Two inventors attending the Defcon Hacking Convention here have announced plans to introduce into the civilian market a piece of military technology that potentially can save hundreds of soldiers' lives across the globe, especially during dangerous missions.
Known as The Firefly, it is fired from a grenade launcher and can provide intelligence to soldiers on the ground. It provides eight seconds of coverage to those on the battlefield, tipping them off to enemy positions before falling to the ground.
The Daily Mail quoted Vlad Gostrom and Joshua Marpet as saying that police teams can use The Firefly as part of search and rescue operations.
The inspiration for the grenade-launcher camera came from Gostrom’s time as a search and rescue specialist in New Jersey.
“Everyone likes to report 100 per cent coverage,’ he told the Techworld website. This would allow someone to actually achieve close to 100 per cent coverage without going into a hazardous environment,” Gostrom said.
They also think that it could aid operations during natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina by flying over areas people cannot reach.
However, the first test of the product was not particularly successful.
Last week the pair used a flare gun to launch a camera on a farm, but it flew only about 30 feet into the air and could not provide any pictures, apparently because it was travelling too fast.
The team, however, seemed happy with the first test.