Exoskeletons help the paralyzed walk, make hard work easy, protect soldiers on the battlefield and give us superpowers.

1. Activelink Power Loader

Named after the famous exoskeleton from the movie Aliens, the Activelink Power Loader is designed to make heavy manual labor easier for the wearer regardless of age, gender or size, and aims to “create a society without limits,” according to an Activelink press release. a subsidiary of the famous Japanese electronics manufacturer Panasonic.

2. HAL

HAL (Hybrid Assistive Limb) is a mechanical exoskeleton from Japan developed by Cyberdine Inc. (yes, just like those guys who started it all in the Terminator), was created as a prototype in 1997, and is now used in Japanese hospitals to help seriously ill patients in their daily activities. It is also known that HAL was used by Japanese construction workers and even rescuers during the liquidation of the Fukushima-1 accident in 2011.

3. Ekso Bionics

14. Project “Walk Again”

The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil was opened by Juliano Pinto, who was paralyzed from the waist down and was given the right to take the first kick of the World Cup ball. This was made possible thanks to an exoskeleton connected directly to his brain, developed by Duke University. This event is part of the Walk Again project, created by a team of 150 people led by renowned neurologist and leading figure in the field of brain-machine interfaces, Dr. Miguel Nicolelis. Juliano Pinto simply thought that he wanted to kick the ball, the exoskeleton recorded brain activity and activated the mechanisms necessary for movement.

I remember watching “Avatar” and being completely stunned by the exoskeletons shown there. Since then, I think that the future lies with these smart pieces of hardware. I also really want to apply my misguided little hands to this topic. Moreover, if you believe the analytical agency ABI Research, the global market for exoskeletons by 2025 will be $1.8 billion. at this stage Not being a technician, engineer, architect or programmer, I am somewhat confused. I'm thinking about how to approach this topic. I would be glad if people who would potentially be interested in participating in such projects would be noted in the comments to the article.
There are currently four key companies operating in the exoskeleton market: the American Indego, the Israeli ReWalk, the Japanese Hybrid Assistive Limb and Ekso Bionics. The average cost of their products is from 75 to 120 thousand euros. In Russia, people also don’t sit without doing anything. For example, the Exoathlete company is actively working on medical exoskeletons.

The first exoskeleton was jointly developed by General Electric and the United States military in the 60s, and was called Hardiman. He could lift 110 kg with a lifting force of 4.5 kg. However, it was impractical due to its significant mass of 680 kg. The project was not successful. Any attempt to use a full exoskeleton resulted in intense uncontrolled movement, as a result of which it was never fully tested with a person inside. Further studies focused on one arm. Although she was supposed to lift 340 kg, her weight was 750 kg, which was twice the lifting force. Without getting all the components together to work, the practical application of the Hardiman project was limited.

Next there will be a brief story about modern exoskeletons, which one way or another have reached the level of commercial implementation.

1. Independent walking. Does not require crutches or other means of stabilization, while leaving your hands free.
4. The exoskeleton for the legs allows you to: stand up\sit down, turn around, walk backwards, stand on one leg, walk up the stairs, walk on various, even inclined surfaces.
5. The device is very easy to control - all functions are activated using the joystick.
6. The device can be used all day thanks to the high-capacity removable battery.
7. With the REX's light weight of only 38 kilograms, it can support users weighing up to 100 kilograms and with a height of 1.42 to 1.93 meters.
8. Convenient system fixation does not cause any discomfort even if you wear it all day.
9. Also, when the user does not move, but just stands, REX does not waste battery power.
10. Access to buildings without ramps, thanks to the ability to walk up stairs without outside help.

HAL

HAL ( Hybrid Assistive Limb) – is a robotic exoskeleton with upper limbs. At the moment, two prototypes have been developed - HAL 3 (restoration of motor function of the legs) and HAL 5 (restoration of the arms, legs and torso). With HAL 5, the operator is able to lift and carry objects up to five times the maximum load under normal conditions.

Price in Russia: they promised for 243,600 rubles. The information could not be confirmed.

Features and specifications:

1. Device weight 12 kg.
3. The device can work from 60 to 90 minutes without recharging.
4. The exoskeleton is actively used in the rehabilitation of patients with pathology of motor functions of the lower extremities due to disorders of the central nervous system or as a consequence of neuromuscular diseases.

