emergency rescue tunnel by idan raizberg

‘ruins catheter’ rescue tunnel by idan raizberg

for the second year in a row, the belzalel academy of arts and design, jerusalem presents an exhibition of work by its undergraduate and graduate students at ventura lambrate during milan design week 2012.

this year, bezalel’s selected theme is ‘design bonanza‘ which is meant to express the experimental spirit of the school and the creative research it encourages its students to engage in regarding new materials, shapes, ideas and tools.

idan raizberg’s ‘ruins catheter’ rescue tunnel is one of the projects being shown. the modular structure is meant to rescue an individual that has been trapped underneath the rubble of a collapsed structure. raizberg’s system draws its functional influences from that of a balloon catheter which is used in medicine to expand arteries. the device is designed as a capsule that is put at the edge of a fallen building, which is then opened by inflating an airbag, expanding the tunnel and locked at maximum size to enable a person to crawl through. once the first segment of the unit is opened, there is the possibility to send in additional ones to create a safe corridor for rescuing people during a disaster.

a single component

a balloon is set within the capsule, expanded by air forming a tunnel

demonstration of the modular rescue system

rendering of the tunnel view

storyboard scenario of ‘rescue tunnel’: