WO2013162348A1

WO2013162348A1 - Projectile recovery chamber

Info

Publication number: WO2013162348A1
Application number: PCT/MX2013/000052
Authority: WO
Inventors: Octavio Rodolfo CIBRIÁN VIDRIO; Jorge Alberto DOMÍNGUEZ QUEVEDO; Fernando DOMÍNGUEZ QUEVEDO
Original assignee: HARO COVARRUBIAS, Jorge Armando; GUERRA MICHEL, Óscar Alfredo
Priority date: 2012-04-25
Filing date: 2013-04-25
Publication date: 2013-10-31
Also published as: MX2012004821A; US20150084284A1; AR092824A1; CO7141455A2; CA2871580C; CA2871580A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a chamber for the recovery of projectiles, or a bullet trap, which uses a gel having rheopectic properties in order to stop the bullet and which also uses a gel recirculation system in order to increase viscosity such that it stops the passage of the bullet. In addition, the recirculation system attracts the bullet towards the lowest part of the chamber and directs same towards a basket type filter from where the bullet is recovered. The dimensions of the projectile recovery chamber are such that it is easy to transport and the chamber includes a raising mechanism that can be used to adjust the height of the chamber according to the height of the shooter, as well as including a positioning device and a distributed logic control system for stopping and starting the pump.

Description

CHAMBER OF RECOVERY OF PROJECTILES

DESCRIPTION

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a projectile recovery chamber or also known as a ballistic trap which is to provide a projectile recovery chamber of reduced dimensions that allows the recovery of a projectile in a short period of time, obtaining the samples with the ballistic footprint, of the particular scratch that each firearm prints, consistently reproduced, eliminating possible alterations in the marks of the cannon on the bullet. To a large extent, this helps forensic experts make their comparative determinations more accurately.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION: In forensic studies that are ordinarily carried out in ballistics laboratories, they are aimed at establishing whether a particular firearm has fired bullets or caps that were collected as evidence of alleged criminal acts. There are currently different solutions in the market to achieve this objective but they do it in an inappropriate or inefficient way and, above all, it takes too much time to achieve the recovery of witness projectiles for forensic use.

During the review and analysis of the state of the art, the US patent application US 2005/0093243 A1 by Steven L. Larson, et. al., published on May 5, 2005. The document refers to A retainer for the deceleration and capture of projectiles in general, includes a support structure having an inclined surface and a projectile trap means disposed on the inclined surface. The projectile capture medium may be a ballistic resistant granular medium or a combination of an i ballistic hydrated medium with a super absorbent polymer (SAP) gel. Preferably, the support structure is made of a cushion, foam, fiber reinforced concrete, such as bag (R). In the different modalities, the support structure also includes a box. The additives can also be mixed in the projectile capture medium to control alkalinity and prevent heavy metal leaching.

The referred invention, in addition to not being applied for the recovery of witness bullets for forensic use, also does not contain the same configuration as the invention to be protected. It is not a camera, but rather an open trap to trap projectiles, where a capture medium is used which can be among other options a super absorbent polymer (SAP) gel.

The Spanish patent application ES 2049964 of the company Impresa Construzioni Soc. FRA SA to RL, entitled "Assembly and separation unit for ballistic projectile arrest devices" was found, which refers to a unit that allows the mixture to be transported of the impact material and the exploded projectiles and separate the latter before said impact material is sent back to the top of the impact material.

In this application, the only relevant thing is the separation of the projectiles from the impact material, before the latter is sent to recirculation, and that is not applied in the recovery of witness bullets for forensic use.

The Spanish patent application ES2061892 of Kanauf, Peter et, al. Where a projectile retention material is used consisting of a thermoplastic material that brakes and / or collects the projectiles, characterized in that the layer (1, 20) consists of at least one molded part (10) of thermoplastic synthetic material that it is stable in its form at room temperature and at a temperature of at most 200 ° C, preferably 150 ° C, it has a viscosity that allows its drained and where the thermoplastic material can be completely removed from the projectile by simple heating;

