Patent Application
20150369577
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to non-lethal projectiles and more particularly to a non-lethal projectile capable of dispersing a load with time delay after firing.
2. Description of Related Art
There is a conventional projectile having a time delay arrangement. It comprises a casing including a cross wall on one side of which there is a first pressure chamber limited outwardly by an external side wall, and a supply opening for hot gas. The cross wall limits a second pressure chamber on the other side. The chamber is formed by the casing. A piston is axially movable in the casing and connects to a load. A throttled gas connection is provided between the first and second pressure chambers. The piston, under the effect of a pressure built up in the second pressure chamber, is adapted to move axially to fire the load out of the casing only after a predetermined pressure is reached.
While it has some utility, improvements in these products are desired, and these improvements are provided by the invention.
It is therefore one object of the invention to provide a non-lethal projectile for the dispersal of a load with a predetermined time delay after firing the non-lethal projection, comprising a cylindrical casing comprising a nose and an externally threaded extension on a bottom; a cylindrical receptacle disposed in the casing and comprising an internally threaded portion at one end and an opening on an other end; a gas canister disposed in the receptacle; a sleeve comprising an externally threaded first extension at one end and secured to the internally threaded portion, and an externally threaded second extension at an other end; a needle moveably, partially disposed in the sleeve and comprising a pointed end in proximity to the gas canister; a fin assembly comprising a cylindrical housing, a plurality of spaced slits formed on the housing, a plurality of spring actuated fins disposed in the housing and each of the fins having a trough on an inner edge, an internally threaded recess at an end of the housing and secured to both the externally threaded extension of the casing and the externally threaded second extension, and a hole formed through a center of the internally threaded recess; a hollow anchoring member put on the needle and spaced from the internally threaded recess, the anchoring member comprising a retaining ring disposed at one end and put on the needle, and an annular locking member disposed on an other end and partially disposed in the troughs for preventing the fins from projecting out of the slits; and a disc-shaped base engaged with the needle and comprising a spring member for supporting the base at an other end of the housing; wherein in response to pushing both the base and the needle inward, the pointed end of the needle punctures the gas canister to release compressed air from the gas canister into the receptacle, the compressed air flows out of the receptacle into the casing via the opening, the locking member disengages from the troughs to unfasten the fins which pivotably project out of the slits, pressure in the casing increases constantly, and the casing explodes when the pressure reaches a predetermined value.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken with the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
A casing 1 comprises an ogive-shaped nose 10, a hollow, externally threaded extension 11 on a bottom. A cylindrical receptacle 2 comprises an internally threaded portion 21 at one end and an opening 23 on the other end. A gas canister 22 is disposed in the receptacle 2 and comprises a bottom 24. A sleeve 20 comprises an axial passage 26, an externally threaded first extension 20A at one end and secured to the internally threaded portion 21, and an externally threaded second extension 20B at the other end. A needle 29 has a portion moveably disposed in the passage 26 and has a pointed end 28 in proximity to a center of the bottom 24.
A fin assembly 3 comprises a cylindrical housing 33, a plurality of equally spaced slits (four are shown) 34 on the housing 33, a plurality of pivotal, triangular fins (four are shown) 38 corresponding to the slits 34 respectively, each fin 38 having a trough 39 on an inner edge, an internally threaded recess 31 on one end and secured to both the externally threaded extension 11 and the externally threaded second extension 20B, a hole 32 through a center of the internally threaded recess 31, a plurality of wells (four are shown) 35 each formed on an inner surface of the housing 33 and proximate to one end of the slit 34, a plurality of pivots (four are shown) 37 disposed in the wells 35, and a plurality of torsion springs (four are shown) 36 each put on the pivot 37 so that the pivots 37 may make the fins 38 pivotal.
A hollow anchoring member 50 is put on the needle 9 and comprises a retaining ring 50 engaged with one end and tightly put on the needle 9, and an annular flange 51 on the other end and partially disposed in the troughs 39, (i.e., the fins 38 being prevented from projecting out of the slits 34). The anchoring member 50 is spaced from the internally threaded recess 31 by a distance. A cup-shaped base 4 comprises a spring member 40 for moveably securing the base 4 to a bottom opening of the housing 33. Further, the other end of the needle 29 is engaged with a center of an inner surface of the base 4. There are a plurality of O-rings 12, 27, 25, and 41 provided for sealing purposes.
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While the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modifications within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
