Factory workers are about to get super-human strength thanks to Nasa's 'Robo-Glove'.
The glove helped scientists control Robonaut 2, a humanoid that provided engineering and technical assistance on space mission just like Star Wars' R2-D2.
But now it has been given power-boosting technologies thanks to a partnership between General Motors and medical technology company Bioservo, who hope that it will help workers on factory floors.
Using a combination of sensors that function like human nerves, muscles and tendons the new Power Glove has the same dexterity of the human hand - but with mammoth strength.
The ground-breaking muscle-mimicking technologies could help employees in health care and manufacturing industries where a strong grip is necessary to get the job done.
![]() The glove helps stops tired hands from aching after a long day's work and will make it easier for workers to, quite literally, get a grip.
It could slash the amount of force an assembly operator needs to hold a tool during an operation in half.
An assembly operator in a factory may use 15- to 20 pounds of force to hold a tool during an operation, for example.
But with the robotic glove, the factory operator might need to apply only five to 10 pounds of force.
General Motors will integrate Bioservo's strength-boosting Soft Extra Muscles (SEM) glove into the Nasa Super-Glove, creating a mitt of almighty power similar to the exoskeleton worn by Matt Damon's Max in Dystopian flick Elysium.
![]() Wearing the exo-skeleton glove will mean tools no longer need to be moulded to fit a worker's hand, cutting company costs too.
Forming an exo-skeleton it takes the weight out of the tool and stops the worker getting aches and pains as quickly.
The hand is powered by a lightweight battery back that ties around the worker's waist to keep it juiced up.
Potential uses in the medical industry are promising with the increase of robotic surgery too.
Providing a comfortable glove for surgeons to manoeuvre miniscule robots over a patient's body during long operations could save lives.
General Motors said it will begin rolling out the glove to its workers immediately.
If all goes well it could be sold for rehabilitation purposes in the medical industry too. |
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