Exoskeletal Glove to Give Motorcyclists an Iron Fist

Exoskeletal Glove

You can’t help it. It’s a reflex. You stick out your hand when you fall — it’s better to stop the descent with your palm than your face, right? That’s fine when you’re ambling down the street, but add an extra 80 mph and the weight of a motorcycle to the momentum equation and the bones in your paw might not take the strain very well. They could shift, buckle — even snap. What you need is an exoskeleton. If you know Tony Stark, you might be able to get something custom. For the rest of us, there’s the Knox Handroid, a Kevlar-, kangaroo-hide-, and, yes, exoskeleton-reinforced motorcycle gauntlet. Thermoplastic urethane spines run down the outside of each finger and flex with your digits. To keep the armor in place, a ratchet system cinches 19 strands of stainless steel wire, spreading the pressure across your entire forearm. Then, when the pavement tries to persuade your bones to move beyond their comfort zone, the Handroid answers no. That’s the reflex you’re looking for.





Courtesy: wired.com