By Andrew Liszewski
Sometimes we like to bring you gadgets or contraptions that you could probably save a few bucks on by building them yourselves. Like the iBox iPad Stand from a few days ago. This however is a different story. In fact, we absolutely do not recommend anyone try to build one of these themselves, no matter how tempting the prospect of being able to charge your cellphone anywhere is. Seriously.
The RAPS, or Remote Auxiliary Power System, was developed by engineers at the Air Force research lab in Dayton, Ohio to be used by military special ops who may not have a reliable power source while on a mission. But, if they happen to be somewhere with overhead power lines, the RAPS can be deployed just like a grappling hook. But instead of providing a secure mount, the RAPS’ head has a small blade that pierces the sheathing on a power line making contact with the live wire inside. The inside area around the blade also makes contact with a second exposed wire that all powerlines have (according to the video below) and safely transmits electricity to an AC to DC converter at the end of the cable. While the system looks extremely dangerous, it’s apparently designed to be safe enough to use even in the pouring rain. But that still doesn’t mean you should try to build one yourself!
[ Armed With Science – The Bat Hook: Harvesting Energy from Power Lines ] VIA [ Popular Science ]
It's a sad comment on the general intelligence of the population when you have to warn people about trying to tap into overhead power lines with a box cutter.
awesome, I'm totally making one!
Thanks