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The US military continues its work on non-lethal weapons

The United States military has been working for quite some time on advanced non-lethal weapons to use in combat situations. Non-lethal weapons can be effectively used against insurgents or unruly crowds of people that could pose a threat to troops.

In December, DailyTech reported on the USAF's Active Denial System (ADS) which shoots millimeter waves at human targets causing their skin to feel like it's on fire. The USAF likes to quip that the ADS has a "Goodbye effect" which causes its "victims" to instinctively run away from the source of the beam.

Now we hear that the US Army is working on a non-lethal weapon of its own to use for crowd control. The US Army has developed the Aviation Applied-Technology Directorate (AATD) which uses a 7.3 million candela strobe floodlight system to incapacitate crowds of people.

The AATD system, which can be mounted to an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), is designed to induce temporary paralysis in its victims. AATD "can be pulsed with a unique modulation [strobe] effect that results in immobilization to those within the beam. This effort will transition the lamp from a handheld/vehicle mounted system to an airborne platform," according to US government acquisition records.

The system is still in development and there are a lot of questions to be answered. Peak Systems is expected to be awarded a contract for the device next month, while the first demonstrations are scheduled to take place a year after.

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Swords
By Misty Dingos on 2/23/2007 10:08:39 AM , Rating: 2
The double edged kind. This technology has the potential to save lots of lives. It also has the potential for heinous misuse. I hope that the Army has very strict controls on this weapon.




RE: Swords
By yacoub on 2/23/2007 10:17:41 AM , Rating: 1
I'm not sure how causing paralysis can save lives, but potential for police state misuse, certainly. =P


RE: Swords
By Hawkido on 2/23/2007 10:21:46 AM , Rating: 4
quote:
I'm not sure how causing paralysis can save lives, but potential for police state misuse, certainly. =P


If our military is attacked by 3 people hiding in a crowd of 3000. "Spray and Pray" has been our only real tactic. If you could incompacitate the crown then we could extract the offending people with out destroying a large group of people. How could this not save lives? Riots once they turn violent kill more innocent people than the police ever will.


RE: Swords
By Hawkido on 2/23/2007 10:23:34 AM , Rating: 2
crown should be crowd. dang no edit. Dang trying to get a quick post in while patching workstations.


RE: Swords
By Hawkido on 2/23/2007 10:18:17 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
This technology has the potential to save lots of lives. It also has the potential for heinous misuse.


As does all technology.


RE: Swords
By Jahara on 2/23/2007 10:25:47 AM , Rating: 2
Aye, and this all stems down to that one day that Grog took a stick and killed a rabbit. Then again, Grog hit Margor and gave him a nasty bruise.

If only Grog hadn't picked up that stick. *sniffs sadly*


RE: Swords
By tyborg on 2/23/2007 11:47:53 AM , Rating: 2
Seriously. Am I the only one that sees a problem with combining the two weapons mentioned above? "We have a weapon that forces you to hold still. We also have a weapon that causes unimaginably immense pain. Tell us what we want to know."

I'm not one to look down on advancements in non-lethal weaponry, but this with the other has such extreme potential for mususe...


RE: Swords
By mezman on 2/23/2007 1:55:26 PM , Rating: 4
Should be good for hippie whomping. :)


RE: Swords
By breethon on 2/23/2007 6:26:30 PM , Rating: 2
I am surprised that Jack Bauer don't have one of those weapons that does both incapacitate and torture.....or that the "enemy" hasn't used one on him yet ;)


easily avoided
By adam92682 on 2/23/2007 11:32:48 AM , Rating: 1
this will work until people realize that they can close thier eyes.




RE: easily avoided
By bldckstark on 2/23/2007 12:30:46 PM , Rating: 4
At 7.3 million candella, the eyelids won't have much effect on dampening the light. Your average handheld spotlight is 500,000 candella. There are much brighter ones, but I believe this is about average. Point one of those at your eyes with them closed and see how dark it is.


RE: easily avoided
By stromgald on 2/23/2007 12:46:58 PM , Rating: 2
Well, if the people were smart, they would dive to the ground, cover their eyes with their hands and bury their face the ground. A few layers of cloth might help too. That should dampen alot of the light.

However, at that point, even if you weren't paralyzed, you'd have your hands over your face and trying to dig into the ground, so you're pretty incapacitated already. The only benefit is that you might not be paralyzed.


RE: easily avoided
By phil126 on 2/23/2007 3:04:24 PM , Rating: 2
At what point is this going to blind people?


Ginormous strobe light
By mpc7488 on 2/23/2007 10:23:54 AM , Rating: 4
quote:
AATD "can be pulsed with a unique modulation [strobe] effect that results in immobilization to those within the beam.


Until they crank up some music and whip out their glow sticks!




RE: Ginormous strobe light
By TheDoc9 on 2/23/2007 10:32:48 AM , Rating: 2
add mine altering substances and you've got the ultimate rave


the business world....
By kattanna on 2/23/2007 1:36:14 PM , Rating: 4
is way ahead of the military when it comes to having a "weapon" to induce mass paralysis in unruly mobs

they are called cubicles..and the unruly mobs are forced to live in them 5 days a week

within a VERY short time, mass paralysis is induced.

honest




RE: the business world....
By fic2 on 2/23/2007 3:31:43 PM , Rating: 2
I thought you were going to say the tv....


By Urbanos on 2/23/2007 10:25:29 AM , Rating: 2
i can see it now, lo' n behold some guy in a suit standing on one of those unmanned flight crafts and shines the light and everyone drops to their knees! no more televangelists need apply




Just wear sunglasses
By Lord 666 on 2/23/2007 11:09:54 AM , Rating: 2
That sounds like the easiest defense against this. Just like in Men in Black.

Curious if all of those warnings on video games was really just a test to see how many people are effected by strobe effect based on ER admissions. They are just inducing epileptic seizures with this new device.




please
By adam92682 on 2/23/2007 1:18:14 PM , Rating: 2
no bright flasking light can stop me!!!




Bleah
By Hoser McMoose on 2/23/2007 4:19:17 PM , Rating: 2
This isn't NEARLY as cool as the Gay Bomb!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_bomb




Messy Cleanup?
By df96817 on 2/23/2007 5:58:50 PM , Rating: 2
Doesn't paralyzing someone cause a person to lose control of his/her bladder and bowels? If that's the case, there will be thousands of people pissing and sh_tting themselves in the streets.




release date?
By msva124 on 2/23/2007 6:43:15 PM , Rating: 2
Any word on this will be available to consumers? Darned co-workers getting on my nerves.




This Device Will Make Us More Safe
By Tuor on 2/23/2007 11:51:52 PM , Rating: 2
Let's just smear the line between police and military a little more, shall we? Yes, thanks, we need a tyrannical government. It's the only way we'll be safe.

If you follow the law, you have nothing to fear from this weapon or any other thing... like scanners that can see through your clothes in airports.

Oh, and I'm glad to see that so many of our present/prior military folks seem gung ho behind whatever our leaders decide to do. I'm sure they'll be first into the breech when "domestic terrorism" really starts to get going... and when this device will likely be used here inside the US.