The Soft Walls Project: Inventor Patents Alternative to The Soft Walls Project
A local inventor argues that The Soft Walls Project is destined to the same fate as the Star Wars Missile Defense Initiative. The Soft Walls Project has been the focus of discussion since late 2001 and, even if eventually implemented, can’t be put into place for a least a decade. His patent offers a cost effective alternative to The Soft Walls Project and it could be implemented very quickly.
EAST HAMPTION, NY (PRWEB) January 4, 2005 -- A local inventor has patented a
remotely controlled, pilot override device he believes will greatly expedite the
government’s ability to address public concerns about the prevention of another
terrorist attack like the one New York City experienced on September 11, 2001.
According to Lawrence Koncelik, the inventor, public safety is currently
being compromised because the search for a solution has become little more than
an academic exercise. "Far too much time is being devoted to the creation of
three dimensional, soft wall corridors when a far simpler solution is
available," he says.
For the uninformed, the federally funded Soft Walls
Project has been a central focus of discussion since early 2002. In its simplest
form, a "soft wall" is a term used to describe a buffer separating flight
corridors and no fly zones. Autopilot systems would be programmed to prevent a
pilot from flying into restricted airspace.
Koncelik likens the current
preoccupation with The Soft Walls Project to that which prevailed when the
nation was pursuing the Star Wars Missile Defense initiative. "We didn’t need to
spend hundreds of millions of dollars pursuing Star Wars. No intercontinental
ballistic missile can be launched without our knowing within a matter of a
minutes that it is airborne and we could have very easily stationed aircraft,
specifically U2s and SR71s, equipped with missiles to shoot them down before
they reach their targets," he says.
“The problem with the ‘soft walls’
concept, according to Koncelik, is that it does not protect all US airspace.
Instead, it focuses on protecting ‘high value, static targets’. As a
consequence, the vast majority of the nation’s population as well as on and off
shore assets will remain at risk.”
Koncelik insists that there is also a
far simpler solution to the threat terrorism poses. Using GPS technologies, his
patent provides for a pilot override that could easily interfaced with existing
pilot control boxes that when activated allows tracking aircraft and/or ground
controllers to assume control of the aircraft. "Remotely piloted vehicles have
been around for years," Koncelik says, "so it isn’t like my patent requires a
great deal of endless research. All we need to do is integrate existing
technologies with the pilot override system I’ve patented."
Koncelik’s
patent is one of five he currently holds. It can be viewed on the United States
Patent and Trademark Office’s web site (www.uspto.gov). Just type his first and last name into the
“Term 1" and “Term 2" fields and click on “Search”. To contact Mr. Koncelik, use
the email hyperlink posted in the right hand column. To learn more about The
Soft Walls Project visit http://softwalls.eecs.berkeley.edu/ .
Press Release
Prepared by:
Ron Scott
Senior Publicist
Fast Track
SEOP
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb193725.htm