GB739039A - Improvements in and relating to means for feeding ammunition to automatic guns - Google Patents

Abstract

739,039. Ammunition feed mechanism. WOODHOUSE, C. H. L., and WEBSTER, T. H. July 27,1945 [Aug. 19, 1944], No. 15880/44. Classes 92(1) and 92(2). In an automatic gun having a magazine 1 containing clips of cartridges 2 on an endless conveyer, means are provided for storing energy from a single recoil of the gun barrel and for releasing this energy after a given number of succeeding recoils in order to advance the conveyer by an amount sufficient to bring a fresh clip into the loading position. Upon each recoil, in the construction shown, the loading tray T rocks a lever A which, by the levers, links and shafts D. E. F. I. G. and L. shown in Figs. 1 and 2, rocks a shaft M ; a spring S connected to an arm K<SP>1</SP> of shaft M returns the links and levers to the initial position when the tray T moves forwards. An arm O, Figs. 2 and 9, on the shaft M has a nose P which is adapted to engage with a tooth U on a disc Q keyed to a shaft R which is co-axial with shaft M and is carried by brackets h on the magazine 1. By this means the rocking of shaft M by the tray T serves to rock the shaft R from the position shown in Fig. 9 to a position in which a tooth U<SP>1</SP> on the disc Q is held by the nose a of a toggle-mechanism, thus preventing anti-clockwise movement of the shaft R under the action of springs S<SP>1</SP>, S2 (see Fig. 3). With the shaft R thus held, the shaft M rocks idly under the action of the tray T during the firing of the next few rounds. When, however, the last cartridge 2 from the clip is fed to the gun feeler fingers 44, Figs. 1 and 2, which were resting against the rounds are freed thereby enabling a spring s to move downwards a rod y which, by cranks v, w, move to the right a link f carrying the togglemechanism. The toggle-joint is thereby broken and the shaft R rotates anti-clockwise, as seen in Fig. 9, under the action of springs S<SP>1</SP>, S2, and drives by a pawl and ratchet device v, w, a bevel wheel m which is suitably geared to the conveyer mechanism for the cartridge clips. Specifications 398,081 and 740,151 are referred to.