WARHEAD STRUCTURE FOR INTERCEPTOR

Abstract

A warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising radially extending trapezoids. Each trapezoid having a length into said longitudinal direction and a plurality of said trapezoids extending around said circumference.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of Israel Patent Application No. 274947 filed 26 May 2020, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to warheads and more particularly but not exclusively to warheads for air-to-air missiles, especially for interception of aircraft and missiles.

Reference is made to FIG. 1 which shows a warhead 10 which comprises cylinder 12 filled with high explosive. Wire 14 leads to a detonator centrally located within the cylinder to detonate the warhead.

As shown in FIG. 2 the warhead detonates from the center in all directions. The explosion proceeds lengthways through the cylinder as indicated by arrow 16 as well as outwardly.

The lethality of a warhead used for interception is limited by the weight and volume of the warhead and the high speeds and maneuverability needed for interception limit the ability to increase the size of the warhead. Thus, in many cases two or more interceptors may be needed for a single target.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present embodiments may provide a warhead whose cross-section is optimized to focus the explosion.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising radially extending trapezoids each trapezoid having a length into said longitudinal direction and a plurality of said trapezoids extending around said circumference.

In an embodiment, each trapezoid is separately detonatable.

Embodiments may comprise a controller configured to select ones of said trapezoids for detonation thereby to provide a directed explosion.

In embodiments, the trapezoids are divided into segments along an axial direction of the warhead, each segment being provided with a detonation point at a midpoint of said segment along a central axis in said axial direction.

In embodiments, each trapezoid is separately detonatable from a detonator located on a radially outer surface of the respective trapezoid.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising radially extending explosive discs, a plurality of said explosive discs extending as a stack along said longitudinal direction.

In embodiments, each explosive disc is contained in a separate segment, the segment being defined by a segment wall.

In embodiments, each explosive disc is separately detonatable, being provided with a detonation point at a center of said segment along a central axis of said warhead.

Embodiments may be filled with high explosive, and may further comprise fragmentation material.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising segments extending radially to a peripheral edge, each segment having a length into said longitudinal direction and a plurality of said segments along said longitudinal direction, at least some of said segments having individual detonators at said peripheral edge, the detonators being separately controllable to initiate an explosion in a given direction.

Embodiments may comprise a controller to select among said plurality of individual detonators for detonation in accordance with a detected direction of a target from said warhead. Embodiments may comprise a solid cylinder of explosive rather than one divided into segments.

The radially extending segments may be filled with explosive, the segments being separated by divider walls and respective segments comprises detonators at points half way along said respective segment along a central axis of said warhead.

Embodiments may comprise a guide along said central axis, the guide being hollow or filled with explosive and wherein said detonators are distributed along said guide at said respective points.

In embodiments, said individual detonators are controllable to be detonated in sequence.

In embodiments, each segment has a length along said central axis of said warhead and a maximum radius, and wherein a ratio of the length to the maximum radius is between 1 and 2.

The ratio may more particularly be 1, 1.5 or 2.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of manufacture of a warhead, comprising:

• • providing a mold defining a predetermined shape, the predetermined shape selected for producing the Munroe effect when used with high explosive;
  • filling the mold with high explosive to form the high explosive into said predetermined shape;
  • inserting a detonator; and
  • fitting within a housing to form the warhead.

The method may comprise lining the explosive on the outside with a metallic liner, or alternatively, lining the mold on the outside with a metallic liner.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and/or scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains. Although methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the invention.

Exemplary methods and/or materials are described below. In case of conflict, the patent specification, including definitions will control. In addition, the materials, methods and examples are illustrative only and are not intended to be necessarily limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the invention ore herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. With specific reference now to the drawings in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of embodiments of the invention. In this regard, the description taken with the drawings makes apparent to those skilled in the art how embodiments of the invention may be practiced.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are schematic diagrams illustrating interception of an incoming missile target according to methods known in the art:

FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 are views of a warhead having longitudinal trapezoid projections according to a first embodiment of the present invention:

FIGS. 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 are views of a warhead comprising a stack of lateral discs according to a further embodiment of the present invention:

FIGS. 27 and 28 are views indicating the progress of a peripheral detonation using selected points to form an explosive lens according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 29 is a simplified flow chart showing a method of manufacturing the segments of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to a warhead and, more particularly, but not exclusively, to a warhead for aerial interception.

