Santos the Digital Human

Santos: The New Human

From Wired magazine: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70253-0.html?tw=wn_technology_13

Santos was a creation of the Virtual Soldier Research at the University of Iowa. He is one of the first digital humans, composed of algorithms combined with motion capture data, everything about him can be altered digitally. This project could save the military and corporation lots of money and lives.

With the click of a mouse, Santos will engage with a digital prototype, and controllers will be able to see how a real human would react in the situation. An actual person therefore is no longer needed, thus saving costs. For example, Caterpillar has added him to their payroll to make sure its heavy equipment is not only ergonomic, but easy to service. When Santos is performing his duties his body functions, like heart rate, temperature, and muscle load all appear on screen. As he moves in response to commands, he sends back information on his comfort level and joint angles. Controllers also watch him perform the task on a screen to see any problems he might encounter.

Not surprisingly, the US military is also very excited about this project. Santos can model new combat gear to test if it is too restrictive, or just not useful. Also, digital humans can be used to recreate crime scenes, and test new products. The technology is already amazing, and is continuing to be refined, the possibilities are endless on what these new 'humans' will soon be able to achieve.