#Exoskeleton

Fire Control Unit has announced that their X01 (Exo One) PDW Platform for SIG pistols is now available for purchase. The X01 is compatible with SIG Sauer P320 (full size, compact, carry, TACOPS, X-Carry or X-Five) and P250 pistols chambered in 9x19mm, .40 S&W or .357 SIG.

The US Army’s ‘Third Arm’ is designed to redistribute some of the weight soldiers carry in their arms and shoulders to their abdomen. This could make carrying heavy equipment and weapons over long distances much easier, lowering the short and long-term impact on troops’ health. Launched in 2015, the mechanical arm is about to enter its next phase of testing.

In an interview given to TASS news agency, Dmitriy Semizorov, the CEO of TsNII TochMash has revealed some of the features of the Ratnik-3 future soldier equipment that is being developed for the Russian military. Let’s see what new has become known.

When the subject is the future of infantry, the conversation inevitably turns to one thing: Powered, armored exoskeletons. Since the publication of Heinlein’s Starship Troopers in 1959, the concept of an armored suit with enhanced mobility from an internal power source has fascinated military futurists, quickly solidifying as a military fiction staple, and even appearing repeatedly in official “future soldier” concepts from armies and companies around the world.

At the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting (AUSA 2017), US Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM) presented a concept for the US Army’s future soldier of the 2030 timeframe, which promised everything from powered exoskeletons, to futuristic optics, to individual network capability. I captured the Command’s two future soldier concept demo videos that were running at the conference, embedded below:

In a recent letter released to Army general officers, Chief of Staff of the Army Mark Milley outlined a plan for reform of the Army’s development and procurement arms. In it, he also made mention of the Army’s plans for future individual weapons and equipment. Among those, the General mentioned a new piece of kit for the soldier: Exoskeletons. From the letter:

During the ARMY-2017 arms exhibition, the Ratnik-3 “future soldier” concept was demonstrated again. This time Russian companies’ officials who develop the project revealed more details concerning Ratnik-3.

Canadian technology company Mawashi has formally introduced their flagship product: A passive exoskeleton designed to help the soldier carry his heavy load. The exoskeleton is reportedly based on research into how the human body distributes weight, studying obese individuals like the rikishi wrestlers in sumo, to create a solution for the infantryman to carry heavy loads without injury. The company’s name – Mawashi – even comes from the stiff mawashi wrestling belts used in sumo.

It seems that human augmentation devices have seen their first practical application. Passive exoskeletons – perhaps less glamorously called “full body orthopedics” have been spotted in use by Russian sappers in Palmyra, Syria. The sappers – Russia’s equivalents to Western bomb disposal or explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) units – were wearing structural exoskeleton suits reportedly designated “K2”, shown in the videos below:

The US Army is currently testing a new full body orthopedic “exosuit” designed to reduce soldier fatigue and injury, according to a press release made by the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) last week.

A concept for an advanced suit of powered personal armor was unveiled late last month at the Moscow Prototyping Center, sporting hexagonal modular armor panels, full face helmet with mocked up information display, and a bullpup rifle. The suit, revealed to the internet via a YouTube video from Russian government funded RT-subsidiary Ruptly, was more conceptual mockup than prototype, evidenced by its engraved polymer “display” insert, stylized armor, and non-functional gun and mechanism. The Ruptly video is embedded below: