Open Innovation Search for a Military Super Suit
The United States military needs the crowd’s help to come up with a new chemical and biological agent-resistant suit. It has therefore launched a new open innovation challenge, the Chembio Suit Challenge and is welcoming ideas and contributions from everybody.
Up for grabs for the winners is a share of $250,000 prize pot.
The problem with current bio-hazard suits is that they are heavy and bulky which restricts a person’s maneuverability and range of motions when they are performing their duties.
The open innovation contest is seeking novel ideas that specifically increase a person’s mobility, dexterity and tactility when wearing a suit. The military is also looking for heat management ideas that will cool a person and lesson the heat burden when they are wearing a suit.
The submission period is open until October 28, 2016 and concepts will be judged by a panel of experts in chemical biological defense, materials engineering and textile technology. The evaluation criteria will be:
Functionality – does the suit offer increased mobility and does it integrate easily with warfighter equipment?
Innovation – is the idea different from current design? Is it an ‘out-of-the-box’ approach?
Reduced burden – can it be mass produced? Is it sustainable under various conditions, such as heat and a biological risk environment?
Ease of use – is the suit comfortable, simple and intuitive?
Feasibility and practicality – is there a reduced manufacturing burden? Can the suit be more easily packed and transported compared to the current solution?
For more information and to register to take part in the open innovation challenge, click here.
Reader Comments
Save all the time and money, talk to the British Army.??
Posted by Graeme on September 8, 2016
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