Japanese patent JP4101642 refers to the problem of resolving the recovery of scattered bullets that have been fired and accumulated against a bank built behind a target, where there is almost no recovery work and it is not yet possible to recover and recycle the bullets. The proposed solution is an impact receiver that has a sufficiently thick gel material that is stored in a bag and placed behind the lens. While the solution proposed by the Japanese application includes the use of a gel to capture the bullets, it makes no mention of the gel's rheoptic characteristics and does not refer to the gel being in continuous motion. In addition to that it does not have an application for forensic ballistics. US patent application US 2009/0303982 refers to an apparatus for braking by induction of a projectile, wherein the apparatus has a unidirectional conductor with a closed conduction path surrounding the passage of the projectile in motion. The unidirectional conductor allows current to flow through it substantially in only one direction along the entire corridor. As the projectile and its associated motion move through the unidirectional conductor, the movement of the magnetic field induces a current flow through the closed conductive path, which in turn generates a magnetic field behind the projectile with the same polarity than the field of the projectile. Both fields attract each other, so much that a braking force is exerted on the projectile and tends to align the two magnetic fields. The alignment of these fields centers the projectile away from the wall of the device. Because the unidirectional conductor allows current to flow substantially only in the direction that a field produces having the same polarity as the moving field, the repulsive opposite polarity of a field magnetic that could otherwise generate a deviation from the projectile in its path.

Another invention for trapping projectiles is the "Snail" deceleration chamber consisting of a deceleration chamber with a reduced entry angle that guides the projectile into a circular chamber where the projectile revolutionizes until losing energy falling for collection, leaving the remains of missiles deformed or fragmented and therefore not usable in forensic studies.

Various inventions have been developed to trap projectiles, but none of those that have been found include a modular system in which the length of the camera can be increased, nor have cameras been found that occupy a rheopic fluid to stop the projectile and even less , cameras that have a positioning system for proper placement of the firing weapon.

Other systems use horizontal water tanks that are quite heavy both for their metal structure and for the amount of water they must contain. These systems do not have an automatic projectile recovery system. Other types of recovery systems use fibers such as Kevlar or cotton to retain projectiles, which makes projectile recovery difficult.

Therefore, a projectile recovery system or witness projectile recovery chamber for forensic use such as the one we are proposing does not exist in the market or in the State of the Art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

Figure 1 is a side view of the projectile recovery chamber Figure 2 shows different views of the flanges that join the cylindrical modules that make up the different sections of the projectile recovery chamber.

Figure 3 are different views of the cylindrical modules that make up the projectile recovery chamber.

Figure 4 shows the assembly of the flanges with the cylindrical modules.

Figure 5 is a view of the assembly of flanges, gaskets and cylindrical modules.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the projectile recovery chamber where the sections that make up the camera are appreciated.

Figure 7 is a side view of the firing chamber in the inclined position as it should be placed.

Figure 8 is a detail of the front cover assembly of the projectile recovery chamber. Figures 9 (a-d) are different views of the assembled front cover of the projectile recovery chamber.

Figures 10 (a-c) show different views of the back cover of the projectile recovery chamber.

Figure 11 is a plan view of the metal platform of the projectile recovery chamber.

Figure 12 is a detail of one of the supports that connect the projectile recovery chamber with the metal platform.

Figure 13 shows the height adjustment mechanisms, damping and the transport trolley for the projectile recovery chamber.

Figure 14 is a perspective view of the projectile recovery chamber. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION:

According to Figure 1, the projectile recovery chamber (1) of the present invention consists of a cylindrical body formed by coupled cylindrical sections (2), the number of which may vary depending on the length required for the recovery chamber of projectiles (1), being at least three, where the cylindrical sections, (2), are preferably made of stainless steel and are joined by flanges (4) with an intermediate gasket (5). According to Figure 1, the projectile recovery chamber (1) at its rear end has a hydraulic system consisting of a self-aspirating pump (6) that has a basket-type filter (7) that serves to fired projectile recovery, a suction pipe (8) that draws a fluid from the projectile recovery chamber (1) through the suction hole (27) and a return pipe (9) that returns the fluid into the interior of the projectile recovery chamber (1) through the return hole (26); The hydraulic system is controlled by a PLC Programmable Logic Controller that is located on a control board (3). The rear cover of the chamber (10) is a plate that covers the circular rear end of the projectile recovery chamber (1) and has a vertical projection (28) upwards in relation to the rear cover, to finish in a fold forming a horizontal surface (29) with an internal angle of less than ninety degrees where the self-aspirating pump (6) and the basket-type filter (7) are supported; The projectile recovery chamber (1) has in its front part a cover called the front cover of the chamber (11) that has a rectangular hole (35) through which the barrel of the weapon is introduced and a basket for capturing shells ( 12) for the capture and recovery of automatic weapon casings. The projectile recovery chamber is held by anterior (13) and posterior (14) supports that are coupled to a metal platform (15), these supports take the form of a circular section (fig. 12) of a section cylindrical (2) that forms the projectile recovery chamber (1) and is connected by screws to the flanges (4), where said supports slide over grooves, two rear grooves (16a and 16b) that are parallel and a groove central (17) that cross the metal platform (15) that supports the projectile recovery chamber (l); wherein the rear support (14) slides over the rear grooves (16a and 16b) that cross the metal platform (15) and the front support (13) slides over a central groove (17) that crosses the metal platform (15 ). In the lower part of the metal platform (15) the rear support (14) is coupled to a pneumatic shock absorber (18) that is longitudinally aligned with the metal platform (15), where the front end of the pneumatic shock absorber (18) is is fixed to the metal platform (15) and its rear end is attached to the rear support (14) of the projectile recovery chamber (1), so that if there is a displacement of the projectile recovery chamber (1 ), it travels along the metal platform (15), because the supports slide through the rear grooves (16a and 16b) and central groove (17), but its path is stopped by the pneumatic damper (18 ) which is attached to the rear support (14), in such a way that it allows the return of the projectile recovery chamber (1) to its initial position.

