U.S. patent application number 11/657854 was filed with the patent office on 2008-07-31 for frangible non-lethal projectile.
Invention is credited to John A. Kapeles, Joseph P. Kolnik.
Application Number | 20080178758 11/657854 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39666479 |
Filed Date | 2008-07-31 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080178758 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kapeles; John A. ; et
al. |
July 31, 2008 |
Frangible non-lethal projectile
Abstract
A non-lethal impact projectile having a nose composed of a
frangible, rigid, polymer foam material such that the nose crushes
upon impact with a target to disperse energy, thereby reducing the
kinetic energy transferred to the target. Most preferably, the
munition or projectile is provided with a cavity to retain a
payload, such as marker agents, lacrimators, irritants,
inflammatory agents, odorants or inert powders, such that the
payload is laterally dispersed upon impact to further dissipate
energy transferred to the target.
Inventors: |
Kapeles; John A.; (Casper,
WY) ; Kolnik; Joseph P.; (Casper, WY) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ROGERS TOWERS, P.A.
1301 RIVERPLACE BOULEVARD, SUITE 1500
JACKSONVILLE
FL
32207
US
|
Family ID: |
39666479 |
Appl. No.: |
11/657854 |
Filed: |
January 25, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
102/502 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F42B 12/34 20130101;
F42B 12/40 20130101; F42B 12/50 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
102/502 |
International
Class: |
F42B 12/00 20060101
F42B012/00 |
Claims
1. A non-lethal projectile comprising: a projectile nose joined to
a projectile base; said projectile nose comprising a cavity; a
payload disposed within said cavity; and said projectile nose
composed of a frangible, rigid, polymer foam material; wherein said
projectile nose has a rounded forward end and a cylindrical wall,
said cylindrical wall being thinner than said forward end, such
that said thinner cylindrical wall breaks prior to said forward end
upon impact to absorb and dissipate impact energy and such that
said payload is dispersed laterally through said cylindrical wall
in multiple directions upon impact.
2. The projectile of claim 1, wherein said foam material has a
density between approximately 8 and 14 pounds per cubic foot.
3. The projectile of claim 1, wherein said payload is chosen from
the group of payloads consisting of marker agents, lacrimators,
irritants, inflammatory agents, odorants and inert powders.
4. The projectile of claim 1, said projectile nose further
comprising a rear plug wall joined to said cylindrical wall, the
combination of said forward end, said cylindrical wall and said
rear plug wall defining said nose cavity.
5. The projectile of claim 4, wherein said payload is chosen from
the group of payloads consisting of marker agents, lacrimators,
irritants, inflammatory agents, odorants and inert powders.
6. The projectile of claim 4, wherein said rear plug wall is joined
to said projectile base.
7. The projectile of claim 1, wherein said foam material is a
polyurethane.
8. The projectile of claim 4, wherein said projectile base
comprises a forward wall joined to a base cylindrical wall
extending away from said projectile nose.
9. The projectile of claim 8, wherein said rear plug wall is joined
directly to said forward wall of said projectile base.
10. The projectile of claim 9, wherein said rear plug wall is
composed of a resilient, impact-absorbing material.
11. The projectile of claim 4, wherein said rear plug wall is
composed of a resilient, impact-absorbing material.
12. A non-lethal projectile comprising: a projectile nose composed
of a frangible, rigid, polymer foam material and comprising a
cavity; a payload disposed within said cavity; and a non-frangible
projectile base joined to said projectile nose; wherein said
projectile nose has a rounded forward end and a cylindrical wall,
said cylindrical wall being thinner than said forward end, such
that said thinner cylindrical wall breaks prior to said forward end
upon impact to absorb and dissipate impact energy and such that
said payload is dispersed laterally through said cylindrical wall
in multiple directions upon impact.
13. The projectile of claim 12, wherein said projectile base
comprises a forward wall joined to a base cylindrical wall
extending away from said projectile nose.
14. The projectile of claim 13, said projectile nose further
comprising a rear plug wall joined to said nose cylindrical wall,
the combination of said forward end, said nose cylindrical wall and
said rear plug wall defining said nose cavity.
15. The projectile of claim 12, wherein said foam material has a
density between approximately 8 and 14 pounds per cubic foot.
16. The projectile of claim 12, wherein said payload is chosen from
the group of payloads consisting of marker agents, lacrimators,
irritants, inflammatory agents, odorants and inert powders.
17. The projectile of claim 14, wherein said payload is chosen from
the group of payloads consisting of marker agents, lacrimators,
irritants, inflammatory agents, odorants and inert powders.
