ES2602153T3 - Gyro stabilized projectile - Google Patents

Abstract

Projectile (1) of average gyro-stabilized caliber comprising a hollow body (3) carrying a payload formed by a set of inert and dispersible subprojectiles (6) along the path, body (3) attached at its rear to a cartridge (4) that protects a pyrotechnic charge (21) that is separated from the subprojectiles (6) by a piston (7) that can move relative to the projectile body (3) to axially push the subprojectiles (6) out of the body , projectile (1) characterized by the fact that the body (3) encloses a corresponding substantially cylindrical single beaker (5) with a cylindrical bore internal to the body, beaker (5) formed by the assembly of at least two sectors (8 ), independent of each other and contiguous along their edges parallel to the longitudinal axis of the projectile (1), beaker (5) attached in rotation of the body (3) and comprising a means of putting (13) in rotation of the subprojectiles the cubilet e (5) comprising at its rear end a piston (7) that seals it and ensures the rotating union of the beaker (5) and the body (3) by means of a prismatic portion (7a) of the piston (7), the end front of the beaker (5) being sealed by an ogive (2) fixed to the front of the projectile body, the pyrotechnic load (21) placed behind the piston (7) being sized to provide a thrust on the piston (7) that pushes the beaker (5) and causes the separation of the ogive (2) and the body (3).

Description

DESCRIPTION

Gyro stabilized projectile

[0001] The technical field of the invention is that of medium-caliber projectiles that project subprojectiles axially and in trajectory.

[0002] These shells carry a set of inert subprojectiles such as tungsten alloy balls or steel cylinders, including metal darts.

These axial projection projectiles are used essentially for the purpose of structural destruction of another 10 projectiles such as missiles.

To do this, the subprojectiles are ejected from the projectile, in trajectory, at a certain distance after firing

Following their ejection, the subprojectiles continue their trajectory by moving radially apart from each other, thus forming a cloud of dense and homogeneous subprojectiles. fifteen

This cloud propagates according to a conical volume and forms an obstacle on the trajectory of a missile (for example) that receives the crash of it, causing its destruction.

[0003] To generate such a cloud of subprojectiles, patent application US2007 / 0034073 describes a military head can be incorporated into a projectile, a missile, a rocket or a vehicle. twenty

In this solution, a cartridge is housed in a firing tube that is scratched to rotate the cartridge.

For a gyro-stabilized medium caliber projectile, the use of such a cartridge rotation solution is useless.

In addition, this solution is not directly extrapolable to a medium-sized projectile of smaller dimensions and that includes a ballistic warhead that seals an internal housing in the projectile. 25

[0004] US4706568 describes an ammunition that disperses light markers.

Such ammunition does not have the firing restrictions of a medium-stabilized gyro projectile.

This patent describes markers loaded through stacked beakers formed by housings and separated through partitions. 30

The set of beakers is placed in a carrier projectile.

The partition of the last beaker is supported on an ejector piston.

This document does not provide a solution that allows the contents of the beakers to rotate in a manner that is in solidarity with the body of the projectile.

 35

[0005] The closest known prior art is that described by US3954060.

In this patent, a stack of metal darts is ejected in front of the body of a projectile through a pyrotechnic charge.

[0006] Prior to expulsion, the projectile's ogive cracks and opens in petals following the action 40 of another pyrotechnic device.

The subprojectiles are housed in several monobloc and cracked beakers stacked on each other from the back of the body of the howitzer to the warhead and connected in rotation to each other through discs that have notches.

The beakers have a variable diameter depending on whether they are placed in the shell body or in the warhead. Four. Five

A rear piston is connected to the howitzer body by a rear groove inserted over a joint tooth of the howitzer body.

Such a solution has the disadvantage that it requires a consequent pyrotechnic charge to crack the projectile's warhead.

In addition, nothing guarantees that the darts rotate with the beakers, which exposes the projectile to a risk of destabilization due to the imbalance caused by darts not set in rotation.

