US government releases official guidelines for smart guns

[Gman]

If at first you don't succeed, keep throwing money at it.

US government releases official guidelines for smart guns

Back in June, the US Department of Justice proposed a list of specifications for manufactures of smart guns: a preliminary outline of the baseline features law enforcement agencies wanted to see in the future of pistol safety technology. This included a slew of safety features, failsafe countermeasures and requirements for rechargeable and replaceable batteries. Now, the government has made that draft official.

The final version of the guidelines look a lot like the draft -- pistols with security devices must be able to disable the weapon's firing mechanism when not in the control of an authorized individual. The security features of smart guns need to be a permanent part of the weapon too, though they are allowed to incorporate external verification accessories like rings, tokens or wristbands.

Also like the draft, most of the guidelines are about what smart gun security features can't do -- impair operation or increase time needed to draw, holster or fire the weapon. If a firearm's security features are malfunctioning, they also need to default to unlocking the weapon. If that sounds pretty lax, it's supposed to be: the department says the project is designed to spur the growth of gun safety technology without limiting innovation by choosing a standard too soon.

As nice as it is to see these guidelines developed, it's important to remember that they're optional: this is a voluntary list of specifications. Even so, there's a good chance the industry will adopt it all the same -- these aren't just the standards the Department of Justice wants to see in the future of smart guns, it's the baseline requirement government buyers will look for when they purchase firearms for law enforcement agencies, too.

[CS1983]

A self-defense situation, some gang-banger about to kill a cop, or in the middle of qual would all be a heck of a time for a gun's batteries to run out.

Hey, I have an idea - low capacity batteries. That way we won't be faced with high capacity charge, long term assault batteries.

[WETWRKS]

Give me a few months and a few of my friends and a mess of money and they can make a device that will jam or unlock the electronics of every gun in the area.

[BPTactical]

LOL

[spqrzilla]

You have to read the specification closely to get the true idea of how ridiculous this RFP is. To my mind, some law enforcement got ahold of it and stuck in enough requirements, and I think that the DOJ management was clueless enough not to understand, such that its useless as a model "smart gun" and probably impossible to build.

Read this in its entirety:

4.18 Security devices
4.18.1 Pistols shall have an integrated “lock-out” security device as a permanent part of the pistol that disables the firing mechanism except when in the control of authorized individuals.
4.18.2 The security device shall be understood to include any externally worn items, such as rings, wristbands, or tokens that perform functions associated with the security device
4.18.3 The security device shall include a programmable authorization system that can be set to allow one or more operators to fire the pistol.
4.18.4 The security device shall not inhibit the operator from firing in either hand, one-handed or two-handed, with and without gloves, in any orientation.
4.18.5 The security device shall not alter the normal operation of grasping and firing the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.6 The security device shall not increase the time required by the operator to grasp, draw from a holster, and fire the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.7 The security device shall not emit audible sounds or visible signals.
4.18.8 If the security device may be susceptible to electromagnetic interference, either intentional or unintentional, the device shall be equipped with countermeasure detection technology that permits the operator to fire the gun when an attempt to block the authorization process is detected.
4.18.9 The security device shall covertly indicate when the pistol is ready to fire.
4.18.10 If the security device uses batteries, the batteries can be rechargeble but shall
be replaceable.
4.18.11 Low power to the security device shall be indicated covertly with sufficient time to safely take action.
4.18.12 If the security device malfunctions, it shall default to a state to allow the pistol to fire.
4.18.13 The security device should be easy for an operator to quickly reset or disengage if there is a malfunction.

[Big E3]

I’m sure that the development of micro stamping was voluntary until Kali adopted it as law. These lefties just need somebody to develop the technology so they can require it on all guns.

[OctopusHighball]

You have to read the specification closely to get the true idea of how ridiculous this RFP is. To my mind, some law enforcement got ahold of it and stuck in enough requirements, and I think that the DOJ management was clueless enough not to understand, such that its useless as a model "smart gun" and probably impossible to build.