18. The projectile of claim 14, wherein said rear plug wall is
joined to said projectile base.
19. The projectile of claim 12, wherein said foam material is a
polyurethane.
20. The projectile of claim 14, wherein said rear plug wall is
composed of a resilient, impact-absorbing material.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates generally to the field of non-lethal
projectiles or impact munitions and more particularly relates to
the field of such projectiles capable of delivering a gas, powder
or liquid payload. Even more particularly, the invention relates to
such projectiles having a rigid, frangible nose.
[0002] It is often desirable to provide for law enforcement,
corrections or military users a relatively low-impact, non-lethal
projectile for use with firearms or launchers, where the projectile
is capable of imparting blunt trauma without deadly force and is
also capable of delivering a payload for dispersion upon impact,
the payload comprising a gas, liquid or powder having certain
desired properties. Such munitions are used for example in crowd
control and other special operations, where it is desirable to
deter certain activity without utilizing lethal force. The payload
may comprise for example marker agents, lacrimators, irritants,
inflammatory agents, odorants and the like.
[0003] Since the projectile is designed to be direct-fired at the
human target, it is necessary to insure that the impact force is
sufficient to deliver enough pain to the target for compliance, but
without causing serious injury. This is accomplished through the
structural design of the projectile as well as by limiting the
projectile velocity. Reducing the velocity of the projectile also
reduces the accuracy of the trajectory, so a minimum acceptable
velocity must be retained. By producing an energy absorbing
projectile, sufficient velocity may be maintained for accuracy.
[0004] In order to achieve the desired results, projectiles have
been developed where the entire projectile or at least the nose of
the projectile is formed of a compliant, resilient material that
compresses upon impact. The compliant material may take the form of
a sphere. Alternatively, the nose of the projectile may be formed
of a rubber, sponge or compliant foam material that dissipates
impact energy due to compressive elastic deformation. Examples of
such projectiles are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,714,896 to Young and
U.S. Pat. No. 6,041,712 to Lyon. A problem can occur with the use
of compliant nose materials in that the resilience of the material
is detrimental to projectile accuracy due to adverse aerodynamic
effects on the non-rigid nose. In addition, the use of compliant or
soft materials to retain gas, liquid or powder payloads creates
problems in handling and storage, since the projectiles are readily
subject to accidental failure, resulting in unwanted dispersal of
the payload. Likewise, environmental degradation will more rapidly
affect the resilient material containing the payload.
[0005] It is also known to produce low-impact, non-lethal
projectiles adapted to carry payloads for dispersal on impact where
the projectile or the nose of the projectile is made of a frangible
material that breaks upon impact as a result of compressive plastic
deformation. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,411 to Woddall et al.
shows a payload carrying spherical projectile formed of a rigid
plastic material and provided with dimples and score lines to
create localized stress points that fracture upon impact. The
dimples and score lines also create a more accurate spherical
projectile through aerodynamic effects. Another example is shown in
U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,183 to Luxton, where a projectile having the
typical bullet-shape is provided, the projectile being composed of
a rigid plastic material. Score lines are provided on the
projectile such that it will rupture on impact. While the
projectile accuracy is more readily maintained in these designs,
the energy dissipation at impact is relatively small and remains
concentrated, and the material of construction is more likely to
result in injury to the human target since breaking of the
projectile results in jagged or sharp edges of relatively
non-compliant material. In addition, these projectiles are more
likely to deliver serious injury if utilized at short range.
[0006] It is an object of this invention to provide a non-lethal,
low-impact projectile capable of delivering blunt trauma of
sufficient amount to induce compliance as well as to deliver a
payload of a gas, liquid or powder substance having desired effects
on the human target. It is a further object to provide such a
projectile that overcomes the drawbacks inherent in the known
systems. These and other objects that will become apparent from the
disclosure to follow are accomplished by providing a projectile
having a nose formed in an aerodynamically preferred configuration
and composed of a frangible, rigid foam material, such that impact
energy is dissipated through plastic deformation of the nose, which
first compresses and then breaks to disperse the payload. The
projectile is capable of being mounted onto known projectile
delivery systems for use in known firearms, launchers or the
like.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The invention comprises in general a non-lethal impact
munition or projectile adapted to be discharged from a firearm or
other launcher device and directed at a human target, wherein the
impact energy of the projectile is below the threshold where
serious injury or death would result from the impact, yet is of
sufficient force such that blunt trauma is delivered for the
purpose of pain compliance. The design and structure of the
projectile is such that aerodynamic properties and projectile
velocity are not excessively adversely affected in order to
maintain the accuracy of delivery.
