He United States Army has chosen Alexa humanoid robot with ballistic protection, among the five winning proposals of the contest xTechHumanoid. The Army’s objective is to explore how to use these machines to reduce soldiers’ exposure to dangerous tasks and with this initiative it seeks to evaluate technologies for future operations.
Behind Alex is the Institute of Human and Machine Cognition of Florida (IHMC), a US non-profit research center. The robot, which incorporates its own processing, perception and energy supply systems, is designed to function both outdoors and inside buildings.
Their 29 joints They seek to provide you with the necessary mobility to navigate complicated spaces with stairs and debris. To move them, it uses powerful quasi-direct drive actuators, custom-designed mechanisms that, according to the IHMC, allow natural and efficient movements.
The Army also highlights its ballistic protection and a hybrid autonomy that combines artificial intelligence with human control to face complex and dangerous missionsalthough it does not specify what impacts its armor can withstand.
The selection is framed in Army FUZE xTecha program that organizes competitions with financial prizes to locate commercial technologies with possible military applications and accelerate their development. It also connects companies and researchers with Army experts and opens the door to possible subsequent contracts.
To organize xTechHumanoid, the program partnered with the Humanoid Collaboration Community (HCoC), created in December 2023. This organization brings together different branches of the armed forces and the Department of Defense to promote the development of these machines and study their integration in military operations.
The contest received 103 proposals and chose its five winners on September 11 after demonstrations before Army commanders and specialists in Quantico. In addition to complete robots, it supported components, so Two energy supply systems, touch sensors for fingers and software were also awarded..
‘Humanoid robots are part of a broader effort to boost autonomy and increase the variety and capabilities of robotic platforms and components that industry can provide for different missions. We are identifying problems, mission needs and opportunities to equip our units with the right mix of tools. xTech is our way to survey the industry landscape and accelerate the development of promising technologies, rather than getting caught up in years-long studies.‘, ha affirmed Dr. Alex Miller, Director of Technology of the US Army.
American interest coincides with the efforts it makes China for years to develop humanoids for military uses. An investigation published by Reuters last month, based on more than one hundred documents, confirms that the country is preparing its eventual military deployment.