Read this in its entirety:

4.18 Security devices
4.18.1 Pistols shall have an integrated “lock-out” security device as a permanent part of the pistol that disables the firing mechanism except when in the control of authorized individuals.
4.18.2 The security device shall be understood to include any externally worn items, such as rings, wristbands, or tokens that perform functions associated with the security device
4.18.3 The security device shall include a programmable authorization system that can be set to allow one or more operators to fire the pistol.
4.18.4 The security device shall not inhibit the operator from firing in either hand, one-handed or two-handed, with and without gloves, in any orientation.
4.18.5 The security device shall not alter the normal operation of grasping and firing the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.6 The security device shall not increase the time required by the operator to grasp, draw from a holster, and fire the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.7 The security device shall not emit audible sounds or visible signals.
4.18.8 If the security device may be susceptible to electromagnetic interference, either intentional or unintentional, the device shall be equipped with countermeasure detection technology that permits the operator to fire the gun when an attempt to block the authorization process is detected.
4.18.9 The security device shall covertly indicate when the pistol is ready to fire.
4.18.10 If the security device uses batteries, the batteries can be rechargeble but shall
be replaceable.
4.18.11 Low power to the security device shall be indicated covertly with sufficient time to safely take action.
4.18.12 If the security device malfunctions, it shall default to a state to allow the pistol to fire.
4.18.13 The security device should be easy for an operator to quickly reset or disengage if there is a malfunction.

So it shouldn't fire, unless it can't, then it should?

Maybe this is one of the things the Donald should kill on day one.

[Skip]

My official guideline...

LOL

----

I’m sure that the development of micro stamping was voluntary until Kali adopted it as law. These lefties just need somebody to develop the technology so they can require it on all guns.

I'm sure they'd love to but there are too many barriers and too many precedents that, IMHO, would prevent it.

Giving government a kill switch doesn't work with any other right on the books. And last I checked there were more "stupid" guns already owned than people in the US.

[vectorsc]

This actually looks good. It sets the bar to nuclear bomb high.

Having worked on systems like this for other purposes, at some point you need to say some pretty insane shit to get manufacturers to understand you want something serious instead of just a toy thats going to get us killed.

Things like "The airplane should never crash or you are paying for the combined life salaries of every person onboard to their families. Times 100,000."

So yes - they made something that is unattainable in the near to mid term. And thank god for that. For example, this system is almost impossible to make this reliable in anything less than an electronically primed firearm. If you are interdicting a mechanical process with some sort of actuator you just aren't going to get it with something like this.

Conversely, an e-primed gun like the old remington EtronX:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/tech.../a211/1277311/

This could be done well these days - more so than 11 years ago. A single CR123 battery and enough battery life to last for 5 years. That said - I think its a bit better that I can still shoot a WWI bolt action rifle today with no service or anything essentially happening.

[HoneyBadger]

This actually looks good. It sets the bar to nuclear bomb high.

This was my thought as well. Specifically the parts I highlighted in red below. The orange highlights sound like legal nightmares.

Also, anything electronic is hackable. Anything.

You have to read the specification closely to get the true idea of how ridiculous this RFP is. To my mind, some law enforcement got ahold of it and stuck in enough requirements, and I think that the DOJ management was clueless enough not to understand, such that its useless as a model "smart gun" and probably impossible to build.

Read this in its entirety:

4.18 Security devices
4.18.1 Pistols shall have an integrated “lock-out” security device as a permanent part of the pistol that disables the firing mechanism except when in the control of authorized individuals.
4.18.2 The security device shall be understood to include any externally worn items, such as rings, wristbands, or tokens that perform functions associated with the security device
4.18.3 The security device shall include a programmable authorization system that can be set to allow one or more operators to fire the pistol.
4.18.4 The security device shall not inhibit the operator from firing in either hand, one-handed or two-handed, with and without gloves, in any orientation.
4.18.5 The security device shall not alter the normal operation of grasping and firing the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.6 The security device shall not increase the time required by the operator to grasp, draw from a holster, and fire the pistol as a pistol of the same design that is not equipped with the security device.
4.18.7 The security device shall not emit audible sounds or visible signals.
4.18.8 If the security device may be susceptible to electromagnetic interference, either intentional or unintentional, the device shall be equipped with countermeasure detection technology that permits the operator to fire the gun when an attempt to block the authorization process is detected.
4.18.9 The security device shall covertly indicate when the pistol is ready to fire.
4.18.10 If the security device uses batteries, the batteries can be rechargeable but shall be replaceable.
4.18.11 Low power to the security device shall be indicated covertly with sufficient time to safely take action.
4.18.12 If the security device malfunctions, it shall default to a state to allow the pistol to fire.
4.18.13 The security device should be easy for an operator to quickly reset or disengage if there is a malfunction.

Closing thoughts: This sounds like a noble venture, but it's horribly misguided and misinformed. Any Average Joe with internet access can build a functioning gun and anyone with access to proper machining equipment can make just about anything. Laws do not prevent bad people from doing bad things, they only keep good people honest.