Firearms – Body borne remote operated
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-24
2001-08-14
Eldred, J. Woodrow (Department: 3644)
Firearms
Body borne remote operated
C042S001090, C089S001110, C089S001100, C089S036050, C002S002500, C224S262000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06272781
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The instant invention relates to novel garments and methods for counter-measuring an assault or attack by an actor when such assault or attack takes place face-to-face, or hand-to-hand, and/or when the wearer of this invention is not expecting or anticipating such assault or the wearer is unable to defend against said assault or attack.
BACKGROUND ART
Prior to reducing the invention to practice I undertook a search of the current literature via the IBM Patent Server which is available on the World Wide Web at ht.//www.IBMPatentServer.com and several search engines, such as “Infoseek” and “Yahoo”. These data bases afford access to relevant fields, subjects and patents related to the user's interest. It should be noted that said search was limited to the most recent patents issued over the past 20 years. Using the Boolean technique at the IBM Patent Server, I was able to identify seven (7) patent references to vest-type garments. These are, i) U.S. Pat. No. 05,620,277, Issued in 1997, Titled, Vest Garment with Pivotal Seat Member; ii) U.S. Pat. No. 04,637,076, Issued 1987, Titled, Convertible vest-bag; iii) U.S. Pat. No. 04,827,534, Issued in 1989, Titled, Sun-powered vest; iv) U.S. Pat. No. 04,472,835, Issued in 1984, Titled, Reversible thermal vest garment; v) U.S. Pat. No. 04,261,059, Issued in 1981, Titled, Inclement environment jacket and vest garment; vi) U.S. Pat. No. 05,512,348, Issued in 1996, Titled, Armor with breakaway sewing; and finally, vii) U.S. Pat. No. 05,289,959, Issued in 1994, Titled, Infant Rescue Vest.
I performed several other searches on other data bases in a effort to determine whether my invention might be similar to prior art. I was unable to find any references in any data bases regarding “counter-measure garments” or “counter-counter-measure protective garments”, or “interactive protective garments”. It is noted that the above references deal with garments which either protect the wearer from weather conditions, or from injuries during sporting activities, or used as a supplemental battery charger as in the case of U.S. Pat. No. 04,827,534. None of the cited references teach counter-measure of the assault of an attacker, or anticipate a potential threat by an attacker (with exception of bullet-proof vest), and none of the references teach ejection of projectiles or non-lethal means being incorporated in and used in conjunction with a wearable garment or vest, any of which being capable of thwarting an attack by an actor or protecting the wearer from fatal injury or death with either lethal or less-than-lethal technologies.
In an additional search of the literature I was able to identify a number of different non-lethal technologies. These are now referred to as “LTL's”, or, “Less-Than-Lethal Technologies”. An excellent description of these technologies can be found at http://www.usafa.af.mil/wing/34edg/airman/suhajd~1.htm on the World Wide Web. This is a nine-page document, included herewith as an exhibit. This document was authored by Cadet First Class Joseph M. Suhajda. The article discusses various types of LTL's such as Stun Guns; Flash-Bangs; Plastic Bullets; Bean-Bag Bullets; Pepper Bombs; CS (tear) Gas; “E-Z-4” (a sleeping gas); Xenon-Strobe light (high intensity light which causes temporary blindness); nets; sticky foam; super lubricants; Super Foam (less stick, but immobilizes); and finally, Radio Frequency (“RF”) Weapons. A potent RF weapon is a high powered very low frequency (“VLF”) modulator that operates in the 20-35 Khz spectrum. This device emits an “acoustic bullet” which can be modulated to cause slight to severe physical discomfort.
A demonstration of a number of LTL's was presented by the DOD under the supervision of the U.S. Marine Development Command at Quantico, Va. on May 3-5, 1999 in conjunction with the University of New Hampshire's Special Projects Division. I attended the three-day seminar in order to better familiarize myself with LTL technologies.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
Since the early 1970's more and more women have entered the public service sector, more specifically, more women have become police officers. Perhaps this class of public servants, more than any other, for example, utility meter readers or animal control officers, etc., are at greater risk of being injured seriously or killed on the job as a result of attacks by actors or criminals. That is why the advancement and production and use of the new garment device, such as is proposed, is propitious.
On Nov. 20, 1998, I watched a television program called the “Maury Povich Show”, which aired on WTAE TV CHANNEL 4 Pittsburgh Pa. at 10:00 O'clock A.M. During that show a female police officer from the State of Texas was a guest. A videotape was shown where this female officer, who weighed approximately 110 pounds, was assaulted by an actor who weighed more than three times her weight. This attack took place during a routine stop by the female police officer and was recorded on the police car's video camera unit. The attack was completely by surprise. Before the officer could respond or draw her weapon or take any kind of defensive action, the actor had punched her in the face, wherein she lost consciousness and fell backward to the ground, at which point the attacker jumped on top of her abdomen and began delivering additional blows to her face and head. The female office was nearly beaten to death. I watched in horror as the attacker beat the officer viciously and mercilessly. After viewing that horrible footage, and considering my prior work with discrete, electronic systems, I conceptualized the following invention which I now hereby teach.
The instant invention now provides a variety of novel means and methods for rendering an attacker harmless in a non-lethal or less-than-lethal manner, by way or employment of an emitter means, a launcher, for example, on a garment in the event that i) the wearer is attacked by surprise; or ii) the wearer's hands are not free during the attack in which case the invention can be operated in an “automatic” mode via one or a plurality of telemetry means and electronic systems, or iii) the wearer decides to use the instant invention as an augment to his/her physical attributes during an assault or an arrest. Such novel means and methods include use of radio signals and/or switching means, active and/or passive, to control electro-mechanical systems contained within the garment, such as emitters and switches in combination, and/or such as video monitoring systems, or dispelling of gasses or projectiles or liquids or change of state chemicals from the garment toward the direction of the actor or would-be actor, or by ejection of of active restraint mechanisms released by emitter or launchers, such as nets or passive chemical restraint systems, such as urea-formalin-based glues, and or sub-sonic or hypersonic sound waves emitted by emitters and which have been successfully tested and demonstrated by the US DOD in experiments with non-lethal defense systems. In yet another example the use of voice and non-voiced sounds can be used to active the systems containing telemetry and emitters contained within or on the garment I have included a sketch, marked as
FIG. 5
, which I copied from Page 85 of a book by Dr. Forest Mims, III, entitled, 103 Projects for Electronic Experimenters, Published by Tab Books, Inc., Blue Ridge, Pa. This
FIG. 5
is an example of a more exotic type of radio communicator wherein light waves are used to carry the signal from the transmitter to the receiver. An example of a more advanced garment utilizing the instant invention would incorporate the tenets of one of my earlier patents, U.S. Pat. No. 5,523,757 incorporated herein as if by entirety, entitled, Signal Dampening and Camouflage System. The emitter can be operated by radio telemetry systems or combinations thereof located on the garment or in the body of the wearer, in the mouth, for example, in a partial or full dental applicance. The emitter can be one or more electro-motive force weapons,
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