ES2305983T3 - PICKUP COLLECTION DEVICE FOR A MISSION FREE OF TAPE LINKS. - Google Patents

Abstract

Shell catching device has conveyor (1) for conveying ammunition and ammunition feeder (7) of weapon, which has weapon-side extractor (4), ejection pipe (6) and shell dampener (8) which is functionally connected to ejection pipe. The shell (2) or ammunition ejected with high speed through ejection pipe to shell catching spring (21) which is arranged in between the ejection pipe and shell dampener. During the impingement of shell or ammunition on shell catching spring, the shell or ammunition acts upon the shell dampener and the catching energy is reduced. An independent claim is also included for the cartridge holder.

Description

Pod collection device for a ammo free of ribbon links.

The invention relates to a device of collection of pods for ammunition free of ribbon links, for an automatic cannon, especially in airplanes and systems air defense.

In the current installation systems of automatic cannons in airplanes and air defense systems a low installation volume, a low volume are very important weight, good handling and rearmament times as short as possible. All this must also be checked from the standpoint of low expenses and logistics.

The systems of Ammunition feeding with and without tape (without tape links). Ammunition without ribbon links is characterized because the volume Installation in the ammo loader is generally less than in the case of ammunition with tape.

Document DE19501706A1, for example, proposes an ammo feed system for a firearm of medium caliber To transport the ammo from the ammo box to the system for charging and firing, the power system Ammunition features a fixed helical ramp. Each ammo enters in contact against the helical ramp, through its sheath. Between the ammo box and the system for loading and firing the weapon, a transport device is connected. A chain used is It consists of a sequence of chain links characterized as elastic and deformable. These are linked together by pairs through soul axes. On these are supported accommodation for ammunition. Also, the system comprises two elastic side edges. During a butt movement of the gun stays fixed ammo box: The parallelogram deformable allows to move laterally to the section of the device transport, located on the side of the weapon. The device of transport presents a superior tensor organ and a tensor organ lower to dampen chain oscillations. No this provided for the return of the pods, for example, to the box of ammunition.

Another ammo feed system for an ammo free of ribbon links is described in the document DE3644513C2. In this, in addition to the ammunition vessel, a transport chain resistant to tear. A delivery unit between the transport chain and a weapon power chain delivers ammunition from the transport chain to the weapon. On the bottom side of the  wheel mechanism of said delivery unit are installed, in the upper side, a guide wheel and sliding rails, with the same construction as in the ammunition delivery device, to through which the empty material of the barrel can surrender to the ammunition system. No more details are given to respect.

Also in document EP1024339B1 is described a magazine for ammunition carried without tape. The delivery of ammunition magazine cartridges to the weapon is done through a Ammo feed device. The goal is that I don't know release, especially during the acceleration of the guide chain of ammo It is proposed to incorporate as a chain tensioner a means to influence the elasticity constants of the medium chain tensioner depending on the tensioning device and speed of the tensioning movement. The feeding device of Ammo itself features an ammo feed chain that it extends, in an endless loop, around two rollers of deviation. A second deviation roller is provided  automatic entry weapon, which receives the cartridges, closes them and deliver the empty cartridge case to the feed chain of ammunition. The way this delivery occurs is not described in detail. The ammo feed chain of the device Ammo feed is elastic in a certain way, and by corresponding return forces cause a rotating movement of sway of delivery device or deviation unit no operated, as well as the ammunition guide chain. The guide chain of Ammunition is made up of several following lodging deposits in the form of trays.

EP0337735A1 discloses a system of feeding cartridges free of ribbon links, for delivery to a submachine gun or automatic rapid-fire cannon and the reconduction of the remaining pods to an ammo charger. The nature of this system is that the device transport in the ammo loader comprises a sequence of cartridge holders arranged within walking distance. Each one of these brackets features a pair of opposing, rotating support halves, linked together, which are suitable for adopting positions automatically closed relative, which hold the cartridges, while they are arranged in the rectilinear sections of the device of transport, automatically adopting relative positions open that release the cartridges, while they are in the investment sections of the transport device. At the station cartridge delivery are integrated sprockets of transport, of which one serves to slow down the speed of transport and the other to accelerate it to a delivery speed adequate.

