Patent Abstract:
A less than lethal projectile and method of producing the same comprising of a sealed filled polymeric pouch containing a shot within. The sealed filled polymeric pouch is formed in a form, fill, and seal machine. An automatic loading ammunition machine is fed empty shell casings; the ammunition machine automatically loads the empty shell casing with pre-determined quantities of wad, primer, and gun powder, and subsequently moves the sealed filled polymeric pouch into a projectile compartment of the empty shell casing producing a fully-loaded shell casing to be loaded into a barrel of an ammunition. The polymeric pouch is capable of being inserted into various shell casings depending on the intended use thus allowing for officers and soldiers to select from an array of munitions when confronted with a situation where less than lethal means are required.

Full Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to less than lethal weapons and, more particularly, to a less than lethal projectile and a method for producing a less than lethal projectile not intended to kill and intended to minimize causalities. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Law enforcement has long operated with what is called a “continuum of force”. It provides guidance to officers for selecting the type of weaponry to use in a variety of situations. The continuum normally begins with verbal commands. Should the subject or subjects not respond, the continuum may advise the next level of force until lethal force is absolutely necessary. In situations such as riots, prisons disturbances, hostages rescues, and the like the continuum of force is utilized. However, officers have long recognized that a wide and dangerous gap exists in the range of tools available to them. In the past, officers had very few options for riot control after verbal commands. Common tactics included advancing walls of officers with batons, or a charge by officers using flats of sabers. However, these tactics still resulted in serious bodily injury due to trampling or excessive police force as they march through crowds; furthermore, innocent civilians were at times injured by inadvertent striking or trampling. It was often that the tactics used were either too weak or too strong a response to some situations. As a result the use of high-pressure fire houses, electroshock weapons, and non-lethal chemical agents (such as tear gas and offensive odor canisters) were employed to disperse a crowd. Unfortunately, the discretion of officers in utilizing these weapons and tactics led to either misuse by officers or insufficient force applied by officers to maintain peace. 
     While law enforcement has long recognized the gap in the force of continuum, the concept is relatively new to the military. More and more, military forces are being deployed to situations involving peacekeeping and noncombat operations. A solider must be equipped and trained for peacekeeping and humanitarian assistance operations. In certain situations, law enforcement officers and military soldiers are required to use force to control crowds or individuals, as such less than lethal means are recommended by the force continuum. Less than lethal weapons and tactics are intended to be unlikely to kill or cause great bodily injury, thus minimizing civilian casualties and providing soldiers or officers with an alternative to lethal force. 
     A less than lethal projectile, provided in a less than lethal weapon, assures that the requisite less than lethal consequence exists and minimizes the soldiers or officers subjectivity in determining the amount of force to use when necessary. Thus heightening the margin of safety for civilians in a riot without minimizing the primary objective: to temporarily incapacitate, confuse, delay, or restrain. One type of projectile commonly used is a beanbag. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 6,655,294 discloses a beanbag suitable for installation in a cartridge or shell of a projectile found in a conventional handgun and the process for making the same. The beanbags are fabric bags that contain lead shot or pellets. The round is intended to flatten on impact, hitting face on, thereby spreading its energy over a larger area. When the bag leaves the gun it unrolls and rotates into the flat orientation to strike the target. Unfortunately, if the bag hits before it is completely unfurled or an edge-on orientation, the full force of the impact is distributed over a smaller area, causing more damage. Furthermore, because of their shape (square, rectangular, or circular) the bags are regarded as widely inaccurate and have been known to veer off course. 
