Projectile with dispersible contents and method of manufacturing the same
A projectile with a frangible shell having both an exterior surface and an inner cavity. The exterior surface is made up of a plurality of polygonal panels. The inner cavity contains a dispersible substance. The frangible shell may have a spherical configuration formed by fusing together two hemispherical shells. Also, a method of manufacturing projectiles. In the method, two hemispheres are formed. A dispersible substance in tablet form is inserted into one of the hemispheres. The second hemisphere is then brought into contact with the first hemisphere and the two are fused together to form a spherical shell. Finally, the tablet is disturbed so that the dispersible substance is freed within the inner cavity. Sonic energy may be provided in order to weld the two hemispheres together and also to disturb the tablet. The hemispheres may have an exterior surface made up of a plurality of polygonal panels.
Not Applicable
STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENTNot Applicable
BACKGROUNDThe present invention is related to projectiles having an external configuration for improving flight speed and accuracy. The invention is also related to improved methods of manufacturing a projectile with dispersible contents.
Generally, police and military training and mock war games are conducted using compressed gas guns which fire projectiles known as paintballs. The object of this type of warfare is to hit a target, usually an opponent, with a paintball to thereby “kill” the opposing player.
Also, law enforcement personnel use such projectiles filled with non-lethal inhibiting substance. Generally, such projectiles are operative to be shot at a person to quickly pacify the person who may be irate or non-compliant with the law enforcement personnel's request.
Traditionally, the shell of the paintball is formed with a pair of hemispheres of gelatinous material similar to that used to encase oral medications. As is the case with oral medications, these gelatin shell paintballs are soluble in water. Upon striking the target, a paintball that functions as intended fractures to mark the victim with the substance contained within the paintball shell.
While these gelatin shell projectiles are traditionally termed paintballs, the substance within the paintball shell need not necessarily be paint. In fact water soluble dyes are often used as a marking agent. A problem arises, however, in that these dyes are usually dissolved in water, which would dissolve the gelatin based shell of the traditional paintball. In addition, many non-lethal inhibiting substances would likewise dissolve the gelatin shell.
In order to overcome the deficiencies of the traditional gelatin shell paintball, attempts have been made to manufacture paintballs using a non-water soluble shell. Exemplary of this, is the use of a molded thermoplastic linear polymer for a paintball shell as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,379 to Kotsiopoulos et al., issued on Oct. 19, 1993 entitled PAINT BALL. The teachings of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference.
Unfortunately, even this improved paintball has unresolved problems. For example, the manufacturing process is still time consuming because the two hemispheres need to be fused together without enclosing the dispersible substance. Then, the dispersible substance is deposited into the spherical paintball via an injection needle inserted though a fill port. This fill port must then be sealed in order for the paintball to retain the dispersible substance. The additional steps of filling the paintball with an injection needle and then sealing the fill port are usually performed by a human laborer, as they are difficult to automate. As a result, the prior art methods of manufacture are time consumptive as well as economically costly. Furthermore, many substances, particularly dry substances, cannot be filled satisfactorily in this manner.
Additionally, these prior art paintballs have been formed in a smooth spherical conformation. Due to the aerodynamics of flight, a smooth sphere suffers from early laminar flow separation which leads to increased drag and decreased lift. As a result, smooth spheres suffer from a limited velocity, range, and accuracy
Many prior art paintballs have tried to overcome this deficiency, such as the dimpled or scored paintballs disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,965,839; 6,393,992; and 6,546,874 all issued to Vasel et al, on Oct. 12, 1999; May 28, 2002; and Apr. 15, 2003, respectively, all of which are entitled NON-LETHAL PROJECTILE FOR DELIVERING AN INHIBITING SUBSTANCE TO A LIVING TARGET and the dimpled paintball disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,441 issued to Woodall et al. on Nov. 14, 2000 entitled FRANGIBLE PAYLOAD-DISPENSING PROJECTILE, the teachings all of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference. However, these prior art paintballs still suffer from limited velocity, range, and accuracy.