[0008] The projectile comprises a projectile nose mounted onto a
projectile base, wherein the nose is composed of a frangible,
rigid, polymer foam material, such as polyurethane. The nose has a
rounded forward end and a cylindrical wall, and the base has a
generally flat forward wall and a cylindrical rear wall, adapted to
be separably joined to a propulsion shell or casing to form a
munition or cartridge capable of being discharged from a firearm or
launcher by propulsion means within the propulsion shell, the
projectile having a typical bullet shape for aerodynamic purposes.
The polymer foam material composing the nose is sufficiently rigid
so as to maintain its structural configuration during discharge and
flight, but which is crushed and broken upon impact with a human
target such that the impact energy is dissipated or reduced.
Preferably, the forward end of the nose is thicker than the
cylindrical wall of the nose, such that the compression and
fracture occurs mainly in the cylindrical wall. The nose may
further comprise a rear plug wall that is directly joined to the
forward wall of the projectile base, with the rear plug wall being
preferably composed of a resilient, compliant polymer or rubber
material.
[0009] The projectile nose further comprises a cavity adapted to
receive a payload to be dispersed upon impact with the human
target. The payload is chosen for a particular purpose and may
consist of marker agents, lacrimators, irritants, inflammatory
agents, odorants, inert powders or other materials. The crushing
and fracture of the projectile nose upon impact laterally expels or
disperses the payload, which further reduces the impact energy
delivered to the target.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is an external view of the invention.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the invention taken
along line II-II of FIG. 1.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a view of the projectile at impact showing
dispersal of a payload.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0013] With reference to the drawings, the invention will now be
described with regard for the best mode and the preferred
embodiment, but with the understanding that the scope of the patent
is not limited to such and that other variations and embodiments
are covered by the language of the claims. In a most general sense,
the invention is a projectile, or the projectile in combination
with a casing or shell to define an impact munition, to be
discharged or propelled from a firearm or similar launcher device
such that the projectile is accurately delivered to impact a
target, and in particular such that the projectile can strike a
human target without inflicting death or serious bodily injury, yet
will have sufficient impact force to deliver blunt trauma in an
amount designed to inflict sufficient pain so as to cause
compliance by the target. In addition, the projectile is designed
to be capable of delivering and dispersing upon impact a payload
material, such as a liquid, gas or solid, the energy required for
payload dispersal acting to further reduce the impact force. To
accomplish these purposes, at least a portion of the projectile is
designed to crush and fracture upon impact such that some of the
impact energy is dissipated.
[0014] The structure of the invention must take into account
several conflicting and competing requirements for effective
operation. The pain inflicted by the projectile at impact must be
sufficient enough to force compliance, yet the impact energy
delivered to the target must be low enough to prevent serious
energy. Projectile accuracy must be maintained through the
aerodynamic design of the projectile as well as by maintaining
sufficient projectile velocity upon discharge.
[0015] FIGS. 1 and 2 show an external view and a cross-sectional
view of the complete impact munition or cartridge of the invention,
which is defined to comprise in combination a propulsion casing or
shell 10 and a projectile comprising a projectile base 20 and a
projectile nose 30. The impact munition is constructed so as to be
useable in firearms or launchers of known type, especially those
firearms or launchers having rifled barrels, such as for example a
40 mm rifled-barrel gas gun or an M203 rifled grenade launcher. The
dimensions of the cartridge may vary to accommodate launchers of
different caliber (37 mm, 66 mm, etc.), as well as shotguns of
varying gauges. The propulsion shell 10 may be of known type, and
is shown to comprise an annular forward wall 14 having a forward
shell rim 16 and joined to a shell base 11 having a rear wall 17. A
co-axially oriented propulsion cavity 12 is disposed in the shell
base 11 and retains propulsion means 13 of known type, preferably a
smokeless system. The annular forward wall 14 defines a shell
cavity 15 to receive the expanding gases produced by the propulsion
means 13 at discharge.
[0016] Mounted in separable manner onto the front of the propulsion
shell 10 is a projectile comprised of a projectile base 20 joined
to a projectile nose 30. The projectile base 20, preferably
composed of a polycarbonate material, comprises a domed forward end
21 joined to a cylindrical wall 22 such that the combination
defines a projectile cavity 23. The exterior of the cylindrical
wall 22 is provided with an undercut 24 that defines a rearward
extending annular insertion flange 25. The insertion flange 25 is
received within the shell rim 16 and shell forward wall 14 in a
male-female coupling, such that the projectile cavity 23 and the
shell cavity 15 combine to form a single larger cavity.
