Non lethal weapons that are used in defense to cause non-lethal pain to the target. The M5 modular crowd control munitions are used in crowd control applications. The munitions can be mounted on to vehicles or deployed by the dismounted soldier. The munition bombards the target with rubber balls making them disperse quickly due to the pain it inflicts. The munition can be effective up to a range of 30 meters. The pulse energy projectile uses a short laser burst to inflict pain on the target. Once the laser hits the target’s skin a plasma on the surface of the skin is created. Then the laser energy fills and plasma and eventually explodes. This causes severe pain to the target and incapacitates them.
The Active Denial System (ADS) uses millimeter waves at a frequency of 95GHz which heats the water underneath the skin. This give a burning sensation to the target and hence the target flees the area. The system was first unveiled in 2001 and has been used for crowd control purposes. Rubber ball grenades are also one of the popular options for crowd control. The small charge in the grenade propels at least 100 rubber balls and creates a lot of pain on the target. Shot gun taser, XREP can deliver projectile to a distance of 100 feet. On impact with the target, the forward electrodes attach to the body of the target and discharges the current. This can cripple the movement of the target and hence they are used by law enforcement agencies to stop offenders.
Non-lethal weapons are also used for self defense in critical situations. Non-lethal weapons used stop a perpetrator from committing a crime or cause physical injury to an individual. Non-lethal weapons can be used for applications such as self defense and home defense. Road rage is one of the other instances where a self defense gun can be used. According to a study, 8 in 10 Americans are involved in a road rage at least once in a year, road rage causes approximately 30 deaths in the U.S a year and the instances of road rage keeps increasing. Home break-ins and burglary also presses the need for non-lethal weapons. According to estimates, in the U.S there is a burglary every 30 seconds and over 3000 burglaries happen every day, an average loss due to burglary is $2661 and causes severe mental hardship to the victims. Non-lethal weapons such as airguns are increasing in popularity due to the effectiveness in self defense application. Air gun is a gun that shoots projectiles pneumatically and does not involve any chemical explosion. These weapons develop muzzle velocity which is half of conventional light firearms.
The BB Pistol is one of the easily available solutions available in the market. The Pistol is very light and looks similar a conventional pistol. Hence the pistol can neutralise potential attacker just be the appearance. The Pistol is semi-automatic and can shoot several rounds very quickly. These pistols are CO2 powered and offer very less power causing very less damage to the target. Since these pistols are CO2 powered, these is also a change of CO2 slow discharge overtime which can make the pistol useless during emergencies. The PCP Pistol is likely to hold CO2 for a prolonged period of time without bleeding out. The pistol also has an integrated gauge to show the amount of CO2 available. The pistol though, is not automatic or semi-automatic and hence requires manual bolt action to reload. Air rifles are not automatic or semi-automatic and hence requires manual bolt action. These rifles can do significant damage to the target. The rifles are also not as light or easy to use especially against moving targets.
The Umarex HDR 50 one of the most popular 50 calibre CO2 home defense revolvers. It can fire nylon balls and come with CO2 canisters the revolver can hold 6 rounds and has rails on the top and bottom to mount scopes, lasers and lights. The revolver is a short range hard hitting gun intended for defense. The Byrna Launchers can fire a wide range of projectiles such as Max, Pepper and Kinetic. These projectiles can inflict various degrees of pain and makes the target flee the spot.
The basic pellets that are easily available are the Diablo pellets. The pellet is considered to be an excellent all round pellet and can be used for a wide range of applications. They are available in a wide range of calibers. Hollow point pellets have a hollow cavity and ensures that transfer maximum energy to the target and causes maximum damage. Most of the self defense gun are made from polymer to make them lightweight and appealing.
The increases cases of random mugging, home break-ins and burglaries will continue to drive the growth of non lethal weapons market. Law enforcement applications will also drive the market due to the increase in number of crimes such as theft, riots and assault. Non-lethal weapons will be a credible deterrent used by law enforcement agencies for crowd control, neutralize riots and prevent damage to public and private property.