The metal platform (15), Fig. 11 has in its lower face means for coupling to the industrial cart (19); Between the industrial cart (19) and the metal platform (15), there is a lifting mechanism (20) that allows modifying the position of the front end of the projectile recovery chamber (1), adjusting its elevation to the height of the shooter or the person who triggers the weapon. The cart has wheels (21) for industrial use to support the weight of the whole set. The assembly also has a control panel (3) to drive the self-aspirating pump (6) when the weapon is positioned in the rectangular hole (35).

The industrial cart (19) has on its upper face a pair of rear bearings (22) and a pair of front bearings (23) coupled each pair with a steel bar (24), the bearings on the back (22) allow a mobile coupling between the metal platform (15) and the industrial cart (19), while the bearings on the front (23 ) are located at the center of the cart and serve to hold the lifting mechanism (20) by the back of the same mechanism, allowing a mobile coupling by means of a steel bar (24); additionally, two lower bearings (25) are attached to the lower face of the metal platform (15) and in turn allow the front part of the lifting mechanism (20) to be held, the lifting mechanism (20) being held in the part posterior by the front bearings (23) that are attached to the front of the industrial cart (19) and by the lower bearings (25) attached to the front of the metal platform (15) on its lower face.

According to Figures 2 to 5, the projectile recovery chamber is constructed by joining three or more cylindrical sections (2) by means of flanges (4) that allow one section to be secured with the other. As an example, three cylindrical sections (2) are joined by flanges (4) between which a gasket (5) made of a high density polymer is placed to prevent fluid leakage. Once the cylindrical sections (2) have been joined, the rear cover of the chamber (10) consisting of a circular section having two holes is placed; a return hole (26), to the center of the circular section and a suction hole (27) at the bottom of the circular section, the back cover is attached to the chamber body by means of a flange (4) and a gasket (5) to prevent leaks. The rear cover of the chamber (10) shown in Figure 5, has a vertical projection (28) extending vertically in the upper part of the circumference of the rear cover of the chamber (10) and at its end upper, the vertical projection (28) has a double at an angle such that it forms a horizontal surface (29) where the self-aspirating pump (6) will rest.

The front cover of the chamber (11) shown in Figure 6, is formed by two circular steel plates, a front plate (30) and a plate rear (31) joined by a steel ring (32) 10 cm wide, where the back plate (31) is coupled with the upper flange of the projectile recovery chamber (1); on the same back plate of the front cover (31) a circular hole (33) of two inches in diameter was made where the projectiles will pass to the projectile recovery chamber (1). Likewise and specifically on the side of the back plate (31) that has contact with the liquid of the chamber, two flexible polymer covers attached to a sheet of steel (not shown) that acts as a soul were installed, elaborating on their center small transverse cuts in the form of a star, where such a structure has the function of opening and closing quickly when each bullet is fired inside the projectile recovery chamber (1), in this way the evacuation of the fluid towards the exterior of the projectile recovery chamber (1). In the middle of the two plates is a centering device (34) or "V" shaped guide approximately three inches in length that is mounted on the stainless steel back plate (31), where a powerful magnetic field is generated permanent using small magnets (36) which are placed in the lower part of the centering device (34), where the magnetic field has the function of attracting and correcting the direction of the guns and steel frames of the firearms.

