Sharks are n’t mindless killing machines . In fact , sharks have much more to fear from us than we do from them ( asthis infographicillustrates ) . But that has n’t stopped artificer from dream up equipment that will keep people out of Jaws ' jaw . In honor of Shark Week , we present a few of them , from the quotidian gadget like chemical repellants to bizarre inventions like an anti - shark grenade ( yes , you read that good ) .
1. Patent No. 2,458,540: “Shark Repellant”
Thepatent for this devicewas charge during World War II . “ Since the beginning of the warfare with its submarine sandwich and airwave activity , ” write inventor Richard L. Tuve , “ numerous occasions have arise in which human being have been forced to drown for their lives … The weakened precondition of wounded men ramble into the piss puts them at a distinct disadvantage in try on to crusade off shark and barracuda which are attracted to their pedigree . ”
Tuve ’s invention was a mailboat full of “ chemical material”—copper acetate , a benighted gentle or black dye , and something call “ Carbowax 4000”—attached to the life jacket . The swimmer issue the substance into the water if a shark draw near . “ bull acetate rayon is so distasteful to shark in sure term that they will ignore meat float in piddle turn back copper acetate , ” the patent of invention say . Tests comport by the discoverer and his associate showed the solution to be extremely effective .
2. Patent No. 3,428,978: “Shark Screen”
Clarence Scott Johnson ’s Shark Screen was intended not just to shroud a shipwreck someone from “ marine life , ” but to protect them from attack , too . According to thepatent , which was allow on February 25 , 1969 , the gadget was “ characterize by an imperforate bag form of thermoplastic material having a battalion of pile inflatable buoyant toroidal compartments at its upper end which allow for a safety divisor against puncture and obscure the person ’s head from vision . ”
The screen would completely sequester the person from the piss — so no blood or other corporal fluids could spread — and could be billow either with a person ’s breathing time or with a small can of atomic number 6 dioxide ; the tune was sealed in with a valve like the one seen on breeze mattresses or consortium floats . In wartime , Johnson said that the stuff used to construct the upper part of the covert should be a dark color to avoid enemy detection , but in peacetime , “ it would usually be more worthy to construct the apprehension of a lustrous color , such as orange , so that the resident can be more readily situate . " The material below the buoyant collar should be dark .
Johnsonupdated his invention in 1975 .
3. Patent No. 4166462: “Self-Propelled Shark-Proof Cage”
When James M. Ellis invented this gadget andfiled for a patent in 1976 , he envisioned that its use would be two - fold : The coop would screen abalone plunger from predator and , because of it was ego - propelled , would allow them to dive and pull in for longer period of clock time .
4. Patent No. 4155186: “Anti-Shark Weapon”
Robert T. Robinson was not messing around . This gimmick , patented in 1979 , was a tube containing a dehydrated blood line cake lure and anexplosive gimmick . The blood line patty would dissolve in the piddle and attract the shark to what Robinson call “ the swim grenade . ” Then , “ upon biting by the shark , the grenade explodes . ” It could be used in lifeboats and life-time rafts and also by very daring swimmers and scuba divers .
5. Patent No. 4,356,569: “Armored Skin Diving Suit”
This causa , designed by Jeremiah S. Sullivan andpatented in 1982 , was comprised of “ toughened , high-pitched - impingement plastic ” shielding and Sir Ernst Boris Chain ring armour . “ If the shark ’s tooth strike a concentrated aerofoil , especially a hard metal surface , the shark will ordinarily back off , ” the patent record . “ The present invention … [ provides ] a wooing having a base garment which is either range postal service or gum elastic froth wetsuit material , and into which are implant a multiplicity of hard shield elements strategically positioned in the garment material so that no dispute exists with the join of the human eubstance . In its preferred embodiment , sizable credit card shields are imbedded directly into the mesh of a mesh garment such that the material coalesce into a tough , hard , lobster - similar exterior shell , both resistant to the tearing and slashing of teeth because of the steel meshing , and effective as well in deter shark attack because of the hardness of the exterior aerofoil . ”
6. Patent No. 4602384: “Aquatic Attack Protection Suit and Material Therefore”
Another shark protection suit , this one designed by David P. Schneider , waspatented in 1986 . The idea was that the receptacles on the case would be fill with some sort of chemical shark skanky . “ When a shark first bites its intend victim make such a suit , the chemical acts on the shark to drive it and , thus , protect the wearer , " the patent reads . If only the achiever of the suit of clothes did n’t trust on a diver getting chomped on first .
7. Patent No. 4833729: “Shark Protector Suit”
harmonise to inventor Nelson C. Fox and Rosetta H.V.G. Fox , “ Known shark protective cover and underwater suit have not provided sufficient disincentive to sharks , since sharks are able to clamp their mouths around the limb of a person in the water . ” Not so with their suit , which theypatented in 1989 . It completely covers the body and aspect , is partially lined with floatation material , and is equipped from school principal to toe with “ a plurality of spikes extending outwards therefrom to forbid a shark from clamp its jaw over the wearer . ”
8. Patent No. 7,507,132: Transparent Surfboard with Shark Locating and Repelling System
Inventors are n’t just worried about diver safety ; they ’re suppose about surfers , too . This see - through surfboard , patent in 2009by Guerry L. Grune and Marsea Segal , is equipped with an aquatic animal locate gadget and an alarm ; it also fall with a “ repellent or hinderance sign generator that is configured for transmitting interference signals to disrupt the electro - receptive perception organisation of the aquatic animals . ”
