“鋼鐵俠”的戰甲或許真能走進我們的生活

說到外骨骼，你或許覺得很陌生，但如果提到鋼鐵俠的戰甲，你一定非常熟悉。事實上，這種“戰甲”正被越來越多地應用到我們的現實生活中，也許有一天，你也能成爲鋼鐵俠！

Imagine wearing high-tech body armour that makes you super strong and tireless. Such technology, more specifically called an exoskeleton, sounds like the preserve of the Iron Man series of superhero movies.

想象自己穿上高科技人體鎧甲，變得超級強大、不知疲倦。這種技術的學名爲外骨骼，聽起來就像超級英雄電影《鋼鐵俠》系列的保留項目。

exoskeleton [ˈeksoʊskelɪtn]: n. 外骨骼

Yet the equipment is increasingly being worn in real life around the world. And one manufacturer - California's SuitX - expects it to go mainstream.

在現實生活中，全球各地使用這種鎧甲的人越來越多。美國加州的外骨骼製造商SuitX公司期待這種產品會成爲主流。

"There is no doubt in my mind that these devices will eventually be sold at hardware stores," says SuitX's founder Homayoon Kazerooni.

SuitX公司的創始人霍馬永·卡澤魯尼說：“我認爲這種設備最終必然會在五金店銷售。”

In simple terms, an exoskeleton is an external device that supports, covers and protects its user, giving greater levels of strength and endurance.

簡而言之，外骨骼就是支撐、遮蓋和保護使用者的外部設備，爲其提供更高水平的力量和耐力。

Sometimes also referred to as "wearable robots", they can be battery-powered and computer-operated, incorporating motors and hydraulics. Or they can be more simple, passive designs that use springs and dampeners.

外骨骼有時也被稱爲“可穿戴機器人”，有的靠電池供電、電腦操作，包含發動機和液壓裝置，也有比較簡單的運用彈簧和減震器的被動式設計。

"Integrating humans and machines into one system opens up a new realm of opportunity," says Adrian Spragg, an expert on the technology at management consultancy Accenture. "Many of the early applications have been focused on military and medical applications, but in the last several years there's been an explosion of use in a range of cases."

管理諮詢公司埃森哲的外骨骼技術專家阿德里安·斯普拉格說：“將人類和機器融爲一體打開了一個充滿機遇的新領域。許多早期應用主要集中在軍事和醫療領域，但是過去幾年，多個領域的使用量劇增。”

This expansion, which has come together with rapid advances in the technology, has seen exoskeletons increasingly used by manufacturing workers. Versions for consumers are also now being developed to help people more easily do everything from DIY, to walking, climbing stairs, and other daily activities.

與此同時，伴隨着技術的快速發展，製造工人越來越多地使用外骨骼。廠商現在也研發出了消費者版外骨骼，來幫助人們更容易地從事DIY（自己動手做）、走路、爬樓梯和其他日常活動。

One report says sales are now due to rocket as a result. Global exoskeleton revenues are expected to rise from $392m in 2020 to $6.8bn in 2030, according to a study by ABI Research.

一份報告稱，外骨骼的銷量會因此飆升。互聯網數據資訊網的調查指出，全球外骨骼收入有望從2020年的3.92億美元（約合人民幣25.7億元）增至2030年的68億美元（約合人民幣446億元）。

SuitX's "suits" are now being tested by car manufacturers General Motors and Fiat. Prof Kazerooni, who is also the director of the University of California's Berkeley Robotics and Human Engineering Laboratory, says that the primary benefit of the firm's exoskeletons is to prevent muscle fatigue.

SuitX的“鐵甲”目前正在接受汽車製造商通用公司和菲亞特公司的測試。加州大學伯克利分校機器人與人體工程實驗室的主任卡澤魯尼表示，該公司外骨骼產品的主要功用就是防止肌肉疲勞。

"We've shown that muscle activity in the back, shoulder and knees drops by 50%," he says. "If muscle activities drop, that means the risk of muscle injury is less.

他說：“我們的產品展示出背部、肩膀和膝蓋的肌肉活動減少了50%。如果肌肉活動減少，意味着肌肉損傷風險也降低了。”

"This means that factory or plant managers get more productivity, their insurance costs are lower, and there are less workdays lost to injury. There's less cost and more productivity."

“這意味着工廠或工廠經理可以獲得更高生產效率，保險費用支出更低，因工傷而損失的工時也會減少。成本降低了，生產效率卻提高了。”

General Motors is also looking at a battery-powered exoskeleton glove developed by Bioservo.

通用汽車公司同時也在測試Bioservo公司研發的一款靠電池供電的外骨骼手套。

This glove, called the Iron Hand, has sensors and motors in each finger, which automatically respond to the level of force that the wearer applies to his or her hand when lifting or gripping something. The glove therefore takes up some of the strain.

這種被稱作“鐵掌”的手套每個手指處都有傳感器和發動機，可以自動應對用戶在擡或抓東西時使出的不同水平的力度，從而可以分擔一部分壓力。

BioServo says it can increase the wearer's hand strength by 20% for extended periods.

Bioservo表示，這款手套可以在一段較長的時間內將佩戴者的手勁增加20%。

The most advanced exoskeletons use artificial intelligence (AI) computer systems - software that can to a certain extent learn and adapt by itself.

最先進的外骨骼產品使用人工智能電腦系統，智能軟件可以讓外骨骼在某種程度上自主學習和適應。

At the moment, however, more widespread adoption of exoskeleton technology is still held back by a number of factors, including battery capacity, limited range of motion, and cost.

然而，目前外骨骼技術的進一步廣泛應用受到了多種因素的阻礙，包括電池容量、活動度有限和成本。

"The average cost [of a full-body exoskeleton] is around $45,000," says Accenture's Mr Spragg. "However, with economies of scale and technological maturity, prices will come down."

埃森哲的斯普拉格指出：“一副全身外骨骼大約需要4.5萬美元。但是，隨着經濟規模的擴大和技術的成熟，價格會降下來。”

SuitX's Prof Kazerooni says that falling prices will also open up the possibility to tap into a potentially huge market - recreational exoskeletons. His firm is now working on such a device that supports the wearer's knee.

SuitX公司的卡澤魯尼教授指出，價格降低將會開啓外骨骼進入潛力巨大的休閒市場的可能性。他的公司目前正在研發可以給佩戴者膝蓋提供支撐的此類設備。

"It's not only for people who are going climbing and hiking, or younger people who want to be more adventurous, or for people who want to do more walking and climbing but not hurt their knees," he says. "It'll be for all ages. It's simply giving you a little boost."

他說：“不僅是登山和徒步的人可以用，喜歡冒險的年輕人也可以用，想多走路多爬山但不想損傷膝蓋的人也能用。這種產品將適合各個年齡段的人羣，讓你平添動力。”