Patent Publication Number: US-11656048-B1

Title: Smart ammunition with e-primer technology to enhance public safety by electronically preventing the discharging of a firearm

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/280,237 filed Oct. 30, 2020. 
    
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     N/A 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to ammunition, and in particular, to smart ammunition withe-primer technology to enhance public safety for the discharge of a firearm by replacing conventional mechanical primers used for the activation of energetic materials with an electronic primer (e-primer). 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Technology may provide the answers in the quest to resolve one of our nation&#39;s most controversial societal issues: gun violence and the harm caused by the widespread use of guns. In the past decade, over one million Americans have been shot, and approximately 31,000 people are killed each year by firearms. That rate is nearly 20 times greater than other industrialized countries. In order to reduce the harm caused by the widespread use of guns, various technological solutions have been proposed. Moreover, easy access to firearms enables the unintended discharge by youths and others who aren&#39;t trained in weapon safety causing thousands of accidental shootings every year. 
     Each year in the U.S. alone approximately 900 teenagers take their own life with a firearm and cause thousands of unintended shootings. The Center for Disease control reports indicate at 84% of those suicides makes use of the parents&#39; gun or someone they know. Finally, the epidemic shootings taking place at our nation&#39;s schools have now reached over 600 children that have been shot or killed since the Sandy Hook tragedies. Of these shootings, over 67% used their parents&#39; gun. It has become clear that access to a weapon by an unauthorized user is the critical element of the calculus in order to mitigate these tragedies and improve safety. The instant invention addresses this unfulfilled need in the prior art by providing smart ammunition with electronic primer technology to enhance public safety by electronically preventing the discharging of a firearm. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In light of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide smart ammunition with e-primer technology to enhance public safety from the discharge of a firearm by replacing conventional mechanical primers (shock sensitive chemical) used for the activation of energetic materials with an electronic primer (referenced herein as an e-primer) in center fire type ammunitions, grenades, bombs and other explosive devices. 
     In accordance with one aspect, the present invention provides an e-primer system including an antenna, a piezo crystal, a diode, a capacitor, a microcontroller with RF receiver, a thermal wire, a nanoenergetic material and a switch which can be implemented either mechanically or electronically and that can be mounted within the primer cup or operatively coupled to the nanoenergetic material. 
     In another aspect, the present invention provides smart ammunition with e-primer technology that includes a firing pin and primer cup with a safety switch, antenna, piezo element, diode, capacitor, microcontroller with RF receiver, thermal wire, nanoenergetic and flash hole, wherein the mechanical force of the firing pin strikes an nanoenergetic material and activates the initial phase of an energetic train. 
     In an additional aspect, the present invention provides an e-primer system including an antenna, a piezo crystal, a diode, a capacitor, a microcontroller, a thermal wire, a nanoenergetic material and a switch in a primer cup casing and radio receiver technology wherein the e-primer can be neutralized when located in a space specifically designed to receive a radio signal from the remote sender station which would be captured by the antenna mounted within the ammunition wherein the radio signal can send a deactivation code to neutralize the primer cap to fire the ammunition. 
     In accordance with these and other objects, which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       A more complete understanding of the present invention, and the attendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readily understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG.  1    is front perspective view and electronic diagram of the smart ammunition with electronic primer technology in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and 
         FIG.  2    is a block diagram of the smart ammunition with electronic primer technology shown in  FIG.  1   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     With reference to the drawings in which like reference designators refer to like elements,  FIGS.  1 - 2    depict the preferred and alternative embodiments of the instant invention which is generally referenced as an e-primer, e-primer system and, or by numeric character  10 . The instant invention  10  teaches smart ammunition with e-primer technology to enhance public safety for the discharge of a firearm. This invention  10  disclosed below teaches the design, operation and benefits of an energy harvesting electronic primer system that can be remotely neutralized or activated using RF or acoustic transmission. This new primer  10  replaces conventional mechanical (shock sensitive chemical) primers  1 , shown in  FIG.  1    used for the activation of energetic materials with a batteryless electronic primer, which is referred to as an e-primer. One application of thee-primer  10  would be used to replace conventional or mechanical primer (shock sensitive chemical) used in center fire type ammunitions. Other applications include primers used in grenades, bombs and explosive devices where the activation of an energetic material is used to produce a desired outcome and whereby the energetic material requires an activation mechanism normally enabled by some form of a conventional primer system that uses a mechanical force (shock sensitive chemical) of a firing pin or other structure to strike a nanoenergetic material and activate the initial phase of an energetic train. Furthermore, applications of minefields or other explosives that can be remotely neutralized or activated are made possible. 
     Thee-primer system  10  consists of an antenna or RF receiver  12 , a piezo crystal  14 , a diode  16 , a capacitor  18 , a microcontroller with RF receiver  20 , a thermal wire  22 , a nanoenergetic material  24  and a switch  26  which can be implemented either mechanically or electronically. These technologies can be mounted within the primer cup  30  or operatively coupled to the nanoenergetic material  24 . The e-primer system  10  may also include a radio or RF or sound wave transmitter or carrier  34  and, or firing pin or percussive stimulus  28 . 
