Most people do not own or regularly carry personal protection weapons such as mace or stun guns. Those who do carry them regularly will often still find that they don’t take them everywhere. In western society, one thing that nearly everyone takes around with them everywhere they go is a cell phone. This fact might be the reason that Yellow Jacket has a safety solution for everyone.
They first started getting serious about developing their cell phone case stun gun July, 2012, when they hit their IndieGoGo goal of $100,000 with three hours left in the campaign. From there, it was just a matter of developing the technology for mass production. Originally designed for the iPhone 4, they have potential logistic issues with developing the cases as quickly as the rapidly changing world of smartphone shapes. Since they received their money, there is another iPhone available and a rising number of different Android configurations being offered every month. That doesn’t even cover the much smaller markets for Microsoft Windows Phones and BlackBerry.
If they can keep the technology fresh enough at the pace that the mobile device industry moves, it all comes down to marketing and promotion. The need is clear. The challenge is in getting the word out that this type of technology even exists. It delivers 650k volts of energy through electrodes on its upper edge. While not normally considered a lethal dose, it’s enough to help people disable an attacker and possibly get away.
Safety is, of course, a concern. After all, it’s the type of device that we put up to the side of our heads. It wouldn’t be good to have 650k volts shoot through one’s ear and directly into the user’s brain, right? To combat these concerns, they have a double-safety protocol. There is a cover that must be flipped open and a safety switch must be triggered prior to firing the weapon.
Here it is in action. Do think that something like this can change personal safety?
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/44116436[/vimeo]
