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Electromagnetic coil gun seized in Japan
- bochoh 2y agohttps://www3-nhk-or-jp.translate.goog/news/html/20241119/k10014642881000.html?_x_tr_sl=ja&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en https://www3-nhk-or-jp.translate.goog/news/html/20241119/k10... Edit: correct link! Thanks child
- poizan42 2y agoThat translate from Taiwanese Mandarin[0] (note the _x_tr_sl=zh-TW) The correct link would be https://www3-nhk-or-jp.translate.goog/news/html/20241119/k10014642881000.html?_x_tr_sl=ja&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en https://www3-nhk-or-jp.translate.goog/news/html/20241119/k10... [0]: Presumably "Chinese (Traditional)" in the selector, but it shows that it is translating from "Chinese (Simplified)" until you click the drop down at which point it shows "Chinese (Traditional)" as selected in the selector box: https://i.imgur.com/kjZ1WQk.png https://i.imgur.com/kjZ1WQk.png
- sudhirj 2y ago“The killing power is the electromagnetic gun, the gun is held by the gun, the gun is held by the gun, and the 29-year-old blunderbuss is used to tolerate the suspect. The Suspicious Person is produced and written by the anime and distributed by the anime and distributed by the public.” Yeah, we have a long way to go with translations.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- dfedbeef 2y agoI've noticed everything except like... english <-> spanish and english <-> french is absolute dogshit.
- yapyap 2y agohow many other languages do you know
- dfedbeef 2y agoI'm from the US dude I don't even know spanish or french lol
- c0detrafficker 2y ago[flagged]
- jeroenhd 2y agoFor many languages, the translation matrix doesn't work well directly, so you end up with Japanese -> English -> Spanish when you select Japanese -> Spanish. You lose details at every step, but the end result is still better than the rather unreliable direct translation. Translations are also a lot better when the languages share more grammar and cultural history. Japanese has grammatical constructs that simply do not exist in English (and vice versa), so providing accurate mapping is an impossible task.
- VyseofArcadia 2y agoEnglish <-> (insert Germanic or Romance language here) is always pretty solid, but should that be a surprise? This is also the case that is easiest for people. I wonder if anyone has played around with Language A <-> Common Intermediate Representation <-> Language B. If not, I nominate Lojban for the CIR.
- mathieuh 2y agoThe built-in translation feature in Google Chrome translated it pretty much perfectly idiomatically for me
- flobosg 2y agoIt seems that Google Translate assumes Chinese as the source language, instead of Japanese.
- oxyboy 2y agoJust change the detected source language to Japanese and it will translate a lot better - for some reason it defaults to Chinese as the source language. The person above has posted a wrong translate URL
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- 15155 2y agohttps://translate.kagi.com/https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20241119/k10014642881000.html https://translate.kagi.com/https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/... Do we?
- tiborsaas 2y agoChatGPT translation: "Suspect Arrested for Possession of Electromagnetic Gun "Coilgun," Manufacturing Video Allegedly Published November 19, 2024, 1:40 PM A 29-year-old suspect has been arrested on suspicion of violating Japan's Firearm and Sword Control Law for possessing a deadly electromagnetic gun, commonly referred to as a "coilgun." Reports indicate that the suspect also uploaded videos showing the manufacturing process to a video-sharing platform. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the details. The arrested individual has been identified as Nobuaki Usui (29), an unemployed resident of Nasu Town in Tochigi Prefecture. According to the police, the suspect is accused of possessing a coilgun, a device that fires projectiles using magnetic force, at his home last month. The weapon falls under the suspicion of violating the Firearm and Sword Control Law. Investigators discovered the videos during a "cyber patrol" and confiscated the content. Upon analysis, it was confirmed that the coilgun had a structure capable of firing live ammunition, making it a potentially lethal weapon. The suspect reportedly stated during questioning, "I made it when I was in high school." Regarding coilguns, a legal amendment was made in June of this year, and the possession of such devices will generally be prohibited by March next year. The police are currently conducting a free collection campaign, urging individuals to turn in coilguns at their nearest police station."
- karaterobot 2y agoIf the amendment hasn't come into effect yet, I wonder why he was arrested.
- bragr 2y ago>The weapon falls under the suspicion of violating the Firearm and Sword Control Law.
- arkades 2y ago> the possession of such devices will generally be prohibited by March next year. The police are currently conducting a free collection campaign, urging individuals to turn in coilguns at their nearest police station."
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- hx8 2y agoI think the primary benefit of an electromagnetic coil gun in an environment like Japan would be the capability to build one using off the shelf and unmonitored equipment. In the US it would be much easier to generate 3d printed guns, because finding ammunition with gunpowder inside is much easier. The translation of the article is a little rough. It looks like maybe it was used as a curiosity instead of a tool for violence. I suspect actual criminals get along just fine with melee weapons and the occasional smuggled firearm. This whole thing is cool in that it feels very much like a 21st century style crime. It's scary because I imagine disassembly would be an effective method of disposing of the murder weapon. In most jurisdictions it's possible to get a conviction without a murder weapon but requires more supporting evidence.
- lawlessone 2y agoI find it very hard to believe it's anything more than a toy especially given the small size.
- grapesodaaaaa 2y agoYou would be surprised. I have seen coil guys about this size do significant damage to thin wood boards or cardboard. Sure, it’s not going to do massive damage like a 7.62x51, but it’s still enough to seriously injure. I think the larger question is proliferation and intent within a culture. For example, I’m of the opinion knives are a tool, but they can easily be used as a weapon. There’s a huge grey area between hobbies, tools, and weapons. I think it’s up to the collective groups to decide what’s appropriate.
- grapesodaaaaa 2y agoI’m just curious with the downvotes to better myself - where was I off base?
