Ammunition and explosives – Having reaction motor
Reexamination Certificate
1997-10-31
2001-08-28
Tudor, Harold J. (Department: 3641)
Ammunition and explosives
Having reaction motor
C102S357000, C102S393000, C102S474000, C102S489000, C102S494000, C089S001110
Reexamination Certificate
active
06279482
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
This invention relates to countermeasures for killing a hostile missile and more particularly to the deployment of non-explosive interceptor elements (“NEI”) deployed in the direct path of an incoming hostile missile from a spin stabilized rocket.
Battlefield engagements involving such weaponry as tanks, mobile artillery vehicles and other artillery pieces are vulnerable to attack by enemy armor-destroying missiles. Defensive countermeasures to neutralize or kill such incoming hostile attacks generally utilize explosive means for destroying the hostile missile and as a result pose a threat to friendly military personnel in the battle zone. Currently available countermeasure systems which involve guided missiles are costly and complicated to construct and, above all, the use of explosives as a countermeasure offer the potential of harming friendly military personnel. The use of countermeasures activated by proximity fuses are particularly hazardous to friendly military personnel. What is needed is an active defense system that itself is not explosive and yet will effectively intercept and kill an incoming guided missile using NEI which will at least lessen or decrease the hazard to friendly military personnel in the vicinity.
Known defensive systems, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,388,869 are deserving of comment. The teachings in this patent involve the use of non-explosive rods and pellets which are strewn in the orbital path of a satellite target moving in outer space. The targeted spacecraft is engaged and destroyed by the colliding and penetrating rods. The deficiency of such known systems is the ability to deploy the interceptors at precise time and in a controlled array such as a cloud of interceptors to effectively destroy the hostile missile. Other defense systems employ automatic guns that fire projectiles containing heavy metal shrapnel-like elements. A time delay fuse sets off an explosive charge that randomly sprays the shrapnel and subprojectiles against the hostile missile. Unlike the present invention the subprojectiles and shrapnel-like particles pose a hazard to friendly military personnel. Other known countermeasure techniques involve the use of guided missiles that are triggered by a contact fuse or otherwise guided by optical sensors to engage the incoming hostile missile. It has been found that the high probability of successfully defending against such hostile guided missiles is the creation of a cloud of NEI which are deployed directly in the trajectory path at a precise time and in a controlled pattern to assure collision and destruction.
SUMMARY
In accordance with the teachings of the present invention an airborne apparatus is provided that is directed along an interception path for dispensing a plurality of non-explosive interceptor (“NEI”) elements in a predetermined configuration to generate a continuous cloud which is directly in the path of the oncoming hostile missile. The apparatus is in the form of a spin stabilized rocket having a longitudinal axis, a rearward end, a lead end, a nose cone body, and a payload section intermediate said nose cone and the rearward end, said payload being disposed circumferentially about the longitudinal axis of the rocket. The payload is comprised of a supply of NEI elements which are propelled from the payload section at a constant tangential velocity in response to the centrifugal force produced by the spin rate of the spin stabilized rocket in flight. In one preferred embodiment the release mechanism for the NEI comprises a slidably driver sleeve assembly. Release means is provided in the form of a slidably driven sleeve assembly that covers the payload section during flight and releasing the NEI elements when the sleeve assembly is retracted from the rearward end to the lead end exposing the payload section free of containment. Dispersing the NEI elements forms an interceptor cloud. The cloud is precisely deployed directly in the trajectory path to stop the hostile missile.
In one preferred embodiment, the interceptors may be contained in a series of tube structures arranged radially about the longitudinal axis propelling the NEI elements in a particular formation by the centrifugal force of the spin stabilized rocket which generates a particularly shaped interceptor cloud.
In another preferred embodiment the NEI elements are randomly placed in the payload section so that deployment at the precise time forms a controlled cloud of air borne elements in the intercepting path of hostile missile.
In a still further preferred embodiment the release mechanism for the payload is maintained in a stored condition by a sleeve assembly that is releasably secured to the rocket engine housing by shearable screws. The payload section is opened by pyrotechnic devices actuated by a timing delay control unit that releases the NEI to generate the interceptor cloud directly in the path of the incoming trajectory of the hostile missile. The pyrotechnic devices are positioned between the nose cone section and the payload section to generate the required thrust shearing the bolts without disturbing the array of NEI charged into the payload section. There is provided a thrust bar centrally positioned within the payload section that directs the pyrotechnic force load path to the rocket engine housing without applying compacting loads to the NEI elements. The pyrotechnic forces shear the screws restraining the sleeve and allow the release of the otherwise undisturbed NEI elements.
The form of the NEI is preferably spherical and arranged in the payload section in a hexagonal stacking arrangement in which the successive layers are added with the NEI tangentially in contact with one another. The NEI to advantage may be cylindrically shaped or of an irregular shape and still create an effective interceptor cloud.
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“Sky Guard Fire Control /35mm Twin Gun Air Defense System Demostration” , Firing Range Allintsteig, Austria, Sep. 12/22, 1993.*
Contraves Sales and Technical Brochure, “The lethal blow to any missile or other airborne threat”, Contraves, Pittsburgh, PA 15238, 5 pages.
Lin Jane M.
Smith David P.
Keller Robert W.
TRW Inc.
Tudor Harold J.
LandOfFree
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