Accordingly, there is a need in the prior art for an improved projectile.
BRIEF SUMMARYIn accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a projectile having a frangible shell is provided. The frangible shell has both an exterior surface and an inner cavity. The exterior surface is made up of a plurality of polygonal panels. The inner cavity is capable of containing a dispersible substance.
The frangible shell may be fabricated from a polymer material. Further, the frangible shell may have a spherical configuration. In a preferred embodiment, the inner cavity is formed by fusing together two hemispherical shells. In another embodiment, the polygonal panels are made up of regular polygons. In a further embodiment, the polygonal panels are made up of hexagons. The dispersible substance contained within the inner cavity may include a powder, a liquid, a particulate matter and/or a gel. Further, the dispersible substance may be an inhibiting substance, paint, or a dye.
Another aspect of the present invention is directed toward a method of manufacturing a projectile. In the method, two hemispheres are formed. A dispersible substance is inserted into one of the hemispheres. When placed into the hemisphere, the dispersible substance is embodied in tablet form. The second hemisphere is then brought into contact with the first hemisphere to form a spherical shell having an inner cavity containing the tablet. The hemispheres are then fused to one another. Finally, the tablet is disturbed so that the dispersible substance is freed within the inner cavity.
The hemispheres may be formed from a polymer material. In a preferred embodiment, sonic energy is provided in order to weld the two hemispheres together while also functioning to disturb the tablet in order to free the dispersible substance within the inner cavity. In another embodiment, the two hemispheres may be fused together by providing a glue or a solvent. When such a process is utilized, the tablet may be disturbed within the inner cavity by providing a shaking force to the projectile. Furthermore, the two hemispheres may have interlockable tabs which are connected during the fusing process. Similarly, the tablet may be disturbed by providing a shaking force to the projectile when interlocking tabs are used to fuse the hemispheres together. By utilizing the method described above, manufacturing costs are reduced over the prior art manufacturing processes.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is a method of manufacturing an improved projectile. In the method, two hemispheres are formed. Each of the hemispheres has an exterior surface made up of a plurality of polygonal panels. A dispersible substance is inserted into one of the hemispheres. When placed into the hemisphere, the dispersible substance is embodied in tablet form. The second hemisphere is then brought into contact with the first hemisphere to form a spherical shell having an inner cavity containing the tablet. The hemispheres are then fused together. Finally, the tablet is disturbed so that the dispersible substance is freed within the inner cavity.
The two hemispheres may be formed from a polymer material. The polygonal panels may include regular polygons. In a preferred embodiment, the polygonal panels are hexagons. In a preferred embodiment, sonic energy is provided in order to weld the two hemispheres together while also functioning to disturb the tablet in order to free the dispersible substance within the inner cavity. In another embodiment, the two hemispheres may be fused together by providing a glue or solvent. When such a process is utilized, the tablet may be disturbed within the inner cavity by providing a shaking force to the projectile. Furthermore, the two hemispheres may have interlockable tabs which are connected during the fusing process. Similarly, the tablet may be disturbed by providing a shaking force to the projectile when interlocking tabs are used to fuse the hemispheres together. By utilizing the method described above, an improved projectile is created while also reducing manufacturing costs over the prior art manufacturing processes.
These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
The drawings referred to within this description of the present invention are merely for the purposes of illustrating the preferred embodiments or aspects of the present invention and not for the purposes of limiting the same. Accordingly, alternative embodiments with respect to the various aspects discussed herein are also contemplated within the scope of the present invention.
