The Army Is Testing Handheld Ray Guns

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Handheld ray guns? Hell yeah! The future is finally here! :D

Pew! Pew! Soldiers with handheld energy blasters are the stuff of G.I. Joe, not real life … until now. The U.S Army is currently testing electricity guns for possible use against electronics on the battlefield. They don’t look like props from the popular cartoon show but, rather like regular standard-issue M4 rifles with a pair of antennas that shoot out from the barrel and then spread, giving the front end of the gun a musket-like shape.
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Would love to know what kind of portable power source you need for one, and more importantly, would a rail gun really be that much more useful over a conventional weapon? I mean conventional weapons wouldn't need both a power source and ammunition, and for killing people I can't imagine a rail gun would really be much more useful.
 
sfsuphysics said:
Would love to know what kind of portable power source you need for one, and more importantly, would a rail gun really be that much more useful over a conventional weapon? I mean conventional weapons wouldn't need both a power source and ammunition, and for killing people I can't imagine a rail gun would really be much more useful.
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Railgun? How did that get brought into the conversation, or did you not read the article? :D
 
sfsuphysics said:
Would love to know what kind of portable power source you need for one, and more importantly, would a rail gun really be that much more useful over a conventional weapon? I mean conventional weapons wouldn't need both a power source and ammunition, and for killing people I can't imagine a rail gun would really be much more useful.
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Not a rail gun, more so a EMP-type device that lets you shoot it in specific directions/targets
 
The problem I see with the idea behind this, which seems to be to short out detonator control circuits of IEDs, is that overloading them board is that in most cases I would think that the power surge this thing introduces would likely trigger the device anyway.
 
Its about bloody time. They have been working towards a man-pack laser system since the early 80s. Surprise Surprise the power system was the problem. Significantly(ridiculously) heavier than a max load out for deployment.
 
DarkStar_WNY said:
The problem I see with the idea behind this, which seems to be to short out detonator control circuits of IEDs, is that overloading them board is that in most cases I would think that the power surge this thing introduces would likely trigger the device anyway.
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Many times they detonate ordnance/IEDs in place anyway. This might allow you to have a first attempt without getting people OR robots close to it.
 
t0pquark said:
Many times they detonate ordnance/IEDs in place anyway. This might allow you to have a first attempt without getting people OR robots close to it.
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Oh I unuderstand that, it's just that in the article it sounds like thier goal is to disable to detonating circuit.
 
Ok, from reading through the article a couple times, this is a pretty simple device with no external power source needed.

It works in much the same way as those lighters that have the electric spark to light the lighter fluid fumes works.

In the lighters, when you hear the click and see the spark, what is happening is the quartz or whatever crystaline material has force exerted on it, it generates an electrical charge which then travels up the wire and arcs to ground.

The little devices in the lighters are kinda fun to play with, and a really simple design if you actually bother to examine it after removing it from the lighter.

This device sounds like it is just a much larger device that is powered by the "explosive force" of the gun when it fires a bullet.
 
Kaitian said:
He only read the title like we all did.
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That title originally said rail guns did it not? Or was I just reading too damn fast for my own good?

Either way I did click the article, the page didn't load up for my instantly, and I don't have that kind of time to waste when there's comments to be made!! :)
 
sfsuphysics said:
Would love to know what kind of portable power source you need for one, and more importantly, would a rail gun really be that much more useful over a conventional weapon? I mean conventional weapons wouldn't need both a power source and ammunition, and for killing people I can't imagine a rail gun would really be much more useful.
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I don't think they are talking about rail guns here.
 
GI Joe didnt use ray guns... it was real guns but cause it was a kiddie show where everyone bails out of their vehicles before it was hit... they put the red beams in to replace the bullets... cause you know guns are bad :p
 
TwistedAegis said:
So...is shooting an electronics device with a bullet less effective than this?
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It depends on what this device actually does, it's capabilities. If this device acts like a directed energy jammer then yes, cause you don't have to see what you are shooting at, you just have to know what direction the signal is coming from and zap.

And jammers can emit a signal powerful enough to fry receivers.
 
TwistedAegis said:
So...is shooting an electronics device with a bullet less effective than this?
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If you can actually find it no, bullets will work. The 'ray gun' doesn't require precise aiming or actually seeing the bomb though. You just sweep it over an area slowly to disable or blow up the explosives by messing up the detonator.

There are already devices which do something similar but they're humvee mounted and require large generators to function. They used them in Iraq quite a bit to disable or blow up IED's. Worked pretty well from what I understand.
 
1-18-07-railgun.jpg
 
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