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Soldiers continue to die in Iraq because of roadside bombs, commonly referred to as Improvied Explosive Devices (IEDs). If we are going to attempt to solve the IED/ Urban Combat problem, we need to look at the problem more abstractly .

An initial assessment of IED’s yields (at least) the following failure points. In order to deal with IED’s, we need to do any or all of :

• 1. Stop the organization from producing people willing to create or man the explosives.
1. Keep people too busy to involve themselves in organizations.
2. Give people incentives to avoid involvement in such organizations.
3. Give people incentives to avoid cooperation with such organizations.
• 2. Stop the organization from obtaining the tools necessary to create, place or detonate the explosives
• 3. Stop the persons from placing the explosives
1. Make it impossible to transport devices to the chosen locations
2. Make it impossible to install devices at the chosen location.
3. Make it impossible to make installed devices undetectable.
• 4. Detect or locate explosives prior to detonation
1. Detection based on size or bulk of device or device parts
2. Detection based on chemical composition of device or device parts
3. Detection based on EM signature of device or device parts
4. Detection based on human activity around device
• 5. Stop the persons from detonating the explosives
1. Render the person physically incapable of engaging the detonation process
2. Render the person mentally incapable of engaging the detonation process
• 6. Change the timing of the detonation so as to render it ineffective
1. Distract or Confuse the person so as cause the timing of the detonation engagement to be changed.
• Make it impossible to be close enough to the device to trigger it.
• 2 Make it unbearable to be close enough to the device to trigger it. (smell, sound, pain.)
2. Change the physics of the detonation process so as to change the perceived timing of detonation engagement
• 7. Make the detonation process fail.
1. Interfere with or sever the link between the trigger man and the device
2. Interfere with or destroy degrade the detonator so as to stop or delay it (cold)
• 8. Keep the explosive from exploding when detonated
1. Interfere with or sever the interface between the detonator and explosive
2. Deny the explosive an assumed ingredient (oxygen) necessary for the reaction.
3. Pollute the explosive with ingredients that cause the reaction to slow or stop.
• 9. Make sure that the effect of any explosion that does occur is minimized.
1. Contain or absorb the explosion energy.
2. Deflect the blast force
3. Diffuse the blast energy

Sample solutions:
Some possible solutions are listed below, along with an indication of how they might have their effect:
Employ MANY people cleaning the streets thoroughly. Remove trash, rubble, etc. This keeps people busy AND leaves nothing to hide an explosive behind. (1a,1c,3c)

Liquid nitrogen spray (6.2, 7.2)

Mechanical flail (7.1)

Quick set foam (9.1)

High powered laser (7.1)

VERY loud noises (5.1.2)

I’m offering this as a way to potentially jump start some ideas. I assume others will add to it.

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