Rewalk

Rewalk is an exoskeleton that allows paraplegics to walk. Like an exoskeleton or a bioelectronic suit, the ReWalk device uses special sensors to detect deviations in a person's balance and then transforms them into impulses that normalize his movements, allowing the person to walk or stand. ReWalk is already available in Europe and is currently FDA approved in the United States.

Price in Russia: from 3.4 million rubles (on order).

Features and specifications:

1. Device weight 25 kg.
2. The exoskeleton can support up to 80 kg.
3. The device can work up to 180 minutes without recharging.
4. Battery charging time 5-8 hours
5. The exoskeleton is actively used in the rehabilitation of patients with pathology of motor functions of the lower extremities due to disorders of the central nervous system or as a consequence of neuromuscular diseases.

Exo bionic

Ekso GT is another exoskeleton project that helps people with serious illnesses musculoskeletal system, regain the ability to move.

Price in Russia: from 7.5 million rubles (on order).

Features and specifications:

1. Device weight 21.4 kg.
2. The exoskeleton can support up to 100 kg.
3. Maximum hip width: 42cm;
4. Battery weight: 1.4 kg;
5. Dimensions (HxWxD): 0.5 x 1.6 x 0.4 m.
6. The exoskeleton is actively used in the rehabilitation of patients with pathology of motor functions of the lower extremities due to disorders of the central nervous system or as a consequence of neuromuscular diseases.

DM

DM ( Dream machine) – a hydraulic automated exoskeleton with a voice control system.

Price in Russia: 700,000 rubles.

Features and specifications:

1. Device weight 21 kg.
2. The exoskeleton must support the user's weight up to 100 kg.
3. The scope of application can be much wider than the rehabilitation of patients with pathology of motor functions of the lower extremities due to disorders of the central nervous system or as a consequence of neuromuscular diseases. This could be industry, construction, show business and the fashion industry.

Issues for discussion:

1. What is optimal composition project teams?
2. What is the cost of the project at the initial stage?
3. What are the pitfalls?
4. How do you see optimal time implementation of a project from idea to commercial launch?
5. Is it worth starting a project like this now and why?
6. What should be the geography and market expansion?
7. Are you personally ready to take part in such a project and if so, in what capacity?

ZY I would be grateful for constructive discussion, opinions, arguments and arguments for and against in the comments. I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking about this. Meanwhile, I am sure that the exoskeleton is new iPhone in the world popular culture on the horizon of the next ten years.

I remember watching “Avatar” and being completely stunned by the exoskeletons shown there. Since then, I think that the future lies with these smart pieces of hardware. I also really want to apply my misguided little hands to this topic. Moreover, if you believe the analytical agency ABI Research, the global market for exoskeletons will be $1.8 billion by 2025. At this stage, not being a technician, engineer, architect or programmer, I am somewhat confused. I'm thinking about how to approach this topic. I would be glad if people who would potentially be interested in participating in such projects would be noted in the comments to the article.
There are currently four key companies operating in the exoskeleton market: the American Indego, the Israeli ReWalk, the Japanese Hybrid Assistive Limb and Ekso Bionics. The average cost of their products is from 75 to 120 thousand euros. In Russia, people also don’t sit without doing anything. For example, the Exoathlete company is actively working on medical exoskeletons.

Next there will be a brief story about modern exoskeletons, which one way or another have reached the level of commercial implementation.

1. Independent walking. Does not require crutches or other means of stabilization, while leaving your hands free.
4. The exoskeleton for the legs allows you to: stand up\sit down, turn around, walk backwards, stand on one leg, walk up the stairs, walk on various, even inclined surfaces.
5. The device is very easy to control - all functions are activated using the joystick.
6. The device can be used all day thanks to the high-capacity removable battery.
7. With the REX's light weight of only 38 kilograms, it can support users weighing up to 100 kilograms and with a height of 1.42 to 1.93 meters.
8. Convenient fixation system does not cause any discomfort even if you wear it all day.
9. Also, when the user does not move, but just stands, REX does not waste battery power.
10. Access to buildings without ramps, thanks to the ability to walk up stairs without assistance.

HAL

Price in Russia: they promised for 243,600 rubles. The information could not be confirmed.

