Post on 06-Jul-2018
8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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UNCLASSIFIED The Nation’s Premier Laboratory for Land Forces
UNCLASSIFIED The Nation’s Premier Laboratory for Land Forces
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Physical Augmentation Conceptfor Improved Soldier Lethality
Frank MorelliU.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL), Human Research and EngineeringDirectorate (HRED)
Zachary Wingard, Daniel M. Baechle & Andrew L. Brant ARL Weapons and Materials Research Directorate (WMRD)
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8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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Purpose
Overmatch in small arms (SA) engagements• SA are the most fi elded weapon sys tems• No overmatch: s ince end of WWII, US los t ~ 60,000 soldiers to SA fires
• Modern body armor: survivability improvement, with trade-offs (decreasedmobili ty, adversaries also have access)• Most SA combat within 200 m in urban terrain, most wi thin 50 m
Requirements for Achieving Overmatch- High P(H)—probabili ty of hit
- Improved lethality through barriers via improved impact kinetic energy (KE)- Compact weapons for confined spaces- Reduce Soldier burdens while increasing Soldier lethality- Intuitive interface for rapid time-to-target engagement- Firing posture stabilization- Weapon weight and recoil redistribution
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Small Arms Interface Reimagined
• Traditional interface is a limiting factor for achieving battlefield dominance
8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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“Field Tested” Human-WeaponInterface
• Soldier's weapon in terface unchanged since thecrossbow.
• Poor P(H) for rapid/fleeting targets and at extendedranges.
• Field tested weapons have been developed overhuman history.
• At what point does “ field t ested” mean “ ideastagnation”?
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8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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New Approaches
Gun Propulsion – greater performance in smaller packages
• ARL “ Advanced Kinetics”- Muzzle Velocities well over 4000 fps- Very high impact KE from carbine-sized weapons- Subcompact weapons: 12-18” in overall length- Impact energies > 7.62 mm NATO (typically 40+ inches in overall length)
- Improved visual processing for machines based on humanvisual search (Butko & Movellan, 2009)
- Goal-directed motor behavior modeling using movement
primitives (Ijspeert et al., 2013)
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Human/Machine Interface – play to each other’s strengths
Vision: Compact weapons, new human interface = performance benefitsfor mobility, short /long-range target engagement, terminal ballis tics
8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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Passive Exoskeletons
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• Gravity balancing
• Achieved with simple spring and dampeningelements
• “ Weightless” end load
• Weight redistribution
• Balanced for any position
• Demonstrated in simple exoskeletons
Lockheed FORTIS
Lamp balanced in any position:Due to position & strength of springs,4-bar linkage geometry
Steadicam
8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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Tilta Armor Man
Passive Stabilization Concepts
• Passive exoskeletons potential – Passive struc tural aim stabilization
– Weapon weight re-distr ibut ion – Recoil energy re-direction, absorption – Improved target engagement accuracy
(short and long-range marksmanship) – Improved target engagement t iming
http://drbrbr.deviantart.com/art/Future-Solder-Concept-409038757
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Active Exoskeletons
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Active exoskeletons• Typically large/bulky
• High power requirements/tethered
• Rehabilitative/load carriage applications
• Potential to train limb motion• Perceptual learning• Training transfer (+/-) to traditional
marksmanship techniques
• Potential for active fire control
• Improvement in P(H)• Shoot-on-the-move capability• Natural, intuitive interface
(pointing/aiming)• Prolonged stable aiming• Fire from concealment
UCSC CADEN-7
Lockheed HULC HAL(Japan: Cyberdyne)
UDel/Columbia CAREX
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8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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Active Stabilization
Controlcomputer
Motors
Motioncapturecamera
Pistol simulator
• ARL MAXFAS: Mechatronic ArmeXoskeleton for Firearm AimStabilization (Baechle, 2013; Baechle, Wetzeland Agr awal, 2013) – Cable-driven arm exoskeleton to
augment human performance:improve firearm aim and reducefatigue
– Motors mounted behind wearer,tension cables connected to arm
braces (like puppeteer) – Sensors on braces monitor &
separate involuntary tremor fromvoluntary motion
– Predictive algorithms modelinvoluntary tremor, damp tremor butstill allow voluntary aiming motions;
Tremor f iltering and estimationalgorithms reduce arm shaking by16-51% across all degrees of freedomof shoulder and elbow (Baechle, 2013)
– Improvement after removing exo:potential fatigue reduction or t rainingapplications
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-30
-20
-10
0
10
20
30
5 7 9 11 13
A n g u
l a r r a
t e ( r a
d / s )
Time (s)
Raw gyro dataTremor Voluntary motion
Motion sensor
0
5
10
15
20
A v g .
d i s t . t o t a r g e
t c e n
t e r
( m m
)
28% better
20% better
Pre-exo
Withexo
Post-exo
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Future Efforts
Experimental performance comparisons
• Motion capture, EMG• Live-fire target engagement tr ials
• Mobil ity, portability trials
• Comparative examination of firing postures/posit ions
• Mixed terrain navigation, target detection
• Sustained aim trace analysis
• Short- and long-range marksmanship applications
POC: Frank Morelli , U.S. Army Research L aboratory-HREDDismounted Soldier and Team Performance Branchfrank.morelli.civ@mail.mil
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mailto:frank.morelli.civ@mail.milmailto:frank.morelli.civ@mail.mil
8/17/2019 Physical Augmentation Concept for Improved Soldier Lethality
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Backup Slides
Backup
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Conventional Interface:Shoulder/Cheek/Hand Surface Contact
Human-weapon Interface for Projecti le Weapon Systems• Target engagement process:
- Detection- Target Acquisi tion- Action
• Stability- Involuntary movement degrades accuracy- Compounded by fatigue, muscular weakness,
inattention
• Repeatability
- Shot-to-shot inconsistency degrades both accuracyand timing- Compounded by fatigue, muscular weakness, and
inattention
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Stability and Repeatability
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Firing Postures – Seeking Stabilitythrough Support
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• Field Manual (FM) 3-22.9
• Unsupported vs. supported
• Rifle sling
• Barriers
• Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear(CBRN), Ball ist ic (Facial) Protection Systems
• C-clamp
All reflect unique fi ring dynamics, adaptation toachieve stability
Shoulder-fired postures/positions
FM 3-22.9, Rifle Marksmanship M16-/M4-Series Weapons , HQDA