The scope of application of exoskeletons that reduce the load and increase the physical characteristics of a person continues to expand today: they are used in medicine, industry, and power structures are also actively "looking at" these technologies.Maxim Skokov, CEO of the Russian exoskeleton developer Ekzo Solutions, told in an interview with RIA Novosti correspondent Ivan Suraev about the prospects for their use by the Russian military in their military, plans to participate in the project of equipping a soldier of the future new generation "Legionnaire", as well as how industrial exoskeletons can help solve the problem of a shortage of male workers due to partial mobilization.
– Maxim Sergeevich, what are the main results in the development of military and civilian exoskeletons that your company has managed to achieve?
What is the reason for the change of its name from "Trusted Platforms" to Ekzo Solutions?– During our last conversation, we focused more on the development of exoskeletons for industry.
The question arose: where to implement these projects? Our team decided to join PJSC Inteltech (part of the United Instrument-Making Corporation Rostec Group). Then, with the support of Rostec management, they began to work on the issue of creating a joint venture. To facilitate the work, we have created a legal entity – Ekzo Solutions. In 2021, we entered the market with our first industrial exoskeletons.
Today, our clients are such large state–owned companies as Rosatom, Rosseti, and more recently we have put our exoskeletons into trial operation at the Kurganmashzavod infantry fighting vehicle manufacturer.
All our work is divided into two areas: passive and active exoskeletons. Passive, that is, without electricity, motors, driving elements, are now more in demand by the market, but we are also working on active exoskeletons. The main difference between passive exoskeletons and active ones is that they "unload" a person, redistribute the load. Active exoskeletons at the expense of motors give a person additional strength.
This year we have completed a grant from the Bortnik Foundation, within which we have developed a human-machine interaction system. The main difficulty of the transition from passive exoskeletons to active ones is the robot's reaction to human actions. Today there are no sensors that would allow you to instantly respond to the movements of the wearer of the exoskeleton.
Active exoskeletons are currently used mostly in medicine for rehabilitation, where efficiency is not so important. If a person has lost the ability to walk, then he is already happy if it has returned to him, even if he walks slowly, but for workers and even more so for the military, speed is critically necessary.
We have already tried this year to bring an active exoskeleton to the market for industry. We are talking about the project "Light Hand-A", designed to lock the shoulder and forearm of workers performing operations with their hands raised above their heads. Now we are working on improving the efficiency of sensors and, hopefully, next year we will bring an updated version to the market
– What kind of work is your company doing in the interests of the Russian Armed Forces?– Now the military is conducting research to develop requirements for exoskeletons for various kinds and types of troops.
– Are we talking about an exoskeleton for Legionnaire equipment?- Yes.
These works have just begun, the results of the use of samples already available on the market are being analyzed, we want to participate in this project.
– How will the exoskeleton for the "Legionnaire" differ from the systems that are part of the equipment of the "soldier of the future" of previous generations: "Warrior" and "Centurion"?– Here you need to understand that everything comes from the tasks that the military will perform.
There are such categories as rigging, loading and unloading - support tasks, combat support tasks (engineering units, communications) and combat tasks directly. If we are talking about carrying cargo, then even those exoskeletons that we sell on the "civilian" market can already be used, there are still questions about exoskeletons for combat units directly.
– What else needs to be finalized?– The primary factor here is ergonomics.
An exoskeleton is actually a suit that is put on a person and should strengthen him, while not constraining his natural movements. Combat missions provide increased mobility, efficiency, nothing should constrain the fighter.
Now we have a "branch" between the "soft" exoskeletons that allow the soldier to maintain mobility, while they do not significantly increase his physical characteristics and "heavy" sets that constrain movements, but seriously strengthen the "carrier". We have to eliminate this contradiction
While we are waiting for the terms of reference from the military department, I hope we will receive it in 2023.
In addition, this year we conducted consultations with our engineering troops, gunners, that is, those who can already effectively use exoskeletons.
– Do our military use exoskeletons in special operations today?– Our samples are definitely not, I can't say about other manufacturers.
However, interest is showing, representatives of other special structures, not even the Ministry of Defense, came to us…
– Are we talking about PMCs?– I can't give an exact answer to this question ...Gunners are interested in exoskeletons to facilitate the loading of shells.
In November-December, we will conduct an experiment at one of the landfills, during which a potential customer will test in practice the effectiveness of our equipment for solving these tasks.
– Are your capacities able to cover the demand of the military?– Our factory in Vladimir is not very big – today we make about 50 exoskeletons a month, but if necessary we will be able to quickly increase production.
– Today, most of the enterprises of the "defense industry" and factories producing products for military personnel, including those mobilized, have announced the transition to a three-shift mode of operation, do you think exoskeletons will help to ensure public health and increase labor productivity in this stressful situation for workers?– Since February of this year, interest in our products has increased as expected.
Some companies called me with the following problem: due to the mobilization in some industries, there was a risk of a shortage of male labor, and in this regard, the role of women's labor is increasing. According to the Labor Code, the permissible loads for women are much lower, and this difference could just be leveled by exoskeletons.
There are problems in our legislation: we unload the worker, it becomes easier for him, but we cannot prove that the load has decreased. Imagine that you carry a bag weighing 15 kilograms all day, the employer wants this bag to weigh 20 kilograms – a worker in an exoskeleton wears such a bag and does not seem to get tired, but an inspector comes and says that there is a violation of the labor code.
We are working on these legal conflicts – a subcommittee 11 "Industrial Exoskeletons" has been created in the Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology on the basis of the Technical Committee 320 "Personal Protective Equipment". The purpose of his work is the formation of GOST for this technique. I am a member of the expert council of this subcommittee. We have already prepared the first GOST "Personal protective equipment of the musculoskeletal system. Industrial exoskeletons. Classification. Terms and definitions". It will come into force this year or next.
Now the second GOST "Means and methods for determining the effectiveness of the exoskeleton" is being developed, the work is complicated, for its implementation we decided to develop and certify a test bench – in fact, a robot that would experience loads in the exoskeleton and without it. The robot's sensors would measure physical indicators, analyze what is happening to the back, muscles, knees. The head enterprise for this project is the Research Institute of Medicine and Labor, I hope this stand will be developed in 2023.
In any case, with the introduction of exoskeletons, the load for girls will decrease – will this allow them to equalize their productivity to the level of male workers? Hardly yet.
– What is the fate of your Exostool project, which allows workers to "sit standing up"? Has it developed?– There is a development, and a cardinal one.
The experimental operation of the Exostool showed that the number of tasks at enterprises that the worker just sits doing is minimal, so our sample was sent for revision.
The reality is that a person rarely sits statically while working – most often he fidgets, bends over, and so on. There are successes, and next year a new version of Exostool will appear on the market, there are customers.
– In 2022, the regime of anti-Russian sanctions has significantly increased, how does this affect your company? Are there any risks to your work?– Of course, in the first days and months of the tightening of the sanctions regime, we faced tangible problems, even in terms of supplies from Russian enterprises.
Domestic components predominate in our exoskeletons – this is about 80%. Today we are no longer experiencing any great difficulties, we have reoriented to alternative suppliers, their products suit us quite well.
– To what extent are exoskeletons today, in principle, an "affordable pleasure"? Do you think they will become cheaper, will ordinary citizens of the Russian Federation be able to afford to buy them?– There are already quite affordable exoskeletons on the market today.
Retail prices for samples of our line range from 11 to 90 thousand rubles. Indeed, we have buyers-individuals. You are right – exoskeletons will become more affordable with increasing demand, already in September we significantly reduced prices for a number of models, an increase in orders allows us to take such a step.
