The US Army Research Lab has presented general vision for 2040 which features giving soldiers Iron Man like powered full body armor with strength enhancement capabilities and creating new lighter tanks.
The US Army has been funding powered and unpowered exoskeletons to help soldiers lift loads and enhance performance.
In 2022, 100 soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division gave passed a soft unpowered exoskeleton system. Researchers at Vanderbilt designed SABER as a wearable device that is soft, lightweight and form fitting. This unmotorized device can be selectively engaged by the Soldier to assist lifting capabilities. More than 100 Soldiers participated in testing of the exosuit at three different bases, reporting less back strain and greater endurance while wearing SABER prototypes. Biomechanical evaluations revealed that the three-pound suit reduced stress on Soldiers’ backs by more than 100 pounds while lifting. Additionally, most Soldiers increased their endurance by over 60 percent while wearing SABER. An overwhelming 90 percent of Soldiers surveyed after operational field testing in May 2022 believed the exosuit increased their ability to perform job tasks, and all of them reported that they would be likely to wear it for their job if it were developed into a product and made available to them.
DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory, in cooperation with DEVCOM SC, is providing funding to HeroWear, a Nashville-based industrial exosuit manufacturer and to Vanderbilt University to iteratively design and fabricate dozens of pre-production units in late 2022, with the goal to ramp up to hundreds of units in 2023.
The Herowear Apex 2 works like an extra set of back muscles. Elastic bands stretch as your muscles extend during movements, then recoil as your muscles contract, returning energy and assisting with every bending motion. The bands comfortably move with the user and reduce forces on the spinal muscles and discs each time the wearer bends forward or squats down – all with no motors or batteries.
The Apex 2 system costs about $1299 each.
Commercial Powered Exoskeletons for the Elderly and Disabled
There are commercial powered exoskeletons to help the elderly and disabled to move around.
There are various FDA cleared devices.
Parker Hannifin’s Indego Exoskeleton is an FDA-Cleared, electrically powered support system for legs that helps spinal cord injury patients and stroke patients walk.
ReWalk features powered hip and knee motion to enable those with lower limb disabilities, including paraplegia as a result of spinal cord injury (SCI), to perform self-initiated standing, walking, and stair ascending and descending.
ReStore, a simpler system by the same manufacturer, attaches to a single leg to assist with gait retraining, and was approved by the FDA in 2019.
Ekso Bionics’s EskoGT is a hydraulically powered exoskeleton system allowing paraplegics to stand and walk with crutches or a walker. It was approved by the FDA in 2019.
Military Use Exoskeleton Development
The Sarcos Guardian XO is a full-body powered exoskeleton, designed for a variety of industrial and military applications, which is currently under development and is said to become commercially available in the future. The Guardian XO is powered by standard lithium ion batteries and is designed to increase strength and endurance while helping to prevent injury. The Guardian XO enables workers to lift up to 200 pounds repeatedly without strain or fatigue.
Many of the military powered exoskeleton programs were cancelled because they just moved the weight around from some muscle groups to other muscles.
Other powered suits like Sarcos work but the military needs unplugged power to last for 96 hours. This means better batteries are needed. There are new dense energy batteries being made by CATL and other battery startups.
A military veteran, Cappy, and now youtuber at Task and Purpose, likes the new lighter weight and more comfortable, soft combat t-shirt armor. The new armor is lighter and able to stop 9mm rounds and high velocity shrapnel.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.
Ive seen these “iron man” programs for over 20 yrs now, remember the Land Warrior program in late 90s?
giant money vacuum scheme by Raytheon
Should not use the Iron Man trope for exoskeleton.
I suggest the Space Marine / Astartes / Sister of Battle are a better example.
Because, if you get powered exoskeleton, transhuman-biologically-enhanced warriors are the next step (with powered exoskeleton).
If one power ever deploys a battle system that actually tilts the balance in its favor, the other is more likely to use WMD.
JSF, or incrementally improved jet engines for JSF are not such a threat. The iron man stuff is a pipedream – a joke – pork.
One of the biggest problems I ran into while wearing body armor was the lack of air circulation. No air movement = No cooling from sweat evaporation.