[0007] It is complex to control a homogeneous cut of the material that forms the bullet of the projectile, and the use of multiple pyrotechnic devices is delicate.

This results in a projectile with a complex and unreliable opening that does not guarantee the formation of a cloud of 55 dense and homogeneous subprojectiles.

[0008] The aim of the invention is to simplify and make more reliable the opening of such subprojectile dispersing projectile.

 60

[0009] The invention includes as another advantage ensuring a reliable rotation of all the components of the gyro-stabilized projectile.

[0010] Thus, the object of the invention is a projectile of medium-sized gyrostabilized caliber comprising a hollow body that carries a payload formed by a set of inert and dispersible subprojectiles along the path, body attached at its rear part to a cartridge that protects a pyrotechnic charge that is separated from

the subprojectiles by a piston that can move with respect to the projectile body to axially push the subprojectiles out of the body, projectile characterized by the fact that the body encloses a single substantially cylindrical beaker corresponding to a cylindrical bore internal to the body, beaker formed by the assembly of at least two independent sectors of one another and contiguous along their edges parallel to the longitudinal axis of the projectile, beaker attached in rotation to the body and comprising a means of conduction in rotation of the subprojectiles, the beaker comprising at its rear end a piston that seals it and ensures the union in rotation of the beaker and the body by means of a prismatic portion of the piston, the front end of the beaker being sealed by an ogive fixed to the front part of the projectile body, the pyrotechnic load placed behind the piston being sized to provide Throwing a push on the piston that pushes the beaker and causes the separation of the warhead and the body. 10

[0011] According to an embodiment of the invention, the means for rotating the subprojectiles includes a prismatic section formed by the interior of the beaker walls.

[0012] Advantageously, the piston is rotated by the body by means of drive elements that are regularly distributed along the periphery of the piston and that have at least one key oriented parallel to the axis of the projectile, the key groove leading out at least at the level of a rear face of the piston.

[0013] According to a feature of the invention, each sector of the beaker includes at least one tooth per sector that penetrates into a corresponding housing of the warhead and thus prevents twisting of the beaker sectors.

[0014] Advantageously, the translational connection of the ogive and the projectile body is made by pressing the ogive under pressure on the projectile body.

 25

[0015] Rotational solidarity of the warhead and the projectile body may then be made by at least a first flat face on the projectile body, the first corresponding flat face with at least a second flat face of the warhead.

[0016] The invention will be better understood by reading the following description, description made in reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 represents a longitudinal sectional view of a projectile according to the invention.

Figure 2 represents a partial perspective view of three front quarters of a projectile according to the invention.

Figure 3 represents another perspective view of three quarters of a projectile according to the invention, the warhead 35 being shown separated from the rest of the projectile.

Figure 4 represents an exploded view of the projectile according to the invention showing the ejection of the subprojectiles.

[0017] According to Figure 1, a medium caliber projectile 1 includes in its front part AV an ogive 2 attached to a projectile body 3, this same attached to a cartridge 4 in the rear part AR of the projectile 1.

The cartridge 4 carries a belt 15 surrounding the projectile.

The projectile body 3 encloses a corresponding substantially cylindrical beaker 5 with an internal cylindrical perforation of the projectile body 3.

The beaker 5 contains a set of inert subprojectiles 6 which are constituted here by tungsten balls 6 (balls diameter between 4 mm and 6 mm).

The beaker 5 is sealed at each of its ends.

The rear end is sealed by a piston 7 while the front end is sealed by a support on the nose 2 of the beaker 5 and the subprojectiles 6 it contains.

The beaker 5 constitutes a single piece that extends axially from the piston 7 to the ogive 5 and is formed by the assembly of at least two sectors 8 forming walls 8a that radially hold the balls 6 in place.

Here there are six sectors 8 regularly distributed angularly around axis 12 of the projectile.

[0018] The piston 7 includes keys 10, each of which corresponds to a housing 11 prepared partly in the piston 7 and partly in the body 3.

