1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related to a system, apparatus and method for the non-lethal restraint of a vehicle through the use of an entanglement device that will entangle such vehicle. The non-lethal entanglement device incorporates a plurality of tendrils, filaments, tentacles or straps, or a combination there of, that are propelled from a housing by compressed gas or by pressure generated by a gas generator of the type commonly used in air bag deployment apparatus. Filaments that are launched from the device may be attached to frangible balls carrying adhesive substances or barbed capture elements that will adhere or stick to a target surface. The filaments are designed to assist in entangling a target vehicle and restrain the entangled target.
2. Description of Related Art
Devices for stopping a fleeing vehicle include barriers, tire spike strips, caltrops, snares and electrical system disabling devices. The well-known spike strip, with spikes projecting upwardly from a base structure, usually an elongated structure, either a rolled up device or an accordion type device, is designed to be placed on a road in anticipation that a fleeing target vehicle will be driven over the spike strip. Once tire contact is made with the spike strip it will cause deflation of vehicle tires, and eventually cause the vehicle to stop due to the vehicle being difficult to control on flat tires. Barriers, such as concrete barricades, can be effective but to set them up is time consuming and barriers are not particularly portable. Barriers are normally used only in static, non-portable placements. Caltrops are small pyramid-like devices with four projections at about one hundred nine degrees offset to each other. When a caltrop is deployed it will have one of the projections, typically a spike, pointing vertically upward. A vehicle will have to drive directly over a caltrop so as to puncture a tire. Snares, such as a net that is stretched across a road, can also be effective in stopping a vehicle but such snares are time consuming to set up, are generally bulky and heavy and need to be anchored securely to restrain a moving vehicle.
It is also known that there are vehicle immobilization devices that depend on an electrical charge to disable the vehicle. These devices may work with vehicles that have electronic ignition, on-board engine and component control computers, microchip controlled systems, and other electrical control components that can be destroyed or made inoperative through the application of a voltage surge or other high energy electrical pulse or charge provided to a vulnerable electrical systems. Such electrical based-disabling devices may have limited or no effect on vehicles with shielded electrical systems or on vehicles that are not electronically dependent to operate.
Regardless of the type of vehicle stopping device used it is enlightening to realize that the energy needed to stop a fast moving vehicle is significant. Kinetic energy attained by a moving vehicle is on the order of one-half of the mass of the vehicle times the velocity squared. Thus a large truck, such as the well known Humvee (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (“HMMWM”), can exhibit more than ten times the kinetic energy of a small passenger car. Thus it is important to realize that a large amount of energy is needed to stop a moving vehicle and that any immobilization device will need to be effective against an array of vehicles to be capable of stopping heavy as well as light vehicles. In this invention the undercarriage immobilization device described herein is not intended to go “head-to-head” with the fleeing vehicle, but is designed to use motion of the vehicle components to assist in the restraint or capture of a target vehicle and thus render the vehicle immobile or significantly slowed to the point of being easily overtaken by law enforcement personnel.
To reduce the complexity and length of the Detailed Specification, and to fully establish the state of the art in certain areas of technology, Applicants herein expressly incorporate by reference material identified in the following publications:    National Institute of Justice, “Department of Defense Non-lethal Weapons and Equipment Review: A Research Guide for Civil Law Enforcement and Corrections,” October 2004, NCJ-205293.    Greg Lucas, “Bay Area's New Efforts in the War on Terror Coast Guard Weapon: High-tech net to keep boats from off-limits areas,” San Francisco Chronicle Article, Aug. 10, 2005. (Available on the Internet.).    MIL-HDBK 5 “Military Handbook Metallic Materials and Elements for Aerospace Vehicle Structures,” United States DOD, Dec. 1, 1998.    MIL-HDBK 17 “Military Handbook Composite Materials Handbook,” United States DOD, Dec. 12, 2002.    Honeywell Spectra Technical Bulletin, HON-PF-PS10, (Available on the Internet).    Steven H. Scott, “Sticky Foam as a Less-Than-Lethal Technology,” Sandia National Laboratory, US DOE Contract No DE-AC04-96AL8500, CIRCA 1994.    T. D. Goolby and K. J. Padilla, “Sticky Foam Restraining Effectiveness Human Subject Tests for the Less-Than-Lethal Foam Project,” Sandia Report, Jul. 8, 1994 UNCI (Available on the Internet).
The applicants believe that the material incorporated above is “non-essential” in accordance with 37 CFR 1.57, because it is referred to for purposes of indicating the background of the invention or illustrating the state of the art. However, if the Examiner believes that any of the above-incorporated material constitutes “essential material” within the meaning of 37 CFR 1.57(c)(1)-(3), applicants will amend the specification to expressly recite the essential material that is incorporated by reference as allowed by the applicable rules.