Power Ascender

Demonstration of an ONR- sponsored Power Ascender at Fleet Week New York 2010

Power Ascender (also Powered Rope Ascender ) is the English name for motor-driven rope winches that allow vertical distances to be overcome without exertion and in a much shorter time than with comparable single-rope techniques. It is operated directly by the person ascending, so no second person is necessary. It is operated either with an internal combustion engine or with a battery-powered electric motor . Performance and speed can vary depending on the application and can be up to 3 m / s, loads of up to 300 kg can be transported. Civilian equipment is usually compatible with standard industrial climbing equipment (ropes and the like). These devices are used by the police , military and rescue workers , but also by various construction companies.

The first Power Ascender was launched in 1997 by the Swedish company ActSafe . Another manufacturer is Atlas Devices , a defense company founded in Boston in 2005 .

In contrast to the representation in films and computer games, the real devices are much larger and heavier.

Web links

Commons : Power Ascender  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• RopeTek Wraptor. Retrieved November 24, 2014 (demonstration of a power ascender for climbing trees). 
• The Engineer Behind the Atlas Power Ascender: This Is My Job. In: Popular Mechanics. October 25, 2011, accessed November 24, 2014 . 
• Rob Matheson: Atlas Devices Commercializes Motorized Rope-Climbing Technology for Military Use. In: MIT Technology Review. January 7, 2014, accessed November 24, 2014 . 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Atlas Devices. Retrieved November 24, 2014 . 
2. ^ About ActSafe. Retrieved November 24, 2014 .