Patent Application
20100000438
1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains generally to methods and apparatus relating to propulsion systems.
2. Description of Related Art
Propelling systems find uses in a variety of applications, such as building tools, internal combustion engines, rockets used to launch satellites, missiles, or the like, and ammunition for weapons. Propelling systems have many different types of launch mechanisms. For example, conventional ammunition ignites volatile powders or pellets to produce expanding gases to propel the projectile. The projectile's velocity depends primarily on the type and amount of propellant used. In systems using cartridges having a cartridge, projectile, and propellant, such as cannon or small arms, the velocity of the projectile is fixed.
Methods and apparatus according to various aspects of the present invention comprise a propelling system for propelling projectiles with selectable velocity. In one embodiment, the propelling system comprises a cartridge, a propelling system, and a projectile.
A more complete understanding of the present invention may be derived by referring to the detailed description and claims when considered in connection with the figures, wherein like reference numbers refer to similar elements throughout the figures, and:
The present specification and accompanying drawings show an exemplary embodiment by way of illustration and best mode. While these exemplary embodiments are described, other embodiments may be realized, and logical and mechanical changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the detailed description is presented for purposes of illustration only and not of limitation. For example, the steps recited in any of the methods or process descriptions may be executed in any suitable order and are not limited to the order presented. Further, conventional mechanical aspects and components of the individual operating components of the systems may not be described in detail. The representations of the various components are intended to represent exemplary functional relationships, positional relationships, and/or physical couplings between the various elements. Many alternative or additional functional relationships, physical relationships, or physical connections may be present in a practical system.
The present invention is described partly in terms of functional components and various methods. Such functional components may be realized by any number of components configured to perform the specified functions and achieve the various results. For example, the present invention may employ various materials, explosives, projectiles, propellants, ignition systems, shapes, sizes, and weights for various components, electronic components, mechanical components, and the like, which may carry out a variety of functions.
Various aspects of the present invention may be embodied as a customization of an existing system, an add-on product, or a distributed system. Software may be associated with the invention to perform functions such as, for example, timing and control. Accordingly, various aspects of the present invention may take the form of an embodiment combining aspects of both software and hardware. Furthermore, any program or other control functions associated with the present invention, such as for firing and/or controlling the system, may take the form of a computer program executed on any suitable computer, a program executed by dedicated hardware where the program may be stored on any type of medium such as a hard disk, optical storage, and/or the like, or a program embedded in hardware by way of memory or logic. In addition, the present invention may be practiced in conjunction with any number of applications and environments, and the systems described are merely exemplary applications of the invention. Further, the present invention may employ any number of conventional techniques for manufacture, ignition, deployment, and the like.
Methods and apparatus according to various aspects of the present invention comprise a munition or other projectile system having a propelling system. The propelling system may be used for any suitable purpose or combination of purposes, such as to move pistons in an internal combustion engine, propel nails from building construction tools, launch satellites into orbit, propel projectiles from weapon systems, or any other suitable application. The methods and apparatus may be adapted for any system propelling and/or moving an object for any purpose.
For example, a propelling system according to various aspects of the present invention may be part of a cartridge for a weapon system. In one embodiment, the cartridge comprises a cartridge case, a propelling system, and a projectile attached to the cartridge case. The cartridge may be configured to fire a guided projectile that may require some time between launch and acquiring a desired target. In a system where the muzzle velocity is substantially fixed, the guided projectile launched at a nearby target may pass the desired target before acquiring it, thus decreasing the effectiveness of the guided projectile for targets closer than a certain minimum distance. Accordingly, the propelling system may allow launching a projectile at a variety of launch velocities to enable the guided projectile to be slower and to acquire nearer targets.
In particular, referring to
The projectile 110 may comprise any appropriate component to be fired from the cartridge case 112, and may be of any type, shape, and material for a particular application or environment. For example, the projectile 110 may be guided or unguided, may be ballistically or aerodynamically shaped, and may comprise any material suitable for the purpose of the projectile, for example, lead, steel, titanium, plastic, rubber, Teflon, or any combination of materials. The projectile 110 may be guided in any manner, for example, by barrel rifling, barrel aim, wire control, and/or autonomous guiding apparatus. In an exemplary embodiment, the projectile 110 comprises an autonomous guided projectile, made primarily from metal, weighing between 40 and 50 pounds and configured to be launched through a gun barrel. The projectile 110 may have fins 144 (
The cartridge case 112 may comprise any suitable system for holding the propelling system 114 and/or the projectile 110 in position. The cartridge case 112 may be of any type, shape, and material appropriate for the particular environment or application. The cartridge case 112 may fasten securely to the projectile 110 until launch, and may be single-use or reloadable. The exterior of the cartridge case 112 may be similar in shape, size, and materials to conventional fixed ammunitions for use in conventional weapon systems, such as conventional cannon and small arms. In one embodiment, the cartridge case 112 holds the projectile 110 in an immobile, non-adjustable position until the projectile is launched, such that the cartridge case 112 and the exposed part of the projectile 110 (if any) form a single integrated unit for pre-launch handling.
