(Liz Klimas) A team of engineering students have designed a backpack system that lets the wearer scale a wall like Spider-Man (or Tom Cruise in the latest “Mission Impossible”) that won the Air Force Research Laboratory Design Challenge back in April, as well as a grant from the military to continue their development with it.
Business Insider reports the “Ascending Aggies” — that’s the team name of the Utah State University students — were tasked with figuring out a way to scale a wall without a grappling hook. What they came up with is a essentially suction pads and a vacuum backpack, coined the Personal Vacuum Assisted Climber. The contraption also has a support system to help the climber with their own weight in case they don’t have massive arm strength to hoist themselves up a wall.
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