     Another type of impact device launched from a cartridge shell is a less than lethal projectile. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 7,089,864 discloses a projectile launched from a weapon shell required at impact to have a low lethality consequence, in which the projectile is fitted in the shell in a shape characterized by a blunt or flat end in the direction of flight. Unfortunately, this low lethality projectile is susceptible to being unstable during its path of flight due to its relatively low weight and slower rate of speed. Furthermore, the projectile is only capable of being fired from a 37 mm or 40 mm weapon shell thus limiting the selection of munitions available to the officer or soldier. In addition, the disadvantages associated with the low lethality projectile also include the method of producing the same. U.S. Pat. No. 6,374,742 discloses a method of shaping a projectile comprising the steps of filling an unbounded rear end of an unfilled tubular sock having a closed front end, forming folds in the tubular sock immediately forward of the rear opening, and manually inserting the tubular sock into a projectile compartment of a 37 mm or 40 mm weapon shell. In so far as the method of sealing the projectile is disclosed as a fold, it is possible that upon impact the projectile may bust, spilling the rubber pellets. Therefore a more reliable seal is desired. Additionally, the method disclosed is not conducive for mass production of the device because it cannot be manufactured on an automated production line. In point of fact, many of the steps of production in the &#39;742 patent involve manual labor. 
     While these prior art devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they would be unsuitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described. As a consequence of these aforementioned problems, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a less than lethal projectile and a method of producing the same that can be easily produced and efficiently in large numbers on an automated production line. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An objective of this invention is to provide a method of producing a less than lethal projectile whereby a sealed filled polymeric pouch containing shot within. The sealed filled polymeric pouch is formed in a form, fill, and seal machine. An automatic loading ammunition machine containing empty shell casings automatically loads the empty shell casings with a pre-determined quantity of wad, primer, and gun powder, and subsequently moves the polymeric pouch into a projectile compartment of the empty shell casing thereby producing a fully-loaded shell casing adapted to be loaded into a barrel of a gun. The polymeric pouch is capable of being inserted into various shell casing depending on the intended use thus allowing for officers and soldiers to select from an array of munitions when confronted with a situation where less than lethal means are required. 
     Accordingly, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide a method of producing a less than lethal projectile using a form, fill, and seal machine in combination with a loading ammunition machine. The combination will allow for a cost effective mass production assembly of the less than lethal projectile. 
     It is an objective of the present invention to provide a less than lethal projectile that does not kill but stuns and incapacitates. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to provide a less than lethal projectile containing a sealed filled pouch constructed of polymeric material which does not burst upon impact. 
     A further objective of the present invention is to provide a less than lethal projectile containing a polymeric sealed pouch containing non-toxic shot within. In the rare instance where the polymeric pouch is ruptured on impact or otherwise punctured, the shot therein will not harm the environment or the suspect. 
     Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a less than lethal projectile whereby the polymeric pouch includes a tail on its trailing end to provide stability during flight as well a more accurate shot. 
     An additional objective of the present invention is to provide a less than lethal projectile that may be fired from a weapon having low pressure, such as below than 1000 psi. The speed of the less than lethal projectile will have a range between 260 and 600 feet per second. 
     It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a less than lethal projectile that can be used in a variety of firearms, and in particular well suited for handguns. 
     Other objectives and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with any accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention. Any drawings contained herein constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a cross sectional view of the polymeric pouch. 
         FIG. 2  is a cross sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the polymeric pouch. 
         FIG. 3  is a cross sectional view of an exemplary empty shell casing. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross sectional view of a loaded shell casing. 
         FIG. 5  is a pictorial representation of an exemplary vertical form, fill, and seal machine. 
