Technological Options for User-Authorized Handguns A Technology-Readiness Assessment (2005) / Chapter Skim
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Executive Summary
Executive Summary
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In 2002, the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) sponsored a one-day workshop that touched on three topics: the status and potential of 1All but $1million, which was provided by the New Jersey Legislature to the New Jersey Institute of Technology, has come from federal sources, either through a grant program at the National Institute of Justice or by direct congressional earmark.
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. In spring 2004, NAE formed the Committee on User-Authorized Handguns, whose members include research engineers, experts in manufacturing, and individuals experienced in handgun design and testing, to conduct the current study, which is focused exclusively on the technical aspects of developing a UAHG.
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The committee considered two classes of authentication technology -- biometrics and token-based systems. Although at least a dozen biometric-based recognition technologies are being investigated for all kinds of systems, at this time only five (fingerprint, voice recognition, skin texture, skin spectroscopy, and handgrip pressure)
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Second, they are very compact, which means they have limited clearances for the addition of new electromechanical mechanisms to drive the latch. An alternative to an electromechanical latching mechanism is an allelectronic firing mechanism, which requires a special primer.
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Because considerable technology development will still be necessary to fit the reader electronics into the gun, the commmittee believes the integrated RFID reader for a UAHG is currently at TRL 58 or lower. Some people in the gun industry believe that modifying the mechanical latching system by introducing an electronic interface may compromise the weapon's reliability.
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From page 6... ...
Even a UAHG for homeowners, who may have less daunting authentication requirements, poses significant technical challenges. Inclement weather, dirt, and gloves would not be significant factors, but the need for recognition of an authorized user in a stressful situation would be just as demanding for the authentication sensor, and the gun should share the requirement of a law enforcement gun of being extremely difficult for an unauthorized person intentionally to bypass the security system by whatever means possible.
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From page 7... ...
The committee estimates that total costs to bring a single implementation of a UAHG to market could easily reach several times to as much as 10 times what each developer has spent to date, or on the order of $30 million, particularly for a version that uses true biometric authentication and could take 5 to 10 years to complete. If one were to start anew, with present developments as the baseline, the committee suggests that the shortest path to success, with cost and time at the lower ends of these ranges, would involve a mechanical or electronic gun interfaced with an RFID tag inserted under the skin.
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From page 8... ...
1996. Smart Gun Technology Project Final Report, edited by D.R.
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