- GJim 2y agoAn increasing number of HN users are now lazily downvoting things they disagree with, simply because they can't be arsed composing a coherent rebuttle. This leads to unpopular ideas being buried, groupthink and a lack of intelligent discourse..... ....And yes, this IS leading to this place becoming more and more Reddit like (no, that isn't a tired cliché, no matter what the FAQs claim). Downvoting should be reserved for comments that detract from the conversation. Perhaps meta-moderation is needed to ensure this happens.
- idunnoman1222 2y agoIf you look at the picture, it’s clearly a labour of love. I’m glad they don’t have this kind of dystopic thought police watching citizen videos where I live
- soraminazuki 2y agoThat thing is clearly not a thought, but a literal lethal weapon. You know what would actually be dystopian? Gun violence happening on a regular basis.
- myrmidon 2y agoEh... That is not clear at all. Given typical coil gun efficiencies (single digit percentages), there is absolutely no way that this thing is even remotely comparable to a typical 9mm handgun (in projectile velocity and just general lethality). Just ask yourself-- how many people are killed by coil guns each year? Stopping their proliferation strikes me as utterly useless regulatory overreach that benefits exactly no one, and deprives many a nerd of a cool hobby project.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- evilduck 2y agoIt's built to imitate the _looks_ of a lethal weapon. Given its build quality and size I have my doubts that it can actually accelerate those bullets to a harmful speed unless you're staring down the barrel without eye protection. The most danger this appears to present to society is scare value and an unprotected fairly large capacitor, as a shock hazard to whoever is holding it.
- soraminazuki 2y agoThere's a video of the suspect demonstrating its capability and it looks dangerous enough. https://youtu.be/-Bm3278gk50?si=dmKK4qyTajAoACSi&t=30 https://youtu.be/-Bm3278gk50?si=dmKK4qyTajAoACSi&t=30
- soraminazuki 2y agoSo the suspect was arrested for possessing a coilgun, but it was only made illegal this June with the law taking effect in March next year? The timeline doesn't make any sense. Other news sources aren't helpful as they contain even less information. Above all, how this was legal in Japan until very recently is beyond me. I thought Japan has strict gun controls in place. Edit: Apparently coilguns are categorized as firearms, which is illegal today, if they're lethal enough. https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/1563487?display=1 https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/1563487?display=1
- wongarsu 2y agoSo this is mostly a funny thing for the news cycle and a major inconvenience for the suspect, and he will be released once they realize this thing isn't actually lethal? A "good" way for authorities to show how they are on top of this and that you shouldn't share videos on coil guns on the internet. Seems a bit authoritarian.
- soraminazuki 2y agoNo, he was arrested because it was deemed to be lethal.
- wongarsu 2y agoThere is no way this thing is actually lethal in any reasonable definition of "lethal firearm". Maybe if you bludgeon someone with it.
- nicce 2y agoIf you shoot with this thing from, let's say from 5 meters to the head, is there a decent risk of dying? If yes, it most definitely is lethal.
- textadventure 2y agoAs much risk as throwing a rock from that distance, most likely. So no, probably not lethal.
- ZFleck 2y agoIs there a reason firearm manufacturer's aren't pursuing the creation / sale of 'coil guns' as actual products? I get that you're introducing reliance on a battery, but you're also gaining (I assume) near silent operation. And most incidents involving a firearm don't extend past one or two magazines anyways. Seems to me like a cleaner, more "futuristic" weapon. The "hobby" version of this weapon photographed in the article already looks quite clean.
- techbro92 2y agoThey’re very underpowered compared to an actual gun.
- kingkawn 2y agoWhat if it were a rifle to house a much larger electromagnet?
- icegreentea2 2y agoThere is a company messing around with commercial coilguns: https://arcflashlabs.com/product/emg-02/ https://arcflashlabs.com/product/emg-02/ They basically make something in a rifle form factor. It's still limited to 75m/s. That's low end air rifle speed.
- myrmidon 2y agoThe problem is that their efficiency at converting electricity into projectile kinetic energy is really bad (like single digit percentages bad), getting electrical energy and power density is quite difficult in the first place (capacitors have abysmally bad energy density compared to gunpowder), and coils absolutely hate having their current changed quickly (which you need for this to work).
- kingkawn 2y agoGreat and informative response, thank you
- alnwlsn 2y agoDoes this seem lethal to you? If that's a big aluminum electrolytic capacitor at the bottom, and those have energy densities around 1-3 J/cm3, then I'd estimate it could hold at most 50-200J. A fired .22 bullet can have an energy around that, so plausible? Efficiencies aren't going to be that good though, so maybe not. Any better estimations?
- Workaccount2 2y agoWith a background in electronics, just looking at that gun, it seems very unlikely it would do more than give someone a bruise. That appears to be a single coil which is chonky as hell, which means you need a high voltage to drive it. It looks like it also only has a single capacitor, the physical size of the which is too small to have enough energy to seriously drive a coil like that. You can find videos on youtube of diy coil guns 5x the size that at best punch holes in 3mm particle board or one side of an aluminum can. There is no way that thing is actually going to kill someone.
- slibhb 2y agoI imagine this (new) law has something to do with Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated with a homemade gun.
- busterarm 2y agoEMG-01 owner here https://arcflashlabs.com/ https://arcflashlabs.com/ There's no way this homemade coilgun has the muzzle velocity to do anything but harm squirrels and similar. This is way overblown.
- ncrc74 2y ago"accused of possessing a coilgun, a device that fires projectiles using magnetic force" "Upon analysis, it was confirmed that the coilgun had a structure capable of firing live ammunition" One of these is not like the other.
- Brian_K_White 2y agoGood grief every house has dozens of solenoids in various appliances that deliver the same punch as that thing. They can all poke a hole through cardboard, and so can a baby with a pencil.