Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F42—AMMUNITION; BLASTING
  • F42B—EXPLOSIVE CHARGES, e.g. FOR BLASTING, FIREWORKS, AMMUNITION
  • F42B12/00—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material
  • F42B12/02—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect
  • F42B12/36—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect for dispensing materials; for producing chemical or physical reaction; for signalling ; for transmitting information
  • F42B12/44—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect for dispensing materials; for producing chemical or physical reaction; for signalling ; for transmitting information of incendiary type
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F42—AMMUNITION; BLASTING
  • F42B—EXPLOSIVE CHARGES, e.g. FOR BLASTING, FIREWORKS, AMMUNITION
  • F42B12/00—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material
  • F42B12/02—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect
  • F42B12/36—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect for dispensing materials; for producing chemical or physical reaction; for signalling ; for transmitting information
  • F42B12/56—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect for dispensing materials; for producing chemical or physical reaction; for signalling ; for transmitting information for dispensing discrete solid bodies
  • F42B12/58—Cluster or cargo ammunition, i.e. projectiles containing one or more submissiles
  • F42B12/62—Cluster or cargo ammunition, i.e. projectiles containing one or more submissiles the submissiles being ejected parallel to the longitudinal axis of the projectile
  • F42B12/625—Cluster or cargo ammunition, i.e. projectiles containing one or more submissiles the submissiles being ejected parallel to the longitudinal axis of the projectile a single submissile arranged in a carrier missile for being launched or accelerated coaxially; Coaxial tandem arrangement of missiles which are active in the target one after the other
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F42—AMMUNITION; BLASTING
  • F42B—EXPLOSIVE CHARGES, e.g. FOR BLASTING, FIREWORKS, AMMUNITION
  • F42B12/00—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material
  • F42B12/02—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect
  • F42B12/04—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect of armour-piercing type
  • F42B12/06—Projectiles, missiles or mines characterised by the warhead, the intended effect, or the material characterised by the warhead or the intended effect of armour-piercing type with hard or heavy core; Kinetic energy penetrators
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F42—AMMUNITION; BLASTING
  • F42B—EXPLOSIVE CHARGES, e.g. FOR BLASTING, FIREWORKS, AMMUNITION
  • F42B25/00—Fall bombs

