The P-900 Type-33 Self-contained Battle Harness [900-33 ScBH] is the standard powered exoskeleton system used by Directorate Army ground forces. A derivative model, the P-900 Type-35 Self-contained Battle Harness/Vacuum [900-35 ScBH/V] is used by Naval Infantry Forces and is specialized to last long enough in the vacuum of space so that the soldiers can be rescued. The powered armor suit is designed to protect its user, improving survivability as well as battlefield awarenes, and to augment his/her natural abilities.
Exoskeletal Carapace Array[]
The P-900 Type-33 is, first and foremost, a highly advanced suit of armor. Physical protection comes in the form of shaped plates made from numerous specially-bonded, paper-thin layers. These sheets are formed from large bricks of advanced ceramic-composites & heavy metal alloys incased in shells of hyper-durable carbon nano-laminates. Multiple large slabs are stacked together and compressed using intense fusion heat and artificial gravity to form thin layers held together by bonds at a molecular level, resulting in meticulously form-fitting and incredibly hard armor plates. Thus, a Directorate soldier is equipped with a suit offering considerably better raw protection than the armor of a 21st Century Abrams tank, although the principles are quite similar to the combat vehicle's ceramic-composite Chobham Armor.
The plates and sections of the P-900's carapace are connected by effectively frictionless joints, using bearings which have been smoothed by a laser down to a molecular level. Basic joint articulation is provided by a series of electric servomotors, although these are not the armor's primary motivational or load-bearing systems. Power is provided by a micro-Fusion cell integrated into the armor's backplate, with a secondary fuel cell on the back of the waist that provides energy for the exoskeleton's passive systems & other less power-intensive components. A system of high-storage capacitors sequestered throughout the Carapace offers a measure of redundancy so that the armor may function fully for a very short period and various vital systems can be maintained in the event of powerplant failure.
Exterior Containment System[]
The exoskeleton's equivalent of 20th - 21st century equipment webbing is a system of vacuum-sealed, armored containment modules attached to hardpoints on the armor via magnetic locks. They include a large backpack, utility belt and canisters for the front of the torso, upper legs and upper arms.
Artificial Musculature Overlay[]
The Artificial Musculature Overlay is the subsystem of the armor which provides mobility and augments the wearer's physical abilities. It is a system of artificial muscles made from carbon nanotube bundles which very much imitates the actual musculature of the human body. Power and command input is provided by a system of super-conductor tubes and fibre-optic wiring networks which highly resembles a human nervous system. The muscles are electromagnetically stimulated using a system of tiny electric micro-motors, while commands are received from an interface plugged directly into the user's cerabellum. Transmissions from the wearer's brain which would normally travel through his or her natural nerves are instead converted into optical [light-based] transmissions and rerouted through the fibre-optic network of the Artificial Musculature Overlay. The near-lightspeed transmission rate of this artificial nervous system considerably improves the user's reaction times and prevents accidental harm to the body because the user's natural limbs are never actually moved while wearing the suit. The suit functions in the same manner as the wearer's actual body and moves the user's limbs, rather than simply responding to and amplifying natural movements - a fluid, seemless connection between soldier and suit.
The artificial muscles of the armor are extremely powerful - far more than the human body's natural counterparts - and rely on a system of redundant capacitors hidden throughout the Artificial Musculature Overlay to provide power for movement. The neural uplink ensures natural, fluid motion with the suit, while the systems are specifically tuned so as not to over-amplify the user's movements - allowing he or she to do something as delicate as pick up a wine glass without breaking it, or as brutal as crushing an unprotected human head, with natural ease.