     The e-primer  10  offers many advantages over mechanically (shock sensitive chemical) activated primers. To begin, there are a number of applications where the control of the explosives can be neutralized from a remote location or sender station  34  such that even in the event of the mechanical firing pin  28  being activated by the necessary force, an energetic train would be prevented from taking place. In another embodiment, the energetic train could be initiated from remote control using a radio frequency carrier  34  to supply power and control signals for the microcontroller or by providing power and control signals to the microcontroller  20  by acoustic means by vibrating the piezo. In either case, the deformation of piezo element  14  would be required to provide the power to activate the thermal element. Yet in another embodiment as in the case of a round of ammunition with a center fire primer mechanism typically found in semi-automatic hand guns, revolvers, long-rifles, but not normally used in shotguns, the ammunition equipped with an e-primer  10  can be neutralized or activated assuming the ammunition was located in a space specifically designed to receive a radio signal or acoustic signal which would be captured by an antenna/piezo resonator  12  mounted within the ammunition. The radio signal or acoustic signal can send a deactivation code from the remote sender station, which in turn would be acquired up by the e-primer  10  and decoded by the microprocessor  20  mounted within the primer cup  30 . The microprocessor  20  electronically prevents the ignition process within the e-primer  10  thus preventing the discharge of the ammunition within the firearm while in the particular space. When a firearms&#39; trigger is pulled, the firing rod and pin  28  engages with a primer cup  30  mounted in the ammunition casing, the process known as Firing. Firing is the sequence of events which ignites the nanoenergetic material  24  in the primer cup  30  which in turn ignites the propellant charge in the cartridge. The primer cup  30  contains a small amount of percussion-sensitive explosive. Within the primer cup  30 , when a striker  28  hits the primer with sufficient mechanical shock it detonates the primer material. This sends hot burning particles of primer nanoenergetic material  24  through the flash hole  32  into contact with the propellant, beginning its burning. In single-shot and semiautomatic operation, each activation of the trigger permits only one shot. In fully-automatic operation the entire operating cycle repeats while the trigger is pressed, and ammunition is fed. 
     The flash in turn is used as the catalyst to activate the gun powder known as a propellant housed within the casing of the ammunition. Finally, a bullet is discharged from the barrel of the gun when the burning propellant creates sufficient gas pressure and the requisite energy to thrust the bullet from its casing and down the barrel of the gun. The entire process takes a fraction of a second and the bullet is forced out the barrel of gun at a speed of 1700 miles per hour. 
     Within thee-primer  10 , the process to create a flash to begin the propellant (shock sensitive chemical) activation process is now replaced with an electrical ignition that uses energy harvesting system and switch rather than a mechanical (shock sensitive chemical) process. A thermal wire  22  serves to replace the ignition phase of the energetic train. The thermal wire  22  quickly heats up and burns when powered by an electrical signal. The heating process in turn is used as the catalyst for advancing the energetic train. 
     It is well known that firearm systems have been built to include an external power supply which is operatively coupled to the firing pin  28 . The electrical contact on the firing pin is capable of activating a primer build to use this battery power to initiate the energetic train. The drawback to this approach is that the firearm needs to be modified to hold a battery pack or the ammunition itself must include its own battery. 
     The ammunition of the instant invention does not require a battery, which are known to have a finite shelf life. The reliability required to fire a round of ammunition must be as close to 100% as possible since it is used to defend and or protect life and the power source for the ammunition should be virtually guaranteed. Accordingly, what is needed is a way to power the electronic firing system inside the ammunition, but without a physical battery. Furthermore, the ammunition needs to be deactivated or naturalized when in an area equipped with a SafeZone transmitter system. The SafeZone transmitter system is a virtual electronic fence defined by a plurality of transmitter for remotely transmitting the control signal to the microcontroller to selectively neutralize the ammunition wherein the control signal includes a neutralization code for dictating whether the thermal wire receives electrical energy. 
     The invention  10  presented below teaches a new design and method to provide battery power for the thermal wire  22  and microprocess from within the ammunition itself as well as a means to disable or activate the firing of the ammunition within a SafeZone. There are two unique means for powering the system described below. The overall approach is known as energy harvesting. The invention  10  teaches the utilization of the mechanical force of the firing pin  28  striking a piezoelectric crystal  14  mounted within the primer cup producing a deformation stressing the crystalline structure thus producing electrical energy. This brief impulse of electrical energy is captured and stored within the capacitor  18  mounted within the primer cup  30  and or the ammunition casing. Yet in another embodiment, the energy can be harvested from exciting the piezo crystal structure  14  with where acoustic waves or vibrations and converted into electrical energy. It is well known that piezo crystals can be tuned by their shape, mass and material construction. An acoustic wave or vibration which propagates in proximity of the piezo crystal  14  will enable excitation of the piezo crystal  14  can be harvested while the transmission is present. The harvested power can be stored within the capacitor  18  mounted in the casing. In addition, the firing pin  28  also activates a safety switch  26  permitting the energy created by piezo crystal  14  to activate a thermal wire  22  mounted in close proximity to the nanoenergetic material  24  mounted in the casing. Additionally, the electronic control switch is controlled by a RF, acoustic or other forms of a communications link. 
