Defense Technology International - June 2008 - (Page 52)

WEAPONS NON-LETHAL NERVOUS BREAKDOWN Electromagnetic energy provides a way to harmlessly subdue troublemakers DAVID HAMBLING•LONDON U.S. NAVY ork on a new generation of non-lethal weapons is focusing on ways of temporarily shutting down the body’s nervous system through the use of high-intensity electromagnetic energy. The goal is to eliminate threats by immobilizing, but not injuring aggressors. Development of truly non-lethal weapons is a priority goal of many military forces. With conflicts beginning as or morphing into peacekeeping and stability operations, maintaining control over civilian areas without excessive force is a requirement to win hearts and minds. Current non-lethal weapons like tear gas, shotgun-fired baton rounds and Taser electroshock devices have limitations. They may cause injuries or death, and can be defeated if an individual or mob are riled up. Experts say the ideal non-lethal weapon must stop an enraged, 200-lb. male, yet be harmless if used on a grandmother. The e ect should also be 52 W Navy’s Long Range Acoustic Device could be replaced by Sierra-Nevada’s Medusa technology, which uses electromagnetic waves to produce disabling “sound.” immediately reversible, leaving no lasting harm. Add requirements for long range, accuracy and multiple shots, and it becomes impossible to achieve these goals with existing technology. Some of the most advanced research in non-lethal weapons involves looking at the interaction between radio frequency (RF) energy and the body. The Active Denial System (ADS), which uses 95-GHz. beams of millimeter waves to heat the surface of the skin, causing a painful “repel e ect,” is one approach (DTI June 2007, p. 26). There are, however, non-thermal applications of RF energy. These involve more subtle e ects that could be used with high precision, at long range and even through walls. It is generally accepted that high-intensity radio waves a ect the nervous system. The U.S. Air Force has, in fact, studied the potential health effects of high-power radar and other emitters. Neurobiologist Gale Craviso of the University of Nevada School of Medicine in Reno and her colleague, Indira Chatterjee of the College of Engineering, are researching this area. They are laying the foundations for technology that, in their words, “would have an application for non-lethal weaponry, such as stunning or immobilizing the enemy.” The U.S. Air Force O ce of Scientiﬁc Research has funded their work. This use of high-intensity radio waves would reportedly a ect nerve cells directly. Early results suggest that the release of neurotransmitters can be tweaked by exposure to pulsed radio waves, and this may provide a means to disrupt the nervous system. The team is also looking at the effects of RF radiation on the contraction of skeletal muscles, “providing another strategy to design novel immobilizing weaponry,” they say. This may lead to the development of technology that harmlessly paralyzes a target, having similar e ects as a Taser but without the hazards associated with a 50,000volt shock. It would also have far greater range than a Taser and could be used on multiple targets. Craviso and Chatterjee are still working with cell samples in vitro, ﬁnding optimum parameters of wavelength, power and pulse duration, and conﬁrming what e ects can be achieved and their robustness. Meanwhile, the U.S. Marine Corps has funded initial work on Electromagnetic Personnel Interdiction Control (EPIC), which exploits the interaction between radio waves and tiny hairs in the vestibular system of the inner ear, which controls balance and motion. The technology is in development by Invocon Inc., a Conroe, Tex., company AviationWeek.com/dti DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL JUNE 2008 http://AviationWeek.com/dti

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Defense Technology International - June 2008

Defense Technology International - June 2008 Contents Around the World Science Watch Tech Watch Basic Black Self-Defense Fire-Resistant Perfezione Hyperspeed Trial Big Sky Cashing In Digital Links Hang Ten Sea Change Programs Update Two Steps Back Direct Hit Staying Power Potent Stinger Do No Harm Guard Duty The Net Cutting Edge First Person In Review Insight

Defense Technology International - June 2008

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