TransCultural Awareness Institute

The Information Technology Exchange, Inc. (ITX)
Offie C. Wortham, PhD
PO Box 211, Plainfield, Vermont 05667
Email: offievivian@ITXINC@YAHOO.COM

LANDMINE DETECTION & REMOVAL

The Problem

Landmines cost as little as $3.00 each to make, but up to $1,000 to remove by conventional methods.

An inexpensive and highly efficient method for finding and removing landmines must be developed to replace the present practice of using human beings as mine detectors. Mine removal has remained a slow and treacherous process.

The Solution -
Sound Mine Detonators

Twenty-five years ago, an unclassified, unsolicited proposal was submitted to the US government, which began: “This proposal describes an invention which applies non-linear sonic principles to the problem of creating high intensity, highly collimated pressure waves. Previous limitations of collimating low frequency waves are successfully overcome utilizing the techniques described herein. A theoretical basis for the approach is established by one of the leaders and pre-eminent investigators in non-linear Sonics, Professor Robert Bayer of Brown University, Providence, RI.

The proposal expends the concept to the development of a sonic weapon capable of destroying a 100-ft. tall building with 1-foot thick concrete wails in 3.3 seconds/wall. Unlike most other weapons, the sonic weapon system proposed uses feedback from the target to maximize or control the weapons destructive effect.”

The proposal was never funded by the government, and the product was never built, but the inventors, William Drewes, and Edward Ulicki, were able to patent the device, under US Patent # 4349898, titled "Sonic Weapon System".

From time to time, science fiction writers have visualized destructive beams, which were capable of annihilating buildings and killing people. As time passed, some of these beams have been realized (i.e.- the laser beam and the microwave beam). As the technologies required to develop such beams advances, the question comes to mind what about a sound or a sonic beam? The basic ideal is to make a sound beam (like a laser beam, except using sound) with enough power at the proper frequency so that it can be used to damage or destroy a target. If such a beam were developed it could demolish buildings with ease.

This document applies the principles embodied in the sonic weapon system to the humanitarian task of clearing landmines--- without risk of injury to inhabitants of the mine infested area, or personnel clearing the mines. The concept is called Sound Mine Detonators. The concept of using a beam of high intensity sound, collimated like a laser and focused on a small area containing landmines offers the capability to remotely explode the land mines, either by the direct sound pressure wave created by the beam, or the vibration of the mine detonators caused by the beams impact on the area.

Consider a helicopter containing a Sound Mine Detonator flying over an area containing landmines, which has been cleared of inhabitants. The helicopter focuses the sound beam on a small spot of earth below. By varying the frequency, intensity, and focus of the sound beam, the earth covered by the beam will receive impacts and vibrations equivalent to personnel or vehicles traversing the area. These sonic hits will detonate the mines being bombarded, causing them to explode.

The helicopter can traverse a large area, running an overlapping sweep pattern to detonate all impact or vibration triggered devices in the perimeter of the sweep.

FIGURE 1 – Helicopter With Sound Mine Detonator (SMD)

Figure 1 is an artist's concept of an embodiment of this principle into a Sound Mine Detonator system. It is envisioned, that the detonator would be transportable (e.g. able to be moved about by a helicopter).

The purpose of this document is to introduce Sound Mine Detonators to parties interested in solving the problem of clearing areas of the world from landmines. Edward Ulicki, one of the inventors of the Sound Weapon System, has teamed with Offie Wortham, to create a solution to the mine removal problem.

If you are interested in supporting this revolutionary concept please contact:
Dr. Wortham, ITXINC@yahoo.com