Definitions

• the present invention relates to aerial bombs, that is, bombs dropped from aircraft, and more particularly, to aerial bombs for penetrating hard targets.
• a bomb typically includes a hard casing having an interior hollow space for containing an explosive material.
• the physical characteristics of the bomb including the weight, center of gravity, moments or inertia, and the aerodynamic shape, all affect the free-fall response of the bomb, whether or not a guidance package is included with the bomb.
• Bombs delivered from aircraft including free-fall guided or unguided bombs, glide bombs, and boosted bombs, must pass rigorous field testing which includes the safe release from a deploying aircraft and accuracy of delivery to the target. These tests must be conducted for each type of aircraft that will carry the bomb. The development of new weapons, therefore, is subject to significant delay and expense before the weapon is qualified for use.
• the ability of a bomb, or other projectile, to penetrate a target is proportional to the mass and the velocity of impact of the projectile and inversely proportional to the cross-sectional area of the bomb. That is, the greater the kinetic energy and the smaller the cross-sectional area, the greater the penetration that can be expected.
• To adapt an existing bomb for greater penetration by reducing the external diameter of the bomb can also result, however, in changes in the mass properties such as weight, center of gravity, moment of inertia, and in the aerodynamic properties, all of which can affect the flight characteristics of the bomb. These changes also require that the adapted bomb be qualified for use.
• the present invention provides an aerial bomb that overcomes the difficulty in qualification by emulating the pertinent aerodynamic characteristics and mass properties of a qualified bomb, while providing a function not provided by that bomb.
• the present invention provides a bomb having an improved penetrating warhead, that is, a warhead that more deeply penetrates a protected target, however, the bomb is substantially identical in aerodynamic and mass properties to a qualified bomb.
• the bomb of the present invention may be readily qualified by similarity of function to the existing bomb for use on an aircraft.
• the bomb of the invention can use existing guidance packages available for the qualified bomb.
• the invention provides a bomb that emulates the free-fall properties of an existing bomb pertinent to qualification, while at the same time, providing a warhead with the desired improved penetrating capability.
• the warhead is a penetrating body shaped for improved target penetration through a smaller cross-sectional area compared to an existing qualified bomb.
• An aerodynamic shroud mounted around the warhead emulates the shape of the qualified bomb, and the weight, center of gravity and moments of inertia of the bomb (the penetrating body and shroud) closely approximate those properties of the existing bomb.
• Figure 1 is a side view of a bomb in accordance with the invention.
• Figure 2 is a side, section view of a penetrating body of the bomb of Figure 1 ;
• Figure 3 is a perspective, exploded view of the bomb of Figure 1 illustrating the various components of the shroud assembly and penetrator;
• Figure 4 is a side view of a bomb with a mounted guidance package;
• Figure 5 is a sectional view of a nose portion of the shrouded warhead showing attachment structure for a nose guidance unit;
• Figure 6 is a sectional view of a forward clamp of the shroud; and Figure 7 is a sectional view of a tail of the shroud showing a mounting structure for a tail fin unit.
• FIG 1 is a side view of a shrouded bomb 20 in accordance with the invention.
• the bomb 20 includes a penetrating body 24 or warhead (shown in Figure 2) and a shroud 40 shaped to emulate the aerodynamic shape of an existing, qualified bomb.
• the bomb 20 is shaped to emulate the BLU-109/B bomb, that is, the outer shape of the shroud 40 is substantially identical to the outer shape of the hard case of the BLU-109/B.
• the weight, center of gravity, and moments of inertia of the bomb 20 are substantially identical to those physical characteristics of the BLU- 109/B.
• the bomb 20 will therefore have the same free-fall and aerodynamic properties as the emulated bomb, and as a result can be carried on any aircraft for which the emulated bomb is qualified. Further, the bomb 20 can be used with any guidance package appropriate for the emulated bomb. The improved bomb 20, however, avoids the lengthy and costly flight qualification tests because it is qualified by similarity to the qualified bomb.
• the invention thus provides an aerial bomb that improves on the function of an existing bomb, but qualifies for use by emulating the handling and aerial delivery characteristics of the existing bomb. The invention is not limited to emulating a particular qualified bomb, such as the
• BLU-109/B which is used as an example here, but, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art from the following description, the invention may be directed to improvements in other existing bombs.
• the penetrating body 24 in the illustrative embodiment is designed for improved target penetrating capability.
• the penetrating body 24 includes a case formed of a hard, dense material, such as steel, tungsten, or depleted uranium.
• the penetrating body 24 is narrower than the case of the emulated bomb to provide a smaller cross sectional area.
• the penetrating body 24 has an interior hollow space 26 that may contain an explosive.
• the space 26 opens at the tail end of the body 28 and extends toward the nose 30, leaving a solid, nose section.
• a bulkhead 32 is attached to the penetrating body 24 to close the opening at the tail and to support mounting of a fuze that activates the warhead, as further described below.
• the penetrating body 24 is narrower than a BLU-109/B, but has thicker walls to maintain most of the weight of the BLU-109/B.
• the penetrating body 24 has a weight (loaded with an explosive charge) that is between 80% and 90% of the weight of the BLU-109/B.
• the reduced diameter with approximately the same weight increases the penetration ability of the penetrating body as compared to the BLU-109/B by focusing kinetic energy on a smaller impact area. It is understood that the invention is not limited to a particular diameter or weight ratio as compared to an emulated bomb.
• the diameter and weight of the warhead are to be selected, for example, for the penetrating and explosive functions desired, within the constraint of the total weight of the warhead and shroud being approximately equal to that of the emulated weapon.
• the penetrating body 24 is shaped at the nose end 30 with an ogive having a variable radius of curvature.
• the nose end 30 outer shape leads to a cylindrical center portion 34.
• the outer diameter of the penetrating body 24, measured at the cylindrical center portion 34 is 10.7 inches, as compared to an outer diameter of the BLU-109/B of 14.6 inches at a center portion.
• the thickness of the wall 36 of the penetrating body surrounding the bore 26 is 2.26 inches.
