US3915057A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Modular liquid propellant gun
Assignee: PulsePower Systems Inc
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Filing: 1973-12-06
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Granted: 1975-10-28
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Expires: 1993-12-06
Abstract
Abstract A gun of the kind in which liquid propellant is burned in the firing chamber to fire a projectile from the gun is constructed so that a number of gun modules can be combined in a modular gun. Each gun module is cam controlled, and a common cam is used to control each gun module in the modular gun. The cam can be a flexible cam having a belt configuration to permit the gun modules to be arranged in both circular groupings and in noncircular groupings, such as side by side. The modular gun includes fixed, non-rotating gun modules to eliminate the need for tangential velocity correction factors in the fire control and the need to accelerate the mass of the barrel assembly to operational speed. The individual gun module includes propellant injection mechanism for injecting propellant at high pressure when a non-hypergolic bi-propellant is used as the propellant. One or more hydraulic actuators are used to develop the high injection pressures and to operate other components of the gun, such as the bolt. The hydraulic actuators are also engaged with the cam to interlock the actuators and the controls for the actuators through the cam. A source of pressurized hydraulic fluid independent of the gun is used to power the actuators so that the weight and profile of the gun are kept to a minimum. The hydraulic system includes a compound spool control valve which operates in a dual mode to permit normal cyclic operation of the gun during firing and to maintain the gun in an open bolt condition during armed but non-firing operations. The hydraulic system includes a misfire detection mechanism and module shutdown valve which locks a misfired gun module in the closed bolt condition without the need to depressurize the hydraulic circuits of the other gun modules and without the need to include additional bypass circuits. The injection mechanism for injecting the bi-propellant includes two pistons which are yoked together and operated by a single actuator to inject the propellant into the firing chamber both in metered amounts and in a constant mix ratio. The pistons for injecting the bi-propellant include valves in the pistons, and the pistons are drawn through the fuel on retraction strokes of the pistons. The injection mechanism is retracted away from the firing chamber after the firing of a burst to isolate the propellant in the injection mechanism from the heat of the firing chamber. A rotary lock is mounted closely adjacent the bolt mechanism and engages a relieved area of the bolt in the locked position of the lock so that a quite small force on the lock will hold the bolt mechanism locked against high combustion chamber pressures tending to open the bolt.
Inventors
- 👤 Thomas M Broxholm
- 👤 Lester C Elmore
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 20:23
CPC Classifications
F; F41; F41A; F41A7/00; F41A7/02; F41A7/04; F41A1/00; F41A1/04; F41A7/08; F41F; F41F1/00; F41F1/08
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 31
Claim 1
Independent Claim
124 words
A modular gun comprising, a plurality of gun modules, each of the gun modules having a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means, control means, a firing chamber, injection means for injecting liquid propellant into the firing chamber of the gun module, cam means operatively associated with the control means of each gun module, drive means for rotating the cam means to produce cyclic injection of the propellant and operation of the gun and wherein the receiver means of each gun module are separate and independent of the receiver means of each of the other gun modules and have an outer shape which permits a plurality of gun modules to be arranged in patterned groupings with the receiver means of adjacent modules engaged in mutual support.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
124 words
A modular gun comprising, a plurality of gun modules, each of the gun modules having a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means, control means, a firing chamber, injection means for injecting liquid propellant into the firing chamber of the gun module, cam means operatively associated with the control means of each gun module, drive means for rotating the cam means to produce cyclic injection of the propellant and operation of the gun and wherein the receiver means of each gun module are separate and independent of the receiver means of each of the other gun modules and have an outer shape which permits a plurality of gun modules to be arranged in patterned groupings with the receiver means of adjacent modules engaged in mutual support.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
18 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 wherein the gun modules are arranged in a circular grouping.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
16 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 wherein the cam means encircle the gun modules.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
20 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 including common projectile feed means for feeding projectiles to the gun modules.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
40 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 4 including projectile loading means in each gun module operatively associated with the cam means for loading a projectile from the common projectile feed means into the firing chamber of the gun module.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
28 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 including hydraulic actuAtor means in each gun module connected to drive the projection means and controlled by the cam means.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
77 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 6 wherein the cam means, injection means and hydraulic actuator means include dual cam traces, cam followers and control valve means operatively associated to permit a dual mode of operation in which the cam rotates continuously and produces no reciprocation of the hydraulic actuator means in an armed but non-firing condition of the gun and produces cyclic reciprocation of the hydraulic actuator means in the firing condition of the gun.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
129 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 including misfire detection means in each gun module, said cam means having one trace which is engaged with the injection means of each gun module during normal firing operation of each gun module and a second trace for engagement with the injection means of any gun module which misfires, after such misfire occurs, said second trace being effective to permit the injection means of the misfired gun module to remain in a non-operating condition while the injection means of the other gun modules are engaged with the first trace and are operated in cyclic operation, said misfire detection means being effective to maintain the engagement of the injection means of a misfired gun module with said second trace after a misfire.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
38 words
A modular gun a defined in claim 4 wherein the gun modules are evenly spaced apart from one another and the projectile feed means carry individual projectiles evenly spaced at one half the pitch between the gun modules.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 wherein the injection means are constructed to inject a liquid mono-propellant into the firing chamber.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
101 words
A modular gun comprising a plurality of gun modules, each gun module including a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means and control means, a firing chamber in the barrel, a bolt, injection means for injecting liquid propellent into the firing chamber, and actuator means connected directly to the bolt and injector means for actuating the bolt and injector means to maintain low cam face loads, the control means including control members for controlling the actuator means, a cam operatively associated with the control members of each gun module, and drive means for rotating the cam to produce cyclic operation of the gun.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