For purposes of better understanding some embodiments of the present invention, reference is first made to the construction and operation of a conventional aerial interception warhead as illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, already discussed in the background.

Reference is made to FIG. 1, which shows a warhead 10 which comprises a cylinder 12 lined with high explosive. Wire 14 leads to a detonator centrally located, meaning located along the central axis, within the cylinder to detonate the warhead. Generally the detonator is located at one end or the other of the cylinder.

As shown in FIG. 2, the warhead detonates from the central axis in all directions. The explosion proceeds lengthways through the cylinder as indicated by arrow 16 as well as outwardly.

As discussed in the background, the warhead is limited in size since aerial interception requires maneuverability. The present embodiments endeavor to provide greater destructive power for the same size warhead.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components and/or methods set forth in the following description and/or illustrated in the drawings and/or the examples. The invention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 3 and 4, which are simplified diagrams showing transverse and longitudinal cross-sections of a warhead 30 for mounting on an interceptor missile according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, warhead 30 has a central core made up of high explosive as in the prior art. However the radially outer part of the cylinder is shaped into longitudinally extending trapezoids 32. The trapezoids 32 meet radially inwardly in the warhead at a sharp point or ‘v’ shape 34, which allows for the Monroe effect to take place and direct the explosion including formation of a jet of molten metal if the explosive is lined with metal. The angle at the base of the ‘v’ may influence the speed, size, and formation of the resulting jet. The trapezoids all extend radially outwardly from the warhead center. The warhead is filled with explosive. In an embodiment the explosive filling is to the exclusion of fragments or fragmentation material. Alternatively, the trapezoids may include fragmentation material, with explosive being used for the rest of the warhead.

FIG. 5 is a simplified diagram showing a perspective view of FIG. 4 from the outside FIG. 6 is a further transverse cross-section.

Reference is now made to FIG. 7 which illustrates a central tube 40 through the warhead 30. The tube 40 is connected to detonating wire 42 and contains detonator 44 for detonating the warhead 30. The tube 40 contains fast acting high explosive which detonates at a faster rate than the explosive roundabout. The result is that the detonation spreads lengthwise through the detonator rapidly so that the overall detonation is smoother.

Reference is now made to FIG. 8, which is a simplified diagram showing three sections. 50, 52, 54 each section having the trapezoid structure shown in FIG. 7. Each section may be detonated serially. As shown in FIG. 8, the fins or trapezoids are divided into segments, and each segment may have a separate detonator. In an embodiment, each segment may be detonated independently, and in a further embodiment the segment is detonated from the middle of the segment along the central axis, thus causing an explosion that extends symmetrically and evenly along the segment, typically in an expanding sphere. The length of the segment may be the same length as the radius of the segment so that the expanding sphere does not reach the walls of the segment until it breaches the outer circumference. Thus, the explosion in each segment may be prevented by the divider walls from having an effect on the neighbouring segments. Alternatively, the length of the segment may be 1.5× radius, or 2× radius, or may take any value between 1 and 2.

In one embodiment, a guide is provided with detonators at the center of each segment, which are set off one after the other. That is to say there is provided a detonation tube or guide which is mostly hollow but has detonators at the center of each segment. In another embodiment, an electrical detonator produces sparks within the guide. Holes are provided in the pipe at the center of each segment where the spark is able to detonate the high explosive, resulting in simultaneous detonations in each segment. The holes are similar to those shown in FIG. 20 and discussed hereinbelow.

In FIG. 9, the three sections of FIG. 8 were encapsulated in a single capsule 56.

FIGS. 10 to 14 are five views of a further embodiment of the present invention in which the detonation is from the outside. In warhead capsule 60, the same trapezoid structure is used as before, but in addition to, or instead of, the central detonation pipe 62, there are peripheral detonation pipes 64 on the radially outer surfaces of at least some of the trapezoids. Each trapezoid and associated explosive pipe has a separate detonator 66. The detonators may be separately controllable so that the explosion may be directed or focused in any suitable direction. The explosive pipes form separately detonatable units.

