Friday, July 29, 2011

Rapunzel

I don't think this is in production yet, but it's a great idea. It lets you glide safely down from a tall building in case of fire or such.


I guess there'd have to be a couple different models depending on how far you need it to reach.

3 comments:

Bert said...

No matter how they put it, methinks very few people would have the strength to survive the exercise!!

CalgaryMark said...

Good, but not great, idea. It leaves you spinning in the wind with only one hand to fend off the building. You have to remember not to let go, too. When I lived in a tall three-storey Victorian terrace house in NW England in the '50s, my father installed on the top floor a similar/simpler system - there was a just-the-right-length rope made of cotton covered steel cable, and a canvas belt at each end that you looped around your shoulders and under your arms. A slider kept it snug around the body, and you had two hands to fend off the building. The rope ran through a mechanically governed pulley system mounted on the wall in the top bedroom. We tested it but never had to use it in earnest. Since we faced the Irish Sea, I always wondered - had the cotton rope rotted? Had the steel cable rusted? How long would it take to get down if the rope broke?

Ray said...

That cable reel would need to be much larger and more awkward for use in a building with 20 floors, and people probably wouldn't have the nerve to try it anyway. It might work for the low-rise buildings, but most fire departments have equipment that can reach up to nine or ten floors, so waiting for them might be the better option.