Inventing Iron Man Read online

  I remain inspired by my two main scientific mentors, Digby Sale at McMaster University and Richard Stein at the University of Alberta. They both kindled my interest in neuroscience, and I thank them for lighting and fanning that spark into a flame. I must also point out the accidental inspiration provided by Dan Ferris of the University of Michigan who, I think, planted a seed by showing Iron Man images in a conference talk on robotic exoskeletons given at Key Biscayne, Florida some years ago.

  I conducted many interviews during the writing of this book, and I am indebted to those who agreed to speak and correspond with me. Yves (the “Jet Man”) Rossy, Yoshiyuki Sankai and Fumi Takeuchi of Cyberdyne Inc., Phil Nuytten of Nuytco, Jon Wolpaw at Wadsworth Center, Doug Weber at the University of Pittsburgh, Max Donelan at Simon Fraser University, David Williams (formerly of the Canadian Space Agency, now of McMaster University), and David Wolf and Robert Frost of the National Aeronautics and Space Agency all corresponded with me at various times. I thank them very much for their time.

  I remain impressed by the level of professionalism and competence at the Johns Hopkins University Press. I thank Vince Burke for his help throughout the entire process of proposal to publication, Michele T. Callaghan for her truly outstanding skills as copy editor, and Kathy Alexander for her tireless and effective work as publicist.

  I also thank all the readers of my first book, Becoming Batman: The Possibility of a Superhero, who have so kindly provided feedback on how they enjoyed it. You helped sustain me in writing this book.

  Last, thank you to Jordan, Andi, and Lori for helping to keep me grounded.

  PART I IT’S MORE THAN SKIN DEEP

  Tony learns to live inside a suit of iron

  CHAPTER ONE Origins of the Iron Knight

  BIONICS, ROBOTIC ARMOR, AND ANTHROPOMORPHIC SUITS

  I thought, well, if a guy had a suit of armor, but it was a modern suit of armor—not like years ago in the days of King Arthur—and what if that suit of armor made him as strong as any Super Hero? I wasn’t thinking robot at all: I was thinking of armor, a man wearing twentieth-century armor that would give him great power.

  —Comic book icon Stan Lee on his inspiration for creating Iron Man, in Iron Man: Beneath the Armor by Andy Mangels

  Iron Man is one of those comics where you have very few purists who have attached themselves to particular story lines. In the case of Iron Man it’s the myth of Iron Man … it’s the suit … it’s what the suit could do.

  —Jon Favreau, director of the 2008 movie Iron Man

  The prototypical British heavy metal band Black Sabbath rang in 1970 with Tony Iommi’s immortal guitar riff (heavily distorted courtesy of Laney amps) and words (heavily distorted courtesy of Ozzy Osbourne’s vocal cords and, um, distinct manner of speech), forever giving us the phrase “I … am … Iron Man.” That musical Iron Man was cast as a villain who has a vision of a future apocalypse. But who is Iron Man the comic book icon? Let’s be honest: first impressions are often mostly visual. And at first glance, the defining visual characteristic of Iron Man is his iron armor. The main attraction and defining characteristic for Iron Man really is skin deep. The Marvel Comics character Iron Man certainly represents the most well-known comic character to wear a suit of armor like it is his own skin. Colossus from the Uncanny X-Men also has an iron skin, except in his case it is literal in that his skin actually changes into iron! John Henry Irons from DC Comics also has an iron body, with capabilities that rival Superman. And even Batman once used an oversized exoskeleton to help defeat Superman in Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. Yet none of these well-known and lesser known heroes is the combination pilot, soldier, police officer, deep-sea diver, and flying human that Tony Stark is.

  Many buzzwords could be used to describe the themes we are going to explore in this book, including “bionics” and “cybernetics.” But these themes center on two main concepts: what type of person it would take to be an inventor and what kind of inventions would be needed to make a sustainable Iron Man. To look at these topics, we will explore the one great evolutionary “invention” we all possess: the human body, especially its muscles and its nervous system including the brain. We will also consider other more tangible inventions—past, present, and future—in our quest to understand whether Iron Man could really have been invented and, if so, what that invention would do to the human inside.