If the hostile target is below, the pipes above may be detonated so that the blast and fragment cloud resulting from the explosion is directed below. In embodiments, not all of the charges are detonated on the opposite side but only certain of the charges are selected, so as to focus the explosion into a beam and thus magnify the power.

The decision as to which charges to detonate may be made locally on the missile or may be made remotely. The decision may for example be based on sensors located on the interceptor missile, where a weighting to one side of the sensor signals may be used to control the detonation. The sensors may be R.F sensors including optical and infrared sensors or magnetic sensors. Alternatively, remote tracking of the target and the interceptor may be used to make the decision.

As a result, a smaller warhead may be used for the same result, or the same size warhead may be used to greater effect.

Again, the explosive guides or pipes may have fast acting explosive, so that the detonation passes rapidly along the length of the warhead and hence the warhead explodes more evenly.

The trapezoids need not necessarily be filled exclusively with high explosive but some or all of the trapezoid body may instead contain fragmentation material or a fragment body.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 15 to 27, which are different views of a further embodiment of the present invention. In place of longitudinally extending trapezoids, warhead 70 comprises a longitudinally extending stack of explosive discs 72, each disc forming a transverse layer of the warhead. Again, each disc meets the neighbouring disc in a v shape 74, to enable the Monroe effect as before.

Thus, there is provided a warhead that comprises a series or stack of discs. The individual discs may be separated from each other by divider walls and in an embodiment, each disc may be independently detonated. The detonation of each disc may be at the point along the central axis which is half way between the two ends.

It is noted that fragments may be included in the trapezoid or disc, which thus becomes a fragment body. Alternatively, the disc or trapezoid etc. only contains high explosive and the fragments are on the outside. Combinations of the above may also be considered.

As shown in FIG. 16, detonation wire 76 reaches detonator 78, and a pipe 80 of fast acting explosive serves to spread the detonation evenly over the warhead.

As shown in FIG. 16, which is a longitudinal cross-section of the view in FIG. 15, a central detonation pipe or guide runs along the central axis. The warhead is divided into segments by dividing walls at the maximum circumference points on each disc, so that each segment runs from maximum circumference to a waist of minimum circumference and back to a maximum again. The segments may be divided using blast proof steel dividers. Each segment may have a ring of holes in the detonation guide at the longitudinal center of the segment along the central axis. The guide is filled with explosive, and each section thus gets its own defined initiation point for an explosion. Thus, in the embodiment shown, a single explosion runs down the pipe so that each hole sets off its section one after the other. In alternative embodiments, separate detonators may be provided for each segment or the detonation may be electrical, so that each segment gets sparks at the same time. The explosive material of the discs may be lined with metal such as copper.

Each segment may be separately contained so that the blast is directed by the ‘v’ shape and does not spread out, and the Munroe effect thus directs the blast in the radial direction. The outer shape of the explosive is an internally pointing triangle with an apex at the center of the segment, and the angle at the apex may affect the speed of the jet formed from the metal lining. The thickness of the liner also effects the size and speed of the jet.

The result is an explosion that heads out radially from the warhead instead of spreading out, thus forming a focused blast.

Referring to FIG. 17, which shows the embodiment of FIG. 16 in greater detail, the alignment of the detonation hole with the inwardly facing apex of the triangle is shown.

FIG. 18 shows four detonators, each with its own detonation point, and each dedicated to a single segment, for which it defines a central detonation point half way along the axial length of the segment. In embodiments, the order of exploding the segments may be actively selected in order to focus the explosion.

The explosive at the extreme edges of the segment, at maximum circumference is very thin, and liable to break. Thus the commonly used method of manufacture of shaped charges using CNC machines is not suitable. Instead, segments may be made by pouring high explosive into molds of polymer or metal. In an embodiment, the metal liner itself, together with the dividers may be used as the mold. Alternatively, the liner may be placed outside the mold, and again the explosive is poured into the mold, which mold is left in place. The liner may be made with the mould or simply placed on top. The issue is considered in greater detail hereinbelow with respect to FIG. 29.