On the other hand, in the previous plate a cut was made in its center to form a rectangular hole (35) three inches high by two inches wide, at the bottom of the rectangular hole (35) the Centering Device is installed (3. 4). The height of the rectangular hole (35) allows the introduction of firearm guns that have very high front sights incorporated, as in the case of AK-47 rifles.

MODE OF OPERATION OF THE INVENTION: A fundamental component of the present invention is that unlike other firing chambers, it does not use water, pellets, or fibers. In its Instead, it uses a ballistic gel that has been developed specifically for this application.

The gel used is a gel with rheopic properties, that is, in its normal state it behaves like a liquid, but by keeping it in constant motion and rapid agitation, the gel behaves like an elastic solid that substantially increases its viscosity, so it offers greater resistance to projectiles, so that it stops them at a shorter distance and without producing traces beyond the particular scratch of the gun barrel, since the gel tends to wrap and capture the bullets as if it were a three-dimensional network that is formed by particles suspended in water, so it does not generate substantial erosion on the structure of the projectiles.

The gel used has a property called reopexy that corresponds to the behavior of non-Newtonian fluids. In this type of fluids, the viscosity varies in relation to the temperature and the shear stress that is applied, so that the gel used does not have a defined and constant viscosity value.

To take advantage of the properties of the gel it has been necessary to find the right direction and the amount of gel flow that must be driven by a self-aspirating pump (6) into the projectile recovery chamber.

From figure 5 it can be seen that the main body of the projectile recovery chamber (1) is constructed by three cylindrical sections (2); Type 304 stainless steel 10 gauge was used for this case; with a dimension each of 50 cm of «length and 50 cm in diameter in each cylindrical section (2) joined by flanges (4) of laser cut joint, also made of stainless steel type 304 of 1.0 x .25 inches to form a total length of the body of the chamber of 150 cm, with a capacity of 260 liters of ballistic gel and between each two sections a gasket (5) was placed to avoid leaks. As support for the projectile recovery chamber (figure 13), an industrial trolley (19) manufactured with a heavy-duty four-wheel steel plate (21) is used, where the projectile recovery chamber is mounted (one). For the recovery of the control bullets, a hydraulic pump or self-aspirating pump (6) with 2.0 HP motor, basket filter (7) and a control panel (3), where the motor of the self-aspirating pump was installed (6) has speed variation and power supply to 220 volts.

The camera's buffer system consists of three linear guides that are three slots (16a, 16b) and (17) on a metal platform (15) to slide the projectile recovery chamber () and a pneumatic damper (18 ) with capacity for 750 Kg, same that in one of its ends is fixed to the metal platform (15) and in the other end it is coupled to the back support (14) of the projectile recovery chamber that moves through the linear grooves (16a, 16b) and (17).

The lifting mechanism (20) of the chamber consists of a tensioner with an endless screw for height adjustment.

The centering device (34) or firearm barrel guide consists of a wide magnetic field created by magnets (36) applied on a "V" shaped support piece that has a presence or interruption sensor (no shown) signal so that when the weapon is placed it activates a signal that allows the self-aspirating pump (6) to be started. The chamber has an ozonator (not shown) to eliminate bacteria accumulated in the gel and thus maintain its consistency.

Once the projectile recovery chamber (1) is assembled, it is loaded with approximately 260 liters of rheopytic gel, adjusting the height of the anterior end of the projectile recovery chamber (1) where the basket for catching catchers ( 12) at height of the shooter or the person who operates the weapon by means of the lifting mechanism (20). When the shooter or the person who fires the weapon supports the weapon in the rectangular hole (35), the sensors detect the weapon and the self-aspirating pump (6) that begins to subtract gel from the projectile recovery chamber is automatically turned on (6). 1) through the suction hole (27) and return it through the return hole (26) to the projectile recovery chamber (1). At that time, the agitation produced by the pump causes the gel viscosity to increase; at the same time, the weapon is attracted by the magnets (36) of the centering device (34) and is in the proper position to fire, the sensors light an alarm to warn that the test has started. All sensors are controlled by a PLC (programmable logic controller) type system that is located on a control board (3). Once the shot is made, the bullet is slowed in its path by the rheopic gel and falls by gravity to the lowest point of the projectile recovery chamber (1), from which it is sucked along with the gel by the auto pump applicant (6). The sucked gel passes through a basket-type filter (7) where the bullet is trapped and separated from the gel that is returned to the projectile recovery chamber (1), in this way, repeated shots can be made to capture the bullets .

