US Army plans 'Iron Man' suit
While the rest of the nation struggles to pay its bills because of the government shutdown, the US military is pushing ahead with plans to build a suit of armour inspired by the Marvel comic book hero Iron Man.
But excited tech-heads and enemies-of-the-state should not expect US infantry men flying through the sky like an army of Tony Starks anytime soon; these suits will be designed to provide better armoured protection and hydraulically-assisted strength.
'We're not at the Iron Man flying suit, you know, flying at 50,000 feet level,' said Jim Geurts, a high-tech equipment expert and purchaser for the US Special Operations Command told NPR.
If anything, these suits are more likely to resemble the M52B body armour from the game HALO, or a much smaller version of the work loader from Aliens.
A liquid armour, known as 'magnetorheological fluids' is one concept being developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology that will transform liquids into solids when acted upon by a magnetic or electrical field.
Though still in the fantasy stages, the suit's necessity came from Admiral Bill McRaven's plea to have better protection for soldiers in the field following the death of one of his troops during a raid in Afghanistan.
'Why haven't we put effort into ensuring particularly that guy going through the door ... is protected to the maximum capability that we can provide him, as a nation?' the admiral asked at a military-technology conference in May this year.
The working title for the exoskeleton is the Tactical Assault Light Operation Suit, or TALOS, which is not as heavy a name as it seems.
In Greek mythology, Talos was a giant man of bronze who protected Europa from invaders and marauders.
The army is hoping to have at least one version of the exoskeleton in the field within three years.
US Army Sergeant Major Chris Faris admitted that 'no one industry can build it', hoping to realise their dreams by bringing together the best, most creative minds of the tech industry and academics with the lucrative and well-funded military industrial complex.
Sources: NPR, BBC, US Army Author: Nicholas McCallum, Approving editor: Nick Pearson
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