The US Army is testing a third arm for soldiers.

Tired of carrying? In general, the military tries to reduce weight wherever possible. An alternative approach is taken by exoskeletons, as well as the U.S. Army Research Laboratory. They aim to give soldiers a third arm to better distribute the weight of the weapon. This allows heavy weapons to be stabilized better, the arms do not tire as quickly, and ultimately accuracy is increased.

In contrast to various exoskeletons, the arm is made of composite materials. It is light (relatively speaking, weighing 1.8 kilograms) and does not require any batteries. Thanks to the arm, an M240B machine gun weighing 12.25 kilograms feels much lighter, and the human arms do not have to bear the full weight or aim the weapon.

In 2017, there was a brief study of an exercise with live ammunition showing improved accuracy. The arm also has to make movements, so it is not a problem for a soldier to go from a standing position to a prone position.The arm does all of this. It is still in a very early phase, but has already proven to be successful, so the project will continue. This year, a study will be conducted with significantly more soldiers to gather input and feedback for further development.

US ARMY on the Internet: www.army.mil