GB2080502A

GB2080502A - Device for Limiting the Firing Sector On a Combat Vehicle Particularly a Combat Tank from a Command Station

Info

Publication number: GB2080502A
Application number: GB8118067A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Wegmann and Co GmbH
Current assignee: Wegmann and Co GmbH
Priority date: 1980-06-24
Filing date: 1981-06-12
Publication date: 1982-02-03
Also published as: IT8183622A0; IT1146840B; DE3023517A1; NL8102886A; CH656701A5; DE3023517C2; GB2080502B; BE889359A

Abstract

A device for limiting the firing sector during training on a combat vehicle, e.g. a combat tank, when supervised from a command station; a radio transmitter being provided at the command station and a radio receiver is provided in the combat vehicle, and wherein the radio transmitter (1) is connected to a device (11) for producing a firing-release signal which consists of two low frequency signals which are independent of each other and the frequencies thereof are not a harmonic one of the other, the radio receiver 2 is connected to a firing- release device 12 which blocks the electrical firing pulse which can be supplied to it by the firing device when no firing-release signal has reached the radio receiver (2), and releases the firing pulse when the complete firing- release signal has been received. By the use of the non-harmonic signals, accidental firing-release cannot occur by the presence of interference signals which may be a harmonic of the control signal. Preferably the firing- release signal is provided with two keying devices one of which controls one of the low frequency signals.

Description

SPECIFICATION Device for Limiting the Firing Sector on a Combat Vehicle Particularly a Combat Tank from a Command Station This invention relates to a device for limiting the firing sector on a combat vehicle when supervised from a command station, a radio transmitter being provided at the command station and a radio receiver is provided in the combat vehicle.

The invention is particularly suitabie for use in training in the use of weapons mounted on combat tanks. The development of the use of complicated weapon systems in moderb combat tanks requires that the personnel receive intensive training. In many instances such training takes place in stationary or travelling combat tanks and monitoring or supervision of the person undergoing training is effected from a fixed or movable command station. Contact between the command station and the combat tank then takes place by wireless transmission.

During such training it is particularly important for the trainee during his training to become acquainted with the original and actual conditions prevailing in the combat vehicle and the actual sequence of events to operate the same. This however, particularly in the case of shooting practice, requires very careful supervision of the person under training in order to avoid accidents.

Since training grounds generally have defined limits, it is particularly important to ensure that a predetermined shooting sector is conformed to with exactitude and that there is no possibility of shooting in a wrong direction or over an incorrect distance.

The aim of the invention is to provide a device for limitation of the firing sector of the type referred to, using simple means whereby reliable supervision of the firing sector is possible in that the actual firing of the weapon is only possible when the shot has been cleared from the command station.

The device is characterised in that A) the radio transmitter is connected to a device for producing a firing-release signal which consists of two low frequency signals which are independent of each other and the frequencies thereof are not a harmonic one of the other, and B) the radio receiver is connected to a firingrelease device which blocks the electrical firing pulse which can be supplied to it by the firing device when no firing-release signal has reached the radio receiver, and releases the firing pulse when the complete firing-release signal has been received.

The device according to the invention can be kept very simple, in that the radio equipment present at the command station as well as that present in the combat vehicle can be made use of.

The firing-release signal (given by a safety officer present in the command station) is effected by wireless transmission. The firing-release signal is coded using two non-harmonic low frequency signals and this is an essential feature to prevent accidental clearing of the firing operation as a result of possible interference signals.

In one particularly advantageous embodiment of the device according to the invention a sighting device of a weapon of the combat vehicle is coupled via an optical adaptor device to a television camera device which camera device is linked via a picture transmission path to a television reproducing apparatus provided at the command station, linked to the former by a television transmission system. By this means it is possible simultaneously to control the exact positioning of the weapon from the command station so that the criteria for release of firing are available with the highest possible accuracy at the actual command station, which is particularly important when training is being carried out during which the combat vehicle is in motion.