  The merger of biology, modern technology, and concepts of engineering is captured by the term “bionics.” (The term also captures fond memories of a childhood spent watching Lee Majors as Steve Austin in The Six Million Dollar Man. I never understood why the weight of a motor as it was lifted didn’t rip his bionic arm right off that human body. I still don’t. But it’s cool nonetheless.) The term “cybernetics” has also been used related to this kind of research, suggesting the control systems involved in combining artificial intelligence and machine-biological interfaces. The concept of “cyborg” is also relevant here. Cyborgs show up in all kinds of pop-culture references from the Terminator of the Govinator to the Cybermen of Dr. Who. The Terminator had a metal skeleton covered with imitation human flesh. The Cybermen go to real extremes of biological and machine connection and a little human biology—including an artificial nervous system—within a robotic shell of iron. Unlike our hero, the Cybermen emerged from a humanoid species on a twin planet to Earth. Those humanoids began implanting technology and artificial parts into themselves until they became full-on cyborgs and almost robots. We won’t take it that far, with Iron Man, but we will take some tentative steps in that direction!

  The first of many inventors we look at in this book is the man who came up with the concept of man-machine combination in the form of a cyborg. Jean de la Hire (1878–1956), an early twentieth-century French novelist, wrote a series of adventures involving a hero named Léo Saint-Clair. Léo is a man-machine hybrid whose cyborg name is Nyctalope. He possesses some artificial organs and supernatural mental powers. Nyctalope represents the first superhero written about in popular culture, preceding the great-grandfathers of comic book superheroes, such as Superman (1938), Batman (1939), and Captain America (1941). His first adventure was published in 1911 and his origin story was described in “L’Assassinat du Nyctalope”—“The Assassination of the Nyctalope”—published in 1933 and recently translated by Brian Stableford and reissued. (In true comic book style, though, Saint-Clair wasn’t actually assassinated and did survive.)

  Like Tony Stark, Nyctalope had an artificial heart. Or at least a heart with artificial support. But he didn’t come close to Tony Stark in the complexity of his cyborg machinery. For much of this book, we will explore that machinery—the ever-changing types of armor and the men (and women) who wore them. Before we look at some representations of that armor, let’s examine what major functions it performs. Iron Man’s famous costume is an amalgam of an assistive device and protective armor. When we think about the kinesiology and neuroscience behind what is realistic about Iron Man, we need to be aware of both facets of the metal suit. The assistive device part is, just as it sounds, technology that assists a person in performing basic functions such as moving, lifting things, or, for the most part still fancifully, flying around. The protective function of this type of armor is much more obvious: it shields Tony Stark—and in later comics his friends and enemies—from weapons and other dangers.

  In addition to these ways in which the armor assists Tony and protects him from external threats, we need to remember that the armor also provides basic support. In essence, we want to combine the idea of medieval armor with the biological body (figure 1.1) shown in the painting by Dutch anatomist Bernhard Siegfried Albinus (1697–1770). Is it really as simple as shown in this figure? Does armor plus body equal Iron Man? Certainly it would produce a man in iron. But that isn’t really what Iron Man is all about. The inner workings and seamless connection between the suit and the body are key.

  Figure 1.1. Iron Man armor seems to combine a classical view of the anatomy o
f the human body with the protection and support of medieval armor. Left, courtesy Pearson Scott Foresman; right, courtesy Historical Medical Books at the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, University of Virginia.

  Dozens and dozens of armors have been used since the character’s debut in 1963. These include highly specialized armors like the “Hulkbuster,” which was, not that the name is any giveaway, extra-beefed-up armor designed specifically to fight the Hulk. I have chosen four types of armor to highlight (figure 1.2): first, the Iron Man armor in original gray (and its gold successor); second, the classic red and gold and one special type of the red and gold, the NTU-150; and third, Extremis. The fourth is the Iron Monger armor created by Tony’s business antithesis and former partner Obidiah Stane and worn by Stane and other villains. While not technically Iron Man armor, the Iron Monger is based upon the original Iron Man suit design and has been an integral part of the Iron Man mythology. It shows clearly the idea of the human inside the suit. As we will see later, Stane’s armor is closest to a suit that could actually be made with current technology.

