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New Robotic Exoskeleton Helps Soldiers Carry More Weight
fox ^ | 3/11/09 | noah scahcmt

Posted on 03/15/2009 3:24:00 PM PDT by Flavius

A new robotic exoskeleton developed by Lockheed Martin will help soldiers carry loads of up to 200 pounds for extended periods of time with minimal effort.

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: heinlein; hulc
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1 posted on 03/15/2009 3:24:00 PM PDT by Flavius
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To: Flavius

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ_qR8zCLDc&eurl=http://blog.wired.com/defense/2009/02/lockheed-exo.html


2 posted on 03/15/2009 3:24:11 PM PDT by Flavius
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To: Flavius
Lockheed Martin? Aren't they part of the eeeeeeevil private sector?

I'm surprised with all the geniuses serving in government that it was the private sector that came up with this idea.

Like they say, there's a first time for everything, right?

Wait a minute. Now that I think of it, what was the last great invention that a government bureaucrat came up with?

3 posted on 03/15/2009 3:30:16 PM PDT by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all. -- Texas Eagle)
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To: Texas Eagle

“Wait a minute. Now that I think of it, what was the last great invention that a government bureaucrat came up with? “

taxes - it allows them to control anything and everything they want.


4 posted on 03/15/2009 3:34:05 PM PDT by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: Flavius

5 posted on 03/15/2009 3:36:49 PM PDT by freedomson (Tagline comment removed by moderator)
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To: Flavius
Ripley had this bad boy back in '86!


6 posted on 03/15/2009 3:54:13 PM PDT by Iron Munro (Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.)
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To: Texas Eagle

And where does a private contractor working on a government contract under government management fit in?


7 posted on 03/15/2009 4:10:33 PM PDT by sphinx
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To: patton

Real or plastic rice bowl?


8 posted on 03/15/2009 4:11:41 PM PDT by ASOC (On strike until Congress lowers THEIR wages)
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To: sphinx
And where does a private contractor working on a government contract under government management fit in?

Is this a riddle?

9 posted on 03/15/2009 4:17:41 PM PDT by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all. -- Texas Eagle)
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To: ASOC
Fake.

Any market for one of these?


10 posted on 03/15/2009 4:20:42 PM PDT by patton (If Hawai'i secedes, is Barack Obama still an illegal alien?)
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To: Flavius

Robert Heinlein envisioned the power assisted exoskeleton in “Starship Troopers”. In Heinlein’s version, the exoskeleton could be parachuted from orbit and used jet assist to hop onto the top of buildings, but that will come along in version 2.0.


11 posted on 03/15/2009 4:20:58 PM PDT by 6SJ7 (Atlas Shrugged Mode: ON)
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To: Iron Munro; Titan Magroyne
Robert Heinlein equiped the Mobile Infantry with powered armor exoskeletons in 1959's Starship Troopers. Johnnie Rico had it long before Ripley and it was nuclear powered.

Starship Troopers is still on the reading lists of the United States Army, the United States Marine Corps and the United States Navy. It is the only science fiction novel on the reading list at four of the five United States military academies.

"No, they've got no time for glory in the Infantry,
No, they've got no use for praises loudly sung,
But in every soldier's heart in all the Infantry
Shines the name, shines the name of Rodger Young!"

12 posted on 03/15/2009 4:21:18 PM PDT by Drumbo ("Democracy can withstand anything but democrats." - Jubal Harshaw (Robert A. Heinlein))
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To: Flavius
I'm surprised that there are no defense contractors (to the best of my knowledge), working on something like this...

If so ... I just hope they incorporate multiple fail-over shut down commands for them.


13 posted on 03/15/2009 4:24:25 PM PDT by CapnJack
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To: Flavius

Ahh..yes, we all know that troops just love to stand plumb upright in the midst of a firefight.

Frame weighs 53 lbs, need batteries, and I don’t see the push-up arm allowing a troop to recover from a prone position, nor any mention of a quick release for the wounded.

Once down, it seem to be a deathtrap for the trooper.

Damn!....I need to get me some gubmint sugar.


14 posted on 03/15/2009 4:33:47 PM PDT by Covenantor ("Men are ruled...by liars who refuse them news, and by fools who cannot govern." Chesterton)
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To: freedomson

Man what we could accomplish with a squad of Ultramarines...


15 posted on 03/15/2009 4:45:34 PM PDT by Mmogamer (<This space for lease>)
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To: Mmogamer

LOL!


16 posted on 03/15/2009 4:49:47 PM PDT by freedomson (Tagline comment removed by moderator)
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To: Flavius

Something that has long puzzled me about exoskeletons is the use of older type materials in their construction. Why use heavy and bulky steel when you can use an advanced ceramic with a fraction of the weight and size, that is stronger than steel?

Another thing is that many of the mechanical issues have been dealt with in advanced prosthetic devices. For example, smooth, gentle muscle actions can be done with sheathed air hoses; strong, powerful and quick muscle actions can be done with hydrogen peroxide pistons. These advances should be integrated into the exoskeleton.

And why model to fit a biped, humanoid shape? A soldier inside an exoskeleton that looks more like a daddy long legs spider might be far better suited for some tasks, like quickly ascending and descending a brush covered hill.. The same with standing launched wings. Sure, he might look like a pterodactyl, but that might be just what is needed.


17 posted on 03/15/2009 4:57:04 PM PDT by yefragetuwrabrumuy
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To: Flavius

Too bad the only weight these will be used to carry will be huge caches of handguns and semi-auto rifles Obama’s Civilian Defense Forces confiscate from the American people.


18 posted on 03/15/2009 5:37:31 PM PDT by FreepShop1 (www.FreepShop.com)
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To: Flavius

“More weight, Sergeant!”


19 posted on 03/15/2009 5:40:45 PM PDT by onedoug
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To: patton

DO you actually own that?

This would sale as an antique up here.

A 1970 Invader? 640?

The real/fake was about the L-M “Demo”

I call fake.....


20 posted on 03/15/2009 9:54:01 PM PDT by ASOC (On strike until Congress lowers THEIR wages)
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