• Figure 3 is an exploded view of the shroud 40 and penetrating body 24.
• the shroud 40 includes a forward clamp 42 and an aft clamp 44 that are fastened to the center portion 34 of the penetrating body 24 in spaced relationship.
• the clamps 42, 44 each are of two-part construction, each having a pair of semicylindrical members that are bolted together about the penetrating body 24.
• the clamps 42, 44 are sized on the inner diameter to closely fit the penetrating body 24 to provide supporting locations for ground handling and storage pallets.
• Shear pins (not illustrated) are mounted in holes in the penetrating body 24 and extend outward therefrom to engage mating holes in the clamps 42, 44. The shear pins prevent the clamps 42, 44 from moving longitudinally and rotating relative to the penetrating body 24 during ground handling of the bomb and while carried on an aircraft.
• clamps 42, 44 could be used to prevent movement of the clamps 42, 44 on the penetrating body 24.
• longitudinal grooves formed in the penetrating body 24 could engage ribs extending from the clamps 42, 44, or the outer surface of the penetrating body 24 and the inner surfaces of the clamps 42, 44 could be formed as roughened surfaces to provide increased friction between the surfaces.
• each clamp 42, 44 includes mounting holes for lugs 48, 50 to mount the bomb on an aircraft hanger system.
• the spacing of the lugs 48, 50 and their position relative to the center of gravity of the bomb 20 is identical to that for the selected weapon, in the illustrated embodiment, the BLU-109/B.
• the shroud 40 also includes skin members that form the outer surface and are shaped to have the aerodynamic characteristics of the emulated bomb.
• the skin members include a nose cone 60 mounted at the nose 30 of the penetrating body 24, and a forward tube 62 mounted between the nose cone 60 and the forward clamp 42.
• the nose cone 60 and forward tube 62 are fastened together, and the forward tube 62 is fastened to the forward clamp 42.
• a nose ring 64 helps secure the nose cone 60 in place and provides a mounting structure for a nose guidance unit, shown in Figures 4 and 5.
• the forward end 61 of the nose cone 60 is cylindrically shaped and extends longitudinally forward from the penetrating body 24.
• the forward-extending cylinder end 61 is designed upon impact of the warhead on a target to break away from the penetrating body 24, to assist the penetrating body 24 in shedding the forward portion of the shroud.
• an upper shell 70 and a lower shell 72 are fastened.
• the lower shell 72 is made sufficiently thick, typically about 0.5 inches, to help support the weight of the bomb during ground handling by conventional lift equipment, and for resting the bomb on storage pallets.
• the upper shell 70 includes a switch plate 74 which cooperates with a release-indicating switch on the aircraft, which is used to signal the release of the bomb from an aircraft.
• the skin is completed by an aft tube 76 and a tail tube 78.
• the tail tube 78 flares outward to emulate the tail shape of the BLU-109/B.
• a tail ring 80 is fastened on the tail end of the bomb and the shroud, and provides a mounting structure for an aerodynamic tail unit; exemplary tail units are shown in Figures 4 and 7.
• the clamps 42, 44 provide support for ground handling and storage of the bomb on racks, pallets and lifts. Additional support is provided by support rings which are installed between the penetrating body 24 and the skin elements at the support locations 82, 83 shown by the arrows.
• the support rings may, for example, be "T” or "H” profiled rings, and are positioned to bridge the space between the skin and the penetrating body 24 to help support the weight of the body.
• the unit 20 shown in Figure 1 is designed to have the same length, weight, center of gravity, and aerodynamic shape of the selected, qualified weapon. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the weight and center of gravity can be adjusted by ballasting the penetrating body 24 or the shroud 40, by the addition or removal of material at selected locations.
• the length of the bore 26, or the thickness of the penetrating body walls 36 can be readily changed to adjust the weight and center of gravity.
• the shroud components, in particular, the clamps 42, 44, may also be adapted in weight and/or size to adjust the center of gravity and total weight.
• FIG 4 is a side view of the shrouded bomb 20 with a guidance package attached.
• the guidance package includes a nose guidance unit 102 having target sensing devices (not illustrated), and a tail fin unit 104.
• the nose guidance unit 102 has fins 106 that are controllable by the nose guidance unit 102 for steering the bomb during free-fall and a folding fin stabilization assembly.
• the guidance package, including the fins does not form a part of this invention, except that the shroud is designed to accept mounting of a guidance package, as explained below.
• the nose ring 64 sits on the nose end of the penetrating body 24, and is fastened to the front end of the penetrating body and to the nose cone 60 of the shroud.
• the nose ring 64 includes a circumferential groove 66 that accepts a mating rib 103 of the nose unit 102.
• a retaining ring 68 secures the nose unit 102 to the Figure 7 illustrates a tail fin mounting arrangement.
• the tail ring 80 includes a v- shaped groove 84 that mates with a conventional ring clamp (not shown) of a tail fin unit.
• a fuze 110 is installed in the tail end of the penetrating body 24.
• a power generator 45 a wind-driven turbine, is mounted in a seat 46 in the upper part of the forward clamp 42.
• the generator 45 is active when the bomb is in free- fall to generate electric power to activate the fuze 110.
• a cable 49 to connect the generator 45 to the fuze 110 is routed in a space between the shroud 40 and the penetrating body 24, thus passing under the mid shell 70, along the aft clamp 44 and under the aft tube 76 and tail tube 78.
• the cable 49 is then routed through a hole in the tail ring 80 and into the tail end of the penetrating body 24.
• a safe/arm device may be included with the fuze 110, and mounted in proximity to the fuze 110 within or on the shroud 40.
• the fuze 110 and power generator 45 are not a part of the bomb except that the warhead is designed to accommodate fuzing systems. Other suitable fuzing systems could be used with the bomb.
• the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, principles, and examples. Those skilled in the art will recognize that substitutions and equivalents may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Filling Or Discharging Of Gas Storage Vessels (AREA)
• Aiming, Guidance, Guns With A Light Source, Armor, Camouflage, And Targets (AREA)
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging Apparatus (AREA)
• Pens And Brushes (AREA)
• Arc Welding In General (AREA)
• Jet Pumps And Other Pumps (AREA)
• X-Ray Techniques (AREA)
• Laminated Bodies (AREA)
• Respiratory Apparatuses And Protective Means (AREA)
• Toys (AREA)
• Structures Of Non-Positive Displacement Pumps (AREA)

