Artificial Super-Skin Could Transform Phones, Robots and Artificial Limbs Touch sensitivity on gadgets and robots is nothing new. A few strategically placed sensors under a flexible, synthetic skin and you have pressure sensitivity. Add a capacitive, transparent screen to a device and you have touch sensitivity. The brainchild of Stanford University Associate Professor of chemical engineering Zhenan Bao, this “super skin” employs a transparent film of spray-on, single-walled carbon nanotubes that sit in a thin film of flexible silicon, which is then sandwiched between more silicon. After an initial stretch, which actually aligns the randomly sprayed-on conductive, carbon nanotubes into microscopic spring-like forms, the skin can be stretched and restretched again to twice its original size, without the springs or skin losing their resiliency. SEE ALSO: Humanoid Robot Charges Up, Takes a Load Off [VIDEOS] This unique makeup allows the malleable skin to measure force response even as it’s being stretched, or “squeezed like a sponge.”
I am Iron Man: Top 5 Exoskeleton Robots By David Goldstein Everyone has wished, at one point or another, that they had the strength to lift a car off of the ground, or break through a brick wall with the pound of a fist. You know, typical superhero stuff. But everyone who has tried it knows that most of the time reality, and the limits of the human body, spoil the fun. Thankfully, scientists have been developing a way around those limits, in the form of wearable exoskeleton robots capable of increasing our strength, stamina and speed. These aren't the massive, clunky brutes of old sci-fi movies, but nimble extensions of the human body with the gift of intelligence. While most of us probably won't be living out our superhero (or evil villain) fantasies, these robots have some very practical applications, both military and civilian. Here are the top five exoskeleton robots that stretch the limitations of our bodies and our imaginations. 1. 2. Want to look your best for a big night on the town?
Exoskeleton Helps Paralyzed Patients Walk Exoskeletons have been designed for military use and boosting strength. But the same technology that makes people able to lift heavier loads might also one day allow those with spinal injuries to walk. Ekso Bionics, a California company, developed the Human Universal Load Carrier, or HULC, a military exoskeleton licensed to Lockheed-Martin (at that time the company was known as Berkeley Bionics). PHOTOS: I Am Iron Man: Top 5 Exoskeleton Robots Amanda Boxtel is one of those people. The Ekso is currently used in hospitals and physical therapy centers. That will change in future iterations. NEWS: 'Iron Man' Type Exoskeleton Aids Recovery For a person to walk, the Ekso has to look at where their weight is, as well as check how the leg is bent and the location of the other leg. One thing that's different from the HULC (see a video here of the Science behind the HULC) is the kind of power the motors use and how much they need. Beyond walking, there are also therapeutic benefits.
New Brain-Machine Interface Moves a Paralyzed Hand: Northwestern University News CHICAGO --- A new Northwestern Medicine brain-machine technology delivers messages from the brain directly to the muscles -- bypassing the spinal cord -- to enable voluntary and complex movement of a paralyzed hand. The device could eventually be tested on, and perhaps aid, paralyzed patients. “We are eavesdropping on the natural electrical signals from the brain that tell the arm and hand how to move, and sending those signals directly to the muscles,” said Lee E. Miller, the Edgar C. Stuntz Distinguished Professor in Neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the lead investigator of the study, which was published in Nature. “This connection from brain to muscles might someday be used to help patients paralyzed due to spinal cord injury perform activities of daily living and achieve greater independence.” “This gives the monkey voluntary control of his hand that is not possible with the current clinical prostheses,” Miller said.
Brain Implant Helps Paralyzed Hand Move The dream of true cybernetics — merging man with machine — just got a bit closer. Scientists at Northwestern University built a device that can send signals from the brain directly to paralyzed muscles, causing them to move by thought. This technology could help patients who have suffered spinal cord injuries regain the use of their limbs. The work was done in rhesus monkeys, who were given a local anesthetic to block nerve activity at the elbow, which caused temporary paralysis of the hand. Knowing that, the scientists designed a device, called a multi-electrode array, that was able to pick up the tell-tale signals from the 100 or so neurons, decipher them, and send them to the muscles — bypassing the anesthetized nerves. The signals that reached the muscles made them contract, enabling the monkeys to pick up the balls almost as well as they did before they were given the anesthetic. The motions weren't perfect. via Northwestern University
Chip-based human organs are part of the future? Do you think that humans have gotten too smart for their own good? Sure, we have all seen the iconic image of an ear growing out of the back of a lab mouse, but such a monstrosity would definitely not be too welcome in a human. I don’t mind having eyes at the back of my head though, but that would be just plain weird. Shea as well as his colleagues over at Harvard’s Wyss Institute intend to make a breakthrough in the world of biomedical engineering, and it has taken years of research to arrive at this place – where they can now replicate all types of human body parts. .
'Iron Man' Exoskeletons Go Soft Forget Iron Man armor and exoskeletons. They're so last year. This season, augmenting human strength has moved to stretchable, flexible suits. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has shelled out $2.6 million to Harvard's Wyss Institute of Biologically Inspired Engineering to build a "smart suit" that enhances the strength of soldiers in the field. BLOG: Man Implants Magnets In Arm To Hold iPod The amount of gear that the average trooper has to carry — in addition to the body armor — has gone up in the past few years. Thus far, most designs for exoskeletons, such as Raytheon's XOS, or the Human Universal Load Carrier, have relied on rigid struts and require a lot of power to operate. The Wyss Institute design takes a different approach. BLOG: Exoskeleton Helps Paralyzed Patients Walk Being stretchable and soft would make a big difference to the wearer, of course, as it would be a lot more comfortable (and not chafe). via: Wyss Institute Image: Wyss Institute
Ballistic vest Metal or ceramic plates can be used with a soft vest, providing additional protection from rifle rounds, and metallic components or tightly woven fiber layers can give soft armor resistance to stab and slash attacks from knives and similar close-quarter weapons. Soft vests are commonly worn by police forces, private citizens who are at risk of being shot (e.g., national leaders), security guards, and bodyguards, whereas hard-plate reinforced vests are mainly worn by combat soldiers, police tactical units, and hostage rescue teams. Modern body armor may combine a ballistic vest with other items of protective clothing, such as a combat helmet. Vests intended for police and military use may also include ballistic shoulder and side protection armor components, and bomb disposal officers wear heavy armor and helmets with face visors and spine protection. Overview[edit] While a vest can prevent bullet penetration, the vest and wearer still absorb the bullet's energy. History[edit] Fr.
Alpinestars Tech Air Race Suit Alpinestars Tech Air Race Suit Jeff Harris The Alpinestars suit can reduce the impact of a motorcycle crash to one tenth of what a racer wearing conventional body armor would suffer. The suit continuously monitors the rider's movements using embedded sensors, which communicate with a computer programmed to differentiate the motion that immediately precedes a crash from normal motion. When the system determines that a crash is imminent, it deploys airbags along the shoulders and collarbone in milliseconds to soften the blow. $8,000 (est.)