GOVERNMENT

Schilling Robotics, LLC, is using SolidWorks 3D mechanical design software to design critical parts of an "exoskeleton" that will someday help soldiers, firefighters, rescue workers, and others carry back-breaking burdens without feeling the weight. The Davis, Calif.-based manufacturer, widely known for its remotely operated deep-sea work vehicles and manipulator arms, is designing the hip/thigh/knee assembly for the second-generation Berkeley Lower Extremity Exoskeleton (BLEEX). Schilling is collaborating closely on the design with the team of Dr. Homayoon Kazerooni, director of UC Berkeley's Robotics and Human Engineering Laboratory. The BLEEX consists of a backpack-like frame and mechanical braces connected to the user's feet, legs, and hips. Human users wearing the BLEEX can carry a 70-pound backpack yet feel as though they are carrying five pounds. Schilling faced three major challenges when it began designing the new joint assembly: reducing weight, enclosing electronics and hydraulics, and expanding its range of motion to support the way a human actually moves. "SolidWorks was a tremendous help on all three counts," said CEO and co-founder Tyler Schilling. "Its 3D capabilities vividly simulated the assembly's new rotary actuation, and revealed new ways to efficiently enclose the wires and tubes. SolidWorks' interface automatically updated us on the assembly's mass through dozens of iterations, which was critical in reducing weight. SolidWorks' COSMOSXpressTM design analysis tool checked the strength of any component with a single mouse click, saving us the trouble of getting out our calculators and 'Roark's Formulas for Stress and Strain.' SolidWorks synthesizes all of the information for you and, like the BLEEX, takes care of the legwork." Schillings' innovative hip/thigh/knee assembly will be used in the second-generation BLEEX coming out in early 2005. The second-generation BLEEX will be lighter weight, "field ready," and more agile. Thanks in large part to Schilling Robotics and SolidWorks software, users of the new BLEEX will be able to accomplish a full squat and bounce back up to a standing position. Schilling Robotics first began evolving from AutoCAD to SolidWorks software when the company's design engineers needed a 3D modeling system to design an irregularly shaped buoyancy device for Schilling's QUEST remotely operated undersea vehicle. The company immediately saw dramatic productivity gains and has standardized on SolidWorks software for all its new designs. SolidWorks has delivered significant returns on Schilling's investment above and beyond the BLEEX project. For example, Schilling was able to forgo extensive international travel time and expense in a customer engagement with the University of Bremen in Germany. The company was contracted to design portions of a deep-sea drill assembly to pull 50-meter geological samples from the ocean floor. Rather than fly to Germany, Schilling engineers were able to display designs in an online conferencing session using SolidWorks' eDrawings e-mail enabled communication tool. The client could see the design without installing any new software. SolidWorks has also simplified interactions with other customers and suppliers, many of whom use SolidWorks software themselves. Schilling Robotics works with authorized SolidWorks reseller GEI technology, inc. for ongoing software training, implementation, and support.