  Figure 1.2. Tony’s costume has changed significantly over the years. Shown are original gray (A), classic red and gold (B), Extremis (C), and Iron Monger armor (D).

  Original Gray Armor

  The original gray armor made its first appearance with Iron Man’s debut in Tales of Suspense #39 in 1963. On the cover of that comic (figure 1.3), there are a couple of important things to note. The first is the text that goes with the images: “Iron Man! He lives! He walks! He conquers!” Note the copious use of exclamation points! But more to the point, simply having the ability to walk is considered extraordinary. At his debut, just being able to move around in armor—so, no mention of flying at this time—was seen as something worthy of comment. The second thing to notice is Iron Man’s posture. He is a bit hunched over, with his body canted forward and to the side and with his arms and legs splayed open. This is beautiful Jack Kirby art, but it is not really a stereotypically “robotic” or mechanical posture. Instead, this is an animalistic posture of something or someone crouching or otherwise preparing to move. The last thing to look at is the series of three panels shown at the left where someone (Tony Stark, as we learn in the story) has some kind of iron suit that can be taken apart and put on and off with ease. The concept of a modular suit is front and center with this panel. Remember these important things, because, as will unfold throughout the book, much of what was shown back in 1963 with Iron Man’s debut in the gray armor comes closest to what is really available now, almost 50 years on.

  By the way, the original gray armor didn’t last long. At least not in that color. It was only around for one and a half comics. Halfway through Tales of Suspense #40, in a story entitled “Iron Man vs. Gargantus,” Tony Stark turns the gray armor yellow (or golden) with some kind of metal-plating technique, and the Golden Avenger armor was born. Why the change, you may well ask? Was it strategic, or somehow related to camouflage or offensive effectiveness? No. It was used to play off of Tony Stark’s persona as a flamboyant ladies’ man. Just after being saved by Iron Man, one of Tony’s girlfriends (Marion) asks why he wears “such a terrifying looking costume? He actually frightens people! He battles menaces like a hero in olden times! So, if he’s a modern knight in shining armor, why doesn’t he wear golden metal instead of that awful, dull gray armor?” And that was pretty much that. All that glitters is gold, I guess. (Yes, I also like Led Zeppelin.)

  Figure 1.3. The first time Iron Man armor appeared in the comics was in Tales of Suspense #39 from March 1963. Notice how even at this time the armor is depicted as something that could easily be put on and taken off like clothing. Copyright Marvel Comics.

  Classic Red and Gold Armor

  The original armor was used until a December 1963 story called “The New Iron Man Battles … the Mysterious Mr. Doll!” (Tales of Suspense #48, 1963), which was the debut of the “classic” red and gold armor. Since the gray armor debuted in April 1963, clearly a lot of progress happened in the evolution of Iron Man in just one calendar year. This newer armor contained many of the elements that have remained with Iron Man. At least so far. A key part of the development of the new armor was that it was more lightweight and efficient. Tony is shown contemplating “how vulnerable Iron Man is! I seem to need recharging more and more often!” and “It’s this iron suit of mine! It’s too heavy! Saps too much of my energy merely to support the weight!” He also commented upon how all of this had such a straining effect on his weakened heart. Faced with either giving up “the role of Iron Man—forever …!!” or designing “a new Iron Man costume … one which will be lighter in weight … less bulky,” Tony goes with the latter. In fact one caption from this story clearly says “and so the brilliant Anthony Stark works—works—as few men have ever worked before!” His work produces the new armor.

  At this stage the armor is still quite modular. The Iron Man suit can be laid out on a table (or carried by Tony in a slightly oversized briefcase, as was often portrayed) and easily put on piece by interlocking piece. An important thing to think about here, since it bears on much of what we will discuss later, is how thin and compact this armor is. Tony even points this out when he describes the torso section as “wafer-thin.” Of particular significance is the headgear, which is a thin, form-fitting face shield. (We will return to the face shield in a discussion of the trials and tribulations of Tony in chapter 7.)