101 words
A modular gun comprising a plurality of gun modules, each gun module including a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means and control means, a firing chamber in the barrel, a bolt, injection means for injecting liquid propellent into the firing chamber, and actuator means connected directly to the bolt and injector means for actuating the bolt and injector means to maintain low cam face loads, the control means including control members for controlling the actuator means, a cam operatively associated with the control members of each gun module, and drive means for rotating the cam to produce cyclic operation of the gun.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
41 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 11 wherein the cam is operatively associated with both the actuator means and the control members of each gun module so that the actuator means and the control members are interlocked through the cam.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
63 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 11 wherein the injection means of each gun module includes a cylinder and piston and the actuator means retract the entire cylinder and piston assembly away from the firing chamber after the firing of a burst so that the injection means and propellant are physically separated and thermally isolated from the firing chamber and hot barrel.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
92 words
A modular gun comprising a plurality of gun modules, each gun module including a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means and control means, a firing chamber in the barrel, a bolt, injection means for injecting liquid propellant into the firing chamber, and hydraulic actuator means for actuating the bolt and injector means, the control means including control valve means for controlling the hydraulic actuator means, a common continuous cam operatively associated with the control means of each gun module, and drive means for rotating the cam to produce cyclic operation of the gun.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
92 words
A modular gun comprising a plurality of gun modules, each gun module including a fixed non-rotating barrel, receiver means and control means, a firing chamber in the barrel, a bolt, injection means for injecting liquid propellant into the firing chamber, and hydraulic actuator means for actuating the bolt and injector means, the control means including control valve means for controlling the hydraulic actuator means, a common continuous cam operatively associated with the control means of each gun module, and drive means for rotating the cam to produce cyclic operation of the gun.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
44 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the cam is operatively associated with both the hydraulic actuator means and the control valve means of each gun module so that the actuator means and the control valve means are interlocked through the cam.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
65 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the injection means of each gun module include two separate pistons for injecting separate components of a bi-propellant and wherein the two pistons are yoked together for drive by a single hydraulic actuator so that the components of the bi-propellant are injected into the firing chamber in both metered amounts and in a constant mix ratio.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
60 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the injection means include a cylinder and a piston which is reciprocable in a forward direction to inject the propellant into the firing chamber and in a rearward direction after injection, and valve means in the piston effective to permit refilling of the injection means on retracting movement of the piston.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
60 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14, said barrel including a forcing cone, projectile loader means for placing a projectile in the barrel behind the forcing cone and wherein the injection means inject the liquid propellant behind the projectile to force the projectile forward into the forcing cone by dynamic loading of the liquid propellant into the firing chamber.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
16 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the cam is a hollow, cylindrical member.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
15 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 19 wherein the cam encircles the gun modules.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
156 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein each gun module includes a trigger controlled bias control valve, the control valve means includes one valve spool engaged with the cam and a second valve spool in the form of a sleeve encircling the first valve spool and positionable within a valve body by the one valve spool, and conduit means associating the bias control valve with the valve sleeve to shift the valve sleeve to a first position with respect to the one valve spool and the valve body in which the hydraulic actuator maintains the bolt and injection means in an open bolt condition during an armed but non-firing condition of the gun module and to shift the valve sleeve to a second position with respect to the one valve spool and valve body in which the hydraulic actuator produces cyclic reciprocation of the bolt and injection means during firing of the gun module.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
76 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the injection means of each gun module include a cylinder and piston and the hydraulic actuator means retract the entire cylinder and positon assembly away from the firing chamber after the firing of a burst so that the injection means and propellant are physically separated and thermally isolated from the firing chamber by the retraction of the injection means away from the hot barrel and firing chamber.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
28 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein the gun modules are arranged in a circular cluster and the receiver means are shaped to provide mutual support.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
87 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein each gun module has misfire detection means including a module shutdown valve for detecting a misfire during a cycle of operation, conduit means associated with the misfire detection means and module shutdown valve and effective to shift the control valve means to a position in which the bolt and injection means are maintained in a closed bolt condition during subsequent cycles, and purge means operated by the misfire detection means for purging the firing chamber after a misfire.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
37 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 14 wherein each gun module includes an igniter mounted for reciprocation within the bolt and breech lock means for locking the bolt, injection means and igniter in position during firing.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
101 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 25 wherein the breech lock means includes a lock mounted for rotation about an axis extending transverse to the axis of reciprocation of the bolt, the lock has a relieved area which closely interfits the outside surface of the bolt in the non-locking position of the lock so that the bolt is freely reciprocable within the relieved area in the non-locking position of the lock and wherein the bolt and igniter have relieved areas providing abuttment faces which engage with a corresponding abuttment face of the lock in the locking position of the lock.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
23 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 whereIn the injection means are constructed to inject a liquid bi-propellant into the firing chamber.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
17 words
A modular gun as defined in claim 1 wherein the gun modules are arranged in side-by-side groupings.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-10-27 | 1979-04-28 | 1979-10-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-10-27 | 1983-04-28 | 1983-10-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-10-27 | 1987-04-28 | 1987-10-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |