Most of us carry a bevy of devices that tend to require a whole lot of charging at the end of each day, but the military could be on to something here with the Remote Auxiliary Power System otherwise known as RAPS. Thanks to engineers at the Air Force research lab in Dayton, Ohio, the RAPS can be deployed in a similar manner to that of a grappling hook with overhead power lines, where a tiny blade will pierce the sheathing on a power line to make contact with the live wire within. As for the inside area around the blade, it will make contact with a second exposed wire that all powerlines have, while transmitting electricity to an AC to DC converter safely at the end of the cable. It is much safer than it looks, and Ben Franklin would have loved to see this in action instead of flying a kite in the middle of a storm.
Filed in ..