Guided missile

Claim 2

A guidance and control system for a guided missile, comprising in combination with a missile, movable control vanes for steering the missile, a sight-line gyroscope having means mounted thereon to sight and operable to track a target from which radiation is emanating, caging means for said sight-line gyroscope, a course-line gyroscope having means thereon responsive to movement of the sight-line gyroscope for precessing the course-line gyroscope in the same direction as and at a higher rate than said sightline gyroscope and operable to maintain an automatically adjustable collision course with the target, and means responsive to movements of said course-line gyroscope operable to rotate said movable control vanes for steering the missile on a collision course with the target; said sight means on the sight-line gyroscope consisting of a detector cell sensitive to radiation from a target, means for reflecting radiation from a target to said detector cell, and chopping means rotatable with the rotor of said sight-line gyroscope for chopping the radiation reflected to said detector cell to cause pulsating signals to be produced by said detector cell when the reflected radiation from the target deviates from passing through the exact center of said chopping means; the rotor of said sightline gyroscope having a permanent magnet mounted thereoN with its poles positioned in correlated relationship with the position of said chopping means for causing the pulsating signals produced in the detector cell to be in a correlated phase relationship with the rotor of the sight line gyroscope; means for gyrating said sight-line gyroscope and sight means in a spiral, and means operable to uncage said sight-line gyroscope when said sight means sights the target; means for spinning the rotors of said gyroscopes in opposite directions; said means which is responsive to the movement of said sight-line gyroscope being a solenoid precessing coil affixed to said course-line gyroscope and disposed in the field of said permanent magnet, means for transmitting said pulsating signals to said precessing coil to affect a precessing torque between said precessing coil and said permanent magnet causing both gyroscopes to precess in the same direction at proportional rates when the spin axis of the sightline gyroscope deviates from pointing directly at the target.

Claim 3

A system as in claim 1 wherein said course-line gyroscope is supported by and carried within the gimbals of said sight-line gyroscope.

Claim 4

A system as in claim 1 wherein the means for spinning the gyroscope rotors comprises gas flowing from jets and impinging upon scallops around the periphery of the gyroscope rotors.

Claim 5

A system as in claim 1 wherein the rotor of said course-line gyroscope is lighter than and rotates at a different speed than said sight-line gyroscope.

Claim 6

A system as in claim 1 wherein the means associated with said sight-line gyroscope to gyrate said sight-line gyroscope and sight means comprises a rotating drive shaft carried by said sight-line gyroscope and means having a conical surface frictionally driven by said drive shaft and operable to recede from said drive shaft during its rotation to cause the sight-line gyroscope and sight means to gyrate in a spiral until a target is sighted; said means which is operable to uncage the sight-line gyroscope comprising an expandable metal bellows containing combustible material and operable to hold said receding conical surface in contact with said drive shaft, electrical circuit means connecting said radiation detector cell and the conbustible material in said metal bellows, the first target signal causing said combustible material to ignite, said combustible material when ignited causing said metal bellows to expand and remove said conical surface from contact with said drive shaft leaving said sight-line gyroscope and sight means free to be precessed in response to radiation signals from the target and to track the target.

Claim 7

A system as in claim 5 wherein the electrical means connecting said radiation detector cell with said precessing coil for transmitting electrical signals from said radiation detector cell to said precessing coil and said electrical circuit means connecting said radiation detector cell with the combustible material in said metal bellows for transmitting the first target signal to said combustible material have an electronic amplifier for amplifying the signals from said radiation detector cell included therein.

Claim 8

A system as in claim 1 wherein the means which is responsive to movements of said course-line gyroscope for steering the missile comprises a plurality of servo amplifiers each consisting of a cylinder having an outlet passage, a piston longitudinally movable within said cylinder, combustible material in said cylinder effective to create pressure upon said piston during combustion and operable to increase its combustion rate with increased pressure thereon, means for igniting said combustible material, conduit means connected to the outlet passage of said cylinder to conduct combustion gases from said cylinder to gas jets for rotating the rotors of said gyroscopes, and a valve actuated by movement of said course-line gyroscope to control the pressure within said cylinder and cause movement of said piston; the movement of said pistons operable to effect rotation of said moVable control vanes for steering the missile.