As a result of the linking of the television camera device to the sighting device permanently fixed to the weapon, the safety officer is at all times able to check the positioning of the weapon as regards elevation and azimuth, and then initiate the firing release signal using the radio transmission system, or not do so.

Further advantageous embodiments of the device according to the invention are possible and are hereinafter described and set forth in the subclaims hereof. Thus it has been found particularly advantageous to additionally provide a video recorder which is connected to the television reproducing device present at the command station, so that by carrying out subsequent investigations it is possible to ascertain the situation in which a firing release signal was provided, or was not provided.

Furthermore the device for producing the firing release signal can be provided with two keying devices, whereby as a result of operation of one of the keying devices one of the pair of low frequency signals is produced and is supplied to the radio transmitter. The same principle applies to the other keying device. By using this arrangement in which, in order to produce the firing release signal, two keying devices must be depressed simultaneously, a greater degree of safety against unintentional release of this signal, such as for example as a result of accidental contact with one keying device, is achieved.

In what follows, one example of the device according to the invention is described in greater detail with reference to the attached drawings, in which Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the complete device for limitation of sector of firing, including the installations provided in the combat tank and the installations provided at the command station; Figure 2 is a block diagram of the device for producing the firing release signal at the command station, and Figure 3 is a block diagram of the firing release device in a combat tank.

In the diagram shown in Figures 1 to 3, a sighting device 3 (designated Fero Z 18) which is fixed for example to the main weapon of a tank, is linked to a television camers 5 (TV 1) through an optical adaptor 4. The said optical adaptor can for example be as described in German Patent Specification No. 30 01 050.5. The television camera 5 is linked to a range-finding transmitter 6 (designated Telemetry transmitter) installed on the tank. The power supply to the television camera 5 and the transmitter 6 is provided from the electrical supply system of the tank using suitable converters together indicated in Figure 1 by the reference numeral 9. A radio receiver 2 (designated SEM 25) is located in the combat tank. In addition to the radio receiver 2, a corresponding radio transmitter may be present.

A device 12 for releasing firing (referred to as a "firing blocker") is connected to the radio receiver 2, and is hereinafter described in greater detail.

A telemetry receiver 7 is provided in the stationary or movable command station, to which a television reproducing apparatus 8 for example a monitor, is connected, the said television reproducing apparatus having a video recorder 29 attached thereto for recording the television picture. The supply of electrical power to these apparatuses is provided by a supply installation 1 0. Additionally a radio transmitter 1 (designated SEM 25) is provided at the command station, which obviously may also have a radio receiver associated with it, in analogy with the radio receiver 2 hereinbefore referred to. The radio transmitter 1 has a device 11 for producing a firing release signal connected in front of it (indicated in Figure 1 by the term "Coding Electronics") and is hereinafter described in further detail.The firing release signal can be given by depressing a key 11 a.

As shown in Figure 2, the device for producing the firing release signal includes two oscillators 13, 14, which are independent of each other and each of which produces a low frequency signal, the two frequencies fl and f2 not being harmonic so that they do not possess any whole number common multiple. As a result of any interference signal which might be a harmonic of one of the said low frequency signals, the accidental production of a firing release signal is prevented.

The signals produced by the oscillators 1 3 and 14 are fed to a mixer and output amplifier stage 1 5 and are then supplied to the radio transmitter 1.

The sending of a firing release signal is effected using a key 11 a. Through this key 1 a a power supply apparatus 16, the output of which is connected to the oscillators 13 and 14 and the mixing and amplifier output state 15, can be - connected to a battery 17. The key 11 a can be designed so that it simultaneously provides for switching on of the radio transmitter 1. When the key 1 a is pressed the firing release signal, comprising the pair of independent frequencies f1 and f2, is transmitted and then received by the radio receiver 2 in the combat tank.

From the radio receiver 2, as shown in Figure 3, the signal is supplied via an amplifier 18, to two frequency filters 19 and 20.

