I think I’ll take the stairs

By John Freeman on 24 May 2006

Inspired by the human cannonball of circus fame (or some super heroes, perhaps), US defence researchers have patented a device to fire police officers, fire-fighters or special forces to the top of a five-storey building, New Scientist reported earlier this week.

Apparently, the “controllable launcher” device could put a man on the top of a five-storey building in less than two seconds. The invention comprises a launch ramp that would be placed on the ground at an angle of about 80 degrees to the building. A person would then sit in a chair attached to the ramp, and compressed air from a cylinder underneath would shoot the chair up the ramp’s guide rails.

“At the top, the chair would come to an instant halt, leaving the person to fly up and over the edge of the roof, to hopefully land safely on top of the building,” the magazine reveals.

In circuses, the human eyeball is used to estimate the best angle for firing the cannon. But the patent, filed by the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), says the ramp’s precise elevation and the chair’s speed of ascent would be calculated by computer.

I think we should start nominating some politicians to test it…

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.