Futureproof: Ghost Recon & Rescue
Future Narrative
Now that fusion power is available via compact and lightweight equipment, new forms of mobility are popping up everywhere. Advances in silent magnetic levitation are changing the micromobilty landscape as well. Various defense forces are exploring how H.O.V.E.R. (Human Operated Vertical Equipment for Reconnaissance) technologies can help protect infantry as they conduct nearly silent patrols at extended ranges with a full equipment loadout.
First responders use similar H.O.V.E.R. (Human Operated Vertical Equipment for Rescue) systems in search and rescue operations. These systems help searchers gain a better vantage point from which to locate those needing rescue and make extracting them easier, safer, and more comfortable.
A “virtual leash” control system ties soldiers into larger H.O.V.E.R. rigs capable of in-hover control and longer distances.
The “Follow me” virtual sled feature allows soldiers to move with more equipment or fire support.
Search and Rescue Group 4 of Chinook County, California, uses version 2.7 of the Yutani H.O.V.E.R. system to gain a better search perspective temporarily.
Search and Rescue Team 7 of Katima County, Washington, leap hover over obstacles, including stream beds, using the Weyland H1A H.O.V.E.R. prototype.
Search and Rescue Team 2 from Baymont, California, uses the “follow me” feature of the R.O.V.E.R. (Robotic Overland Vertical Equipment for Rescue) to aid them with equipment transportation and patient extraction across rough trails.
System Benefits
The H.O.V.E.R. system allows difficult portions of trails, urban obstacles, and small streams to be surmounted by activating the system and gently jumping forward. In a similar fashion, trenchworks and minefields can be safely traversed. Systems from three companies currently being tested can hover a typical soldier and their equipment to a maximum height of fifteen feet. Users can cover up to 30 meters with one bounding movement. A continual low-power lift function relieves users of most of the weight of their equipment.
Search and Rescue units are also testing systems. These teams benefit from similar abilities to effortlessly cross small streams or challenging portions of terrain. Backcountry first responders gain a better vantage point above brush and lower forest layers during searches. Overall, this first generation of H.O.V.E.R. systems shows great promise for reducing the physical burden users endure when carrying full combat or search and rescue loads on extended operations.
Those testing the units say it reminds them of the footage of astronauts bounding across the moon's surface but for longer distances. Select units are testing larger rigs capable of providing hovering capabilities and directional control for small groups of linked soldiers over longer, currently classified distances.
R.O.V.E.R. (Robotic Overland Vertical Equipment for Rescue) sleds are being tested in search and rescue operations. Hover sled technology provides the sleds with 12-15 hours of constant low-level lift as they utilize a “virtual leash” feature to follow users' paths. The sleds bear the main load of the team’s equipment, increasing the endurance of search and rescue teams and the amount of territory they can search. Rescued patients are carried out of the wilderness on R.O.V.E.R. sleds, further enhancing the safety of rescue missions.
Related Links
Learn more about Gravity’s jetpack technology at www.gravity.co
Veritasium’s feature on the world’s strongest magnet
Outline of magnetic levitation and some of the most notable instances of it in mobility to date: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maglev
Learn more about the Earth’s magnetic field.
Futureproof is a series of occasional provocations illustrating possible future paths for technology and culture. Think postcards from the future.