At CES 2020, when Sarcos demonstrated its Guardian XO exoskeleton, the company said, "We've been working on this for years

Sarcos has partnered with Delta Air Lines to offer the first battery-powered full-body exoskeleton to help employees do the heavy lifting How heavy is it? The battery-powered robotic suit can lift up to 200 pounds for eight hours

To be clear, I demonstrated only the arms before I saw this exoskeleton in its entirety I was lifted, placed in a harness, and restrained I was then allowed to actuate the trigger with two fingers of my right hand

With the robotic arm turned off, I felt the weight of the 50-pound suitcase But then Sarcos turned on the arm, and as I swung my arm forward, the bag literally went weightless

I guess this is what it feels like to be Iron Man At least that's what Tom Cruise was like in Edge of Tomorrow

Then came time for a bigger demonstration A Sarcos employee, dressed in a full Guardian XO suit, lifted a 130-pound tire that would normally require multiple people to lift

He then switched his metal hands from single prong to dual prong and lifted a 70-pound load and then two more 110-pound loads simultaneously A Sarcos representative said it was like lifting a cereal box

And he is not kidding In fact, with the Sarcos, you can dial the resistance up or down so that it feels like you are lifting at least 10 pounds This way, you won't accidentally throw something really heavy

Delta says it plans to test the Guardian XO exoskeleton at a pilot site during the first quarter of 2020 And potential applications include handling cargo in cargo warehouses and lifting heavy equipment and parts

The overall goal is to improve worker safety, and this device could do just that Feeling like a superhero is a truly amazing perk

For all of Tom's Guide's coverage of the hottest new products at the world's biggest tech show, check out the CES 2020 hub now