Claim 9

A guidance and control system for a guided missile, comprising in combination with a missile, movable control vanes for steering the missile while in flight, a sight-line gyroscope having means mounted thereon to sight and operable to track a target from which radiation is emanating, means for caging said sight-line gyroscope, a course-line gyroscope having means responsive to movement of the sight-line gyroscope after the target has been sighted for precessing the course-line gyroscope in the same direction as and at a higher rate than said sight-line gyroscope and being operable to maintain an automatically adjustable collision course with the target, and a servo mechanism responsive to movements of said course-line gyroscope; said course-line gyroscope being mounted so that its spin axis is initially coaxial with the spin axis of said sight-line gyroscope; said sight means on the sight-line gyroscope consisting of a detector cell sensitive to radiation from a target, optical means for reflecting radiation from a target to said detector cell, and a scanner disc having chopping means and mounted in front of said detector cell and rotatable with the rotor of said sight-line gyroscope for chopping the radiation reflected by said optical means to said detector cell to cause said detector cell to produce pulsating electrical signals when the reflected radiation from the target deviates from passing through the exact center of said scanner disc; the centers of said scanner disc and detector cell being aligned with the spin axis of said sight-line gyroscope, and the rotor of said sight-line gyroscope having a permanent magnet mounted thereon with its magnetic poles positioned in correlated relationship with the position of the chopper of said scanner disc for causing the pulsating signals produced in the detector cell to be in a correlated phase relationship with the rotor of the sight-line gyroscope; means associated with said sight-line gyroscope to gyrate said sight-line gyroscope and sight means in an increasing spiral about the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope and means operable to uncage said sight-line gyroscope when said sight means sights the target; means for spinning the rotors of said gyroscopes in opposite directions; said means which is responsive to the movement of said sight-line gyroscope being a solenoid precessing coil affixed to said course-line gyroscope and disposed in the field of said permanent magnet carried by said sight-line gyroscope; electrical circuit means connecting said radiation detector cell and said precessing coil for transmitting said pulsating signals to said precessing coil to affect a precessing torque between said precessing coil and said permanent magnet causing both gyroscopes to precess in the same direction at proportional rates when the target deviates from the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope to bring the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope back on target; said servo mechanism responsive to said course-line gyroscope being operable to rotate said movable control vanes in response to movement of said course-line gyroscope for steering the missile on a collision course with the target.

Claim 10

A guidance and control system for a guided missile, comprising in combination with a missile, movable control vanes for steering the missile while in flight, a sight-line gyroscope having means mounted thereon to sight and operable to track a target from which radiation is emanating, means for caging said sight-line gyroscope, a course-line gyroscope having means responsive to movement of the sight-line gyroscope after the target has been sighted for precessing the course-line gyroscope in the same direction as and at a higher rate than said sight-line gyroscope and being operable to maintain an automatically adjustable collision course with the target, and a servo mechanism responsive to movements of said course-line gyroscope; said course-line gyroscope being mounted so that its spin axis is initially coaxial with the spin axis of said sight-line gyroscope; said sight means on the sight-line gyroscope consisting of a detector cell sensitive to radiation from a target, optical means for reflecting radiation from a target to said detector cell, and a scanner disc having chopping means and mounted in front of said detector cell and rotatable with the rotor of said sight-line gyroscope for chopping the radiation reflected by said optical means to said detector cell to cause said detector cell to produce pulsating electrical signals when the reflected radiation from the target deviates from passing through the exact center of said scanner disc; the centers of said scanner disc and detector cell being aligned with the spin axis of said sight-line gyroscope, and the rotor of said sight-line gyroscope having a permanent magnet mounted thereon with its magnetic poles positioned in correlated relationship with the position of the chopper of said scanner disc for causing the pulsating signals produced in the detector cell to be in a correlated phase relationship with the rotor of the sight-line gyroscope; means associated with said sight-line gyroscope to gyrate said sight-line gyroscope and sight means in an increasing spiral about the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope and means operable to uncage said sight-line gyroscope when said sight means sights the target; means for spinning the rotors of said gyroscopes in opposite directions; said means which is responsive to the movement of said sight-line gyroscope being a solenoid precessing coil affixed to said course-line gyroscope and disposed in the field of said permanent magnet carried by said sight-line gyroscope; electrical circuit means connecting said radiation detector cell and said precessing coil for transmitting said pulsating signals to said precessing coil to affect a precessing torque between said precessing coil and said permanent magnet causing both gyroscopes to precess in the same direction at proportional rates when the target deviates from the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope to bring the spin axis of the sight-line gyroscope back on target; said servo mechanism responsive to said course-line gyroscope being operable to rotate said movable control vanes in response to movement of said course-line gyroscope for steering the missile on a collision course with the target.

Claim 11

A system as in claim 8 wherein the servo mechanism which is responsive to movements of said course-line gyroscope for steering the missile comprises a plurality of servo amplifiers each consisting of a cylinder having an outlet passage, a piston longitudinally movable within said cylinder, combustible material in said cylinder effective to create pressure upon said piston during combustion and operable to increase its combustion rate with increased pressure thereon, means for igniting said combustible material, conduit means connected to the outlet passage of said cylinder to conduct combustion gases from said cylinder to gas jets for rotating the rotors of said gyroscopes, and a valve actuated by movement of said course-line gyroscope to control the pressure within said cylinder and cause mOvement of said piston; the movement of said pistons operable to effect rotation of said movable control vanes for steering the missile.