Features and specifications:

Rewalk

Price in Russia: from 3.4 million rubles (on order).

Features and specifications:

Exo bionic

Ekso GT is another exoskeleton project that helps people with severe musculoskeletal diseases regain the ability to move.

Price in Russia: from 7.5 million rubles (on order).

Features and specifications:

DM

DM ( Dream machine) – a hydraulic automated exoskeleton with a voice control system.

Price in Russia: 700,000 rubles.

Features and specifications:

Issues for discussion:

1. What is the optimal composition of a project team?
2. What is the cost of the project at the initial stage?
3. What are the pitfalls?
4. What do you see as the optimal time frame for implementing a project from idea to commercial launch?
5. Is it worth starting a project like this now and why?
6. What should be the geography and market expansion?
7. Are you personally ready to take part in such a project and if so, in what capacity?

ZY I would be grateful for constructive discussion, opinions, arguments and arguments for and against in the comments. I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking about this. Meanwhile, I am sure that the exoskeleton is the new iPhone in world popular culture on the horizon of the next ten years.

If you are one of those who watched all the parts with great pleasure " Iron Man", you were probably delighted with the iron suit that Tony Stark put on before the fight with the villains. Agree, it would be nice to have such a suit. In addition to the ability to take you anywhere in the blink of an eye, even for bread, it would protect your body from all kinds of damage and give superhuman strength.

It probably won't surprise you that very soon, a lighter version of the Iron Man suit will allow soldiers to run faster, carry heavier weapons and navigate rough terrain. At the same time, the suit will protect them from bullets and bombs. Military engineers and private companies have been working on exoskeletons since the 1960s, but only recent advances in electronics and materials science have brought us closer to realizing this idea than ever before.

In 2010, US defense contractor Raytheon demonstrated an experimental exoskeleton called XOS 2—essentially a robotic suit controlled by the human brain—that could lift two to three times more weight than a person, without any effort or outside help. Another company, Trek Aerospace, is developing an exoskeleton with a built-in jetpack that can fly at speeds of 112 km/h and hover motionless above the ground. These and a number of other promising companies, including such monsters as Lockheed Martin, are bringing the Iron Man suit closer to reality every year.

Read the interview with the creator of the Russian exoskeleton Stakhanov.

ExoskeletonXOS 2 fromRaytheon

Note that not only the military will benefit from the development of a good exoskeleton. One day, people with spinal cord injuries or degenerative diseases that limit mobility will be able to move around with ease thanks to external frame suits. The first versions of exoskeletons, such as ReWalk from Argo Medical Technologies, have already entered the market and received widespread approval. However, at the moment, the field of exoskeletons is still in its infancy.

What revolution do future exoskeletons promise to bring to the battlefield? What technical hurdles must engineers and designers overcome to make exoskeletons truly practical for everyday use? Let's figure it out.

History of the development of exoskeletons

Warriors have been putting armor on their bodies since time immemorial, but the first idea of a body with mechanical muscles appeared in science fiction in 1868, in one of Edward Sylvester Ellis's dime novels. The book "Steam Man of the Prairies" described a giant steam engine human form, which moved its inventor, the brilliant Johnny Brainerd, at a speed of 96.5 km/h when he hunted bulls and Indians.

But this is fantastic. The first real patent for an exoskeleton was received by Russian mechanical engineer Nikolai Yagn in the 1890s in America. The designer, known for his developments, lived overseas for more than 20 years and patented a dozen ideas describing an exoskeleton that allows soldiers to run, walk and jump with ease. However, in fact, Yagn is known only for the creation of the “Stoker's Friend” - an automatic device that supplies water to steam boilers.

Exoskeleton patented by N. Yagn

By 1961, two years after Marvel Comics came up with Iron Man and Robert Heinlein wrote Starship Troopers, the Pentagon decided to make its own exosuits. He set out to create a "servo soldier", which was described as a "human capsule equipped with steering and amplifiers" that allowed heavy objects to be moved quickly and easily, as well as protecting the wearer from bullets, poisonous gas, heat and radiation. By the mid-1960s, Cornell University engineer Neil Meisen had developed a 15.8-kilogram wearable framed exoskeleton, dubbed the “superman suit” or “human amplifier.” It allowed the user to lift 453 kilograms with each hand. At the same time, General Electric had developed a similar 5.5-meter device, the so-called “pedipulator,” which was controlled by an operator from the inside.