By document US2,855,828A that forms the basis of the preamble of claim 1, a device of Pickup for a pod in a closing weapon. The device of collection is formed by a known extractor for closing weapons, as well as a guide to the feed and eject tray, with a damper located behind said tray and configured as feeder The guide is integrated in the form of half-face on the upper side of the closure, and the eject tray itself is folding around the longitudinal axis. To the gun tube They feed the projectile from one side and the sheath from the other side. These are deposited in the guide on the closure and in the tray expulsion. The feeder that later also serves as shock absorber, slide both parts into the gun tube, the closure leads to its upward position. After the shot, the closure is brought back down, the sheath is removed from the tube of gun through the extractor arranged in the gun tube, and it puts in a final position in the eject tray along the guide, braking the damper the sheath. Then the ejection tray with the sheath is folded around the shaft itself longitudinal and the sheath is ejected forward.

The invention aims to provide a reconduction of the pods or in case of a detonation failure of ammunition free of ribbon links. This way it It aims to achieve that, especially, the triggered pods are redirect the ammunition depot in an orderly manner (charger), so that no empty space is required additional. In addition, thanks to the easy handling it is intended to reduce the loading and unloading time

This objective is achieved through characteristics of claim 1.

The invention is based on the idea of incorporating for the reconduction of the pods (empty material) to the tank of ammunition, through the ammunition feeding device, a guide or evacuation of pods (ejection tube), preferably located on the side of the weapon), and perform the chain or the transporter, used to transport ammunition, in combination with this ejection tube, so that the pods get to be located in the chain links of the conveyor. He Expected ejection tube cooperates with collection springs located between the ejection tube and the sheath damper and It aims to direct the chain of defined ammunition the sheaths of the closed ammunition, expelled to a very high speed To do this, the sheath is diverted to a shock absorber of pods preferably arranged in the housing of a ammo feeder Generally, the ammo feeder It is an integral part of the weapon and is powered by a drum weapon, through the drum shaft. The sheath cushion dampens the ejected pods at very high speed, so strong that can be collected at the collection springs of pods The pod collection springs, in turn, have the task of avoiding the rebound of the pods. This is done, preferably, introducing the sheath into an extraction slot. In this way, these pods are guided in a defined way to the sheath department of the chain of ammunition. Shock absorber pods may preferably be equipped as a system of hydraulic damping, by mass or by springs.

To ensure trouble-free operation, according to a variant of the invention it is planned to put the sheath cushion in its initial position after each Shooting.

The proposed solution also offers a conveyor made flexibly and composed of two pairs of chain wheels with bearings, with a chassis, chains U-shaped doubles, joined by connecting rods, and guide strips for ammo or pods. Chain wheels and chassis they serve for the transport and the guided of the chain of ammunition. The chain wheel bearings should be attached in the chassis mobile, for example, through oblong holes, so that a longitudinal compensation is possible during each weapon movement. In addition, because of its configuration for example U-shaped chain links are configured, preferably, as elastic elements. Chain links they are conceived as elastic elements taking advantage especially the characteristics of the material and resulting in elasticity of chain length modification. Both the ammunition as the redirected pods are guided in a way captive and fastened axially in guide strips and in the chain of ammunition at the edge of extraction of the sheath.

The gear housed on the side of the weapon drives the chain of ammunition through the drum shaft, through the shaft of the conveyor The drum shaft and the conveyor shaft are preferably carried out as a coupling element between the weapon and the ammunition feeder, so that through the axial displacement of the axes, the weapon and the chain of ammunition can be separated from the ammo feeder. Generally this procedure is desired for the loading and unloading procedure of the weapon system

A synchronized feeding of ammunition to the shooting position to be adopted, after delivery to weapon, has the advantage that the feeder does not have to follow All the advance and return of the weapon for reloading.

In practice, it has been shown that for reconduction of the sheath to the chain of ammunition, the sheath in the gun cartridge magazine should have a minimum shutter so that the ejector can establish a minimum tension. During the expulsion procedure, the reduction energy is used of tension and correspondingly transforms into velocity at Release the holder sleeve. To do this, preferably in the cartridge holder of the gun drum is made a slot defined. The position of the slot in the cartridge holder is adapted to the geometry and consistency of the cartridges or the ammo / pod. When firing, due to the gas pressure in the sheath of ammunition, it deforms in such a way that by deformation permanently come into contact with the groove. When applying the ejector, that is, when removing the sheath, the ejector must use a force or tension so high that the sheath deformed into the groove is extracted, by way of deformation, from the groove and, therefore, from the cartridge holder. Therefore, this structure guarantees a cartridge holder with a defined resistance against the sheath extraction and is independent of a lubrication and of the surface of the cartridge holder.

