Ever been stuck on a 2 lane road (the A14 for instance) behind one articulated behemoth overtaking another one? The speed differential is miniscule, resulting in an overtake that lasts for about 20 minutes, congesting the road behind it, bunching the traffic up and causing a dangerous situation. This is where the Juggernaut Overtakerer comes in - it's available in 2 models:

1. Basic version. As 1 juggernaut pulls out to overtake, an electromagnetic grappling iron shoots from the rear of the nearside and clamps the cab of the leading juggernaut. The cable is then wound in, giving the overtaker a little more energy and slowing the overtakee slightly - thus speeding up the maneouvre. As the overtaker comes past, the grappling iron detaches from the the overtakee and winds back in to the (now leading) vehicle.

2. Deluxe version. As 1 juggernaut pulls out to overtake, the 2 vehicles communicate by Bluetooth, and the engine management system of the overtakee reduces the throttle to just ease the speed down by a couple of miles per hour, until the overtaker has passed, whereupon full control is regained by the driver of the (now following) vehicle.

There are advantages to both systems - option 2 is safer, obviously, there's less chance for grappling irons to smash through windows, skulls, cars etc. Option 1 however has the advantage of gaining the overtaker a little extra acceleration...
-- kmlabs, Dec 10 2004

Truck Harpoon Truck_20Harpoon
Dunno why your idea [Kmlabs] made me think of [senatorjams] idea, but it did. [skinflaps, Dec 10 2004]

[kmlabs] was not observing one articulated behemoth overtaking another. We all know that if it took twenty minutes he was actually observing rarely seen behemoth mating, casual as it may have seemed. I'm not sure I'd want to disrupt that. Isn't that where all the baby Luna Moths come from?
-- jurist, Dec 10 2004


[oniony] Probably safer to put two ramps on - one at the front and one at the back.
-- hippo, Dec 10 2004


Okay, maybe I was exaggerating just a tiny bit when I said "twenty minutes". I've been told millions of times not to exaggerate, too...

Also, yes [skinflaps] I can see the similarity - someone even mentions using the Carpoon to overtake. Hand on heart though, I've never seen that idea before, your honour.
-- kmlabs, Dec 10 2004


In the UK, there's currently a stretch of motorway (M42 near Tamworth) where it is forbidden for trucks to leave the slow lane. There are only two lanes there anyway, so a five-minute overtaking manoeuvre really messes things up.
-- david_scothern, Dec 10 2004


kmlabs, that's ok.Have a bun for the vision.
-- skinflaps, Dec 10 2004


Why, [Tabs]? I thought the way [david...] phrased it made it universally understandable, instead of only understandable to Japanese, UK residents and former British colonials in Africa and Asia.
-- jurist, Dec 10 2004



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