The keys 10 and the housings 11 are regularly distributed around the piston 7.

The keys 10 constitute rotating elements of the piston 7 by the body 3.

[0019] Each housing 11 is made at the junction between that of the projectile body 3 and the circumference of the piston 60 and flows into the rear part of the piston 7.

Each key 10 is oriented longitudinally to be substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis 12, which is the axis of rotation for the stabilization rotation of the projectile 1.

[0020] Thus, the piston 7 joins in rotation to the body 3 of the projectile but remains free in translation along the longitudinal axis 65 of the projectile.

The cartridge 4 includes a pyrotechnic charge 21 placed behind the piston 7.

This charge is activatable through a programmable ignition device 22 placed on the back of the cartridge 4.

[0021] According to Figure 2, the projectile 1 is partially represented, the subprojectiles 6, the projectile body 3 and the warhead 2 being absent in the figure.

The sectors 8 of the beaker 5, also partially represented, are independent of each other and contiguous along their edges parallel to the longitudinal axis 12 of the projectile 1.

These sectors 8 have a substantially flat inner face 8a that forms a wall when its outer face has a curvature so that, together to form the beaker 5, the sectors form a cylinder. 10

[0022] This cylinder has a diameter that corresponds to the internal caliber of the projectile body 3 visible in Figure 1.

It can slide axially without difficulty in projectile body 3.

The inner sectors 8 of the beaker 5 provide a hexagonal prismatic section 13. 15

[0023] As seen in Figure 1, the beaker 5 contains the balls 6, the hexagon shape 13 allows the rotation of the subprojectiles 6 by the beaker 5.

[0024] The piston 7 includes a prismatic portion 7a which is of hexagonal section and which corresponds to the internal hexagonal section 20 of beaker 5.

It will be noted that each of the sectors 8 that form the beaker 5 includes at its front end a tooth 14.

As described below and can be seen in Figure 3, each tooth 14 corresponds to a housing 16 made in the nose 2 of the projectile 1.

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[0025] The rotation for the stabilization gyro of projectile 1 is obtained as follows:

At the exit of the projectile 1, it is in a striped weapon tube (tube and stripes not shown) .The belt 15 is connected to the stripes of the tube. An impulse, imposed on the projectile 1 by the output of the shot, prints a rotation to the cartridge 4 due to the adjustment of the stripes by the belt 15. Being attached to the cartridge 4, drives the cartridge 4 in rotation around the axis 12 which involves in turn the projectile body 3 (projectile body 30 3 visible in figure 1). The body 3 of the projectile and the cartridge are joined to each other by screwing at the level of a bearing 3a close to the keys 10 (figure 1).

[0026] By means of the keys 10, which form rotating elements 10, the piston 7 is rotated by the projectile body 3. 35

The hexagonal portion 7a of the piston 7 simultaneously involves the beaker 5 by means of the corresponding hexagonal shape 13 of the internal section of the beaker 5.

[0027] Due to the internal hexagonal section 13 of the beaker 5, the distribution of the balls is made following a corresponding hexagonal section volume with the internal section 13 of the beaker 5. 40

This hexagonal section 13 generates a rotation without secondary displacement of the balls and simultaneously with the rotation of the projectile assembly 1.

[0028] According to Fig. 3, the front end of the projectile body 3 includes a groove 17 intended to correspond to an edge 18 of the warhead 2 for joining the warhead 2 and the body 3 by pressure fixation. Four. Five

Flat faces 19 and 20 are located near the impeller 18 and the groove 17 to cooperate with each other to rotate the warhead 2.

[0029] Projectile 1 includes in its warhead 2 a series of housings 16 placed on the back 2a thereof.

These housings 16 of the warhead 2 are intended to receive the teeth 14 of each of the sectors 8 of the 50 beaker 5.

The teeth 14 prevent torsion of the sectors 8 of the beaker 5 during the acceleration in rotation of the projectile.