The solution is applied, among others, in weapons Highly hot with an exempt ammo transport system of ribbon links. Pods fired or ejected by a drum cartridge magazine, are cushioned through a damping, captured in a chain system, positioned exactly and transported to a box of ammunition. Through a defined draw voltage avoids the known error that is Produces in systems of this type. The pod is prevented from being left braking on its way to the catchment position or other than ejected at a minimum speed, since in these cases, the system Ammo transport, being controlled by the weapon, continues rotating during the next shot, before the pod has reached its desired position.

With the help of an embodiment example with drawing, the invention will be described in more detail.

They show:

Figure 1 in a sectional representation, the reconduction of a sheath to a chain of ammunition,

Figure 2 in a sectional representation, the ammunition delivery and pod reception between the chain of ammunition and the drum of the weapon,

Figure 3 the chain of ammunition with ammunition and pods,

Figure 4 a cartridge holder in section, no sheath,

Figure 4a a representation of a detail A of figure 4,

Figure 5 the cartridge holder with sheath,

Figure 5a a representation of a detail A ' of figure 5.

The principle of the reconduction of pods, only the parts being marked essential for the invention. With 1 a transporter is designated represented by parties, which in this representation are evacuating pods 2 of a closed ammo 3 (which cannot be seen here). The pods 2 are passed, by an extractor 4 on the side of the weapon, in an ejection position 5 (figure 2), to an ejection tube designated by 6. Said extraction tube 6 is incorporated, preferably, in the casing of an ammo feeder 7 which, generally, it is part of a weapon not represented in detail. In functional tuning with this ejection tube 6 is a pod cushion designated by 8, which cushions pods 2 ejected at a very high speed. For operation without failures, the sheath cushion 8 is put in its initial position after each shot. If the cushion 8 sheaths is a spring damping system, this can lead to the initial position by forced guidance by the force of spring. However, this forced control is also possible at through a cam wheel with control cams (not shown in detail), which can be integrated into gear 9 itself of the ammo feeder 7.

Figure 2 shows the action in a view Joint ammunition transportation and pod evacuation.

In a known way, the gear 9 drives through the drum axis 10 of the weapon, through the axis 11 of the conveyor, the chain of ammunition 1 'for feeding Ammunition and pod evacuation.

From an ammunition depot not represented in detail, the 1 'chain of ammunition transports cartridges 3 to 7 gun ammo feeder. The cartridges or the ammo 3 are held in chain links 12 and led to the area of the Conveyor chain wheel 14 1. Next, the ammo 3 is delivered, in the area of the chain wheel 14 on the side of the weapon, to a rotor 15 of the ammo feeder 7, and in this position is delivered by rotor 15 to a feeding star 16 on the side of the weapon. Here, due to the number of drums, the feeding star 16 has five notches and therefore five positions for ammo 3. Other positions are the firing position 17 itself and the ejection position 5 of the sheath 2.

As already described, it is related functionally with this ejection position 5 the ejection tube  6 leading the pods 2 to a pod pickup position 18 along an evacuation 19 of pods. A sensor 20 serves, among other things, for functional checking.

After firing the ammo 3 from the firing position 17, rotate the gun drum and eject the sheath 2, for which the extractor 4 attacks on the edge 22 of the sheath 2. Sheath 2 ejected at high speed is conducted, to through the ejection tube 6, to collection springs 21 of pods. By impacting the sheath 2 on the collection springs 21 of the sheaths, the sheath cushion 8 is loaded with the sheath 2. The 8 shock absorber sheaths, in this case a spring system, elastically dampens and reduces sheath collection energy 2. The shock absorber stroke 8 of the sheaths is designed in such a way so that the sheath 2 is collected by the collection springs 21 of sheaths on the extraction edge 22 of the sheath 2. Of this way, the sheath 2 is defined in the 1 'chain of ammunition. During the next shot, the system keeps turning and sheath 2 is redirected to the ammunition tank, through the 1 'chain of ammunition. In this exemplary embodiment, the replacement of the shock absorber 8 of sheaths is preferably performed by means of the energy in the own springs.

To reduce recoil forces and breakthrough that occur during firing, that is, the weapon with the Ammo feeder 7 makes recoil and forward movements up to approx. 40 mm, the weapon is buffered in a system with recoil (not shown in detail). Given the, Generally, the ammo tank is rigidly mounted, the delivery of the ammunition 3 is carried out through a flexible conveyor configuration 1.

A conveyor 1 shown in figure 3 it consists substantially of chain wheel 15 (figure 2), guides 23, bridges 24, power bridges 25, walls sides 26 and a chain wheel 27 on the side of the loader. Both bridges 24, 25 and side walls 26 serve to stabilize the conveyor 1 and form the conveyor chassis 1. For the housing of chain wheel bearings 12, 27, for example through oblong holes in the chassis of the Conveyor 1, this obtains additional flexibility.

