NJIT Expert Clears Up Misconceptions About Personalized Weapons Technology

NEWARK, March 25--"There seems to be some misconceptions about the technology New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is using to create a new kind of personalized weapon commonly know as a smart gun," says NJIT Vice President for Research and Development Donald H. Sebastian.

The true/false quiz below sorts out the fact from the fiction.

FALSE: Smart gun can only work in one hand.
TRUE: Smart gun works in both hands. NJIT'S grip dynamics permit two-handed use.

FALSE: Smart gun can only be used by one individual.
TRUE: Smart gun can be used by as many individuals as the owner chooses to train into the system.

FALSE: Smart guns are inherently less reliable than mechanically driven weapons.
TRUE: Guns that use electronics can be more reliable than guns that operate solely with mechanically driven parts.

FALSE: Smart gun technology is currently available and ready for commercialization.
TRUE: Biometrics are a feasible enabler, but a great deal of technology development is yet required before to create a commercially viable and affordable weapons system.

FALSE: The gun industry is currently blocking technology of smart gun.
TRUE: Major gun manufacturers are investing their own resources and working under federal grants to develop smart gun technology. NJIT is currently partnering to create this new gun with leading worldwide gun manufacturers. NJIT's partners include Smith & Wesson, Taurus International, F. N. Manufacturing, Inc. (FNMI); Phoenix Arms and Alchemy Arms.

FALSE: Dynamic biometrics are untested and unproven in the technical literature.
TRUE: Thousands of academic journal articles have been written to date. Behavioral and dynamic biometrics are well-established processes in not only academic literature but in practice. For example, electronic signature validations used in commercial retail outlets is a form of dynamic biometrics.

NJIT is a public, scientific and technological research university enrolling more than 8,800 students. The university offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees to students in 80 degree programs throughout its six colleges: Newark College of Engineering, New Jersey School of Architecture, College of Science and Liberal Arts, School of Management, Albert Dorman Honors College and College of Computing Sciences. The division of continuing professional education offers adults eLearning, off campus degrees and short courses. Expertise and research initiatives include architecture and building science, applied mathematics, biomedical engineering, environmental engineering and science, information technology, manufacturing, materials, microelectronics, multimedia, telecommunications, transportation and solar astrophysics. Yahoo! Internet Life magazine cites NJIT as a "perennially most wired" university.

Contact Information:

Sheryl Weinstein Robert Florida Public Relations  (973) 596-3433