The propelling system 114 may be configured in any suitable manner to project the projectile 110. The propelling system 114 may be of any type and may be activated in any suitable manner. The propelling system 114 may also be positioned in any location with respect to the cartridge case 112 and the projectile 110. In the present exemplary embodiment, the propelling system 114 is largely inside the cartridge case 112. In an alternative embodiment, the propelling system 114 may be located external to the cartridge case 112 and the cartridge case 112 functions as a conduit between the propelling system 114 and the projectile 110.
Referring to
The physical arrangement of the chambers 116 may be selected according to any suitable criteria. Any number of chambers 116 may be partially or fully enclosed within a larger chamber 116. Additionally, any number of chambers 116 may be enclosed in a nested fashion where a smaller chamber 116 is enclosed in a larger chamber, which in turn is enclosed by an even larger chamber, and so forth. For example, referring to
One or more chambers 116 contain the propellant 118. The propellant 118 may comprise any suitable material for driving the projectile, such as explosive or combustible substances. The quantity of propellant 118 in each chamber 116 may be related to the volume of each chamber 116. For example, referring to
For example, referring again to
The number of possible launch velocities may correspond to the number of propellant 118 zones. A greater number of independently ignitable zones may provide a wider selection of launch velocities. The composition of the propellant 118 in the propelling system may also contribute to a variety of selectable launch velocities. For example, chambers 116 of smaller size may have propellant 118 that is proportionally stronger in firepower, such that a larger chamber 116 may have substantially equivalent firepower as a smaller chamber 116. Each chamber 116 may propel the projectile with substantially the same amount of force, creating a substantially linear relationship between the number of chambers 116 fired and the launch velocity. Additionally, chamber construction may provide additional variables to select launch velocity. For example, some chambers 116 may be constructed to remain intact until the propellant 118 ignited inside the chamber 116 attains greater pressure, thus enabling some chambers 116 to provide greater propelling power than others and a greater variety of launch velocities when used in combination.
Referring to
The activation system 120 controls the activation of the propellant 118 in the chambers 116. The activation system 120 may control the activation of the propellant in the chambers 116 in any way, and may ignite the various chambers 116 according to any appropriate process and/or sequence. For example, the activation system 120 may comprise, referring to
In an exemplary embodiment, each chamber 116 has at least one igniter 130, though a chamber 116 may not have an igniter 130 if the propellant 118 in the chamber 116 is configured to react to another stimulus, such as ignition of propellant 118 an adjacent chamber 116. For example, referring to
The igniters 130 may comprise any suitable device or system for activating the propellant 118, such as an electrical igniter, a thermal igniter, a concussive igniter, an actuator, or other suitable system. Different types of igniters 130 may be used for different chambers 116 and/or types of propellants 118. For example, the igniter 130 may comprise a firing cap used in a conventional center-fire ammunition cartridge. Heat and pressure from a firing cap may be used to ignite the propellant 118 in the chamber 116. The activation system 120 may also include wires, conduits, mechanical connections, and the like through the cartridge case 112 to transport heat, electrical signals, force, pressure, or other suitable trigger signals from a firing cap or other mechanism to a chamber 116 within the cartridge case 112 or enclosed by another chamber 116. Alternatively, the igniters 130 may activate the propellant 118 and/or be activated by electrical and/or electronic signals. Electrical and/or electronic igniters 130 may be analog or digital by nature and may use any suitable voltage, current, frequency, or other parameter.
In the present embodiment, the igniters 134, 136 ignite the propellant 118 of the respective chambers 122, 124 independently of each other. Igniting the propellant in selected chambers 116 independently of other chambers 116 may allow the projectile 110 to launch at selectable launch speeds. For example, igniting the propellant 126, 128 in the rear chamber 122 and forward chamber 124 substantially simultaneously may launch the projectile 110 at a substantially maximum velocity. Igniting the forward propellant 128 of the forward chamber 124 without concurrently igniting the rear propellant 126 in the rear chamber 122 may launch the projectile 110 with a lower velocity. In an exemplary embodiment, igniting only the forward propellant 128 launches the projectile 110 at about 300 meters per second, whereas igniting both propellants 126, 128 launches the projectile 110 at 600 meters per second.
The control system 132 controls the igniters 130 to selectively activate the propellants 118 in the various chambers 116. Any type of connector may be used between the control system 132 and the igniter 130. The control system 132 may control each igniter individually, subsets of igniters, or all igniters simultaneously. Where individual or separate groups of igniters 130 may be controlled, the control system 132 may impose any appropriate timing relationship on the ignition of any igniter 130 and/or group of igniters 130 with respect to any other igniter 130 and/or group of igniters 130. For example, the control system 132 may impose a wait period between the activation of the various igniters 130, and the igniters 130 may be activated in any suitable order.