Reference is now made to FIG. 19, which is a variation of FIG. 18 in which there are no segmentation walls but rather the detonation points alone define the segmentation of the explosive. As shown in FIG. 19, there are two points of blast initiation, which may be selected for focusing ability. As shown in FIG. 19 and FIG. 20, holes are provided in the detonation guide, but weakened points may be provided as an alternative.

FIG. 22 illustrates a case in which each disc 72 is in a separate segment, and segment dividers 84, preferably made of energy absorbing material, ensure that the explosions in the different lenses do not interfere with one another. FIG. 23 shows in greater detail how each segment has a separate outlet 86 from the centrally located explosive pipe. FIG. 25 illustrates an embodiment in which a single explosive wave extends through the central pipe from a single detonator. FIG. 26 illustrates the case where each segment has a separate detonator.

FIGS. 27 and 28 are two simplified diagrams illustrating peripheral detonations in a further embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 27, the internal structure within casing 90 may be solid explosive, without the trapezoid structure of the first embodiment herein, or the trapezoid or disc constructions may be provided. Peripheral detonator 92 is detonated on the periphery and causes an explosion to progress in the directions shown by the arrows. As more and more trapezoids or disc parts on the top side are part of the initial detonation, the more the explosive energy is directed in a single direction and the energy of the warhead may be directed in a more focused manner at the target. Thus detonations may be initiated on opposite sides of the missile from the target to produce a blast wave heading across the missile and towards the target.

In FIG. 28, detonators are provided at angular intervals around the circumference. In addition, the warhead is divided into longitudinal segments, and each segment is given a separate detonator or ring of detonators. In this way the lengthwise detonation of the warhead may be controlled as well as the radial direction of the blast, thus providing a directed blast which extends along the warhead as the interception target passes by.

That is to say, there are provided multiple detonation points on the outer surface, which can be selected in different combinations in order to create a blast lens. The explosive may be arranged as discs as per FIG. 15, or as trapezoids, as FIG. 3, or may simply be smooth or any other shape. The explosion may thus be initiated from a single point or several points, including on opposite sides and or at the same time in succession. As discussed above, the disc segments should be thin enough so that there is no sideways detonation effect. Each disc may begin its detonation from the same point at the midpoint of the central axis, and has no input from the neighbours. Again fragments or fragmentation bodies may be provided along with the explosive. The plates separating the segments may be solid so as to completely prevent interference between the neighbouring segments or they may merely hold up the progress of the blast wave, so as to obtain constructive interference and produce a lens effect.

In a further embodiment the high explosive is a single block without separation, the segmentation being defined by the detonators alone. The detonation from several different points into a single block of high explosive may cause shaping and focusing of the blast. Again some of the explosive may be replaced by a fragment body.

The present embodiments thus provide ways to shape the blast wave, and the warhead itself may be mounted on a maneuverable missile that may approach the target from different directions, with different segments thus being directed to explode at different times and in different directions as the missile maneuvers past the target.

Reference is now made to FIG. 29, which is a simplified flow chart illustrating a method of manufacturing a warhead or warhead segment according to embodiments of the present invention. As mentioned above, the explosive at the extreme edges of the segment, at maximum circumference is very thin, and liable to break. Thus the commonly used method of manufacture of shaped charges using CNC machines is not suitable. Instead, a mold is constructed for the disc shape or other Munroe effect suitable shape —100, and each segment may be made by pouring high explosive into the mold —102. The mold may be of polymer or metal. A detonator is placed with each segment —104, and as mentioned, the detonator is ideally placed half way along the segment along the central axis of the warhead. In alternative embodiments the detonator may be placed on the periphery, but again may be half way along the segment in the longitudinal direction of the warhead. In an embodiment, the metal liner itself, together with the dividers may be used as the mold. Alternatively, the liner may be placed outside the mold —106, and again the explosive is poured into the mold, which mold is left in place. The liner may be made with the mould or simply placed on top.

