Long range stunner
(New Scientist) The range of Taser stun guns could be dramatically increased by allowing them to generate the voltage they need to disable victims in mid-flight, say inventors in the US. The range of conventional Tasers is limited by the wires that carry the voltage – typically between 20 and 150 kilovolts – from the gun to the dart’s electrodes.
Mystech: All those gamers that have always wanted to run a SciFi LARP but have complained about the lack of realistic live action combat ranged weaponry, this could be your solution! I dare you try to not take your hits. 😉
One option is to fit the dart with a piezoelectric material which produces a voltage dependent on the strength of impact. But since darts slow significantly in-flight due to air resistance, this sort of wire-free device only lands with enough impact to generate a significant voltage over short ranges.Three inventors in the US have now devised a long range stun gun which delivers a shock of 40 kilovolts, over a distance of about 150 metres, even if the dart hits with a low impact.
The new dart contains a small explosive charge which detonates when it hits the target. The explosion squeezes piezoelectric materials and this generates a powerful voltage delivered to the victim via needle-like electrodes that pierce the skin.