[0017] The projectile nose 30 comprises a rounded forward end 31
combined with a cylindrical wall 32 and is composed of a
substantially non-compliant, frangible, rigid, polymer foam
material, most preferably a closed-cell polyurethane. The rigidity
of the foam must be sufficient for it to retain its structural
configuration upon discharge and during flight so as not to
adversely affect accuracy, yet be below a rigidity threshold such
that the foam is crushed and broken upon impact with soft tissue of
a human target in order to dissipate the energy. In other words,
the foam must undergo plastic deformation upon impact rather than
elastic deformation. It has been found that a polyurethane foam
having a density between approximately eight and 14 pounds per
cubic foot used to form the forward end 31 and cylindrical wall 32
provides these desired characteristics. The thickness or radial
dimension of the cylindrical wall 32 is preferably less than the
thickness of the forward end. Through this construction, it is the
cylindrical wall 32 that will deform, crush and break upon impact
of the projectile with the target 99. The precise shape of the
rounded forward end 31 is determined by aerodynamic characteristics
well known in the art.
[0018] The combination of the forward end 31 and cylindrical wall
32 define a nose cavity 33 that may be empty or that may receive a
payload 35 to be dispersed or expelled when the nose 30 is crushed
and broken upon impact with the target 99. The payload 35 may
comprise a gas, liquid, solid or powder that possesses certain
desirable properties when the payload 35 is exposed to the target
99. For example, the payload 35 may comprise alone or in
combination a marker agent, a lacrimator, an irritant, an
inflammatory agent, an odorant or other material. Likewise, the
payload 35 may consist entirely of or include an inert powder. The
presence of a payload 35 is preferable since energy is required to
laterally disperse the payload 35 upon impact, and this mass
dispersion energy further reduces the momentum energy transferred
from the projectile nose 30 to the target 99. This allows the
velocity to be increased slightly relative to an empty projectile
nose 30 without increasing the kinetic energy transferred to the
target 99.
[0019] Preferably, the nose 30 further comprises a rear plug wall
34 attached to the rearward end of the cylindrical wall 32 that
seals cavity 33. This allows the nose 30 to be manufactured by
loading the payload 35 into the cavity 33 and then attaching plug
wall 34, by adhesives or other suitable means, prior to attachment
to the projectile base 20. Preferably, the rear plug wall 34 is
composed of a resilient, compliant polymer or rubber material to
further absorb impact energy and to prevent contact of the
projectile base 20 with the target 99. The rear plug wall 34 is
joined to the face of the base forward wall 21 by adhesives or
other suitable means.
[0020] At discharge, the projectile base 20 and nose 30 separate
from the shell 10 in known manner and travel such that the nose
forward end 31 strikes the target 99, as shown in FIG. 3. Upon
impact the rigid foam forward end 31 is pushed to the rear toward
the forward wall 21 of the projectile base 20. The rigid foam
cylindrical wall 32 of the nose 30, being of thinner dimension than
the forward end 31, crushes and breaks such that openings or tears
are created. This absorbs and dissipates energy that would normally
be delivered to the target 99. Any payload 35 retained within nose
cavity 33 will be expelled laterally in multiple directions.
[0021] The use of a closed-cell polyurethane foam or a polymer foam
possessing similar characteristics to form the crushable components
of the nose 30 has been found to be advantageous for several
reasons. The density of the foam is easily controlled during the
molding process, which can be performed by reaction injection
molding. Specific shapes, contours and cavities are easily produced
such that the external aerodynamic contour may be maximized for
best accuracy. The polymer foam material is inert to most payloads
and is suitable for retention of gas or liquid as well as a solid
or powder. The rigid foam first deforms at impact through
compression of air trapped within the cell walls and then breakage
of the cell walls themselves, followed by rupture of the foam on a
macro scale. The foam nose 30 is sufficiently structurally strong
such that it is unlikely to break upon minor impacts that may occur
during storage or handling. After deformation and discharge of the
payload 35, the crushed forward end 31 and cylindrical wall 32 form
in combination with the resilient plug wall 34 a buffer or cushion
between the projectile base 20 and the target 99. This distributes
the impact energy over the maximum surface area of the projectile,
thereby minimizing the chance of penetration by the projectile base
20 into the target 99.
[0022] It is understood and contemplated that equivalents and
substitutions for certain elements set forth above may be obvious
to those skilled in the art, and therefore the true scope and
definition of the invention is to be as set forth in the following
claims.
* * * * *