shows a soldier carrying a 61lb. load while wearing a Warrior Web prototype:
DARPA envisions future versions of the Warrior Web suit to have even more capabilities, such as “core injury mitigation technologies; comprehensive analytical representations; regenerative actuation; adaptive sensing and control; and suit human-to-wearer interface.” Perhaps the real world Iron Man will just look like Tony Stark.
The US military’s dabbled with full-on robotic suits in the past, but it’s now looking at a less convoluted, more energy-efficient approach. A project called Warrior Web from DARPA aims to enhance soldier carrying capacity and minimize injuries by distributing loads better, providing better joint support and “reapply(ing) energy to enhance motion.” Such a suit would be equipped with sensors to detect forces, and be able to fit beneath existing uniforms while consuming only 100W of juice. The US Army has nearly completed five months of prototype testing using a multi-camera motion capture system (see the video after the break) to develop critical tech. The next step will be to design and fabricate a suit ready for real-world testing, which should happen in the fall — assuming the program keeps its footing.
Filed under: Wearables, Science
Source: DARPA
Huge amounts of money and time are being spent researching robotics for myriad of potential uses in the future. Robots promise the ability to be able to work in environments that are too hazardous for humans. A robot must have the strength and dexterity to handle difficult situations that would confront human beings. A lot of research is being put into creating robotic components that mimic the human body in functionality if not design.
This is because tools, switches, valves, and environments where robots of the future are likely to work were created with humans in mind. DARPA and iRobot are currently working on one of the most important components of any humanoid robot, the hand. DARPA and iRobot have unveiled a robotic hand that has both strength and dexterity, something that is a requirement for any functional robot.
According to DARPA, the three-fingered robot hand is strong enough to lift a 50-pound weight, yet has the dexterity to utilize a small set of keys or even a set of tweezers. The robotic hand is also very strong and can survive being bashed by a baseball bat. DARPA stayed away from a five-finger human-style hand because the three-fingered hand features a usable palm making it easier to achieve fluid motion.
The hand created by DARPA and iRobot is known as the ARM-H and is constructed using 3-D printing, custom molded plastic and rubber, and plastic machining techniques. DARPA thinks that the hand will also be surprisingly affordable when produced in batches of 1000. DARPA predicts that in batches of thousand each robotic hand would cost about $3000. Current robotic hands can cost as much as $50,000 each.
[via CBS News]
Robot hand has strength of a strongman, dexterity of a doctor is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
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The world of robotics has certainly advanced by leaps and bounds over the years, and it seems that the advancements made in this particular category is not going to stop anytime soon. Well, scientists over in the US have managed to come up with a robot that is extremely small – we are talking about one that is roughly the size of a fly, where it is capable of performing the agile manoeuvres of those pesky insects, minus all the bacteria and filth that real flies carry around, of course.
The RoboBee was specially built from carbon fibre, and it tips the scales at a fraction of a gram, boasting super-fast electronic “muscles” to power its wings. Developed by the brains over at Harvard University, it seems that these small robots might eventually function as a tool in search and rescue operations, although I am quite sure that the Defense Department would want to take a closer look at it as well. Who knows? It might eventually be equipped with a payload, sorta like the tiny drones that we saw in GI Joe: Retaliation.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: 3-Finger Robot Hand Picks Up 50-Pound Weight Like A Boss, Robot Bird Fools Real Birds In Flight, 
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Robot hands seem to get more and more agile these days, and the future might eventually see a robot butler around your home that is not only capable of delivering your favorite drink to you on a tray, but also to wrestle with those pesky cans and bottles by pulling the tab or twisting the cap open, respectively. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and iRobot have come together to work on a new 3-fingered model of a robotic hand, where it the final prototype allows it to pick up a 50-pound weight with ease, and is also agile enough to make use of a small set of keys and is tough enough to get hit by a baseball bat without cracking. Hmmm, sounds like we are edging closer to a replacement hand for a bionic man, no? At least robotic hands do not shiver or shake whenever you are nervous.
Instead of mimicking a human hand, the three pronged approach was chosen with a useable palm so that it is easier for the robot to achieve a fluid motion. This is part of DARPA’s Autonomous Robotic Manipulation (ARM-H) program, where its objective lies in developing low-cost and agile robotic hand hardware. DARPA mentioned that should this 3-finger robot hand be manufactured in batches of 1,000, the cost could drop to as low as $3,000 per hand, which is a far cry from current robotic hands on the market that could cost up to a whopping $50,000.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: RoboBee The Flying Robot Insect, Robot Bird Fools Real Birds In Flight, 
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