stun guns & PMs

Not that I'm planning on a life of crime, but what would happen to a PM if one were stunned? I saw a program demonstrating stun guns and watching the test guy wriggle around, it got me thinking.

As you can tell, I have a lot of time on my hands today. :)

2 Comments

Tasers

by BOB 1 - 2008-02-11 08:02:35

Here is an article posted last year by one of the members. I kept a copy as I have a friend intersted in this. Looks like if we can beleive paragraph 3, a taser is not a problem.

1. HOW DOES A TASER® device WORK?

Upon firing, compressed nitrogen projects two TASER probes up to 15 feet (depending on cartridge) at a speed of 180 feet per second. The probes are connected by thin insulated wire back to the TASER device. An electrical signal transmits throughout the region where the probes make contact with the body or clothing. The result is an instant impairment of the attacker’s neuromuscular control and severely impaired to perform coordinated action. The ADVANCED TASER M18 series uses an automatic timing mechanism to apply the electric charge for 5 seconds. The X26C system discharges bursts of 10 seconds, and can be increased up to a maximum of 30 seconds – enough time for you to flee the area and get to safety.

2. HOW CAN THE TASER SYSTEM BE SO EFFECTIVE YET BE GENERALLY SAFE?

TASER technology does not depend upon impact or body penetration to achieve its effect. Its pulsating electrical output interferes with communication between the brain and the muscular system, resulting in loss of muscular control. The electrical pulse from TASER devices It overstimulates the nerves that control muscle movement it affects them in their natural mode. The TASER is like a remote control that takes away the ability of the target to control his own body – but it does so with minimum violence or injury because it uses a communication mechanism rather than relying on physical injury.

3. DOES THE TASER DEVICE AFFECT THE HEART OR A CARDIAC PACEMAKER?

The electrical output from TASER devices is well below the levels required to cause cardiac arrest, or to physically damage an implantable cardiac device. A recent study published in Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology (“PACE” a leading medical journal) indicated that it takes over 15 times the electrical charge from the X26 before ventricular fibrillation can occur, even in subjects as low as 60 pounds body weight. Further, a recent study of TASER devices published by Defense Scientific and Medical Laboratories, (Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom) found that “The threshold peak current density for generation of ventricular fibrillation for the simulated M26 waveform was greater than 70-fold the modelled current density predicted to occur at the heart during Taser discharge. In the case of the simulated X26 waveform, the threshold peak current density was greater than 240-fold the modelled current density.” Further validating a significant safety margin for these devices.

4. ISN’T HIGH VOLTAGE LETHAL?

High voltage, in itself, is not dangerous. One can receive a 25,000-volt shock of static electricity from a doorknob on a dry day without harm. The physiological effect of electrical shock is determined by: the current, its duration, and the power source that produces the shock. The typical household current of 110 volts is dangerous because it can pump many amperes of current throughout the body indefinitely. Remember that the household wall outlet is connected to massive power plants with virtually unlimited power output capability. By contrast, the ADVANCED TASER power supply consists of 8 AA alkaline batteries capable of supplying 26 watts of electrical power for a few seconds. The TASER X26 operates on two small lithium batteries similar to those used in digital cameras – batteries that cannot generate large amounts of electrical power.

5. WILL THE TASER DEVICE CAUSE ELECTROCUTION?

No. The output is metered by the electronics and the electrical energy in each pulse is always the same, regardless of the target condition. Rick Smith, Co-founder and CEO of TASER International was even shot with a TASER while standing in water to prove this point. The electrical output will not be transferred from one person to another even if they touch – unless you touch between the two probes and become part of the circuit.

6. WHAT ARE THE AFTEREFFECTS?

A person hit with a TASER device will usually fall to the ground and may feel dazed for several seconds. Generally, recovery is fast and the effects stop the very instant that the M26 TASER device shuts off. Some will experience critical response amnesia and others will experience tingling sensations afterwards. The pulsating electrical output causes involuntary muscle contractions and a resulting sense of vertigo. It can momentarily stun or render immobilized. Some individuals have experienced athletic type injuries and injuries from falls. Although designed to maximize safety, the TASER is not risk free and should not be used lightly.

The other side of the story

by ElectricFrank - 2008-02-12 12:02:13

The Taser people use a bunch of high tech language to hide the fact that it give you an electrical shock strong enough to disable you. It does not take many amperes of current to be dangerous. A current of 1 milliampere is sufficient to give a painful shock. 10 milliamperes is in the range of what we call the "let go threshold". This is the amount of current above which the person cannot voluntarily let go of contact. 100-200 milliamperes is lethal if administered in a way that causes the current to flow through the area of the heart. The most common is arm to arm contact.
All this is in a healthy person. A heart condition that increases the chance of fibrillation could take much less.
Just stop and consider all the warnings we get about subjecting our pacers and ICD's to electrical fields, none of which are sstrong enough to knock us to the floor.
One last bit of info. They tell us how small the batteries are "like the battery in your digital camera". That small battery in your digital camera charges a capacitor which stores enough energy to produce the flash. If you were to open the camera and touch that capacitor while it is charged you would receive a severe and dangerous shock. It is the same technology that lets the very small battery in an ICD deliver enough energy to defibrillate.

frank

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