US1411627A

US1411627A - Recoil and counter-recoil brake for guns

Info

Publication number: US1411627A
Application number: US495449A
Authority: US
Inventors: Emil E Honsberg
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1921-08-26
Filing date: 1921-08-26
Publication date: 1922-04-04
Anticipated expiration: 1939-04-04

Description

E. E. HGNSBERG.

REcoIL AND COUNTER HEcolL BRAKE FOR GUNS.

APPLICATION FILED AUILZ, 1921.

narran sans earner, eine.

mm E. HONSBERG, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT F COLUMBIA.

RECIL COUNTER-RECOIL BRAKE FOR GUNS.

nenne-2a.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. d, 1922.

.Application iled August 26, 1921. Serial No. 495,449.

, ments in Recoil and Counter-Recoil Brakes v ing supported and guided, in its movement for Gillis; and l do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention relates to a novel and useful hydraulic brake for heavy ordnance or artillery, and has for its object a simple and effective device of the character indicated, involving but few parts or elements and operating with certainty and deniteness not only in taking care of the recoil when the gun is fired, but also serving as a highly efxficient check or brake for the counter recoil.

To these ends the invention comprises a cylinder formed with, or secured tothe cradle, or to the gun, having a length slightly more than twice the length of the normal recoil of 'the gun, in which works a piston rod, connected at one end to a lug on the breech end of the gun, or to the cradle or other stationary part of the mount, said rod being provided with two spaced pistons, one of which is solid, and serves as a brake or check for the reco-il, and the other of which is provided with a port or passage, with which cooperates a check valve, which port `is freely opened during the recoil stroke of the device and is closed by said check valve during the counter recoil stroke of said device, the interior of the brake cylinder preferably being provided with longitudinal grooves which taper from each end toward the mid section of the cylinder, where they are deepest, which grooves provide for the gradual escape'of the iuid inthe cylinder past the pistons in both the recoil and counter recoil checking operations.

The invention is illustrad inthe' -accompanyingdrawing, in which the' figure'is a, longitudinal section through .the brake mechanism as applied toa heavy gun, 4the latter being indicated by dotted lines.

Referring to the drawing, 1 indicates the barrel of the gun, the breech end of which is provided with a lug 2, the gun barrel beduring recoil and counter recoil, in a cradle or slide. 3, which is more or less diagrammatically illustrated. Either formed integrally with the cradle 3, or, preferably, supported in a generally tubular bearing in said cradle is a cylinder 4, having a length somewhat in excess of twice the length of the normal recoil ofthe gun. One endI of said cylinder is closed by a cap 5, which may be formed integrally with the cylinder, and is provided with a cylindrical bearing for the rod of the recoil brake, and a suitable gland or stuiing boX which is to prevent leakage about the brake rod. The other end of the cylinder 4 is closed by a removable cap 7, which may be'securcd in position byl any suitable means, and forms a fluid tight joint with the cylinder end; said cap 7 is likewise' I provided with a cylindrical bore,v forming a bearing for the brake rod and fitted with a gland or stufiing box 8, as indicated.

Slidably mounted in the caps, constituting the closures for the ends of the cylinder 4,l

is a brake rod, which may be formed of one y piece, but which for convenience of manufacture and assemblage comprises two cylindrical sections 9 and 10, connected together` within the cylinder by means of a threaded socket joint such as 12. intermediate the length of section 10 of the rod, there is provided a solid piston 13 which may, if desired, be formed integrally with the rod, and which accurately fits the bore of the cylinder 4, said piston constituting the check'o-r brake for the recoil, in which respect it does not differ materially from the ordinary type of recoil brake or check heretofore employed. The forward end of the rod section 10 is prof vided with a piston 14, having one or more openings 16 therethrough, surrounded by a tapering rim l5, constituting a valve seat.

The end or the rod section 10 in front of the piston 14 is preferably reduced in cross section andV has mounted thereon for free sliding movement a check` valve 17, which A to said rod section by any suitable means.'

As a matter of convenience, the rpiston is formed as an annular' rim connected with the rod or hub portion by radial webs or weight of the gun is small.

I fins 'to vleave free passageway through the piston. l

It will be understood that the brake cylinder 4V is filled with 'a suitable fluidsuchas oil and, when the gun is fired, the barrel .1

runs back in the cradle 'carrying with 1t the rodand pistons of the brake mechanism.