Finally the warhead is put together by assembling the segments within a housing.

It is expected that during the life of a patent maturing from this application many relevant detonation and interception technologies will be developed and the scopes of the corresponding terms as well as others used in the present disclosure are intended to include all such new technologies a priori.

The terms “comprises”. “comprising”, “includes”. “including” . . . having” and their conjugates mean “including but not limited to”.

The term “consisting of” means “including and limited to”.

As used herein, the singular form “a”, “an” and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment and the present description is to be construed as if such embodiments are explicitly set forth herein. Conversely, various features of the invention, which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable subcombination or may be suitable as a modification for any other described embodiment of the invention and the present description is to be construed as if such separate embodiments, subcombinations and modified embodiments are explicitly set forth herein. Certain features described in the context of various embodiments are not to be considered essential features of those embodiments, unless the embodiment is inoperative without those elements.

Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof: it is evident that many alternatives modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.

All publications, patents and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated in their entirety by reference into the specification, to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein by reference. In addition, citation or identification of any reference in this application shall not be construed as an admission that such reference is available as prior art to the present invention. To the extent that section headings are used, they should not be construed as necessarily limiting. In addition, any priority document(s) of this application is/are hereby incorporated herein by reference in its/their entirety.

Claims

1. A warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising radially extending trapezoids, each trapezoid having a length into said longitudinal direction and a plurality of said trapezoids extending around said circumference.

2. The warhead of claim 1, wherein each trapezoid is separately detonatable.

3. The warhead of claim 2, further comprising a controller configured to select ones of said trapezoids for detonation, thereby to provide a directed explosion.

4. The warhead or claim 2, wherein the trapezoids are divided into segments along an axial direction of the warhead, each segment being provided with a detonation point at a midpoint of said segment along a central axis in said axial direction.

5. The warhead of claim 2, wherein each trapezoid is separately detonatable from a detonator located on a radially outer surface of the respective trapezoid.

6. A warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising radially extending explosive discs, a plurality of said explosive discs extending as a stack along said longitudinal direction.

7. The warhead of claim 6, wherein each explosive disc is contained in a separate segment, the segment being defined by a segment wall.

8. The warhead of claim 6, wherein each explosive disc is separately detonatable, being provided with a detonation point at a center of said segment along a central axis of said warhead.

9. The warhead of claim 1, filled with high explosive, and further comprising fragmentation material.

10. A warhead having a circumference, a radial direction and a longitudinal direction and comprising segments extending radially to a peripheral edge, each segment having a length into said longitudinal direction and a plurality of said segments along said longitudinal direction, at least some of said segments having individual detonators at said peripheral edge, the detonators being separately controllable to initiate an explosion in a given direction.

11. The warhead of claim 10, comprising a controller to select among said plurality of individual detonators for detonation in accordance with a detected direction of a target from said warhead.

12. The warhead of claim 10, comprising a solid cylinder of explosive.

13. The warhead of claim 6, wherein said radially extending segments are filled with explosive, the segments being separated by divider walls and respective segments comprises detonators at points half way along said respective segment along a central axis of said warhead.

14. The warhead of claim 13, comprising a guide along said central axis, the guide being hollow or filled with explosive and wherein said detonators are distributed along said guide at said respective points.

15. The warhead of claim 14, wherein said individual detonators are controllable to be detonated in sequence.

16. The warhead of claim 6, wherein each segment has a length along said central axis of said warhead and a maximum radius, and wherein a ratio of the length to the maximum radius is between 1 and 2.

17. The warhead of claim 16, wherein the ratio is one member of the group consisting of 1, 1.5 and 2.

18. A method of manufacture of a warhead, comprising: providing a mold defining a predetermined shape, the predetermined shape selected for producing the Munroe effect when used with high explosive;filling the mold with high explosive to form the high explosive into said predetermined shape;inserting a detonator; andfitting within a housing to form the warhead.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising lining the explosive on the outside with a metallic liner.

20. The method of claim 18, comprising lining the mold on the outside with a metallic liner.