The Virtual Soldier Research program (VSR) is a research group within the University of Iowa College of Engineering's Center for Computer-Aided Design (CCAD). VSR was founded by Professor Karim Abdel-Malek in 2003 through external funding from the US Army Tank Automotive Command (TACOM) to put the Warfighter at the center of US Army product designs. Using this initial research and funding as a foundation, VSR continues to develop new technologies in digital human modeling and simulation.
VSR's digital human model, Santos™, stands at the center of its digital human modeling and simulation research. The high-fidelity, biomechanically accurate musculoskeletal model incorporates 215 degrees of freedom, including the hand, feet, and eyes. The dimensions of the skeleton are mutable, able to represent any anthropometric cross section. In addition, Santos includes a muscular system with the ability to predict muscle activation and muscle forces in real time, using a novel optimization-based methodology.
The mathematical model for the Santos skeleton was developed based on the Denavit-Hartenberg method for kinematic and dynamic analysis. Optimization is used to determine postures and motions that are governed by various human performance measures (objective functions) and constrained by the restrictions imposed by the skeleton, the laws of physics, and the environment.
VSR research has led to the spin-off of a private company, Santos Human Inc., specifically focused on product development.