The safety of the shooter or the person who fires the weapon is protected by a basket for capturing bushings (12) of wire that holds the caps of the fired bullets. The camera's shock absorber system absorbs the inertial displacement caused by the energy of the fired projectiles. Once the shot is made, the camera moves backwards on the metal platform (15), so that the pneumatic shock absorber (18) absorbs the energy of the shot and returns the projectile recovery chamber (1) to its initial position. Once the tests have been carried out, a bullet fired by a firearm can be recovered in an average time of 1.5 seconds.

The main components of the present invention are listed below: 1. projectile recovery chamber

2. Cylindrical sections

3. Control board

4. Flanges

5. Packaging

6. Auto suction pump

7. Basket type filter

8. Suction pipe

9. Return pipe

10. Back cover of the camera

11. Front camera cover

12. Basket (for catching catchers)

13. Previous support

14. Back support

15. Metal platform

6. Rear slots (a, b)

17. Central slot

18. Pneumatic shock absorber

19. Industrial cart

20. Lifting mechanism

21. Wheels

22. Rear bearings

23. Front bearings

24. Steel bar

25. Lower bearings

26. Return hole

27. Suction hole

28. Vertical projection (of the back cover) 29. Horizontal surface (of the back cover)

30. Front plate (from the front cover)

31. Back plate (from the front cover)

32. Steel ring

33. Circular hole (from the back plate of the front cover)

34. Centering device

35. Rectangular hole

36. Magnets

Having described the invention extensively, I claim the ownership of the following claims clauses.

Claims

one . A projectile recovery chamber where the chamber consists of a modular cylindrical body, a projectile recovery system, a height adjustment mechanism that keeps the front end at a higher elevation than the rear end, a fluid recirculation system and where the camera contains means to stop and recover the projectiles; characterized in that the means to stop and recover the projectiles is a non-Newtonian fluid with rheopic properties.

2. A projectile recovery chamber like the one claimed in clause 1, where the fluid is a gel with rheopic properties where its viscosity increases in relation to the shear stress applied.

3. A projectile recovery chamber such as the one claimed in clause 1, or 2, where the projectile recovery chamber has a damping system that absorbs the energy of the shot and allows the camera to move over a metal platform and return to its initial position.

4. A projectile recovery chamber such as the one claimed in clause 3 where the chamber has a pumping system that extracts the fluid and returns it to the chamber causing a high shear effort in the fluid.

5. A projectile recovery chamber like the one claimed in clause 4, where a basket filter is located before the pump to catch the fired projectiles.

6. A projectile recovery chamber to stop and capture projectiles fired by a firearm where the chamber consists of a modular cylindrical body, a means to retain fired projectiles, a projectile recovery system, means to adjust the height of the body cylindrical at its front end, a control panel, a system of positioning of the weapon, a basket to catch the shells of the fired projectiles, means to move the camera, characterized in that the means to retain the fired projectiles is a gel with rheopic properties and because the camera has a pump that has a filter basket type coupled to a hydraulic system that extracts the fluid from the chamber and returns it causing a constant high effort.

7. A projectile recovery chamber like the one claimed in clause 6, where the projectile recovery chamber has a damping system that absorbs the energy of the shot and allows the camera to move on a metal platform and return to your starting position.

8. A projectile recovery chamber like the one claimed in clause 6, or 7, where the weapon positioning system is a "V" shaped magnetic center on which the barrel of the weapon to be fired is placed .

9. A projectile recovery chamber such as the one claimed in the one of clauses 6, 7, or 8, where the fired projectile is sucked together with the rheopic gel from the bottom of the chamber by the self-aspirating pump and trapped in the basket type filter from where it can be easily removed.

10. A projectile recovery chamber such as the one claimed in clause 6, where the weapon positioning system has a position sensor that drives the pump when the weapon is placed on the weapon positioning system and stops the Pump operation when the weapon is removed.

11. A projectile recovery chamber such as the one claimed in one of clauses 1, 6, or 10, where the camera has a sensor that activates an alarm to indicate that the test is initiated

12. A projectile recovery chamber like the one claimed in the previous clause, where the pump, the sensor of presence and alarm are connected to a PLC that controls the operation of the camera.