Navy researchers try to kick-start industry development and prototyping of non-lethal weapons
ARLINGTON, Va., 17 June 2014. U.S. Navy researchers are kick-start industry development of non-lethal weapons for uses such as stopping vehicles and boats, moving or dispersing crowds, and discouraging attackers or aggressive human behavior.
Officials of the Office of Naval Research (ONR) in Arlington, Va., have issued a presolicitation (ONRBAA14-008) for the 2015 Non-Lethal Weapons Technologies program to encourage non-lethal weapons research and prototyping to address known military needs.
Non-lethal weapons range from blunt-impact weapons like rubber bullets to high-power microwaves and lasers that cause painful skin heating and temporary blindness. They are for dangerous military and public-safety situations like riots and other mob activity where deadly force is not necessary.
Authorities typically look to non-lethal weapons to disperse crowds, stop vehicles, and discourage threatening people approaching sensitive areas like security zones and check points. Non-lethal weapons can cause temporary pain or blindness, produce confusion or disorientation, or cause muscles to spasm or malfunction.
The ONR program revolves around 14 areas:
-- non-lethal advanced materials and non-lethal payloads to hail or warn, move, deny area, suppress, and temporarily disable individuals at ranges greater than 100 meters;
-- high-power microwave technologies for counter-material missions;
-- compact active-denial technologies;
-- clear-a-space technologies;
-- human electro-muscular incapacitation technologies;
-- non-lethal directed-energy and non-directed energy-based technologies for vehicle or vessel stopping and other counter-material targets;
-- non-lethal laser-induced plasma effects at ranges farther than 100 meters for counter-personnel and counter-material missions;
-- compact non-lethal non-pyrotechnic flash-bang technologies;
-- compact advanced multi-bang flash-bang technologies;
-- advanced non-lethal technologies that move, suppress, deny, or disable through combined effects on individuals and crowds;
-- compact hail-and-warn technologies through two-way communications that work out to ranges as far as 1,500 meters;
-- compact, low-cost non-lethal push-back and repel technologies;
-- human effects and non-lethal weapons weapon effectiveness studies, risk assessments, and evaluations; and
-- other next-generation non-lethal technologies.
Companies interested should email white papers no later than 15 July 2014 to the Navy's Alicia Owsiak at [email protected]. Only those who send white papers are eligible to submit full proposals. Send full proposals no later than 26 Sept. 2014.
More information is online at https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DON/ONR/ONR/ONRBAA14-008/listing.html.
John Keller | Editor
John Keller is editor-in-chief of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, which provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronic and optoelectronic technologies in military, space, and commercial aviation applications. A member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since the magazine's founding in 1989, Mr. Keller took over as chief editor in 1995.