  One thing that is never fully explained is how the motors to control movement actually work. It appears to be a much more “passive” kind of armor system but is described as a magnetized, motorized, and transistorized suit. In any event, this basic concept of Iron Man as a suit or a “costume” has persisted throughout the character’s history, including the recent big-screen incarnations of Iron Man. Two images from a line of action figures sold in conjunction with the 2008 Iron Man movie are shown in figure 1.4. At the left Iron Man in full gear, while at the right the helmet portion is raised and the armor has been removed from the arms and chest. These images (and the figures that were used to make them) closely correspond to how Iron Man armor is depicted in the comics and movies. That is, a thin shielding that is worn very close fitting and that roughly maintains the body shape underneath. So, it is anthropomorphic armor. (We’ll see later how far away from current reality this “classic” red and gold armor is.) In contrast, the original gray armor and the Iron Monger armor are bulky and only loosely represent the shape of the human body. But they are closer to what we actually have for armored exoskeletons right now.

  Figure 1.4. Action figure showing how thin the armor was in the Marvel Studios 2008 movie Iron Man. This can be seen by the circles and arrows on his figure, particularly on the face plate. It can also be seen looking at Tony Stark’s bare arm. This type of armor would allow for limited cushioning of the hard impacts that Iron Man is likely to sustain.

  Telepresence Armor

  The telepresence armor—actually the “Neuromimetic Telepresence Unit,” or “NTU-150”—represents a unique type of suit for Tony. Many of the different armors were modified for certain uses, like doing battle against certain foes (or sometimes friends). Examples include the Thorbuster or particular armors for use in space or in the deep sea. But, the telepresence armor was a totally new type of armor technology. It no longer just protected Tony’s heart and kept him alive; it also allowed him to control the iron machinery with his mind.

  There are a number of versions of telepresence armor. The basic premise, though, is that it was created out of need when Tony was injured and unable to don the real Iron Man armor. Instead he devised what was essentially a remote control armor system. This was fully shown for the first time in “This Year’s Model” (Iron Man #290, 1993). The background to the creation of this armor can be found in “Technical Difficulties” (Iron Man #280, 1992). In this story, Tony recounts that he built the first Iron Man suit “in order to survive a damaged heart … but now … the nerve degeneration … techno-or
ganic parasite … is eating away at my body like an artificial cancer.” The upshot is that his nervous system is degenerating. He creates a “neuro-web life support system” to help make up for the deficits in his failing body. (I just want to let you know that I attend the Society for Neuroscience annual research meeting—the largest gathering of neuroscientists in the world—pretty much every year and I have unfortunately never come across such a system. It sounds amazing.) But this invention is not enough. As we read later in Iron Man #290, this “neuro-web” works as an “artificial nervous system designed to maintain the most complex machine yet conceived by nature—a human body.” Tony undergoes some fantastic procedures and when he is in the recovery room he is told “whether you’ll ever recover even partial mobility—it’s too early to say … if your system does recover, it won’t be easy. You’ll have to relearn even the most basic functions from scratch.”

  OK. So Tony is in a dire scenario. What he does next is the kind of wonderfully delicious understatement that makes comic books so awesome to read. He decides to create a brain interface that will allow him to remotely control a suit of armor. Thus is born the “telepresence unit.” And, in wonderful comic book hero tradition, Tony is shown lying in bed and saying, “All I’ve got is the power of my intellect. Fine. That’s all the power I need.” (Please cue the Black Sabbath “Iron Man” power chords right here.) He gets a tech from Stark Industries to “kludge together the neural interface computer aided design and manufacture [the] teleoperator’s rig” that he needs to create the suit. (How awesome is it that he had to create an interface that vastly outstrips the technology we have currently in order to build and control a robotic suit of armor that even more vastly outstrips our current technology? We will look more closely at this brain-machine interface in chapter 3.) After Tony gets this technology squared away and gets jacked in—plugged in like a telephone into a jack in the wall—he creates the telepresence armor. Once he begins using it, Tony comments that his new tweaks have really improved the experience and that “subspace link eliminates transmission lag time. Neuromimetic system makes it feel like I’m actually there … That same system insures that mortal damage to the remote will result in fatal neural feedback.” This newest iteration of the telepresence armor allows Tony to remotely control, in a kind of virtual environment, a fully functioning Iron Man robotic suit.