During the initial part of the recoil 'the the movement of the piston and gradually -P brings the gun barrel to rest. In order to return the gun to battery, it is provided with the usual recuperators. which may be of any appropriate type, and which are not illustrated for this reason. Inasmuch as the modern type of heavy ordnance isl designed to be fired at elevations of 47 deg. to 65 deg., it will be appreciated that if the recuperator Amechanism is made powerful enough to return the heavy gun and recoiling parts to battery at 65 deg. elevation,

there will be a great excess of recuperative power when the gun y1s at ziero degrees orA at -7 deg. depression. It was therefore found necessary to devise an automatic brake or buffer that would effectively take up the widely varying energy of the counter recoil and nevertheless' permit the gun to bev promptly returned tobattery without undue shock. valve 17 cooperating with 4piston 14 opens and allows the oil in the` cylinder to pass freely through the openings inl said piston.v On counter recoil the valve 17 instantly en-l gages seat in piston 14 andcloses the opening 16 through the piston, so that the oil can only escape from the forward portion of the cylinder 4 through the throttling grooves 20 cutin the walls of the cylinder along the path of travel of this piston. The portions of the grooves 20 cooperating with the piston 14 aremuch smaller in cro s sectional area than the portions of the ooves cooperating with the recoil piston 13 solthat the movement of the gun on counter recoil is effectively controlled. f- If thegun is ata high angle of elevation, it moves slowly into battery, as the force returning it to battery is equal to the effective pull of the recuperator minus the componentvof the weight of the gun in the same direction minus frictional resistancesf In this case the pressure develdped in the cylinder during counter recoil is small. If, however, the gun is at a low angle of elevation or is actually depressed, when in battery,- the recuperator tends'vto throw the gun into battery at a high velocity since the component of the Therefore.. a high pressure is developed in the cylinder uring the recoil stroke the check.

whichquickly Vreduces thevelocity of the recoiling parts.- The system is thus automatic between wide limits of elevation," and controls the, gun so that it will move .slowly and'smoothly into battery at all angles of elevation. `It will benoted that during the maj or portion of the travel of piston 13 during counter recoil :saidY plston traverses theportions of grooves 20 h aying the enlarged cross section, so that the oil can escape freely past this piston during the counter recoil and -said piston therefore offers very little resistance to the Icounter recoil which latter, however, Vis effectively taken care of by iston 14 as described.

Although only one recoil and counter re- `coil brake is illustrated in connection with the gun, it will be understoodthat they may vbe effectively used in pairs, or in any desired number and may also be employed in connection with ordinary counter recoil buffers,

Aor variable recoil systems, but in a large majority of cases the simple form of apparatus as illustrated will be found suicient area of the counter recoil buffer is the sameasthat of the recoil piston thus permitting theemployment of low pressures with 4maximum control; the device avoids the complication inherent in variable counter recoil buffers in which variable resistance is ob tained by mechanically varying an orifice to suit the angle of elevation of the gun; the construction and arrangement of the device *is exceptionally simple and involves the fewest possible number of correlated parts, none of which is fliable to derangement or damage during the normal operation thereof; and nally the construction and arrangement of the brake permits the latter to be applied to the standard gun and its mount without involving any vmaterial changes in the latter from standard practice.

It is to beunderstood that the particular construction .aild relative arrangement of parts, as illustrated and described, are merely exemplary and may be varied as desired, to conform to standard practice on different types of stationary and mobile ordnance, or to. meet special conditions. For example, the recoil cylinder may be secured to the gun barrel so as to move therewith 'and thebrake or piston rod secured to the cradle or other stationary part of the gun` mount; also the order of the recoil and counof the brake as a Whole. 4 The right to use the invention' described' ter recoil pistons lmay be reversed Without changing or varying the proper functioning herein is hereby assigned to the United States Government for its use Without the payment of royalty thereon.

What I claim is 1. Fluid brake mechanism for guns comprising a brake cylinder, spaced pistons in said cylinder one piston being solid and the other piston having a port therethrough, a rod connect-ing'. said pistons and connected to a gun' part, a check valve cooperating with the ported piston to open said port during the recoil stroke and close the port during the counter recoil stroke, and means for throttlin'g the flow of the fluid past the pistons.

2. Fluid brake mechanism for guns comprising a brake cylinder, spaced pistons in said cylinder one piston beingsolid and the other piston having a port therethrough, a rod vconnecting said pistons and connected to a gun part, a check valve cooperating with said ported vpiston to open said portduring the recoil stroke and close the port during the counter recoil stroke, and grooves in the cylinder Wall for throttling the fiow oi' the fluid past the pistons.

3. Fluid brake mechanism for guns comprising a br'ake cylinder, spaced pistonsin said cylinder one piston being solid and the other piston having a port therethrough, a rod connecting said pistons and connected to a gun part, a check valve cooperating with saidA ported piston to open said port duringd the recoil stroke and close the port during the counter recoil stroke, and groovesl in the cylinder Wall increasingl in cross section from the ends-ofthe cylinder towards the middle thereof for throwing the aow of the Huid past the pistons.

4. Fluid brake mechanism for guns comprising a stationary cylinder having throttlinggrooves formed longitudinally of its v Y inner Walls, a rod traversing said cylinder and connected at one end -to the breech of the gun, a recoil brake piston on said rod intermediate the ends thereof, a counter recoil buii'er piston on said rod near the forward` end thereof having a port there--k i through, and a'c'heck valve cooperating with said buffer piston to open the port during the recoil of the gun and to close said port during counter recoil.

5. Fluid brake. mechanism for guns com prising' a stationary cylinder, a rod extending through the ends of said cylinder and connected at one end to the breech of the gun, a recoilvhrake piston 'on said rod int-ermediate the ends thereof, a counter recoil buiier piston on said rod spaced forwardly EMIL E. nonsense.