The L.A.B.A CannonBy Shane Reddell and Charlie Albright

Long-range Assault Blowgun Apparatus

The name really says it all. So don’t stand in front of it.

What is the L.A.B.A. Cannon?

Gun◦ Can handle up to 40 psi of pressure (at least

that’s how high we have taken it)◦ 6’8” in length◦ Could basically kill anything in its path◦ PVC chamber, copper barrel◦ Inexpensive, about $60 (why get a professional

firearm and a concealed weapons license when you could build this yourself?)

Some Specs

Darts◦ Made of a 2 inch finish nail, a playing card, and

decorative beads◦ Playing card cone provides airtight seal inside the

barrel that gives the dart maximum velocity◦ Has gone completely through multiple targets,

such as an apple, a coke can, a soccer ball, and even a ½ inch wooden fence.

Specs Cont.’d

The L.A.B.A cannon uses the properties of pressure to fire a dart at mind-blowing speeds.

Pressure flows from the air compressor into the gun, from high to low pressure

After pressure reaches between 20 and 35 PSI inside the gun, the gun can be fired.

How does it work?

Pressure flows from the air compressorinto the gun and pressurizes the firing chamber.

The pressure is released with the front lever and the flow from high to low pressure propels the bullet forward into the target.

140 PSI

1 PSI

20-35PSI

1 PSI

We wanted to find a correlation between the pressure inside the chamber and the average velocity of the bullet

Describe Setup

10 psi = 32.56 m/s, or 72.8 mph 15 psi = 42.16 m/s, or 94.3 mph 20 psi = 47.86 m/s, or 107.1 mph

Anyone have an idea of what type of relationship there is between pressure and velocity?

Field Testing

V = (22.178)ln(P) – 18.33

Equation

The equation is logarithmic because as we continue to raise the pressure, the bullet will eventually reach a terminal velocity (the asymptote of the graph) where it can go no faster (higher on the graph)

Unfortunately the pressure is way too high for us to try and achieve without the gun exploding into a million pieces.

Why it makes sense

Enough talking about the gun, let’s go see it in action.

End