T.A.L.O.S.

THE REAL LIFE IRON MAN

What Is T.A.L.O.S.?
T.A.L.O.S. (Tactical Light Suit Operator) is a military suit (made in the
U.S. military) that in the future will provide maximum protection and
agility for the wearer like the Iron Man suit. T.A.L.O.S was first
presented by Admiral William Mcraven (who leads the Special
Operations Command) in May 2013 at a conference. Admiral
Mcraven got this idea when he lost a lead operator (the solider who
goes in first) on a mission.

Admiral William H. Mcraven the ninth commander of the U.S. Special Operations

Uses And Features OF T.A.L.O.S.

This is a military suit with robotic parts that provides superhuman abilities and maximum protection to
the wearer. This suit is expensive to create so it will only be made for the lead operator of the mission.
Features envisioned for this suit include:

an exoskeleton that provides support at the joints so wearer can support more weight and move faster
with less power

intelligent weight distribution throughout the body that can allow user to carry up to 400 pounds easily

sensor to constantly monitor body and alert wearer of injuries before they are serious

low profile suit so it can fit under the current military suit

a small source of power that provides a lot of energy

lethal weapons integrated into the suit

bulletproof

armored helmet integrating communications and optical vision (will allow constant feedback from
command central)

have the suit weigh less then 400 pounds

shock absorbing material that stiffens and soften when needed

reapplies energy to the user with small shocks of electricity through the body

An idea of how the suit might look by DARPA

Alternative Uses For T.A.L.O.S.

This suit is of course used for the military so it has no alternative
uses but parts of the suit can be used separately. For example:

the exoskeleton can be used to help old, fragile or disabled

people move with more ease and less pain

the sensors could be used by athletes to tell them when they

have a injury to take care of so that for a game they will be
prepared

The intelligent weight distribution can also be used on people

who lift heavy loads on a daily basis

Here you can see how an exoskeleton could help someone that is disabled

How Much Will T.A.L.O.S. Cost?

Pentagon spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Matt Allen admits that the Pentagon
does "not know how much TALOS will cost, but at the present the
U.S. military plans to spend $80 million on the research and making
of T.A.L.O.S. $80 million is a small amount of money but the
Pentagon has already spent over $500 million in research of items
similar to this suit like:

Beyond: Raytheon Sarcos XOS (the most advanced exoskeleton

so far in the world)

1987 Lifesuit (made by army ranger Monty Reed. More of like a

brace for the legs and he used it to run a 5K marathon)

2004 Bleex (once again made only for the legs but more
advanced. It is basically 2 robots attached to your legs

Beyond: Raytheon Sarcos XOS

How Long Will It Take For

T.A.L.O.S. To Be Completed?
T.A.L.O.S. was presented in 2013 and Admiral Mcraven says to
expect a working prototype by 2018 but a full working suit that can
go into war will be expected by 2026. This suit requires complicated
technologies which some of have not been made yet so that is why
this suit is taking so long to be made.

This is not the T.A.L.O.S (since it has not been made) but it is a model made by Revision
that has similar feature to T.A.L.O.S

What Material Is T.A.L.O.S. Made

From
Since this project is still the works not all materials have been
released to the general public but some of the materials that I found
were:

ceramic metal for a long, lasting durable exoskeleton

*shock absorbing material to provide support to the body

(material that stiffens and softens with shocks of electricity)

sensors to sense injuries before they are serious

https://youtu.be/DPlg9UMiYQc?t=31s
Watch the Shock Absorbing Material In Action

What Is The Power Source For

T.A.L.O.S.
The power source needs to be light weight but at the same time
provide large amounts of energy. So far the U.S. military plans to
use lithium ion batteries since they are the best match to the
requirements but the military is also working on producing their own
lighter energy source.

What Are The Robotic

Components
Of T.A.L.O.S.?
The exoskeleton is the movable part of the robot since it has

many actuators to move at the joints

the armored helmet is the brain of the suit because it receives

information and alerts wearer on what is important or not
a sensor system that monitors body vitals

it is reprogrammable for different war situations

has a power supply (lithium ion battery)

What Is The Future Of T.A.L.O.S.?

T.A.L.O.S. has not been made yet so it itself is the future but Admiral Mcraven says that after they
have a basic suit established they would like to add more to the suit like:

compact communications gear

night vision

3-D audio

increased data storage

small, individual soldier SATCOM antenna

an unpowered loadbearing exoskeleton

a powered cooling vest

the Future Interoperable Radio Enclosure (FIRE)

radio sleeve for cell phones

Built in oxygen supply

lightweight ceramic-metal armor
Inflatable Tourniquets to stop bleeding in minor wounds
biosensor-equipped shirt that can monitor a soldiers physiological status

What Are Some Of The Challenges

Of T.A.L.O.S.?
One of the major problems of T.A.L.O.S. is that it needs to be
extremely lightweight but with the exoskeleton and a battery that is
bulky the suit in not meeting up to the under 400 pounds
requirement. The suit also requires immense amounts of money to
make one, and requires a lot of power.

Bibliography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TALOS_(uniform)
http://kitup.military.com/2015/05/revisions-answer-talos-stands.html
http://
www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/10/11/the-armys-new-iron-mantalos-suit-explained.aspx
http://
articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/30/nation/la-na-ironman-military-201
31030
http://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/socom-seeks-talos-tactic
al-assault-light-operator-suit
/
http://
www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2008-04/building-real-iron-man?im
age=10