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Seeing Is Believing Video |
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Quick Fact #1
No other products or machines
on the market can kill as many mosquitoes or reduce mosquito populations
in a one-acre area as effectively or quickly as the Mosquito Killing
System
NEED HELP
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NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)
engineers and an Arkansas inventor are targeting the mosquito.
After inventor Alvin Wilbanks of
Environmental Products and Research, Inc. formally submitted a request for
technology assistance to the Technology Transfer Office. MSFC Structure
and Dynamics Laboratory engineers suggested a number of improvements to
cut costs and improve efficiency that the firm adopted. MSFC also
referred Mr. Wilbanks to a non-profit agency that helped him rapidly
produce molds used to manufacture the new product’s base and top
structures.
The Mosquito Killing System (MKS)
attracts mosquitoes over a one-acre area. It relies on the insect’s
natural ability to sense heat and breathing to find its prey. The
patented device uses a heat source to provide an image to attract the
insects and gently air currents that simulate breathing. A pheromone
attractant lures the mosquitoes into the device. The mosquitoes are
electrocuted once inside the device’s killing zone.
MKS safety features include secure
mounting points and a tip-over safety switch. It also has an
energy-conserving photoelectric cell to activate the machine at dusk and
turn it off at dawn. The device should cost about $6 per month to operate
using 110-volt alternating current and the energy-saving photoelectric
feature. The self-cleaning device is environmentally friendly because it
uses no chemicals to destroy the pests. | |