         FIG. 6  is a pictorial representation of an exemplary ammunition loading machine. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Detailed embodiments of the instant invention are disclosed herein, however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific functional and structural details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representation basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1-6 , wherein like components are numbered consistently throughout. The less than lethal projectile  1  is constructed from a filled sealed pouch  10  and an empty shell casing  30 . As shown in  FIG. 1  the pouch  10  is constructed from polymeric material, more specifically, a bi-axially oriented polyethylene terephthalate polyester film (boPET). The boPET film sheet is of sufficient strength to not burst upon impact. The boPET is typically available in a variety of thicknesses, which are measured in ‘mils’. The mil is not a metric unit of measure, however, one mil equals 0.001 inches. It is preferred that the boPET used is at least 4 mils. The boPET film sheet has a high tensile strength and is transparent. Although boPET is the preferred polyester film it is contemplated that other polymeric film sheet may be used in construction of the pouch  10 . The pouch  10  includes an outer surface  12  and an inner surface  14  with defines a compartment  16 . The compartment is filled with shot  18  of a predetermined amount of tungsten granules, a non-toxic metal. The shot  18  has a weight within the range of 260 to 437.5 grains. In the art, grain is a unit measure of weight. The shot  18  is non-toxic so that in the rare instance that the pouch  10  should burst on impact due to punctures the shot  18  within does not harm the suspect or the environment. The alternative embodiment of the pouch  10  comprises of a leading end  20  and a trialing end  22  as shown in  FIG. 2 . The pouch  10  includes a tail  24  on the trailing end  22 . The leading end  20  having been sealed on all edges and filled with the shot  18 . The leading end  20  and the trailing end  22  are not in communication with each other and include a seam  26  thereinbetween as a means of separation. The trailing end  22  comprises of a triangular notch  28  defining the tail  24 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , a hull  30  is provided. The hull  30  being an empty cylindrical shell having a closed end  32  and open end  34 . The hull has a rim portion  36  nearest the closed end  32 , a head portion  38 , and a shell case portion  40  nearest the open end  34 . At the rim portion  36  is primer  42 . The primer  42  being nearest a firing pin on a weapon (not shown). At the head portion  38  is the gun powder  44  and the wad  46  (wadding is used in shotguns, however, in rifles and pistols there may be no need for wadding). When the firing pin strikes the primer  42 , the primer  42  fires and ignites the gun powder  44 . The head portion  38  may be constructed of brass, plastic, or any other suitable material. At the shell case portion  40  is located at the open end  34  of the hull  30  and includes a receiving projectile compartment  48  for a pouch  10  within its cylindrical walls  49 . When the gun powder  44  ignites it builds pressure behind the wad  46  and subsequently the wad  46  and pouch  10  are propelled down the barrel of a weapon by expanding gases. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the polymeric bag  10  is interposed within the cylindrical walls  49  of the shell case portion  40  producing a loaded shell casing  50 , herein known as a less than lethal projectile. As defined a loaded shell casing  50  is ammunition consisting of a cylindrical casing containing explosive charge and a projectile, fired from a gun. The leading end  20  of the polymeric pouch  10  being nearest the open end  34  of the hull  30  at the shell case portion  40  and the trailing end  22  of the polymeric pouch  10  being adjacent to the wad  46  or gun powder  44  depending on the weapon used. 
     To construct the loaded shell casing  50  a vertical form, fill, and seal machine  60  is used in combination with an ammunition loading machine  90 . By way of example, U.S. Publication No. 2005/0193689 is an example of a vertical form, fill, and seal machine for forming pouches with contents therein. As shown in  FIG. 5 , a vertical form, fill, and seal machine  60  having a hopper  61  is loaded with shot  18  having a predetermined amount of tungsten granules  64 . A polymeric film sheet  100  is continuously drawn about a pouch former and filler  74  on the form, fill, and seal machine  60 . More specifically, the polymeric film roll  66  has a support shaft  66  which is coupled to a drive motor  68  which rotates the polymeric film roll  100  to dispense film  100  at a predetermined rate. Rollers  70  are placed intermittently. Furthermore, the polymeric film sheet  100  is disposed about a stationary guide roll which feeds the polymeric film sheet  100  thru a tension means  72  to maintain the polymeric film sheet  100  taut as it is fed and guided about the pouch former and filler  74 . The polymeric film sheet  100  is wrapped about the pouch former and filler  74  to form an overlapped polymeric film having overlapping free edges  102 . While wrapped about the pouch former and filler  74 , the overlapping free edges  102  are heat sealed together with a vertical sealing bar  76  forming a vertical seal  104  and producing a hollow sleeve  106  having a top portion  108  defining an opening  109  and a bottom portion  110  defining an opening  111  between the overlapped polymeric film  100 . The vertical