Engineering Smart Technologies

MIG44 - Non Lethal Interference Grenade

MIG44 - Midé Technology Corporation is developing a next-generation, non-lethal grenade known as the Midé Interference Grenade, or MIG44 - under a United States Army Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Phase II contract. The MIG44 is a purely electrical distraction device that is designed to supplant conventional pyrotechnic devices, such as the XM84 flash-bang grenade.

Midé's innovative design includes multiple xenon flash lamps and piezoelectric materials, that produce a high pitched scream, positioned on the perimeter of a compact, hand-deployable package. This configuration, which contains a rechargeable battery, creates blinding and high-pitched deafening effects in all directions for several seconds. Unlike the XM84, which has numerous tactical shortcomings and safety issues, Midé's design is flexible, re-usable, and 100% safe.

Applications

1. Drawbacks of current flash-bang grenades
Commonly known to the military and law enforcement personnel, flash-bangs are grenade-like non-lethal weapons (NLW) that produce a bright flash of light combined with a loud acoustic report that is meant to momentarily incapacitate or startle an enemy, usually in closed quarters. A single explosion using pyrotechnics contained within the device traditionally generates the flash and bang. The XM84 (see table below) shows one such flash-bang grenade. While effective at temporarily disabling targeted personnel, these devices do have some drawbacks, including:

• Smoke - The explosion creates smoke, which can obscure the threat from a soldier and delay situational control.
• Flame - The flame used to initiate the detonation poses an unneeded risk of fire and injury to users and non-combatants, especially in the presence of flammable vapors or fluids.
• Single Report - Traditional devices provide only a single flash and bang event per use.
• Fixed operation - No adjustments to report intensity or fuse delay can be made on the device, potentially inflicting permanent hearing damage to hostages, or limiting its utility when a longer delay would be advantageous.

Also known as the Innovative Piezoelectric Flash-bang (IPF), the MIG44 is a result of a Phase I SBIR contract examining the feasibility of a non-pyrotechnic stun grenade. The promising results have led to further progress during Phase II (Contract No. - W15QKN-04-C-1116, Technical Monitor - Keith Braun, 973-724-7072, U.S. Army ARDEC, Picatinny Arsenal, NJ), in which several pre-production prototypes are in assembly.

2. How the Mide Interference grenade (MIG44) works
Thus far, Midé has constructed a feasible, re-usable stun grenade system design based on Phase I trade studies and technology analysis, and has a patent pending. The MIG44 integrates a high power density electrical source, proprietary control and power conversion circuitry, augmented xenon flash lamps and deafening piezo resonators into a robust enclosure.

Multiple flash and bang devices would distribute the blinding and deafening effects in all directions. That technique enables intensification of each event, while maintaining performance independent of device orientation. The prospective device would deliver intense flashes and sound reports comparable to the traditional explosive types, producing similarly disorienting effects on a threat in closed quarters. Most importantly, the MIG44 can operate over programmable periods of seconds to minutes. In this way, the device offers a painful 'masking' feature rather than a single-shot acoustic report. The Table below lists characteristics of the Army's XM84 flash-bang and Midé's projected MIG44 design for production models.

3. Advantages of the Mide Interference grenade
Midé's MIG44 system offers several advantages over existing flash-bang grenades (XM84), including:

• Safer - The MIG44 is free from pyrotechnics and explosives which eliminates the fire hazards also found in the Marine Corp's Clear-A-Space flash-bang technology, and the MK141 diversionary grenade. These dangers might injure a user or innocent directly, or ignite flammable vapors or fluids at the point of deployment.
• Smokeless - The MIG44 produces no smoke that could obscure the user's vision during tactical maneuvers.
• Long-life - The MIG44 is not destroyed or emptied during use. If recovered, it can be used repeatedly until the power source requires recharging, which drives the cost-per-use down.
• Extended duration - The MIG44 can be set to produce repeating flashes and bang reports for a pre-set length of time, which can extend for several minutes if desired.
• Flexible - The MIG44 offers adjustability enabled by the electronic control circuitry. User-selectable settings can be easily designed into the device, including delay time, operating duration, flash/bang frequency, and flash/bang intensity.
• Dual-Use - The MIG44 can easily be downgraded for training units, or commercialization into civilian markets such as alarms or home security, self-defense, or military gaming.

Where conventional munitions relied on overpowering, one-shot events, the MIG44 will exploit human weaknesses and provide a continuous and reusable diversionary tool. Furthermore, the added functionality of selectable delay, variable report frequency, adjustable event duration, and re-usability, will give the user increased confidence and control. The heightened safety of a controlled device, free from pyrotechnics, may also open new markets for lower grade non-lethal flash-bangs in such areas as home security, military gaming, and personal self-defense.

Characteristic	XM84	Mide's MIG44
Unit Cost	$78	$100
Average Cost Per Use	$78	$10
Instantaneous Decibel Level	170 dB @ 5ft	120 dB @ 1m
Instantaneous Luminous Intensity	1 Mcd	0.5 Mcd
Operating Duration	Impulse	Sec. or min.
Flash Frequency	n/a	3-10 Hz
Delay Time	1.5 sec	Fully adjustable
Envelope	2" x 6"	2" x 6"
Weight	1.6 lb	2 lb
Explosives	yes	no
Haz-mat shipping designation	1.2	n/a

 

4. Opportunities

The MIG44 may satisfy the need of a number of DoD organizations and private entities. Interested parties are invited to contact Dr. van Schoor (tienie@mide.com) at Midé to discuss their requirements and to indicate support that can help to justify a Phase III DoD acquisition program.

For more information:

Please contact Jeff Ransdell (Products), or call: 781-306-0609 x289

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