Limited range low terminal velocity projectile
AssigneeSlow Shot, LLC
InventorMatthew Searle
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A projectile and ammunition round are provided for disabling unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones while reducing risks to people and property on the ground. The projectile includes a penetrator body and a plurality of wings that are folded during firing and deploy after discharge. In the deployed configuration, the wings slow and stabilize the projectile by generating drag and imparting rotation. The body may include grooves and a recessed forward end to enable multiple projectiles to be stacked in a nested configuration within a casing. An ammunition round may contain multiple stacks of the projectiles for compact storage and sequential deployment.
Claims18
A projectile configured to be discharged from a firearm or launching device for disabling an airborne drone, the projectile comprising:
- a penetrator body configured for flight toward the airborne drone;
- a plurality of wings coupled to and spaced circumferentially around the penetrator body, each wing comprising an elongated arm portion having a first end attached to the penetrator body and a second end, free end;
- wherein the plurality of wings are in a folded configuration during firing of the projectile and are configured to unfurl to an extended configuration after discharge;
- and
- wherein, in the extended configuration, the blade portions decelerate the projectile during descent and impart rotational motion to the penetrator body.
An ammunition round comprising:
- a casing;
- a plurality of projectiles stacked within the casing, each projectile comprising:
- a penetrator body having a forward end of greater diameter than a rearward end, the forward end including a recess configured to receive the rearward end of another projectile, the penetrator body further including a plurality of longitudinal grooves formed around a circumference of the penetrator body;
- and
- a plurality of wings coupled to and spaced around the penetrator body, each wing including an elongated arm portion terminating in a widened blade portion;
- wherein the elongated arm portions of wings of one projectile are received in the grooves of an adjacent projectile, such that the plurality of projectiles nest together in the casing through both the recess-and-rearward-end engagement and the groove-and-arm engagement.
A projectile configured to be discharged from a firearm or launching device for disabling an airborne drone, the projectile comprising:
- a penetrator body having a forward end of greater diameter than a rearward end, the forward end including a recess, the rearward end being sized to be received in the recess of another projectile;
- a plurality of longitudinal grooves formed through an outer surface of the forward end and extending toward the rearward end;
- and
- a plurality of wings circumferentially spaced around the body, each wing positioned between adjacent grooves, each wing including an elongated arm portion extending along the body and terminating in a widened blade portion,
- wherein the wings are folded against the body in a stowed configuration and are configured to unfurl after discharge into an extended configuration, and
- wherein the widened blade portions are shaped to generate aerodynamic drag and impart autorotation to the body during descent.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.