Robot Arm Makes for the Most Awesome Flight Simulator Ever *POSTED BY:* Evan Ackerman / Thu, December 01, 2011 <http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/industrial-robots/robot-arm-makes-for-the-most-awesome-flight-simulator-ever#> Yes, that's a dude playing around in an immersive flight simulator that's mounted on the end of a giant robot arm. It has 6 degrees of freedom, it can simulate continuous rotation and g-forces, and no, it probably won't fit in your living room. Now, does that look like some serious puke-inducing fun, or what? The robot, essentially a heavily modified industrial arm, is at the center of Deakin University's Universal Motion Simulator (UMS), a facility specifically designed to train fighter pilots. While other simulators can provide some sense of motion, the UMS can generate up to 6 Gs of force, which you wouldn't otherwise experience outside of a high speed turn in a fighter jet (or maybe a rocket launch). And while this is all going on, the UMS will send back data on your vital signs to make sure that your eyeballs are still in their sockets. When the Australians get a couple of these things up and running, they'll be linked together to let fighter pilots dogfight with their buddies. You're probably not invited to go play with them, but for a similar (albeit slightly less extreme) experience, you can always try out one of these instead.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-skv7GtXFc&feature=player_embedded#! -- With best wishes S Chander
