Less than lethal projectile and a method for producing the same

• US 8,061,274 B1
• Filed: 01/26/2009
• Issued: 11/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Brejon Holdings (BVI), Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Brejon Holdings (BVI), Ltd.
• Inventors: Smith, Daniel, Hayes, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Bergin; James
• Application Number:
  US12/359,659
• Time in Patent Office: 1,030 Days
• Field of Search: 102/502, 102/506, 102/439, 102/444, 102/448, 102/449, 102/457, 102/462, 102/529, 86/23, 86/25, 86/31, 86/39, 86/45, 86/46, 86/47
• US Class Current: 102/449
• CPC Class Codes: F42B 12/34 expanding before or on impact, i.e. of dumdum or mushroom type
• CPC Class Codes: F42B 33/001 Devices or processes for assembling ammunition, cartridges or cartridge elements from parts

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.

Claims

1. A method of producing a less than lethal projectile comprising:

loading shot into a vertical form, fill, and seal machine;

forming a pouch using polymeric film sheet on a pouch former and filler on said vertical form, fill, and seal machine;

partially sealing said pouch;

filling said pouch with said shot from said pouch former and filler forming a filled sealed pouch;

feeding said filled sealed pouch onto a conveyor be loaded onto an ammunition loading machine;

feeding empty shell casings into said ammunition loading machine, said empty shell casing including a projectile compartment within a radial wall;

automatically loading said empty shell casing with a pre-determined quantity of wad and gun powder;

automatically moving said filled sealed pouch into said projectile compartment of said empty shell casing; and

producing a fully-loaded shell casing adapted to be loaded into a barrel of a firearm,

wherein said forming a pouch includes continuously drawing said polymeric film sheet about said pouch former and filler on said vertical form, fill, and seal machine with said polymeric film sheet being wrapped about said pouch former and filler to form an overlapped polymeric film having an overlapping free edge, and

wherein said partially sealing said pouch includes heat sealing said overlapping free edge of said overlapped polymeric film sheet together with a heat sealing means on said vertical form, fill, and seal machine to form a vertical seal producing a hollow sleeve having a top portion defining an opening between said overlapped polymeric film and a bottom portion defining an opening between said overlapped polymeric film; and

concurrently therewith heat sealing said bottom portion of said hollow sleeve to form a traverse seam across said bottom portion of said hollow sleeve, and

wherein said feeding said filled sealed pouch onto a conveyor further includes a collator station which properly positions said filled seal pouch such that a tail end is leading entering into said ammunition loading machine.

2. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 1, wherein said filling said pouch with said shot includes filling said hollow sleeve with said shot from said pouch former and filler and instantaneously heat sealing a top portion of a filled sealed pouch and detaching a filled seal pouch with a sealing jaws.

3. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 1, wherein said automatically moving said filled sealed pouch into said projectile compartment further includes the step of crimping said projectile compartment of said empty shell casing.

4. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 1, wherein said shot is a predetermined amount of tungsten granules.

5. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 4, wherein said predetermined amount of tungsten granules within each said filled sealed pouch is approximately within the range of 260 to 437.5 grain.

6. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 1, wherein said polymeric film sheet is a bi-axially oriented polyethylene terephthalate polyester film.

7. The method of producing a less than lethal projectile according to claim 6, wherein said polymeric film is of sufficient strength so as to not burst upon impact.