Comments on: MIT student invents device for wall crawling

Nathan Ball led design of the Atlas Powered Rope Ascender, which can hoist 250 pounds up 30 stories in half a minute.
Photos: The Atlas at work

[dondarko]

not quite...

like Batman gadget. Remember Batman doesn't need a person to get on the roof first to establish a line before he can zip up the buildings.

[H Voyager]

Afix it to the ladder

Anchor it on a firetruck ladder, and you should be able to use it in first response situations too.

[aka_tripleB]

I don't think this thing has comfort in mind

If this thing has a harness like Ball is wearing in the picture, it would be rather painfull once someone is attached especially with 100 pounds of extra weight. Not it mention that it doesn't look like he considered the shift in the center of gravity when firefighters has an oxygen tank on their back.

I really question whether Ball's team tested it with the conditions stated above. I also doubt real world applications given the battery limitations that it has right now.

[fcekuahd]

You're not a climber, are you?

Rock climbers and alpine climbers have been using harnesses like this for decades. You can take a 5 metre fall while wearing a pack in this harness without any real problems.

[ronpadz]

Why?

I don't get it. Why burden the rescuer with the extra weight of a motor. Since this method presumes that someone is setting up an anchor at the top, why not just have them set up a pulley. Attach one end of the rope to the rescuer's harness and the other to a wynch on the rescue vehicle and zip them right up to the top. I don't know, maybe this invention would be more practical in a mountain rescue scenario.

[fcekuahd]

That would double the length of rope required

eom

[marcbeverly]

Nice work ! I'd like to see more specs on the capstan and what the running time is on the battery. PMI Rope has had something like this out there for about 5 years, so the technology has already hit the market. I like this guy's thought process though and hope he runs like hell with the $ and makes some more innovative contributions to the rope rescue world. My suggestion would be to encase/waterproof some LiPO batteries.

Marc Beverly
Certified Guide
Strike Rescue, CEO