National Academies Press: OpenBook
« Previous: Appendix C: Committee Biographic Information
Suggested Citation:"Appendix D: Open Session Presentation Summaries." National Research Council. 2008. Soldier Protective Clothing and Equipment: Feasibility of Chemical Testing Using a Fully Articulated Robotic Mannequin. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11959.
×
Page 155
Suggested Citation:"Appendix D: Open Session Presentation Summaries." National Research Council. 2008. Soldier Protective Clothing and Equipment: Feasibility of Chemical Testing Using a Fully Articulated Robotic Mannequin. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11959.
×
Page 156
Suggested Citation:"Appendix D: Open Session Presentation Summaries." National Research Council. 2008. Soldier Protective Clothing and Equipment: Feasibility of Chemical Testing Using a Fully Articulated Robotic Mannequin. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11959.
×
Page 157
Suggested Citation:"Appendix D: Open Session Presentation Summaries." National Research Council. 2008. Soldier Protective Clothing and Equipment: Feasibility of Chemical Testing Using a Fully Articulated Robotic Mannequin. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11959.
×
Page 158

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

Appendix D Open Session Presentation Summaries The committee heard from several people in open data-gathering ses- sions over the course of its four meetings. Their presentations are summa- rized briefly below. Specific technologies mentioned are discussed in more detail in the relevant chapters of the report as indicated. Individual protection ensembles Testing Charlie Walker, of the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground, provided an overview of the Man-in-Simulant Test (MIST) during meeting 2, including video of soldiers performing various tasks while wearing individual protec- tion ensembles (IPEs). The MIST is discussed in more detail in Chapter 1. Human Simulation Information provided by the speakers described in this section (who all presented during meeting 3) is also included in the discussion on current capabilities in Chapter 2. Grant Bue, of Johnson Space Center, discussed National Aeronautics and Space Administration spacesuit technology testing (by telephone). Bue focused on approaches to under-suit cooling for astronauts, which was de- veloped for space exploration. Descriptions of several feasible technologies applicable to PETMAN were discussed by Bue, including advanced heat pumps, a mini-vapor-compressor, “super ice,” and a vortex tube. Rick Burke, of Measurement Technology Northwest (MTNW), spoke about thermal mannequins for human-physiology simulation. Burke dis- 155

156 APPENDIX D cussed theory and applications of MTNW equipment and capabilities in- cluding the Advanced Automotive Manikin (ADAM). He highlighted a few major PETMAN challenges and recommendations: Internal space in the 50th percentile body form is likely to be insufficient for all his combined systems, thermal management of the system will be necessary, simplification of joints compromises the realism of body contours, internal battery power and charging systems are large and cumbersome, the internal breathing and humidification system is limited by the size of the mannequin head cavity, and the internal fluid reservoir for sweating could be replaced with an ex- ternal supply without affecting performance. Carlos Moreno, of Medical Education Technologies, Inc. (METI), de- scribed METI’s medical educational mannequins and human-physiology simulation capabilities. METI provides integrated physiologic models with the hardware to represent patient responses accurately. The main use of the models is in evaluation of student performance. One model in particu- lar—iStan—is completely self-contained, has skin made of thermoplastic elastomer, has a realistic weight, and uses pressurized water to create sweat- ing. Other features include an 8-hour operational mode and an area in the belly that is empty to allow for additional simulation capabilities. Sensing Capabilities Information provided by the speakers described in this section is in- cluded in more detail as part of the discussion on current capabilities in Chapter 3. Each of the technologies has the potential to be the chemical- sensing component of a PETMAN system. However, these are just examples of technologies that would be available within 2 years of development for PETMAN. There are probably more technologies with similar potential that are not included here. H. James Harmon, of Oklahoma State University, spoke (by telephone) at meeting 2 about the technology he has developed for real-time reagent- less solid-state optical detection. Committee member Zane Frund spoke with a representative of Sea- coast Science, Inc., between meetings 2 and 3. Seacoast Science produces chemicapacitor-based chemical sensors. David Walt, of Tufts University, spoke at meeting 3 about his fluo- rescence-based optical microsphere arrays and fiber-optics chemical-agent sensing capabilities. Robotics Capabilities More detailed information provided by the speakers described in this section, who all spoke during meeting 3, is included in the discussion on

APPENDIX D 157 state-of-the-art capabilities in Chapter 4. A number of other robot systems are also discussed in Chapter 4. Robert Ambrose, of the National Aeronautics and Space Administra- tion (NASA) Johnson Space Center, provided an overview of Robonaut (by telephone). Ambrose presented the history of NASA’s Robonaut, details on the anatomy of the first-generation Robonaut R1, videos demonstrating capabilities, and plans for development of the next-generation Robonaut R2. Robonaut has human-like dexterity but moves much slower. Currently, Robonaut features only a human-like upper body. The development of Robonaut over the last decade cost about $25 million. David Handelman, of American Android Corporation, spoke about all-terrain biped technology, focusing on modeling capabilities. Jun Ho Oh, of Hubo Lab, the Humanoid Robot Research Center in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, provided an overview (which included many detailed specifications) of human-like machines and types of actuators and presented a case review of Hubo and comments and suggestions about PETMAN. Oh summarized by saying that the performance requirements for PETMAN are too severe and comprehensive. Oh suggested that move- ment tests be conducted separately from static tests, pneumatic actuators be used for the dynamic test, head and finger and foot tests be performed separately, and power and air sources be external to the system. Robert Playter, of Boston Dynamics, discussed its robotics capabili- ties in relation to PETMAN requirements. Playter provided a company overview. He also discussed control systems for human movement and robot behaviors; power requirements for legged locomotion based on mea- surements from “BigDog,” including energy and heat estimates; and sys- tems-design issues. He highlighted four “tall poles” or major challenges of PETMAN—power and heat, control systems, energy, and mechanical design. Playter also discussed the various control options (electric, hydrau- lic, and pneumatic) and said that he does not believe that PETMAN can be built without a tether.

Soldier Protective Clothing and Equipment: Feasibility of Chemical Testing Using a Fully Articulated Robotic Mannequin Get This Book
×
Buy Paperback | $56.00 Buy Ebook | $44.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

There is an ongoing need to test and ensure effectiveness of personal protective equipment that soldiers use to protect themselves against chemical warfare agents. However, testing using human subjects presents major challenges and current human-size thermal mannequins have limited testing capabilities. The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) along with their counterparts from other countries are seeking to develop more human like mannequins, which would include features like human motion, in order to carry out more advanced chemical testing. At the request of DOD Product Director, Test Equipment, Strategy and Support, the National Research Council formed an ad hoc committee to evaluate the feasibility of developing an advanced humanoid robot, or Protection Ensemble Test Mannequin (PETMAN) system that meets the DOD requirements. The book concludes that although most of the individual requirements can technically be met, fulfilling all of the requirements is currently not possible. Based on this conclusion the committee recommends that DOD considers three issues, prioritization of current system requirements, use qualified contractor for particular technical aspects, incorporate complementary testing approaches to the PETMAN system.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!