Following the tragic accident in Santa Monica, CA during a blocked off street fair in the downtown area this issue resurfaced. A concept had been discussed where street poles would shape shift and change like many of those miniature plastic robot toys. Much has thought has gone into these toys and the video games and cartoons they were modeled after. Such brainpower should not be wasted and today we see many research institutes are working on shape shifting technologies as new materials emerge. They are applying these studies in the fields of Manufactured Memory of Materials, Shape Memory Alloy (SMA), Shape Shifting Technologies, Non-Holonomic manipulation, Self Reconfiguration Robotics, Tactile Sensors and Haptics to solve many of problems which plague mankind and providing safety and security solutions to our populations. We can prevent future problems like the runaway car and street deaths in Santa Monica. Nine people were killed and 50 were injured.
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/2337505/detail.html
Sensors activate and barricade streets of travel of International Terrorists or high-speed chases. These features can protect patrons of large civic events and parades. These barriers can be used in sobriety check-points and a multitude of other important endeavors from Utility repair crew safety to Earthquake debris avoidance.
Streetlights would drop down like a railroad crossing across a portion of the road. The outward branch containing the light would fold in half and the light lens would switch from bright white to yellow and flash as a warning. The folded branch holding the light would rest on the road at the fold point and the light would then be on the end near the corner of the upright and now-cross member. In the event the light pole is near a manhole cover or near an area in which a utility company might park a man-lift truck the light pole would come down and form a barrier box around that area. Many utility workers are killed each year when their boom trucks are hit and tipped or while working in manholes on ground infrastructure. All this can be eliminated completely.
It is our contention that during road construction, repairs, accident first response, emergencies, civic events; we can provide additional safety and security with little additional expense. Cities have streetlights and since the cost to put in street lights is already a given, these cities can upgrade to shape shifting designs to solve other issues. In addition our studies show that the additional costs associated with boom trucks to change out light bulbs and minor street light repairs can also be reduced and thus the initial capital outlay for the slightly higher costs will make up for themselves over the first four to five years of their useful life.
We have drawings, concepts and designs and are willing to share these with those entrusted to city governments, national security, highway safety, foreign construction re-building, economic development, modernizing architecture, utility infrastructure, corporate asset and facility security or US Embassy Upgrades and Fortification.
Lance Winslow - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/