DE20008517U1 - bullet - Google Patents

Description

bullet

The invention relates to a projectile for handguns with a code identifying the purchaser.

The projectiles fired during criminal use of firearms can only be attributed to the weapon used if the police were able to get hold of the weapon for ballistic examination. However, the weapon used in the crime is often not found or its owner cannot be identified. It would be better if the police could obtain clear clues to the person who purchased the ammunition and thus the suspected perpetrator from the projectiles found at the crime scene or in the victim of a crime.

For this purpose, the bullets must be coded and only sold by authorized dealers to people who can identify themselves. The code and the purchaser's identity for each package of ammunition sold must be recorded and stored centrally electronically by a government authority. Uncoded ammunition must be banned and every purchaser must prove the whereabouts of their cartridges if necessary. Hunters, sports shooters and self-defense fighters are not hindered by the coding, but criminals are deterred. The cartridge cases are less suitable for coding because they are easily tampered with, e.g. when reloading, and can be picked up after the shot.

The object of the invention is to permanently attach a code identifying the purchaser to a bullet for handguns.

According to the invention, the problem is solved by a projectile of the type described above, in which the projectile jacket or an inner insert is provided with the information enabling conclusions to be drawn about the purchaser's identity in such a way that the information is not erased when the shot is fired or when the weapon hits the ground and is largely protected against manipulation. This

is to be understood in such a way that in the event of an attempt at manipulation, the projectile would become unusable rather than the information being lost.

The projectile according to the invention can be provided with a bar code, such as the one widely used as a barcode. Miniaturization ensures that a large number of codes are available, because every package of finished cartridges or projectiles for reloading that is sold must have a unique code, whereby all projectiles in a package can have the same code. In addition to barcodes, other methods for encrypting information can also be used, such as number/letter combinations, dot/line patterns, holographic or electronic methods or the like.

The code can be located on the inside and/or outside of a jacketed bullet, with the inside being the preferred option as it protects the code from being obscured by filing, for example, and from the effects of the burning propellant powder. On the less suitable outside jacket, the rear area of the bullet covered by the cartridge case can offer protection against tampering, but not against the heat of the powder burning.

Furthermore, in a jacketed bullet, the lead core itself or, better still, a separate insert inside the jacket can carry the information. This insert can be made of metal or of plastic, ceramic or other suitable materials. Sufficient resistance to destruction by firing, impact and high temperatures must be guaranteed. Suitable shapes for the coding insert include: spherical, hemispherical, cubic, cuboid, ring-shaped, flat or curved like a plate, etc. However, the ballistic properties of the bullet should not suffer, for example due to the creation of an imbalance.

In the case of a solid bullet, the lead bullet itself or an insert in the lead can carry the information as described above.

The coding information can be applied, for example, mechanically (scratching, punching, embossing, etc.), with laser and/or using lithographic processes.

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It is also conceivable to use physical methods, e.g. irradiation, labelling with isotopes, etc., as well as chemical and biological labelling.

To illustrate the invention, embodiments of the projectile according to the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a side view of the jacketed bullet 10, which is shown transparently for demonstration purposes. The identifying information in the form of a barcode 16 is engraved on the inside of the jacket 12 or on a ring-shaped insert 14.

Figure 2 shows an exemplary cross-sectional view of a solid lead bullet 18 with an information-bearing insert in the form of a round metal plate 20, which bears a laser-applied dot/line pattern 22 or a number/letter code 24.

Claims (6)

1. Projectile for handguns with information identifying the purchaser, characterized in that the information ( 16 ; 22 ; 24 ) is provided on the projectile ( 10 ; 18 ) at such a location and in such a manner that it is largely protected against manipulation and is retained during firing and on impact. 2. Projectile according to claim 1, characterized in that the projectile jacket ( 12 ) of a jacketed projectile ( 10 ), preferably on the inside, carries the information. 3. Projectile according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a jacketed projectile contains an insert ( 14 ) made of metal, ceramic, plastic or the like in a suitable shape, which carries the information. 4. Projectile according to claim 1, characterized in that the outside of a solid lead bullet carries the information. 5. Projectile according to claim 1 or 4, characterized in that a solid lead projectile ( 18 ) contains an insert ( 20 ) made of metal, ceramic, plastic or the like in a suitable shape, which carries the information. 6. Projectile according to one of the preceding claims 1-5, characterized in that the information is encrypted in the form of a barcode ( 16 ), a dot/dash pattern ( 22 ), a number/letter combination ( 24 ) or the like or with the aid of a physical, chemical, biological or other scientific process.