Lockheed Martin and Know Hub Chile launched the FORTIS Challenge, an initiative aimed at the New Engineering for 2030 programs developed by Chilean universities, to seek solutions and new innovations in the use of Lockheed Martin’s advanced exoskeleton, FORTIS.
The objectives are to build links between the national R&D&I ecosystem and an international benchmark in the aerospace industry such as Lockheed Martin, to improve the capabilities and expand the functionality of the FORTIS exoskeleton, and to create new technology transfer opportunities for Chilean universities.
In the webinar on the FORTIS Challenge, Keith Maxwell, the engineer in charge of Lockheed Martin’s exoskeleton program, explained the features and advantages of the technology to the university representatives who attended.
The FORTIS exoskeleton is a lightweight, unpowered device designed to assist people who work in heavy industry. It reduces leg strain and makes it easier for users to carry heavy loads without tiring, by transferring that weight through the exoskeleton to the ground while standing or kneeling, allowing heavy tools to be used as if they were weightless.
Maxwell explained that in certain industries, such as naval shipyards, it is common for workers to suffer a high rate of injuries due to the use of very heavy tools, which makes it difficult to recruit qualified workers. A problem that FORTIS can help solve.
The engineer in charge of Lockheed Martin’s exoskeleton program also encouraged those seeking to join the FORTIS Challenge to consider the different environments and industries in which this technology can be used, and to do so by considering what problem needs to be solved, what new technology would be integrated into that solution, and why an exoskeleton is the right solution.
Javier Ramírez, executive director of Know Hub Chile, explains that the significance of the FORTIS Challenge goes beyond achieving its specific objectives: “it is another important step in the participation of defense in the national CTCI ecosystem, this time with the involvement of a global industry leader such as Lockheed Martin.”
“We hope this will be the beginning of systematic cooperation among the participants and that, through the co-development of technologies for both defense and the civilian market, it will serve as a renewed boost to Chile’s progress toward a knowledge-based society and economy,” says the executive director of Know Hub Chile.
Applications for the FORTIS Challenge will be open until September 16, 2022. More information: https://knowhub.cl/fortis/