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Cited By (10)

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Citations (11)

Family Cites Families (2)

• 1997
  • 1997-12-11 KR KR1020027014634A patent/KR100549487B1/ko not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-12-11 JP JP2000524626A patent/JP2001526378A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 1997-12-11 DE DE69730252T patent/DE69730252T2/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1997-12-11 DK DK97955029T patent/DK1038152T3/da active
  • 1997-12-11 ES ES97955029T patent/ES2226012T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-12-11 EP EP97955029A patent/EP1038152B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-12-11 AT AT97955029T patent/ATE273502T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-12-11 KR KR1020007006391A patent/KR100549486B1/ko not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-12-11 IL IL13667697A patent/IL136676A/xx not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-12-11 PT PT97955029T patent/PT1038152E/pt unknown
  • 1997-12-11 AU AU70971/98A patent/AU748098B2/en not_active Ceased
  • 1997-12-11 DK DK03019851T patent/DK1367358T3/da active
  • 1997-12-11 WO PCT/US1997/023112 patent/WO1999030106A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1997-12-11 TR TR2000/02553T patent/TR200002553T2/xx unknown
  • 1997-12-11 AT AT03019851T patent/ATE408801T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
• 1998
  • 1998-10-20 TW TW087117276A patent/TW381164B/zh not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1998-10-29 EG EG132498A patent/EG22193A/xx active
• 2000
  • 2000-06-13 NO NO20003019A patent/NO318816B1/no not_active IP Right Cessation

Patent Citations (11)

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