Science hopes to stop truck bombs

SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- Scientists at a top U.S. defense research center have unveiled technology they say could prevent trucks from being used as bombs on wheels.

The remote-controlled device would allow police to trigger another device within a truck to deploy its brakes and bring it to a screeching halt, according to researchers at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Legislation would be needed to require trucks to carry the devices, which have been tested to withstand wireless hackers setting them off or interrupting their signals.

The devices would be contained in tamper-proof boxes.

"Terrorism is mostly in other countries, but we want to be ready in case they try to come here," said Ronald Cochran, the research center's executive office.

The technology also could be installed in buildings to prevent trucks from crashing through gates, researchers said.

"This is a great way for facilities that have trucks routinely coming on site to add a layer of protection," said Dave McCallen, a researcher who developed the technology.

Former California Governor Gray Davis and the California Highway Patrol commissioned studies into the technology after the September 11, 2001, attacks and following a January 2001 fuel-tanker crash into the California capitol building.