     The invention considers the following: 
     When a round of ammunition equipped with an energy harvesting electronic primer that can be remotely neutralized or activated enters an area that contains signals form a transmitter whose functions are two-fold, to transmit an encoded signal capable of providing the RF or acoustic waveform and control signal information where by the ammunition could detect these signals though the antenna for the RF and or a piezo resonator for the acoustic interface incorporated into the ammunition. These signals are then converted into power using either the piezo crystal  14  mounted in the ammunition if acoustic or from the antenna and become rectified through a diode  16  into a de voltage and charging of a capacitor  18 . The output of the capacitor  18  drives the necessary voltage to power on a RF receiver and microprocessor  20 . Should the remote transmitted RF or acoustic signal contain no control information, the microcontroller  20  normal state is true, such that the signal feed into the microcontroller  20  would be seen as a “1” on its output and would allow thee-primer  10  to become active. The control signal, if true, would allow the harvested energy from the firing pin  28  interacting with the stressed piezo  14  mounted in the primer cup  30  to pass to the thermal wire  22  thereby activating the nonenergetic materials  24  which in turn would allow the discharged of the firearm. If the transmitted signal were a “0” or false, the microcontroller  20  would not allow the control signal to pass through it and would not allow the firearm to be discharged regardless if the trigger is pulled as the thermal wire would not be allowed to activate. The final step in the process is the mechanical activation of a control switch that is engaged once the firing pin  28  strikes the primer cup with sufficient force. This safety switch  26  serves to ensure that no accidental discharging of the ammunition could happen based on a stray signal finding its way into the ammunition circuitry. As an example, when the ammunition enters into a SafeZone in a school or other location that has been equipped with an RF or acoustic transmitter or transceiver, and the control signal is set for a “0” or “false” the ammunition becomes instantly neutralized, unable to be fired from a user. 
     In another embodiment, a process to overwrite the microcontroller  20  instruction could be used by the police agencies or other law enforcement officials so their firearms can be fired in SafeZone locations. In this embodiment, the police would have unique e-primer ammunition with a special code that allows their firearm to be fired in a SafeZone location while other “e-primer” ammunition being used by other that the police would be neutralized. This special code would override the neutralization signal enabling the activation of the nanoenergetic material thereby allowing the ammunition to be discharged. 
     Another inventive step is disclosed whereas, the e-primer ammunition must operate in the same way that conventional primer ammunition operates. This requires a solution to harvest power when no RF signal or acoustic wave signal is present. The invention  10  considers using striking force of the firing pin  28 , making contact with the piezo element  14  mounted in the primer cup to convert this energy from mechanical to electrical power. Under such a scenario, the e-primer equipped ammunition could be fired from the firearm, where the power is harvested from the piezo element, stored in a capacitor, distributed to the microcontroller whose normal state is a “1” and where by the control signal to activate the thermal wire is established and the activation of the nanoenergetic material is enabled, burns the next stage of the powder and the bullet is discharged. For additional safety reasons, the power can be first sent to the switch inside the primer cup and is activated when the firing pin strikes the primer cup and establishes contact. 
     If the e-primer is authorized by a RF signal or acoustic wave the ammunition will fire. If it is not authorized, the microcomputer will neutralize the firing, and the primer would not be ignited. 
     There are other ways of deactivating the ammunition, as an example. If you are in a public space, not in a SafeZone area, and have authorization to neutralize the ammunition from firing, a transmitter array will transmit RF or acoustic code to change the status of the microprocessor and prevent the firing of the firearm instantaneously.
         A individual carries a gun into a SafeZone®   The trigger is pulled.   Firing pin fires into electronic primer.   What makes this primer electronic?
           There is a piezo membrane and capacitor, diode and a radio receiver, microcomputer and thermal wire as part of its construction.   The capacitor is storing the harvested energy while in in a SafeZone® room with the RF or acoustic transmitter propagating energy.   The piezo harvests energy for the activation of the thermal wire by the firing pin striking the primer cap which is encompassing the piezo.   The stored capacitor then provides the power for the receiver and microcomputer operational needs.   
           When the microcomputer turns on, it will communicate decode the transmitted signal or otherwise allow for its preprogrammed command to be advanced.   The microcomputer decodes the transmitted signal within the SafeZone®   If it is authorized, the transmitter will send 1&#39;s to be decoded by microcomputer, letting it know it can proceed to fire.   If it is not authorized, the transmitter will send 0&#39;s to the microcomputer, letting it know that no bullet will be fired in this SafeZone®   The primer essentially now serves as a electronic control switch as well   So, if it is authorized, the two wires (in diagram A) will connect, thus turning on the electronic control switch.   When this switch makes contact, it allows the initial firing of nanoenergetic of the primer and the bullet is fired.   A safety switch can be incorporated which is activated upon the firing pin making contact with the e-primer.       

     It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described herein above. In addition, unless mention was made above to the contrary, it should be noted that all of the accompanying drawings are not to scale. A variety of modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention, which is limited only by the following claims.