Direction-changing smart bullets developed by researchers

Researchers from the United States have developed self-guided bullets that can be fired to a target from 2 kilometers away.

Engineers at California-based Sandia National Laboratories have invented a dart-like bullet that features a laser-guided system, enabling it to make quick turns to precisely find its target. According to Sandia researchers Brian Kast and Red Jones, they fitted the bullets with built-in optical sensors that can be guided via laser targeting system.

According to the Sandia website, the optical sensor sends data to the guidance and control electronics that “use an algorithm to command electromagnetic actuators.” These then steer the tiny fins in the bullet that guide it to the target.

“We have a very promising technology to guide small projectiles that could be fully developed inexpensively and rapidly,” Jones said.”Nobody had ever seen that, but we’ve got high-speed video photography that shows that it’s true. That means we can overcorrect, so we don’t have to be as precise each time.”

The dart-like laser-guided bullet is still a prototype, but if it passes a private firm-conducted testing, it may be accessible to the military, law enforcement and recreational shooters.

Kast and Jones have successfully tested the bullet’s design in field tests and computer simulations using prototypes built from parts that are available commercially.

Sandia National Laboratories is part of Lockheed Martin, who is working with the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a new scope for sniper rifles that will help snipers hit targets accurately in any weather condition.

This might be something you’d want to see in the next Call of Duty or Battlefield, right?

via: Digital Trends