Each sector is therefore oriented parallel to axis 12 of the projectile.

[0030] According to Figure 4, projectile 1 releases subprojectiles 6 on path as follows:

The pyrotechnic charge 21 is activated by the chronometric programming of the ignition 22.

The gas pressure generated by the pyrotechnic charge pushes the piston 7 towards the front of the projectile, thus pushing the beaker 5 into the projectile body 3 with which it is adjusted to avoid any pressure leak.

The sectors 8 of the beaker 5 which are supported on a projection 7b of the piston 7 are therefore pushed towards the front of the projectile 1. 60

[0031] The front end of the beaker 5 therefore pushes the warhead 2, which is then separated from the projectile body 1.

The walls 8a of the sectors 8 of the beaker 5, as well as the piston 7 and the balls 6, are projected outside the projectile body 3 towards the front of the projectile 1. 65

[0032] Under the action of centrifugal force and aerodynamic forces, beaker 5 opens evenly, quickly releasing sectors 8 projecting away from the area of expansion of the balls 6.

The thrust energy provided by the pyrotechnic charge allows the dispersion of a dense cloud of balls 6 at a speed greater than the longitudinal velocity of the projectile 1 and according to an angle cone at the point α. 5

[0034] According to a variant not shown, the payload contained in the beaker may be composed of columns parallel to each other and each formed by the stacking of tungsten cylinders.

According to another variant not shown, the beaker 5 may not contain more than two sectors 8, the operation of the subprojectiles always being carried out by means of a prismatic shape practiced in the beaker. 10

Claims (6)

1. Projectile (1) of medium stabilized gyro comprising a hollow body (3) carrying a payload formed by a set of inert and dispersible subprojectiles (6) along the path, body (3) joined in its part rear to a cartridge (4) that protects a pyrotechnic charge (21) that is separated from the subprojectiles 5 (6) by a piston (7) that can move relative to the projectile body (3) to axially push the subprojectiles (6) outside the body, projectile (1) characterized by the fact that the body (3) encloses a corresponding substantially cylindrical single beaker (5) with a cylindrical bore internal to the body, beaker (5) formed by the assembly of at least two sectors (8), independent of each other and contiguous according to their edges parallel to the longitudinal axis of the projectile (1), beaker (5) attached in rotation of the body (3) and comprising 10 a means of putting (13) in subprojectile rotation, the beaker (5) comprising at its rear end a piston (7) that seals it and ensures the rotating union of the beaker (5) and the body (3) by means of a prismatic portion (7a) of the piston (7), the end front of the beaker (5) being sealed by an ogive (2) fixed to the front of the projectile body, the pyrotechnic load (21) placed behind the piston (7) being sized to provide a thrust on the piston (7) that pushes the beaker (5) and causes the separation of the ogive (2) and the body (3). 2. Gyro-stabilized projectile (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the means for rotating (13) of the subprojectiles (6) includes a prismatic section (13) formed by the interior of the walls (8a) of the beaker (5). twenty 3. Projectile (1) gyro stabilized according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the piston (7) is rotated by the body (3) by means of rotating elements (10) which are regularly distributed along the periphery of the piston (7) and having at least one key (10) oriented parallel to the axis of the projectile (1), the housing (11) of the key leading to at least the level of one face 25 piston rear (7). 4. Projectile (1) gyro stabilized according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that each sector (8) of the beaker (5) includes at least one tooth (14) per sector (8) that penetrates into a housing (16) corresponding to the ogive (2) and thus avoiding the twisting of the sectors (8) of the beaker (5). 30 5. Projectile (1) gyro-stabilized according to claim 4, characterized in that the translational connection of the warhead (2) and the projectile body (3) is made by pressure fixing the warhead (2) on the projectile body (3).  35 6. Gyro stabilized projectile (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the rotating union of the warhead (2) and the projectile body (3) is made by at least a first flat face (20) on the projectile body (3), the first flat face (20) corresponding with at least a second flat face (19) of the warhead.