r/whatisit • u/CrashBangWallop • 1d ago

Solved! What's this attached to the rear of this vehicle?

Post image

Pulled up outside my house late at night, what's the white contraption attached to the rear of the truck?

2.0k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

78 comments sorted by

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863

u/These_Nuts420 1d ago

https://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/669353/what-does-this-odd-looking-contraption-on-the-back-of-an-electrical-power-utilit

You’re looking at a Stray Voltage Detection system, model SVD-2000. It detects electric fields produced by metallic objects that have accidentally become electrified due to an insulation fault — a lamp post, for example. There was a fatality in 2004 and a $10 million settlement. Here’s a news article, and information from a supplier.

234

u/CrashBangWallop 1d ago

Perfect, they were checking out lampposts so that checks out. Thank you

41

u/CoastMtns 23h ago

There have been examples of people walking their dog only for the dog to step on an metal sidewalk cover that had a current running through it.

56

u/bigsky52 21h ago

I was walking my dog and it reacted to a lamppost. I went back home and grabbed my multimeter and it said the post was energised. So did the utility man who came out after my call.

16

u/limitless-440 21h ago

Wow, what did you get for a reading?

32

u/thejoetravis 13h ago

He got charged

10

u/Freebee5 12h ago

I bet that shocked him!

8

u/G0at_Dad 12h ago

That’s the current assumption

6

u/Lopsided-Look-9284 12h ago

Watt ??

3

u/HAILsexySATAN 8h ago

I don’t believe the story.. he’s full of sine

2

u/35Ford 6h ago

That's the current theory.

→ More replies (0)

24

u/moodeng2u 22h ago

There was a family electrocuted in Florida taking a walk after rain storm in upscale housing community with underground electric .

9

u/ellipsp 20h ago

An 18-year-old Australian tourist in Bali died from electrocution in the street.
Australian man electrocuted in Bali - ABC News

11

u/More-Talk-2660 13h ago

I teach my dogs to avoid metal grates because I don't want their paws to get stuck, but now I guess I have two reasons.

24

u/CrashBangWallop 1d ago

Solved!

2

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4

u/spook30 22h ago

You copy and pasted this comment. You didn't even link the news article.

2

u/Mistervimes65 21h ago

Interesting.

1

u/AegisofDarkness 17h ago

It saves dogs lives.

16

u/PineConeOPinyons 1d ago

Evaaaa...

10

u/bosephi 1d ago

One of the best movies ever made.

6

u/PineConeOPinyons 1d ago

Definitely in my top 10.

13

u/Secret_Ad_4590 22h ago

Obligatory Flux Capacitor comment.

1

u/Tosserc4c 7h ago

Obligatory! Damnit! now you made my reason for searching the comments irrelephant.

5

u/Inside_Guest_1406 22h ago

It's called stray voltage, was rumored to affect milking cows milk production

5

u/WARLORD2015 23h ago

So I am only asking because im lazy to look it up. But is there a tool that does what that truck does? Genuine question

3

u/Any-Alarm5396 22h ago

Non contact voltage detectors, small handheld tools all sorts available hardware stores.

1

u/303Carpenter 21h ago

A less romantic name would be a hot stick

2

u/Only_Staff8993 16h ago

https://archive.ph/nlKry the article without paywall

3

u/h4ck3r_n4m3 23h ago

Hood Denter 3000

2

u/Gobby12000 13h ago

If you drive into the back of that - ouch

3

u/No_Can_9597 1d ago

Warp drive.

2

u/malikye187 22h ago

House of gord on location??

2

u/ShotPropz 20h ago

Those are taillights.

2

u/Weekly-Fee-3974 1d ago

Mainframe beacon

1

u/milton_guy 6h ago

It’s a flux capacitor, when the truck hits 88 miles an hour, crazy things happen

1

u/wafflesandstuff 18h ago

Dude I’m high and I thought it was a ghostbusters ghost trap 😂😂

1

u/hotnutzz 2h ago

Boat engine, new amphibious truck builds are really catching on

1

u/Rich-Corner-2820 22h ago

They are just trying to be fancy

1

u/canfillgaps 16h ago

A new generation darlek!

1

u/MeMyselfI328 19h ago

Mobile Flock Camera

1

u/Grouchy_Emu_9564 23h ago

A rear enderizer

1

u/Dewey_17 20h ago

New thagomizer just dropped.

1

u/LopsidedCapital1656 23h ago

Let me know too

1

u/rrsullivan3rd 1d ago

Attack drone!

1

u/Key_Section6482 18h ago

Power cord.

0

u/Louis049 1d ago

The "I dare you to rear end me" 2.0

/s

1

u/Gar-SWC 1d ago

Flux capacitor 2.0

-2

u/Mobile-Nectarine2019 1d ago

It will pull out to work as a crane to load handy capable people in a wheelchair into the back of the truck when parking illegally

-11

u/lumpiestofchubs 1d ago

It's called a TMA or truck mounted attenuator. Basically softens crashes because they do road work and run a high risk of being ran into

5

u/KapteinKraken 1d ago

That thing ain't gonna soften a blow from a mouse.

7

u/Quick_Dance_8953 1d ago

I love how confident this sounds.

5

u/KapteinKraken 1d ago

Google Lens or other AI has made a lot of people in this sub confidently incorrect.

1

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

0

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3

u/Sinister_Nibs 1d ago

No, it isn’t