Despite these very interesting steps, they were not crowned with success. The suits proved impractical, but research continued. In the 1980s, scientists at the Los Alamos Laboratory created a design for the so-called Pitman suit, an exoskeleton for use by American troops. However, the concept remained only on the drawing board. Since then, the world has seen several more developments, but lack of materials and energy limitations have not allowed us to see the real Iron Man suit.

For years, exoskeleton manufacturers have been stymied by the limits of technology. The computers were too slow to process the commands that powered the suits. There wasn't enough power supply to make the exoskeleton portable enough, and the electromechanical actuator muscles that moved the limbs were simply too weak and bulky to function in a "human" way. Nevertheless, a start had been made. The idea of an exoskeleton turned out to be too promising for the military and medical fields to simply part with it.

Man-machine

In the early 2000s, the quest to create a real Iron Man suit began to get somewhere.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA, the Pentagon's incubator for exotic and advanced technologies, launched a $75 million program to create an exoskeleton to complement the human body and its performance. DARPA's list of requirements was quite ambitious: the agency wanted a vehicle that would allow a soldier to tirelessly carry hundreds of kilograms of cargo for days on end, support large guns that typically require two operators, and be able to carry a wounded soldier off the battlefield if necessary. In this case, the car must be invulnerable to fire, and also jump high. Many immediately considered DARPA's plan impracticable.

But not all.

Sarcos - led by robot creator Steve Jacobsen, who had previously created an 80-ton mechanical dinosaur - came up with an innovative system that used sensors and used those signals to control a set of valves, which in turn adjusted hydraulics under high pressure in the joints . The mechanical joints moved cylinders connected by cables that mimicked the tendons that connect human muscles. As a result, the experimental exoskeleton XOS was born, which made a person look like a giant insect. Sarcos was eventually acquired by Raytheon, which continued development to introduce the second generation of the suit five years later.

The XOS 2 exoskeleton excited the public so much that Time magazine included it in its Top 5 list of 2010.

Meanwhile, other companies, like Berkeley Bionics, were working to reduce the amount of energy that artificial prosthetics required so that the exoskeleton could function long enough to be practical. One project from the 2000s, the Human Load Carrier (HULC), could operate for up to 20 hours on a single charge. Progress was moving forward little by little.

Exoskeleton HAL

By the end of the decade, the Japanese company Cyberdyne had developed a robotic suit called HAL, even more incredible in its design. Instead of relying on the muscle contractions of a human operator, HAL operated on sensors that read electrical signals from the operator's brain. In theory, a HAL-5-based exoskeleton could allow the user to do anything they want just by thinking about it, without moving a single muscle. But for now, these exoskeletons are a project of the future. And they have their own problems. For example, only a few exoskeletons have been approved for public use to date. The rest are still being tested.

Development problems

By 2010, the DARPA project to create exoskeletons led to certain results. Currently, advanced exoskeleton systems weighing up to 20 kilograms can lift up to 100 kilograms of payload with virtually no operator effort. At the same time, the latest exoskeletons are quieter than an office printer, can move at a speed of 16 km/h, perform squats and jump.

Not long ago, one of the defense contractors, Lockheed Martin, introduced its exoskeleton designed for heavy lifting. The so-called “passive exoskeleton,” designed for shipyard workers, simply transfers the load to the exoskeleton’s legs on the ground.

The difference between modern exoskeletons and those developed in the 60s is that they are equipped with sensors and GPS receivers. Thus, further raising the stakes for military use. Soldiers could gain a host of benefits using such exoskeletons, from precise geopositioning to additional superpowers. DARPA is also developing automated fabrics that could be used in exoskeletons to monitor heart and respiratory health.

If American industry continues to move along this path, it will very soon have vehicles that can not only move “faster, higher, stronger,” but also carry an additional several hundred payloads. However, it will be at least several more years before real iron men take to the battlefield.

As is often the case, the developments of military agencies (think, for example, the Internet) can be of great benefit in peacetime, as the technology will eventually come out and help people. Suffering from complete or partial paralysis, people with spinal cord injuries and muscle atrophy will be able to lead more fulfilling lives. Berkeley Bionics, for example, is testing eLegs, a battery-powered exoskeleton that would allow a person to walk, sit, or simply stand for long periods of time.

