A top-secret pre-Oops artifact (ever see those little grabber toys?) led R&D to develop what it feels will be a "must-have" piece of equipment for every troubleshooter team, the T6-A4 Gripper.
Not only does the Gripper extend the reach of the troubleshooter, but it amplifies the grasping power and provides protection for the troubleshooter's hand.
How could this not be a great thing!
Part 1: Simple and Effective
The gripper is largely a simple piece of equipment. The troubleshooter straps the device to his/her forearm and any motion of the fingers triggers infrared motion sensors on a pad above the wearer's wrist. Extension, grabbing and even complex motions are mimicked by the multi-function "hand" on the end of the gripper. A small keypad on the back of the system can be used to perform motions that would be impossible for a clone to do with their hand.
Part 2: Amplification of Force or 1 ton of crush
The first issue is one of degree. Witout feedback from the pads of the fingers and having no practice, a clone is going to over-grab things. This is going to turn a few scant ounces of pressure into a crushing grasp on a minor miscalculation, or several tons of directed force on a gross underestimation. While this could become a cool weapon, operating any sort of sensitive equipment is right out.
Part 3: Leverage or Oh, hello Mr. Newton!
One item to note early on here is that the grabber provides NO leverage beyond grasping as there is nothing helping the clone's arm lift, push, pull, etc. So, while it's possible for a clone to crush a bot's head into mangled bits of metal, this will NOT help open doors, push over tanks, or the like. The clone CAN use the grabber as a crude blunt weapon (as it is an extension of the arm), but the extra weight will make it awfully hard to get around to hit someone's melon before they've pulled a blaster out. Other issues of leverage:
- If the clone GRABS something and the arm locks/breaks/powers down, then the clone cannot release it. He/she will have to remove the device entirely... a process that requires power as the main clamps are locked on by the system itself.
- If the clone grabs something that is moving, he/she just might lose an arm if they can't let go in time.
- The "hand" can be used to pry something open either by performing the motion manually or by using the (very complex) keypad, but once the fingers have opened/pried/forced whatever it is to their greatest extension, there isn't much else it can do.
Oh, you HAVE to know where this is going! The keypad allows someone fairly knowlegable in the glove's programming to make the fingers do just about anything they can physically do. It also allows someone with NO CLUE to completely disable all functional usablity, cause the glove to go haywire, or short out the power system by reconfiguring it. There is no manual and R&D will advise them not to screw with it. Good luck, troubleshooter!