Every once in a while,

[camwyn]

technology shows up that's actually being used for good.

Here's a BBC News Online article about a fellow who's invented something called Bigfoot... it's a mechanical land-mine clearance device. Goes after anti-personnel mines by pounding the ground with mechanical feet. Apparently it tested pretty well in Bosnia.

I like the idea.

Comments

I am such a geek.

[quintus.livejournal.com]

Apparently it tested pretty well in Bosnia

Actually, looking at the thing... it looks almost identical in concept to something that tested very well indeed on the British and Canadian beaches on D-Day(*) : The Sherman Crab or 'Flail tank' One of the collection of odd armoured vehicles known as 'Hobarts Funnies'.

Take a standard lend-lease Sherman (Thank you Uncle Sam for those by the way, I do appreciate it) fit two forward pointing metal arms, mount a rotating drum between the arms and attach lots of nice heavy chains to the drum... drive slowly through a minefield.

HALO also appears to use another classic WW-II mine clearence device : Nice fat rollers on the front of a heavy vehicle (In WW-II a Churchill class tank as a rule, nowadays a JCB).




(*) I don't believe the US beaches employed any 'Funny' except the DD-Sherman and sadly most of the ones intended for Omaha sank, which tragic consequences for the infantry caught with no armour support.