Rescue parachute 'could save lives'

Enver Ibrovic wants backing to try out his idea

By Ivan Noble BBC News Online science staff, Geneva

A Bosnian inventor says he has designed a parachute which could save the lives of people trapped in tall buildings.

Enver Ibrovic is promoting his idea at the Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions.

He came up with the device before last year's attacks on the World Trade Center, he told BBC News Online via a translator.

His parachute is designed to work at heights between 40 and 500 metres (131 and 1,640 feet).

Quick release

On leaping from a stricken building, the wearer pushes a button which opens a tiny pilot parachute after a small delay.

The pilot parachute then opens the main canopy and, with luck, the wearer floats safely to the ground. But, as Mr Ibrovic admits, there is no guarantee that the wearer will not come a cropper if the wind is blowing back towards the building.

Adding direction control to the parachute would add too much to the cost and weight.

The device could, however, be used to rescue unconscious casualties, he said.

He claimed a rescuer could attach it to someone else, press the operating button and push them quickly out of a window before the parachute opened.

Mr Ibrovic says he is looking for an investor to help him build and test his invention.

Blow-up anchor

Safety devices are a prominent theme at the Geneva fair.

Hold tight: The Shore-Grippa is designed to protect anglers

An Australian-designed device aims to safeguard the lives of anglers who fish close to the sea and run the risk of being swept away in rough weather.

The Shore-Grippa is an inflatable anchor designed to be placed in a crack or hole in the rocks.

Once inflated, it provides an anchor point for a line preventing the angler from being washed into the sea.

Its makers say they are selling the device for around 50 Australian dollars (£18.50).

In-flight exercise

Another Australian invention tackles the danger of deep vein thrombosis on longhaul flights.

The ClotBuster is a piece of dense foam with a band to attach it to the foot.

This invention counters deep vein thrombosis, say its inventors

The idea is that an air passenger can slip it on and squash it beneath the ball of their foot, stimulating blood flow.

Its inventors say that it is effective because it is important to move blood through the veins in the calves to counter deep vein thrombosis.

Many of the exercises people do in the air concentrate on circulating blood in the thighs.

The inventors are talking to a major airline about making their creation available on longhaul flights.

The Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions runs until Sunday at the Palexpo trade fair beside Geneva Airport.