The U.S. Army Presents: Iron Man
Aside from the huge middle finger that the U.S. government has been giving it's citizens, there is other government news surfacing. It has been confirmed that researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the U.S. Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM) are coming together to develop what is known as a Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS). The suit is intended to "provide superhuman strength with greater ballistic protection" (http://www.army.mil/), and therefore is being called the "Iron Man" suit by the public.
The request from the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) was made back in May. Since then, RDECOM has been submitting proposals and looking for industry, government, and academic partners that could help develop such technology. RDECOM and SOCOM understand that there is not a single industry or organization that can build the suit. The suit is required to "bring together an exoskeleton with innovative armor, displays for power monitoring, health monitoring", and should integrate weaponry (http://www.army.mil/). TALOS is also expected to have sensors that monitor body temperature, skin temperature, heart rate, body position, and hydration levels.
The plan is to have a prototype that uses current and emerging technologies by next year. The ultimate goal is to have the suit fielded within three years.
While this sounds like a a great idea, there are several people that are not impressed by the idea of the iron man suit because it seems unrealistic. A downside to the development of such technologies for the war fighter is that they are going to be responsible for carrying weapons and armor, and any batteries or power sources that would be required. Although RDECOM "cuts across every aspect" that is required for the development of this suit, it is not so easy to make a lightweight battery that can hold a charge for an armored suit for days at a time, nor is it a simple task to make a lightweight gun powerful enough to protect fielded soldiers.
Just recently, the director of RDECOM has made it a point to remind people of the purpose of the command via YouTube. Click here if you care to watch 8 minutes of the command's mission (I watched it at work the other day, and although I work here it was still insightful). This was pretty tactful. Of course we all know of MIT. But there are very few people that know who is in charge of research and development within the Army. To develop such a suit, it is important to only be involved with the best of the best, and I guess RDECOM needed to let people know: "This is what we do".
There are several great aspects of the idea of the suit and there are just as many downfalls. It will be up to the researchers and developers to overcome the technological limitations and hurdles they will face. I personally think it is a bit far fetch to have an advanced suit built in the next three years, but I am hopeful. Successful development can make war fighters almost invincible. Not that I condone the idea of war or anything, but when we deploy our soldiers, it is necessary to protect them the best we can.
The request from the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) was made back in May. Since then, RDECOM has been submitting proposals and looking for industry, government, and academic partners that could help develop such technology. RDECOM and SOCOM understand that there is not a single industry or organization that can build the suit. The suit is required to "bring together an exoskeleton with innovative armor, displays for power monitoring, health monitoring", and should integrate weaponry (http://www.army.mil/). TALOS is also expected to have sensors that monitor body temperature, skin temperature, heart rate, body position, and hydration levels.
The plan is to have a prototype that uses current and emerging technologies by next year. The ultimate goal is to have the suit fielded within three years.
While this sounds like a a great idea, there are several people that are not impressed by the idea of the iron man suit because it seems unrealistic. A downside to the development of such technologies for the war fighter is that they are going to be responsible for carrying weapons and armor, and any batteries or power sources that would be required. Although RDECOM "cuts across every aspect" that is required for the development of this suit, it is not so easy to make a lightweight battery that can hold a charge for an armored suit for days at a time, nor is it a simple task to make a lightweight gun powerful enough to protect fielded soldiers.
Just recently, the director of RDECOM has made it a point to remind people of the purpose of the command via YouTube. Click here if you care to watch 8 minutes of the command's mission (I watched it at work the other day, and although I work here it was still insightful). This was pretty tactful. Of course we all know of MIT. But there are very few people that know who is in charge of research and development within the Army. To develop such a suit, it is important to only be involved with the best of the best, and I guess RDECOM needed to let people know: "This is what we do".
There are several great aspects of the idea of the suit and there are just as many downfalls. It will be up to the researchers and developers to overcome the technological limitations and hurdles they will face. I personally think it is a bit far fetch to have an advanced suit built in the next three years, but I am hopeful. Successful development can make war fighters almost invincible. Not that I condone the idea of war or anything, but when we deploy our soldiers, it is necessary to protect them the best we can.
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