One thing is certain: the process of rapid development of exoskeletons began at the beginning of this century (let’s call it the second wave), and how it all ends will become known very, very soon. Technologies never stand still, and if engineers take on something, they bring it to its logical conclusion.

DIY exoskeleton

How can you implement an exoskeleton yourself?

To make it wildly strong, as I understand it, you should stick to hydraulics.
For the hydraulic system to work you need:

- durable and movable frame
-minimally necessary set hydraulic pistons (I’ll call them “muscles”)
-two vacuum pump, two pressure chambers with a valve system connected by a tube.
-tubes that can withstand high pressure.
-power supply exoskeleton
To control the valve system:
-A small dead computer
-about 30 sensors with seven (for example) degrees proportional to the degrees of valve openness
- a special program capable of reading the states of sensors and sending the corresponding commands to the valves.

Why is all this necessary:

- “muscles” and the frame are actually the entire musculoskeletal system.
-vacuum pumps. why two? so that one increases the pressure in the pressure chambers, pipes and muscles, and the second reduces it.
-pressure chambers connected by a tube. in one, increase the pressure in the second, decrease, and equip the tube with a valve that opens only in two cases: pressure equalization, ensuring idle move liquids.
-valves. it's simple and efficient system control, which will depend on the pressure in the pressure chamber and computer control. increasing the pressure in the pressure chamber by opening the valves of the “stressed muscles” channels will allow you to carry out certain actions, increasing the pressure on the hydraulic pistons, moving parts of the skeleton (frame).

Sensors, why about thirty? Two for the feet, three for the legs, six for the arms and 4 for the back. how to arrange them? against the movement of the limbs. so that the leg pushed forward puts pressure from the inside on the exoskeleton and on the sensor on its inner side. I will further explain why this is so.
- a computer with a program. the main task computer and program to make sure that the sensors do not experience pressure, then the person inside will not feel the unnecessary resistance of the exoskeleton, which will strive to repeat the human movements regardless of the activity of nerves, muscles or other biometric indicators, thereby allowing the use of much cheaper sensors, than, for example, in high-tech exoskeletons. sensor signals for the computer should be divided into two groups: with unconditional control hydraulic system and accepted only on the condition that the opposite sensor with unconditional control does not experience pressure. This implementation will keep the leg resting with the knee on the ground from automatic extension if the person does not straighten it himself. But to do this, the person inside the exoskeleton will have to lift his leg from the ground (or he needs to programmatically reduce the sensitivity of the sensors triggered by the condition). Using the leg as an example: place sensors with an unconditioned signal on the front side, and sensors with an unconditioned signal on the back. Imagine for yourself how the movement will be carried out. when a person bends his leg, the exoskeleton leg will bend even if the entire weight of the person is on the sensors that extend the leg. Here, using an accelerometer (or another device similar to a vestibular one), you can programmatically set a change in the unconditionality of sensor signals depending on the position of the body in space, eliminating the twisting of the exoskeleton when falling on your back.

Next, to increase the strength, make the hands three-fingered, strong, you can combine hydraulics and a metal cable. the hand should be separate from the human one, that is, in front of the wrist joint, this will eliminate the design difficulties associated with the presence of the human hand in the exoskeleton hand and will not allow injury to the human hand, as well as the human foot should be on the ankle joint of the exoskeleton and protected.
-hand control. a little free space for two-thirds of the freedom of movement of the hand and fingers of a person in the exoskeleton hand and a system of three rings on cables, three fingers from the little finger to the middle finger in one, the index in the other and the thumb in the third. all control comes down to the fact that the human fingers, moving the ring that is put on them, scroll the sensor wheel with a cable, depending on the rotation of which the fingers of the exoskeleton bend and straighten. this will rule out extra effort hydraulics to extend or bend the fingers of the exoskeleton beyond its design capabilities. Use one cable for two rings, one or two. Why? because the fingers from the little finger to the index finger need to be bent and unbent only in one direction and thumb in two. If you want, you can check it with your own hands.

Power supply exoskeleton- here again, this is where terrible bullshit comes out. You need to select a power source only after all necessary calculations, maximum optimization of the exoskeleton design and measurement of its energy consumption.