In the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight, Batman utilizes sonar technology to look through walls and floors of a building while saving hostages. The U.S. Army Communications- Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center is developing a similar product called Sense through the Wall Technology (STTW) that will one day give U.S. soldiers a similar advantage. 

With STTW, soldiers will be able to identify and locate enemy forces and equipment hidden behind walls, doors and other obstructions in an urban terrain. The technology gives the advantage of locating enemies and engaging them with the element of surprise. 

STTW uses radio waves that it bounces off buildings and people, and can determine a person's heart rate, respiration and where they are located inside a building.

“Our skilled engineers with CERDEC’s Intelligence and Information Warfare Directorate are working with industry partners to assess, develop, and transition technology that will allow Soldiers to detect and locate hidden combatants,” said Wilber Chin, team lead, MASINT Branch, Information/ Network Operations Division, Intelligence and Information Warfare Directorate.

Hawaii-based Oceanit won a two-year, $1 million contract to develop the technology for the Army. Part of their contract success stemmed from an earlier device they developed that accurately measures a patient's vital signs without even touching the patient.

The engineers working on the STTW project believe the device would be extremely useful for urban warfare, where soldiers are required to enter and sweep buildings for enemies.  Instead of entering blindly, the handheld device would let soldiers know in advance where the dangers lie.

"You go out there and you hit your buttons, and you kind of wait, take a reading of the building and then based on that, you do something," said one of Oceanit's leading engineers, Dr. Chris Sullivan.

Watch the video demonstration below.