The present invention is directed toward an improved projectile. Referring now to
The shell 12 will preferably be fabricated from a frangible material such that the shell 12 breaks apart upon impact with a target. Although the frangible material will break apart upon impact with a target, the frangible material is sufficiently strong to allow the projectile 10 to be fired by an airgun, slingshot, or similar firing device without breaking apart. As an example, the shell 12 may be fabricated from a polymer material, for example, thermoplastic linear polymer. As seen in
In a preferred embodiment, the inner cavity 18 is formed by fusing together two hemispherical shells 12a, 12b. In one embodiment, the polygonal panels 14 are made up of regular polygons, wherein the polygons are both equiangular and equilateral. In a preferred embodiment, the polygonal panels 14 are made up of hexagons. The hexagonal surfaces of the present invention are believed to substantially reduce drag in comparison to the dimples and scores of the prior art paintballs. As can be seen in the cross-sectional view of
Although
The present invention is also directed toward an improved method of manufacturing a projectile 10 as diagramed in
In step 110, a dispersible substance 20 is inserted into one of the hemispheres 12a. When placed into the hemisphere 12a, the dispersible substance 20 is embodied in tablet form. The dispersible substance 20 may be, for example, a lethal substance, a non-lethal substance, a motor-inhibiting substance, or a marking substance. Such dispersible substance 20 is manufactured in tablet form utilizing conventional tablet-making technology as is well known to those skilled in the art. By inserting the dispersible substance 20 in tablet form, one is able to easily provide any amount of the dispersible substance 20, up to the total volume of the inner cavity 18, without the mess or difficulty of prior art methods. Furthermore, the method of the current invention is easily carried out by automated machines, reducing the need for costly human labor to fill the projectile 10.
In step 120, the second hemisphere 12b is then brought into contact with the first hemisphere 12a to form a spherical shell 12 having an inner cavity 18 containing the tablet 20.
The hemispheres 12a, 12b are then fused to one another in step 130. This step may be carried out by numerous methods, for example, by providing a glue or solvent at the juncture between the two hemispheres 12a, 12b. In another embodiment, the two hemispheres 12a, 12b have interlockable tabs which are connected during step 130. If such interlockable tabs are used, a glue or solvent may optionally be used as well to create a better seal between the two hemispheres 12a, 12b. In a preferred embodiment, sonic energy is used to weld the two hemispheres 12a, 12b to one another.
Finally in step 140, the tablet 20 is disturbed so that the dispersible substance 20 is freed within the inner cavity 18. This disturbance may be executed by shaking the projectiles 10, such as by placing them on a conventional shake tray 24 as shown in
The present invention is further directed toward using the method to manufacture an improved projectile. In step 100, two hemispheres 12a, 12b, each having an exterior surface 16 made up of a plurality of polygonal panels 14, are formed by a molding process. The polygonal panels 14 may be made up of regular polygons, that is, polygons that are both equiangular and equilateral. In a preferred embodiment, the polygonal panels 14 are made up of hexagons. The hemispheres 12a, 12b may be formed from a polymer material, for example, thermoplastic linear polymer.
In step 110, a dispersible substance 20 is inserted into one of the hemispheres 12a. When placed into the hemisphere 12a, the dispersible substance 20 is embodied in tablet form. The dispersible substance 20 may be, for example, a lethal substance, a non-lethal substance, a motor-inhibiting substance, or a marking substance. Such dispersible substance 20 is manufactured in tablet form utilizing conventional tablet-making technology as is well known to those skilled in the art. By inserting the dispersible substance 20 in tablet form, one is able to easily provide any amount of the dispersible substance 20, up to the total volume of the inner cavity 18, without the mess or difficulty of prior art methods. Furthermore, the method of the current invention is easily carried out by automated machines, reducing the need for costly human labor to fill the projectile 10.
In step 120, the second hemisphere 12b is then brought into contact with the first hemisphere 12a to form a spherical shell 12 having an inner cavity 18 containing the tablet 20.
