Under funding from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice, a project was proposed for the design of a variable-range 37.5mm (for law enforcement) or 40mm (for the military) less-than-lethal ballistic that could be fired at targets ranging in distance of 15 to 120 meters. This ballistic would be offered as a tool for police officers and soldiers when they are confronted with long-range situations in which less-than-lethal force is a desirable option. The ballistic would contain a quantity of energetic materials that could be detonated at close proximity to a suspect in order to obtain disorientation and incapacitation. Project participants responsible for various components of the project included: Law Enforcement Technologies, Inc., Martin Electronics Incorporated, and Sandia National Laboratories. Project technical and operational tasks are presented and discussed. The design proposed under this grant is 37.5mm to 40m in diameter, between 7.96 inches to 9 inches long and weighs approximately 75 grams. The casing is made of LAST-A-FOAM FR-6714. A M212 Assembly is used to launch the projectile. The actual operation of the Variable Range Less-Than-Lethal ballistic system requires little or no skill on the part of the operator to deliver an extremely accurate ballistic at a static target. With a small amount of training and practice, the operator should be able to accurately deliver a ballistic that detonates in close proximity to a moving target. Two designs were developed to reduce the effects of variations found in order to deliver an accurate round that consistently detonates at or near the same point in front of the target. These designs are the Transponder and the Two Delay systems. The Transponder projectile incorporates a transponder and radar-based tracking system along with an electronic detonation package. The Two Delay concept would be less expensive to manufacture but would lack precise accuracy of the transponder-based projectile. After 6 months of studying, designing, and testing the components for a Variable-Range Less-Than-Lethal ballistic, the participants involved in the project agreed that such a system is feasible. It is probable that the ballistic can be delivered accurately at either a static or moving target at distances ranging from 15 to 100 meters. However, before the Variable-Range Less-Than-Lethal ballistic can become reality much work remains to be done. Reports, drawings, and addendums
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