These filters comprise high selectivity filters for example having a Q-vaiue of 100. The filters 19 and 20 separate the pair of LF signals and send them along separate paths each to a peak value rectifier 21, 22 of a threshold value comparator 23, 24 respectively. When the signal level at the threshold value comparators 23, 24 exceeds a predetermined voltage level UB, then an output signal is produced. The LF signals are consequently transformed into logic switching signals.These logic switching signals are then supplied to the two inputs of a switching member 25 having an AND-function, the output from which is fed, via a switching stage 26 having voltage separation, which can for example be effected by opto-electronic coupling, to a controlled switching body 27 comprising a cable adaptor and blocking relay which is inserted between the fire release cable and the weapon, and which blocks the electrical firing pulse when it is not in the energised state. The operational state of the device is in each case shown by a display lamp 28a indicating "safe" and an indicating lamp 28b indicating "flre".

The practical operation of the device shown in Figures 1 to 3 may be effected in two ways:- a) The provision of the firing release signal is effected in parallel with the existing radio communication connection. In this instance the LF signals can also be heard as a tone over the radio interphone system of the combat vehicies and serves simultaneously for producing an acoustic indication that the firing operation has been cleared.

b) The provision of the firing release signal is effected through a separate transmitter and receiver in the command station and combat vehicle respectively, employing a second transmission frequency. In this case, the LF signals cannot be heard over the radio interphone system.

Claims

1. A device for limiting the firing sector on a combat vehicle when supervised from a command station, a radio transmitter being provided at the command station and a radio receiver is provided in the combat vehicle, characterised in that A) the radio transmitter (1) is connected to a device ( 1 1 ) for producing a firing-release signal which consists of two low frequency signals which are independent of each other and the frequencies thereof are not a harmonic one of the other, and B) the radio receiver (2) is connected to a firing-release device (12) which blocks the electrical firing pulse which can be supplied to it by the firing device when no firing-release signal has reached the radio receiver (2), and releases the firing pulse when the complete firing-release signal has been received.

2. A device according to Claim 1, characterised by a sighting device (3) which Is coupled via an optical adapting device (4) to a television camera device (5), which camera device is linked via a picture transmission path (6, 7) to a television reproducing apparatus (8) provided at the command station.

3. A device according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterised in that the device (1 1 ) for producing the firing-release signal includes a keying device (11 a), the operation of which produces the firingrelease signal which is supplied to the radio transmitter (1).

4. A device according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterised in that the device ( 1 1 ) for producing the firing-release signal is provided with two keying devices, whereby upon operation of each one of the keying devices, one of the pair of low frequency signals is produced which is supplied to the radio transmitter (1).

5. A device according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the device (1 1 ) for producing the firing-release signal includes two oscillators (13, 14) the outputs from which are connected via a mixing and output amplifier (1 5) to the radio transmitter (1), and their power supply inputs are linked to a power supply device (16) which can be connected to a source of power (17) by means of a keying device (1 1 a).

6. A device according to any of Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the firing-release device (12) includes an amplifier (18) which is connected to the radio receiver (2) the output of which has two high-selective frequency filters connected to it and arranged in parallel, each of which are connected via a peak value rectifier (21, 22) and a threshold value comparator, to an input of a switching member (25) having an AND-function, the output of which is connected to the control input of a controllable switching member (27) provided between the weapon and its firing cable.

7. A device according to Claim 6, characterised in that the output from the switching member (25) having the AND-function is connected via a circuit stage (26) in which voltage separation is carried out, to the relay winding of a relay (27) which is connected between the weapon and its firing cable.

8. A device according to any of Claims 1 to 7, characterised in that the firing-release device (12) is linked to signalling lamps (28a, 28b) for indicating the blocking or release of the firing pulse.

9. A device according to any of Claims 2 to 8, characterised in that a video recorder (29) is connected to the television reproducing device (8) provided at the ground station.

10. A device according to Claim 1, substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

11. A device according to any of Claims 1 to 10, in which the said combat vehicle is a combat tank.