In Fig. 4 a support 30 is shown of ammunition feeder 7 cartridges or parts of the holder, in A sectional representation. In the holder 30 of cartridges is made a defined slot 31. The position and shape of the slot 31 in the cartridge holder 30 are adapted to the geometry and consistency of cartridge 3 or its sheath 2, no represented in detail here. By 32 the housing of the 30 cartridge holder. Figure 4a shows an enlarged detail A of Figure 1, for the clear representation of slot 31.

In figure 5 the support 30 is shown of cartridges with the cartridge 3 indicated here with the pod 2. In the bottom of sheath 2 attacks extractor 4, with whose help sheath 2 It is evacuated from the holder 30 of cartridges.

Figure 5a shows an enlarged detail A 'of Figure 5 which, in principle, is identical to geometric detail A of figure 4. When firing, by the gas pressure in the sheath 2 of the cartridge, this deforms in the housing 33, so that by permanent deformations 34 come into contact in slot 31. Al apply the ejector or extractor 4, it exerts a force or tension so large that the shell 33 of the sheath, deformed in the grooves 31, is removed from slot 31 or cartridge holder 30 by deformation path X. This tension setting guarantees a higher predictable voltage level, with a bandwidth significantly smaller.

In addition, by applying a force constant a good joint action is achieved between the extraction of the pod 2 of the cartridge holder 30 and the collection thereof in the chain 1 '.

Reference List

one

Ammo chain

2

Sheath

3

Ammunition

4

Extractor

5

Ejection position

6

Ejection tube

7

Ammo Feeder

8

Sheath Cushion

9

Gear

10

Drum shaft

eleven

Conveyor shaft

12

Chain links

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14

Chain wheel

fifteen

Rotor

16

Feeding star

17

Firing position

18

Pod uptake position

19

Pod deflection

twenty

Sensor

twenty-one

Pod collection spring

22

Extraction edge

2. 3

Guides

24

Bridges

25

Feeding bridges

26

Side walls

27

Chain wheel on the side of the loader

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30

Cartridge holder

31

Groove

32

Support housing

33

Sheath housing

3. 4

Deformation.

Claims (11)

1. Device for collecting sheaths for ammunition (3) free of belt links, which is supplied to a weapon by means of a conveyor (1) and an ammo feeder (7) and has an extractor (4) on the side of the weapon, as well as an ejection tube (6) and a sheath shock absorber (8), which is functionally related to the ejection tube (6), a sheath (2) or ammunition (3) being driven, ejected at high speed, through the ejection tube (6), towards collecting springs (21) of pods, located between the ejection tube (6) and the shock absorber (8) of pods, characterized in that when impacting the sheath (2) or Ammunition (3) on the collection springs (21) of pods, the shock absorber (8) of pods is loaded with the pod (2) or ammunition (3), and the collection energy and the sheath (2) are reduced or Ammunition (3) is located on conveyor chain links (1). 2. Pod collection device according to claim 1, characterized in that the ejection tube (6) is incorporated in the casing of the ammunition feeder (7). 3. Pod collection device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the sheath buffer (8) is arranged in the casing of the ammunition feeder (7). 4. Device for collecting pods according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the shock absorber (8) is a hydraulic damping system, by mass or by springs. 5. Pod collection device according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the stroke of the shock absorber (8) of pods is designed such that the sheath (2) or ammunition (3) is collected by the collection springs (21) of pods, by an extraction edge (22) of the sheath (2), thus being defined in the ammunition chain (1 '). A pod collection device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the conveyor (1) has a chain wheel (14) on the side of the weapon, as well as a chain wheel (27) on the side of the magazine, the chain wheel bearings (14, 27) being held movably in the conveyor chassis (1), formed by bridges (24, 25) and side walls (26), for example, through oblong holes. 7. Pod collection device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a defined slot (31) is made of a cartridge holder (30), the position and shape of the slot (31) being adapted to the geometry and the consistency of the sheath (2). 8. Pod collection device according to claim 7, characterized in that when the ammunition (3) is closed, the sheath (2) is deformed so that the sheath (2) comes into contact in the groove (31) by permanent deformations (3. 4). 9. Pod collection device according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that when applying the extractor (4), it applies a force or tension so large that the sheath (2) is removed from the groove (31) of the support (30) ) of cartridges, by way of a deformation (X). 10. Pod collection device according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that the slot (31) is integrated in the total internal contour of the cartridge holder (30). 11. Pod collection device according to one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that the slot (31) is interrupted and thus partially integrated into the inner contour of the cartridge holder (30).