Stasis cuffs

A pair of stasis cuffs.

Stasis cuffs are Transformer-sized handcuffs with a rigid block between the individual cuffs which holds an extendible belt for use when placing the unit.

They place the Transformer they are used on into a form of stasis lock which leaves the victim fully conscious and capable of speech but—once active—unable to move in any other way or use any special powers they may possess.

“	I wouldn't squirm. These things chafe like a glitch.	”
—Thrust says something funny, Earthrise episode 2

Fiction

Animated cartoon

When Optimus Prime refused to agree to cover up recent events with Megatron and the AllSpark, Sentinel Prime arrested him and threatened to use a pair of stasis cuffs on him. When he later tried to use them on Optimus however, he quickly found them on his own wrists. Optimus would get the chance to use the same pair on Starscream later the same day.

Lots of pairs of stasis cuffs, but much thinner than seen before.

When the Cybertron Elite Guard departed Earth, they left a box of stasis cuffs for Optimus' crew to use on any Decepticons they would encounter. Mission Accomplished

In response to the Decepticon Uprisings, Ultra Magnus removed Starscream from the stasis cuffs to have his flight protocols studied and later applied to Autobots. First (and Second) in Flight Starscream used the chance to escape from the brig of the Elite Guard's ship and returned to Earth. Prowl, eager to prove himself took a pair to the moon once he tracked the signature of Starscream's AllSpark fragment there. During a scuffle between Prowl and the bounty hunter Lockdown, Starscream escaped, either through his AllSpark fragment or one of his clones freeing him.

A pair Lockdown supplied seemed to be effective enough to restrain another clone. A Fistful of Energon

When Megatron prepared to use a reverse-engineered space bridge to invade Cybertron, Blurr led the Autobots to the mine it was located in. When they were confronted by Lugnut and Blitzwing, Blurr used his super-speed to slap a pair of stasis cuffs on both of them. A Bridge Too Close, Part I

This left them unable to respond to Megatron's call for reinforcements when Starscream and his clones invaded for the space bridge. Blurr managed to slap another pair on the cowardly clone before the two and the egomaniac were sent through the space bridge. As Bulkhead worked to retrieve Blurr, he was attacked by the female clone. Though Bumblebee threw his friend another pair of cuffs, the clone managed to claim them and immobilize Bulkhead with them. Prowl managed to immobilize the liar only for the sycophant to shoot the cuffs off of his brother a second later. After Professor Sumdac had foolishly turned the Headmaster unit on Starscream when the traitor was about to kill Megatron, the chaos allowed the tyrant to regain the edge of the battle, putting stasis cuffs on Optimus Prime and Prowl. During all this, Scrapper managed to free Lugnut and Blitzwing from their stasis cuffs.

Calling on processor-over-matter, Prowl managed to open his stasis cuffs just as Optimus was being used as the test subject for Megatron's space bridge, tossing a shuriken that broke Prime's cuffs and allowed him to escape the portal. When the space bridge later overloaded, on account of Megatron using the AllSpark fragment fuelled head of Starscream to power it, Optimus bound the tyrant in stasis cuffs, leaving him unable to fight the gravity field, emerging in a distant region of the galaxy, immobile and with only Starscream for company. A Bridge Too Close, Part II

After some squabbling, Starscream began using his teeth to try and remove Megatron's stasis cuffs, succeeding when his rage caused his AllSpark fragment to spontaneously upgrade his mouth into a sonic blaster that shattered the restraints. When the inert form of Omega Supreme drifted near the Decepticons, Megatron used the remains of the stasis cuffs and Starscream's AllSpark fragment to hotwire and assume control of the Sentinel. TransWarped

As the Autobots hunted down the scattered Decepticons, they managed to bind Lugnut in stasis cuffs. When they were called away before managing to secure him however, Starscream's lying clone broke the cuffs. Three's a Crowd

Upon the Elite Guard's return to Earth, Sentinel Prime hired Lockdown to capture the Decepticon elite, Lockdown delivering them all in stasis cuffs. When Lockdown cornered the lying Starscream, the clone promised a better deal. To ambush Sentinel, Lockdown placed the clone in dud stasis cuffs. Following the other Autobots putting an end to this, genuine cuffs were placed on the clone. Five Servos of Doom

After Sentinel Prime had foolishly flown the Elite Guard ship through a stormy nebula, the energy reactivated the unrestrained Swindle who freed the Decepticons from their stasis cuffs. Decepticon Air When Sentinel later accused Ratchet of treason, Jetfire and Jetstorm moved to place the medic in stasis cuffs only to be scared off by Carmine Fanzone's organic biology, allowing Ratchet the opening to use his magnetic powers to destroy the stasis cuffs. This Is Why I Hate Machines

Following the defeat of the Starscream Supremes, Megatron, Lugnut and Shockwave were all bound in stasis cuffs when the Autobots returned to Cybertron. Endgame, Part II

Generation 1 continuity family

Wings Universe

Stasis cuffs were in use by the Elite Guard. Older generation models merely disrupted aggressive subroutines, while newer models caused complete immobilization. The Stealth Team used some older stasis cuffs on Gutcruncher and his gang before locking them in the Darklon's brig. As it turned out, Charger was way too psychologically unstable for the cuffs to work on him and he used the brig's energy bars to burn out Gutcruncher's stasis cuffs. The other stasis cuffs were disposed of when they found the armory. A Team Effort

Mars Attacks: The Transformers

Wheeljack invented stasis cuffs which were used to restrain Megatron and his Decepticons after a mid-city battle. The Decepticons managed to break free from them during the subsequent Martian invasion. Mars Attacks: The Transformers

Of Masters and Mayhem

Stasis cuffs were used by the Autobots to capture Toxitron, but he used his acidic secretions to melt the cuffs and kill his captors. The Toxic Transformer