The hemispheres 12a, 12b are then fused together in step 130. This step may be carried out by numerous methods, for example, by providing a glue or solvent at the juncture between the two hemispheres 12a, 12b. In another embodiment, the two hemispheres 12a, 12b have interlockable tabs which are connected during step 130. If such interlockable tabs are used, a glue or solvent may optionally be used as well to create a better seal between the two hemispheres 12a, 12b. In a preferred embodiment, sonic energy is used to weld the two hemispheres 12a, 12b to one another.
Finally in step 140, the tablet 20 is disturbed so that the dispersible substance 20 is freed within the inner cavity 18. This disturbance may be executed by shaking the projectiles 10, such as by placing them on a conventional shake tray 24 as shown in
The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of forming the hemispheres, converting the dispersible substance into tablet form, connecting the hemispheres, and disrupting the tablet. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments.
Claims
1. A projectile comprising:
- a) a frangible shell comprising: i. an exterior surface consisting of a plurality of polygonal panels; ii. an inner cavity; and
- b) a dispersible substance disposed within the shell's inner cavity.
2. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the shell is fabricated from a polymer material.
3. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the shell has a spherical configuration.
4. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the shell comprises two hemispheres fused together to form the inner cavity.
5. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the polygonal panels comprise regular polygons.
6. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the polygonal panels are hexagons.
7. The projectile of claim 1 wherein the dispersible substance is selected from the group consisting of a powder, liquid, particulate or gel.
8. The projectile of claim 7 wherein the dispersible substance is an inhibiting substance, paint, or dye.
9. A method of manufacturing a projectile comprising:
- a) forming two hemispheres;
- b) inserting a dispersible substance embodied in tablet form into one of the hemispheres;
- c) bringing the second hemisphere into contact with the first hemisphere thereby creating a spherical shell having an inner cavity containing the tablet;
- d) fusing the hemispheres together; and
- e) disturbing the tablet so that the dispersible substance is free within the inner cavity.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the hemispheres in step a) are formed from a polymer material.
11. The method of claim 9 wherein the fusing process of step d) consists of providing sonic energy in order to weld the two hemispheres together, whereby the sonic energy also functions to disturb the tablet in step e).
12. The method of claim 9 wherein the fusing process of step d) consists of providing a glue or solvent.
13. The method of claim 12 wherein the tablet is disturbed in step e) by shaking the projectile.
14. The method of claim 9 wherein the hemispheres in step a) comprise interlockable tabs which are connected during the fusing process of step d).
15. The method of claim 14 wherein the tablet is disturbed in step e) by shaking the projectile.
16. The projectile created by the method of claim 9.
17. A method of manufacturing a projectile comprising:
- a) forming two hemispheres, each hemisphere having an exterior surface consisting of a plurality of polygonal panels;
- b) inserting a dispersible substance embodied in tablet form into one of the hemispheres;
- c) bringing the second hemisphere into contact with the first hemisphere thereby creating a spherical shell having an inner cavity containing the tablet;
- d) fusing the hemispheres together; and
- e) disturbing the tablet so that the dispersible substance is free within the inner cavity.
18. The method of claim 17 wherein the hemispheres in step a) are formed from a polymer material.
19. The projectile of claim 17 wherein the polygonal panels comprise regular polygons.
20. The projectile of claim 17 wherein the polygonal panels are hexagons.
21. The method of claim 17 wherein the fusing process of step d) consists of providing sonic energy in order to weld the two hemispheres together, whereby the sonic energy also functions to disturb the tablet in step e).
22. The method of claim 17 wherein the fusing process of step d) consists of providing a glue or solvent.
23. The method of claim 22 wherein the tablet is disturbed in step e) by shaking the projectile.
24. The method of claim 17 wherein the hemispheres in step a) comprise interlockable tabs which are connected during the fusing process of step d).
25. The method of claim 24 wherein the tablet is disturbed in step e) by shaking the projectile.
26. The projectile created by the method of claim 17.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 5, 2006
Publication Date: Jun 12, 2008
Inventor: Michael J. Skellern (Irvine, CA)
Application Number: 11/543,568
International Classification: F42B 12/46 (20060101);