50 caliber target tracking bullets

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H.m.B

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How is that not copyright infringement on the X-Acto corporation? :confused:

Don't the guided Howitzer shells cost like 50 G's a pop? I also notice the stated goal is to make snipers harder to detect, by having them direct a focused beam of non-visible spectrum light at the target that could be easily detected if there were counter measures present. More billion dollar tech for fighting against goat-herders, IMO.

50 bucks says they utilize this for aerial sniping platforms within 1 year of its deployment (just think how much more prevalent drone usage will become when their collateral damage is equal to one 50BMG bullet)

TCB
 
The EXACTO technology is now in phase II of development, which includes the design, integration and demonstration of aero-actuation controls, power sources, optical guidance systems, and sensors

I guess that means the completed phase I was "I have an idea!".......

They're probably in phase II of warp drive engines and molecular transporters, too.
 
How is that not copyright infringement on the X-Acto corporation? :confused:

Well, it'd be a trademark infringement, and it probably isn't due to the spelling difference and the fact that X-Acto makes nothing resembling laser-guided ammunition, so there's probably very little chance of any confusion in trade.

If there is an infringement, X-Acto will have to challenge the other company on it. If they fail to defend their trademarks, they risk diluting them. Since most companies won't take that risk, if we never see action on it from X-Acto, we can assume their lawyers probably don't see it as an infringement.
 
If this tech gets adapted to drone technology it will certainly make the battlefield a more "efficient" place. But here's my problem with it. What if America becomes the battlefield? How much easier would it be for good folks in the green machine to take out Americans who were labeled as threats once they knew there was little to no risk of collateral damage.

Don't get me wrong, I think a stand-up fight is a stupid idea but what gets done "over there" can one day be brought here.
 
My objection has less to do with potential usage against Americans, or even the 'wrong people'

"It is good that war is so terrible, lest we grow too fond of it" --R. E. Lee, a man who was all too familiar with exactly what he was talking about. I have to defer to his judgment, especially seeing how convenient drones have made warfare over the last decade. How many nations do we actively patrol, now?

We already use drones and smart weapons far more than we would dare use wide area tactics; focusing the capability of our nation's military might into a singularity makes it far too easy to wield freely, and far too effective to not be highly addicting.

We've already got drones patrolling the southern border; something that was supposedly unacceptable not five years ago.

On a lighter note, why not a TOW bullet? :D

TCB
 
Cant see this working, the size of the bullet the guy has in his hand is almost as large as a regular .50 round! So where is the powder charge gonna go? Are the electronics hardened for the forces the .50 produces?

I'll believe it when they actually take out an enemy at 2000 plus yards with one multiple times!
 
Are the electronics hardened for the forces the .50 produces?
Of course; watch the video showing how it modifies the ballistic path. If you can steer the bullet on the way, there is less need for a massive powder charge to flatten out the arc; the electronics can compensate. After all, 45-70 is incredibly accurate and still lethal at long range (but the wind and drop doping is the hard part, which the tech promises to take care of for shooters)

Seems like a much more direct solution that the Tracking Point smart scope.

TCB
 
Wow. The march of technology. Instead of "ar vs ak" threads, the future now holds "smart scope vs guided bullet" threads.

Kinda neat.
 
Cant see this working, the size of the bullet the guy has in his hand is almost as large as a regular .50 round! So where is the powder charge gonna go? Are the electronics hardened for the forces the .50 produces?

I'll believe it when they actually take out an enemy at 2000 plus yards with one multiple times!

That kind of looks more like a mini-rocket that would fit in the 50BMG chamber, case, or bore. It's about the same length of the case. It's possible the firing pin strikes a primer which ignites the conventional smokeless powder (booster charge), then there's a solid fuel 2nd stage that kicks in mid-flight. Net effect, you get an already supersonic start to a gyro-jet type of action.

At least.. that's how I'd do it. :)

But I'm not smart like those DARPA guys. :)

This would probably cut quite a bit of force from the 50 cal, but if you have self-guidance you don't have to worry about transsonic threshholds mucking up the end phase of your exterior ballistic curve. A 750-grain slug entering at 750 fps is still going to do a great deal of damage to a human being, especially if it's loaded with a couple of grams of HE and an impact fuse that arms on rotation.

The circuitry would be relatively simple, and the speed and size of modern processors is easily to the point they could slap some serious CPU cycles in to small payload.
 
That kind of looks more like a mini-rocket that would fit in the 50BMG chamber, case, or bore. It's about the same length of the case. It's possible the firing pin strikes a primer which ignites the conventional smokeless powder (booster charge), then there's a solid fuel 2nd stage that kicks in mid-flight. Net effect, you get an already supersonic start to a gyro-jet type of action.

At least.. that's how I'd do it.

Cant see this working, the size of the bullet the guy has in his hand is almost as large as a regular .50 round! So where is the powder charge gonna go? Are the electronics hardened for the forces the .50 produces?

The projectile being held is not the projectile the article is discussing. It is clearly talked about, and captioned, as an earlier idea from a different laboritory.

The CAD drawing at the top of the page shows a much mor convetional projectile shape. Although I can't see how it would steer.
 
Lets see some field use before we declare this done and over. Its going to be hard to justify the cost of each round compared to a normal .50 round. That in combination with logistics and what happens when there is an error? I could see this being used by CIA sog or other groups that need to remain absolutely unknown but I honestly don't see it being fielded within the next 30-50 years.
 
Lets see some field use before we declare this done and over. Its going to be hard to justify the cost of each round compared to a normal .50 round. That in combination with logistics and what happens when there is an error? I could see this being used by CIA sog or other groups that need to remain absolutely unknown but I honestly don't see it being fielded within the next 30-50 years.

Heck of an assassination weapon. Especially if the spotter is "steering" via laser guidance, and the shooter is behind a barrier (building, etc) lobbing them around indirect.

"Where's the shooter?"

"Uhh... somewhere in a one mile radius...."

If they can actually make this work to the precision required, it's a game changer for targeted killings of high profile public officials and foreign nationals. A portable weapons system that can fire indirect rounds with 100% hit probability without direct line of sight?

Assassin's dream, there.

And dang dangerous stuff in the wrong hands, guys.
 
I guess reflective headgear and mirror balls will come back in style for public apperances, in that case?
 
50 bucks says they utilize this for aerial sniping platforms within 1 year of its deployment (just think how much more prevalent drone usage will become when their collateral damage is equal to one 50BMG bullet)

The Army already has a gyroscopic stabilized .338 Laupua on a helicopter UAV that is tow-able behind a HMMWV and uses a video game controller hooked to a laptop. They were testing it back in '09.

http://www.wired.com/2009/04/army-tests-new/
 
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