In a propelling system 114 where each igniter 130 may be activated exclusive of any other igniter 130, any method may be used to control the activation of the igniters 130. For example, the control system 132 may include an activation circuit for generating and/or routing signals to selected igniters 130. For example, separate, individual wires or other connections may connect the control system 132 to each igniter 130, and the control system 132 may generate individual signals to selectively activate each igniter 130.
Referring to
Conversely, a negative firing pulse causes the second diode 140 to conduct and apply the signal to the forward igniter 136, which in turn ignites the propellant 128 in the forward chamber 124. The pressure and heat from the forward propellant 128 detonating in the forward chamber 124 do not ignite the rear propellant 126 in the rear chamber 122. Consequently, the projectile 110 is propelled using the propulsive force of only the propellant 128.
In an exemplary embodiment, firing the variable-speed projectile 110 comprises loading the cartridge 100 into a weapon system, selecting the desired launch velocity, activating the propelling system 114 in a manner to launch a projectile 110 at a desired launch speed, and launching the projectile 110. The propelling process may further include igniting propellant 118 in all unignited chambers 116 to expend all propellants 118 in the propelling system 114 to increase the safety of handling the spent cartridge 100, and removing the inert cartridge 100 from the weapon system.
Loading the cartridge 100 into a weapon system may be done in any suitable manner. For example, the cartridge 100 may be loaded manually by a single operator or multiple operators, automatically using equipment that requires no human intervention, and/or by a combination of automatic and manual methods. The method of loading ammunition in a weapon system may be combined with the process of unloading a previously fired cartridge case. In the present embodiment, an autoloader places the cartridge 100 into the weapon system.
Any available information may be used to determine a suitable launch velocity, and actual selection of the desired launch velocity may be accomplished in any suitable manner. For example, launch velocity may be related to a desired range, proximity of a target, time for a guided projectile to acquire the target, and desire to avoid detection. Once the desired velocity is determined, the velocity may be selected or communicated to the control system 132, for example by manually setting switches, automatic transfer from range finding equipment, transfer from separate location over a secure or insecure link, and a combination of automatic and manual techniques.
The propelling system 114 may be activated in any suitable manner that enables the projectile 110 to be launched at the selected launch velocity. The propelling system 114 may be activated, for example, by pulling a trigger to activate the igniters 130, waiting for the weapon system to acquire a target and automatically activating the propelling system 114 electronically, and manually activating the control system 132 that electrically activates the propelling system 114. In the present embodiment, selecting a high velocity causes the control system 132 to generate a positive electric pulse through the second diode 142 and rear igniter 134, which ignites the rear propellant 126 in the rear chamber 122. The detonation of the rear propellant 126 in the rear chamber 122 causes the forward propellant 128 in the forward chamber 124 to also detonate, propelling the projectile 110 with the combined force of both propellants 126, 128. The cartridge case 112 is inert after launch because all propellant 118 has been expended. Selecting a low velocity causes the control system 132 to generate a negative electric pulse that routes a signal through the first diode 140 and forward igniter 136, igniting the forward propellant 128 in the forward chamber 124. The projectile 110 is propelled with the force generated by forward propellant 128 alone.
After the projectile is launched at the desired velocity, propellant 118 remaining in propelling system 114 may be expended to make the cartridge 100 safer to handle. Expending remaining propellant 118 may be accomplished in any suitable manner. For example, the operator or control system 132 may track which chambers 116 were ignited to propel the projectile 110 and ignite the propellant 118 in chambers 116 that were not ignited. Alternatively, the operator or control system 132 may ignite all chambers 116 after the projectile 110 is launched to ensure the propelling system 114 is inert. In the present embodiment, propelling projectile 110 at a low speed leaves the rear propellant 126 intact in the rear chamber 122. After the projectile 110 is launched and has cleared the weapons system, the control system 132 may generate a positive electric pulse to ignite the rear propellant 126. The expanding gas generated by detonating propellant 126 exhausts out the barrel of the weapon system.
The used cartridge 100 may be unloaded from the weapon system in any suitable manner, for example, either mechanically, manually, or a combination of mechanical and manual activities. The unloading procedure may be, for example, the inverse of the loading procedure. The unloading procedure may be combined with the loading procedure for the next cartridge 100. In the present embodiment, an autoloader ejects the inert cartridge 100 from the weapon system.
Although the description above contains many details, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the exemplary embodiments of this invention. The scope of the present invention fully encompasses other embodiments, and is accordingly to be limited by nothing other than the appended claims, in which reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless explicitly so stated, but rather “one or more.” All structural, chemical, and functional equivalents to the elements of the above-described exemplary embodiments are expressly incorporated by reference and are intended, unless otherwise specified, to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, it is not necessary for a device or method to address each and every problem sought to be solved by the present invention for it to be encompassed by the present claims. Furthermore, no element, component, or method step in the present disclosure is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether the element, component, or method step is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for.” The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variation, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.
