Virtual Humans in the Tactical Environment
In 2022, the Tactical Athlete Leadership Board visited the University of Iowa as part of the 7th International Digital Human Modeling Symposium and the Iowa Virtual Human Summit. The Iowa Technology Institute’s research and technology into virtual humans and digital modeling has seen applications across the tactical environment.
In a study released earlier this year, it was estimated that the total cost of injuries among US Army soldiers in a single year is over $4.7 billion dollars once medical care costs, hospital bed costs, and the indirect impact of limited duty days are factored in. Aside from the financial impact, the hit to operational readiness is also substantial. To address both the injury issue and related challenge of troop recruitment and retention,, the Army has turned to innovative technologies to find ways to optimize soldier performance and readiness, without risking additional soldier injury.
One of these ground-breaking technologies is Santos, the virtual human developed by the Iowa Technology Institute at the University of Iowa. Santos is a biomechanically accurate digital human model which allows organizations to test human limits without putting people or equipment at risk.
More than just a biomechanical model, Santos can be configured to represent different body sizes and shapes, including Sophia, the female counterpart of Santos. Santos and Sophia can be dropped into different environments and asked to perform different tasks. Gear and equipment can be added to the model to accurately represent the loads that soldiers are asked to carry and the technology will calculate energy expenditure, fatigue and hydration impacts, and the impact of stress on different joints.
This new technology can offer military commanders and researchers visibility on operational risk, including survivability, injury mitigation, resiliency and performance, prior to having boots on ground, which can allow for proactive refinement of tactics and skills in a risk-free setting. Additionally, the virtual twin offers the ability to prototype and test new equipment and practices to identify the impact on soldiers and continue to improve the solutions without needing to deploy directly into the field.
One of the most noteworthy examples of this work was Santos’ role in the development of the new Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT). Starting in 2019, Santos and Sophia were used to not only validate that the ACFT replicates the same strain and exertion that soldiers experience when they perform common soldier tasks, but also to simulate how both those events and the originating tasks impact the various body types seen across the soldier population today. Through this work, Iowa was able to highlight that the ACFT offers a more realistic representation of the impact of common soldier tasks than the previously used Army Physical Fitness Test.
As the soldier of the future continues to be defined and refined - with technological innovations, new equipment and systems all blending together to optimize and inform both commanders and soldiers in the field - the applicability of virtual twins and digital environments to prototype and simulate the impact on the human body without putting soldiers at risk for injury will continue to be of the utmost importance.
Julia Castrucci is currently studying for a Master’s degree in Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh. She previously completed a Bachelor’s of Science in Kinesiology at Michigan State University. While at Michigan State, she worked as a senior research lab analyst with the Spartan Motorsport Performance Lab. During this time, Julia contributed to in-lab research and data analysis on core temperature and hydration strategies to help improve race car drivers' athletic performance. She plans on pursuing a career working in the sports industry, developing technology that serves to quantify and improve athletes' athletic performance.