Russian man aims to reinvent 'Taser' technology

A Russian man is hoping to overhaul the technology within Taser-type weapons -- transforming them from single-shot, short-range devices that stun for a few seconds, into more effective long-range, rapid-fire weapons -- by modifying the wires and the type of shock they generate.

Traditionally, remote electroshock weapons work by firing a pair of darts, each trailed by conducting wires. When the darts hit the target a circuit is made, and a series of electric shocks flow between them to stun the target.

Non-lethal weapon developer Oleg Nemtyshkin's design, however, uses bare wires, rather than the insulated wires favoured by Taser and other stun gun makers. These wires weigh only about one sixteenth as much as insulated wire, providing less drag on the darts and improved accuracy.

Nemtyshkin demonstrated his bare wire technology with a prototype – "Legionary" -- in 2001. His latest version is the S5, and a video of the weapon in action shows it firing repeatedly -- almost as fast as the trigger can be pulled.

By contrast, the X26 Taser, used by British police forces, is a single-shot weapon, while the latest Taser X3 released last year in the US delivers three shots.

But it's not just speed: by using bare wire, it becomes much cheaper to manufacture. Just as with inkjet printers, you can end up spending more on the "ammunition" cartridges for Tasers than the guns themselves.

A standard cartridge, containing a pair of darts, costs about £15. But Nemtyshkin believes he can bring this down to three or four pounds when his design is mass-produced. As he puts it, he wants to make the non-lethal weapon as cheap as shooting someone.

But while cost may not seem so important to Westerners, it can be a big factor in many parts of the world. For example, the average Russian police officer is paid about £500 per month, and budgets for equipment and training ammunition are tight.

Nemtyshkin had trouble finding business partners in Russia, so he teamed up with an American outfit. John McDermit, CEO of Nova Technologies, confirmed to Wired that his company has signed an exclusive agreement to use Nemtyshkin's technology.

The company, which makes stun guns and other security devices, already has a prototype based on the S5. This is called the Stun Ray and is expected to be in production later this year.

Steve Tuttle of Taser International is, rather unsurprisingly, dubious about the concept of uninsulated wires, pointing out that there are "enormous technical challenges" in making this approach effective in practice.

Were they not insulated, the two darts in a Taser are so close together that there would be arcing across the gap between them. In Nemtyshkin's designs the darts have to be spaced further apart and fired from separate launch tubes. Only extensive testing and field use will show if the bare wires cause other problems or can be shorted out too easily.

The second big innovation is using a burst of electrical energy causing effects that continue after the shock has ended. The Taser X26 uses a five-second shock cycle, administering a series of very brief shocks over that period. Tuttle says that as soon as the shock cycle is over, the subject can get up again and move about normally. If you want someone to stay down, the only way is to keep shocking them, which is why with Tasers the shock cycle can be repeated with a pull of the trigger.

The Russian Institute of Biophysics at the Moscow State Research Centre has been experimenting with single shocks rather than a long series. Their aim is to have an effect that is "instant or nearly so", but that incapacitates the target for a prolonged period. In tests on animals they have shown that with the right sort of electrical pulse (frequency appears to be the key), a shock lasting less than a hundredth of a second causes an electroconvulsive reaction that knocks the animal out for 20 seconds.

This technology is already used in electric stun batons produced by the Russian March group. According to the company's promotional literature, a one-second contact will leave the target stunned for five minutes or more, depending on how much contact is made. Western researchers have not validated the safety and effectiveness of this type of shock, but there is known to be work on similar technology in the US.

Nemtyshkin's next project, the Leyden Gun, will deliver a short shock with lasting effects. The Leyden Gun is the size of a paintball rifle, with a magazine of thirty rounds. The projectiles are simple needles rather than elaborate barbed darts, as they do not stick to the target but administer a single jolt from a high-voltage capacitor.

Nemtyshkin sees the Leyden Gun as a riot-control weapon, and an alternative to rubber bullets. The lightweight darts are effective out to 30 metres – three times the range of a Taser, and the same as the XREP Taser shotgun projectile currently being considered by UK police.

Longer range will make it harder to guarantee a hit, so the Leyden Gun can fire a burst of three shots with each trigger pull to improve the odds. There will also be a pistol-sized Leyden Gun with shorter range and a magazine of eight or 10 shots.

Nemtyshkin hopes to have a working Leyden Gun prototype within a year, but admits that funding is difficult. His research budget is a tiny fraction of what companies such as Taser International can afford.

Electroshock weapons have always been controversial. There have been many claims that police sometimes use them as a way of punishing awkward suspects, and googling the words "taser video" provides some graphic illustrations. However, when used correctly they may have an important role, and Nemtyshkin sees such weapons as "a humane tool to save lives."

At present, if Russian police are faced with a drugged or drunken criminal with a knife, they can either gun him down, or risk going in hand-to-hand to disarm him. Devices like the S5 will give them a third option.

The same applies to riot control, as the Leyden Gun could be less harmful than rubber bullets, which hit with enough force to cause serious, and sometimes fatal injuries.

David Hambling has also written about the UK's future armed police drones.

This article was originally published by WIRED UK