CHAPTER 279: CHAPTER 277 PROTECTIVE SUIT TESTING

Chen Xin, wearing the Exoskeleton Protective Suit, walked out of the shelter, while Han Ping vigilantly followed behind him, constantly scanning the surroundings for potential danger.

Initially, when he saw Chen Xin planning to go outside to test the Exoskeleton Protective Suit, Han Ping wanted to test it himself and have Chen Xin stay inside the shelter.

After all, Han Ping was introduced to Chen Xin by his second uncle as a bodyguard and driver, and since Chen Xin returned and established a cooperative relationship with the country, Han Ping naturally understood Chen Xin’s importance; even the military had come to request that he diligently protect Chen Xin.

This naturally made Han Ping very attentive to Chen Xin’s safety. Fortunately, Chen Xin rarely left the shelter, which was built as sturdy as a fortress, and even when he did go out, it was in an armored motorhome, so Han Ping generally didn’t need to worry about Chen Xin’s safety.

But this time, Chen Xin wanted to test the Exoskeleton Protective Suit and directly walked out of the shelter, making Han Ping inevitably nervous, even more than when he executed his first military mission.

Thankfully, Chen Xin didn’t walk far; he was just testing at the entrance of the shelter.

Having just walked out of the shelter, Chen Xin did not activate the heating function of the Exoskeleton Protective Suit; he needed to test the suit’s cold resistance in conventional conditions.

The test results were somewhat mediocre. The instrument installed on Chen Xin’s arm showed the environmental temperature to be -37℃; after standing in the snow for only a short while, he felt his legs were nearly numb from the cold, and his body was icy, with signs of the surface of his clothing freezing.

This prompted Chen Xin to quickly activate the heating function of the suit.

Soon, the temperature rose, and warmth radiated continuously from the heating wires throughout his body, quickly dispelling the chill in Chen Xin’s body, even numbed feet recovering amidst a wave of tingling sensations.

Feeling the temperature rise, Chen Xin moved his limbs, intending to check the temperature on the instrument in his hand, but then realized the instrument could only display environmental temperature and not the internal temperature of the suit.

This made Chen Xin want to slap his forehead, but as he raised his hand halfway, the thought dissipated since the Exoskeleton wasn’t that responsive yet, and his hand was only halfway up.

Looking at his arm raised halfway, Chen Xin realized there were still many places in the Exoskeleton Protective Suit that needed modification, like the status display he just thought of, which should not only show environmental and internal temperatures but also oxygen levels and battery power, allowing the wearer to be aware of their condition at all times.

Chen Xin also discovered that he lacked a crucial component: the communicator. He wanted to call out to Han Ping to help him record something but realized his voice couldn’t get through, discovering this issue only then.

The sealed helmet indeed performed well in windproofing, thermal retention, and oxygen supply, but it isolated the inside from the outside, so without a communicator, there’s no way to transmit sound outside.

This was somewhat inconvenient.

However, these are just details that Chen Xin wouldn’t handle himself. The prototype would be handed to the country, and their research department would add these details, saving him unnecessary concern.

What really needed testing and consideration was the Exoskeleton Protective Suit’s flexibility, as well as the thermal-retention and heating functions already tested.

The thermal-retention performance was mediocre; this outfit wasn’t designed for cold resistance or warmth, so its cold-resistance effect was only barely sufficient. The heating function was relatively satisfactory, as Chen Xin felt warm after turning it on for just a short while.

So, he performed a messed-up set of radio calisthenics in the snow, having practically forgotten all the movements.

Even though he performed them messily, Chen Xin wasn’t truly aiming to do radio calisthenics; he was simply using this method to test the flexibility of the Exoskeleton he wore.

Considering bodily movement, radio calisthenics are certainly highly effective.

After completing a chaotic set of radio calisthenics, Chen Xin finally had a comprehensive understanding of the modified Exoskeleton’s flexibility. Overall, it performed quite well, with the upper limbs able to lift, stretch forward and backward, and bend freely, essentially meeting normal arm movement needs.

However, since it employed a force-feedback control system, its responsiveness was somewhat slow, with a built-in delay effect, but it didn’t impede usage—only requiring slightly slower movements.

After all, this was merely a civilian Exoskeleton, primarily used for construction work, not for battlefield use, so it didn’t need to be that responsive.

Upon completing the flexibility test, Chen Xin felt he had finished the testing for this session and turned to walk back to the shelter’s entrance.

Seeing Chen Xin complete the test, Han Ping also quietly breathed a sigh of relief but did not lower his vigilance, continuing to cautiously scan the surroundings to prevent potential dangers.

As the two were preparing to return inside the shelter, a light suddenly approached from the distance.

"Mr. Chen, it seems to be coming towards this direction," Han Ping said to Chen Xin, urging him to get inside the shelter: "For safety reasons, you should head in first."

Chen Xin didn’t insist, nodding and heading into the shelter. Though the Exoskeleton Protective Suit he wore was relatively warm, the outer heat and inner cold caused the melted ice to dampen his suit, especially the pant legs, which were entirely wet.

Chen Xin then identified another improvement area: incorporating waterproofing. Otherwise, the suit is fine in dry places, but if the humidity rises even a bit, it might turn into an ice shell.

Besides waterproofing, de-icing also needs attention. Otherwise, the Exoskeleton’s joints might freeze and become immobile, or circuits could short due to icy water, which could cause many problems.

Thus, back inside the shelter, Chen Xin took off the Exoskeleton Protective Suit.

While taking it off, Chen Xin also realized the suit needed a temperature-adjusting function. Constant heating is fine outdoors, as the outside temperature is low enough for continuous warming.

But indoors, if only on-off options are available without the means to adjust heating according to environmental temperature, the suit becomes somewhat impractical.

Temperature control technology is not complicated, merely a matter of modifying the control switch.

Chen Xin placed the removed Exoskeleton Protective Suit on the workbench, taking out a notebook beside him to jot down the thoughts he had just had, preparing to make improvements step by step.