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| Science & Technology |
| Tracked Military Skateboard |
| 2010-09-14 |
| The DTV Shredder, a militarized skateboard with two caterpillar tracks. It can travel at over 30mph, go up 40-degree slopes, turn around in four feet, and be remotely operated. It's also quite spectacular in action. The DTV Shredder was presented as a "first response modular platform for soldiers" at last August's Military Vehicles conference in Detroit. According to the manufacturer, it can handle any kind of terrain and its low center of gravity makes it "ideal for reconnaissance, rescue/recovery, mobile surveillance, and medical evacuation operations". I think I saw that movie. Wasn't it "Back to the Future part 2"? |
| Posted by: Anonymoose |
| #8 Anyone who ever read "Snow Crash" is jumping up and down right now going Ooh! Ooh! |
| Posted by: SteveS 2010-09-14 23:26 |
| #7 This is a stupid idea, at least for the military. It does not go fast enough to evade enemy fire and the operator is a sitting duck. Probably fun to ride, for about the first 10 minutes. There are a whole slew of other Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV's) that can tow a little trailer as shown. These guys are real late to that party too. |
| Posted by: remoteman 2010-09-14 22:23 |
| #6 Let's think about something....it goes 30 mph. I see that as "Hey, it's fast enough to kill your ass on our machine with EVEN LESS protection than a motorcycle." |
| Posted by: Silentbrick 2010-09-14 16:14 |
| #5 I see it as a civilian rather than military product. I can't see anyone riding it once the shooting starts. It would be much better it had room to crouch/sit down and take the pack off. The remote control capability is usefull for the military: especially getting wounded out of an ambush or ammunition in. But the man carrying capability seems most usefull to hikers and/or extreme sports enthusiasts. |
| Posted by: Frozen Al 2010-09-14 14:56 |
| #4 A strong contender for "Dumb Idea of the Year", I'd say. If you haven't seen the videos of this thing in action, you need to. It is remotely controllable and it is a very impressive device. And it looks like it will be available to the general public too...for much less than a Segway. I would buy one just for the sheer coolness of it. However, being in my early 50's I would most likely put my eye out or something! |
| Posted by: Secret Asian Man 2010-09-14 13:58 |
| #3 A strong contender for "Dumb Idea of the Year", I'd say. |
| Posted by: mojo 2010-09-14 13:45 |
| #2 Lest we fergit, WAFF > ROBOTS ON THE BATTLEFIELD SOONER THAN WE THINK? | YOUTUBE: BOSTON DYNAMICS "BIG DOG" PROJECT [March 2008]. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2010-09-14 01:44 |
| #1 1) A dirt bike would work better. 2) It would also be better to get that backpack off the soldier's back and put it between his legs. |
| Posted by: gorb 2010-09-14 00:40 |