sealing bar  76  is actuated by a piston or other suitable actuation means to position the vertical sealing bar  76  against the overlapping free edges  102  and to retract it therefrom. Then the bottom portion  110  of the hollow sleeve  106  is heat sealed by a traverse sealing bar  80  to form a traverse seam  112 , the hollow sleeve  106  is then filled from the top portion opening  109  with shot  18  from the pouch former and filler  74 . Concurrently therewith the top portion  108  of the filled hollow sleeve  106  is heat sealed by a traverse sealing bar  80  and detached from the bottom portion  110  of another pouch (which is concurrently about to be filled) with a sealing jaw  84  producing a filled sealed polymeric pouch  10 . The traverse sealing bar  80  is actuated by a piston or other suitable actuation means  82  to position the traverse sealing bar  80  against the top portion  108  and bottom portion  110  of the hollow sleeve  106  and to retract it therefrom. The sealing jaw  84  is also actuated by a piston or other suitable actuation means  86 . Once detached the filled sealed pouch  10  is fed onto a conveyor  88 . The heating means forming seams on the polymeric film sheet is a resistive heating element having a temperature control. The vertical form, fill, and seal machine allows for change in the size of the pouch and a different grain weight for shot. The conveyor  88  feeds the filled sealed pouch  10  through a collator station  89  that properly positions the pouch  10  in the correct orientation to be loaded onto an ammunition loading machine  90 . The collator station  89  is a device for placing the pouch  10  in an orientation suitable for entering the ammunition loading machine  90 . It is contemplated that the collator station  89  positions the pouch  10  with the tail end  24  leading to enter the ammunition loading machine  90  for tail first loading within the empty shell casing  30 . 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,116,109 is an example of an ammunition loading machine. As shown in  FIG. 6 , the ammunition loading machine  90  is fed empty shell casings  30 , herein known as hulls. A drive chassis  92  which operates a dial  94  about an axis, transport the hulls  30  successively to a series of circumferentially-spaced loading stations, such as the hull loading station  95 , wad and powder filler  96 , the shot charger  97 , shot feeder  98 , and the crimping fixture  99 . The empty shell casings  30  are automatically loaded with a pre-determined quantity of wad and gun powder. The pre-determined amount of wad, primer, and gun powder is dependent on the intended use of the less than lethal projectile. As a less than lethal projectile firing from a weapon with low pressure may contain more wad or gun powder than a less than lethal projectile firing from a weapon with high pressure. Then the filled sealed pouch  10  is automatically moved into the projectile compartment  48  of the empty shell casing  30 . The filled sealed pouch  10  is loaded with the tail end  24  adjacent to the wad  46 , for tail first loading. Lastly, the projectile compartment  48  is crimped to producing a fully-loaded shell casing  50 , herein known as a less than lethal projectile, adapted to be loaded into a barrel of a firearm. The automatic loading ammunition machine can be loaded with various caliber shell casings and various lengths for shell casing. Furthermore, the automatic loading ammunition machine allows for varying the amount of gun powder and wad in a shell casing. 
     The less than lethal projectile  50  is capable of being fired from a weapon of low pressure, specifically a weapon having a chamber pressure as low as 600-700 psi. Because of the ability of the less than lethal projectile to be fired at an extremely low pressure the less than lethal projectile can be adapted to be fired from any handgun of any size or caliber. Preferably, the firearm used to discharge the less than lethal projectile comprises of a stationary barrel with a plurality of bores with a revolving firing pin. By way of example U.S. Pat. No. 1,348,035 disclosed such a device. However, it should be noted that the less than lethal projectile is not limited to this type of firearm. It is also contemplated that a rail may be positioned on the firearm. The rail is equipped with a light source of up to 120 lumens, this amount of light may temporarily blind the suspect and provide increase safety to the user. The rail is also equipped with a laser. The laser capability provides a beam of light towards the intended target. The laser capability allows the user better accurate in firing the firearm. The rail further including a video and audio camera for documentation of the foregoing events. 
     All patents and publications mentioned in this specification are indicative of the levels of those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains. All patents and publications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. 
     It is to be understood that while a certain form of the invention is illustrated, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and any drawings/figures included herein. 
     One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as those inherent therein. The embodiments, methods, procedures and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments, are intended to be exemplary and are not intended as limitations on the scope. Changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the invention and are defined by the scope of the appended claims. Although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the following claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 5