Low spin arming fuze for autorotating munitions

Claim 2

A spin armed fuze for use in autorotating munitions comprising: a slider housing, said housing being formed with a slider channel therein; a slider mounted in said slider housing channel or movement therein; first locking means engaging said slider for locking said slider in the safed position, aid locking means being responsive to centrifugal force to unlock said slider; a firing pin assembly pivotally mounted on said slider, said assembly being in the horizontal plane relative to said slider housing in the safed position and in the vertical plane in the armed position; a detonator-carrying rotor pivotally mounted to said slider housing, said rotor cooperatively engaging said firing pin assembly in the safed position, said rotor pivoting away from said firing pin assembly in response to centrifugal forces due to rotational velocity of the fuze; means for camming said firing pin assembly from the safed position to the armed position when said slider has been unlocked by said locking means and said slider has moved in said slider housing chaNnel to the armed position; and means for rotating said detonator-carrying rotor to engage said armed firing pin assembly when said means overcomes the centrifugal forces acting on said rotor wherein contact of a detonator in the rotor with said firing pin assembly initiates the explosive train.

Claim 3

A fuze as set forth in claim 1 in which said firing pin assembly includes a locking ear and in which said rotor includes a notch complementally formed to receive said locking ear when said firing pin assembly and said slider are in the safed position wherein pivotal movement of said firing pin assembly is prevented and said slider is prevented from sliding in said channel, said ear being disengaged from said notch when said rotor is pivoted in response to centrifugal forces.

Claim 4

The fuze as set forth in claim 1 in which said slider includes a pair of vertical uprights at one end thereof, said uprights defining a slot therebetween; said firing pin assembly being pivotally mounted at the upper end of said vertical uprights, said firing pin assembly comprising a planar camming body, said body supported in the horizontal plane in the safed position and in the vertical plane in the armed position; a firing pin affixed to the lower planar surface of said camming body; and a camming post at the end of said slider housing channel, said camming post extending vertically upward to engage said camming body when said slider is moved from the safed position towards the armed position wherein said camming post engages said camming body to cause said body to pivotally rotate to the armed position.

Claim 5

The fuze as set forth in claim 3 further comprising a locking ear formed along one edge of said camming body, said rotor including a notch complementally formed to receive said locking ear when said slider and rotor are in the safed position, said engagement of the locking ear and notch preventing pivotal movement of said camming body about said vertical uprights and linear movement of said slider relative to said rotor, said ear being disengaged from said notch when said rotor is pivoted in response to centrifugal forces.

Claim 6

A fuze as set forth in claim 4 further comprising a rotor housing mounted between said slider housing and said rotor, said rotor housing having a rectangular slot formed therein, said slot having a width less than the width of said slider housing channel wherein said slider is held in said slider housing channel by said rotor housing.

Claim 7

The fuze as set forth in claim 5 further comprising second lock means cooperating between said slider and said slider housing for locking said slider in the armed position.

Claim 8

A spin armed fuze for use in autorotating munitions comprising: a cylindrical slider housing, said housing being formed with a slider channel transverse the rotational axis; a slider mounted in said channel for linear movement therein, said slider being at the inward position when said fuze is in the safed condition and at the outer position in the armed condition; means for locking said slider in the safed position, said means being responsive to centrifugal force to unlock said slider; a firing pin assembly including a planar camming body and a firing pin attached to one planar surface of said camming body; means pivotally mounting said camming body in spaced relation to said slider, said planar body having a firing pin attached thereto facing said slider in the safed condition and being pivotally rotated 90* to the vertical in the armed position; a rotor pivotally mounted to said slider housing; said rotor having a first position for cooperatively engaging the edge of said camming body when said slider and camming body are in the safed position, said rotor having a second position wherein said rotor is pivotally rotated away from said camming body in response to centrifugal forces, said rotor having a third position for engaging said firing pin when said slider has moved to the armed posItion; detonator means carried by said rotor wherein said detonator means is ignited when said rotor is urged into the third position; means for camming said camming body from the safed condition to the armed condition during linear transverse movement of said slider in said slider housing channel; and means for rotating said rotor to make contact with said firing pin when said means overcomes the centrifugal forces acting on said rotor in the second rotor position.

Claim 9

A spin armed fuze for use in autorotating munitions comprising: a cylindrical slider housing, said housing being formed with a slider channel transverse the rotational axis; a slider mounted in said channel for linear movement therein, said slider being at the inward position when said fuze is in the safed condition and at the outer position in the armed condition; means for locking said slider in the safed position, said means being responsive to centrifugal force to unlock said slider; a firing pin assembly including a planar camming body and a firing pin attached to one planar surface of said camming body; means pivotally mounting said camming body in spaced relation to said slider, said planar body having a firing pin attached thereto facing said slider in the safed condition and being pivotally rotated 90* to the vertical in the armed position; a rotor pivotally mounted to said slider housing; said rotor having a first position for cooperatively engaging the edge of said camming body when said slider and camming body are in the safed position, said rotor having a second position wherein said rotor is pivotally rotated away from said camming body in response to centrifugal forces, said rotor having a third position for engaging said firing pin when said slider has moved to the armed posItion; detonator means carried by said rotor wherein said detonator means is ignited when said rotor is urged into the third position; means for camming said camming body from the safed condition to the armed condition during linear transverse movement of said slider in said slider housing channel; and means for rotating said rotor to make contact with said firing pin when said means overcomes the centrifugal forces acting on said rotor in the second rotor position.

Claim 10

A fuze as set forth in claim 7 in which said camming body mounting means includes a pair of uprights protruding from the outward end of said slider, said uprights defining a slot therebetween; and in which said camming means includes an upright post protruding from the outward end of said slider housing channel, said upright post and slider uprights being complementally formed for engagement therebetween in the armed condition, said upright post engaging said camming body to cause pivotal rotation of said camming body as said slider moves linearly from the safed to the armed condition.

Claim 11

The fuze as set forth in claim 8 further comprising a rotor housing mounted between said slider housing and said rotor, said rotor housing having a rectangular slot formed therein, said slot having a width less than the width of said slider housing channel and said rotor housing mounted so that said rotor housing slot overlies said slider housing channel to hold said slider therein.

Claim 12

The fuze as set forth in claim 9 comprising a locking ear formed along one edge of said camming body, said rotor including a notch complementally formed to receive said locking ear when said rotor is in the first position, said engagement of the locking ear with the notch preventing pivotal movement of said camming body about said vertical uprights and linear movement of said slider relative to said rotor, said locking ear being disengaged from said notch when said rotor is pivoted to the second position in response to centrifugal forces.

Claim 13

The fuze as set forth in claim 1 in which said rotor provides a preset time delay after which multiple explosive charges cause the munition to pop-up into the air followed by a second delay after which the explosive charge is detonated.