The Army’s goal is to come up with a uniform by 2008 with helmet that enhances hearing and protect ears from battle cacaphony and heads-up display built into the visor to display infrared images. A wheeled robot “mule” would follow a soldier around with equipment for purifying water and recharging batteries.

The Army warfighter of 2025 will have lightweight body armor made with nanomaterials to deflect a bullet with an electrical charge. Polymers in the uniform will “read” their wearer’s surroundings and change color and pattern to render him nearly invisible. Boots may contain a liquid that hardens if the solider steps on a land mine. Coin-size silicon microturbines will power the soldiers’ computer systems.