Canister cartridge and projectile assembly with releasable nose

Claim 1

A canister cartridge which comprises: a cup shaped cartridge member having a partially closed rear end and an open forward end; a primer axially disposed in the rear end of said cartridge member; charge means, for generating gas pressure which includes; a propellant axially disposed in said cartridge member and aligned with said primer and in contact therewith; and a circular cardboard wad transversely positioned within said cartridge member, said wad holding said propellant in said rear end of said cartridge member; sabot means, releasably disposed in the forward end of said cartridge member, for holding therein and dispensing therefrom a payload which includes; a hollow body member having a cup shaped partially closed rear end and a forward open end, said rear end having an exteriorally formed circumferential shoulder thereon and a molded open ended tube centrally disposed therein, said body member having an annular gas cavity axially aligned with and exterior to said open ended tube, said rear end having a first pair of flow passages extending through the rear wall of said rear end, said first pair of passages communicating with said annular gas cavity, a second pair of flow passages passing through said open ended tube which communicate with the interior of said open-ended tube, a circumferentially disposed sabot "O" ring groove positioned in the exterior wall of said sabot rear end, and a circumferential sabot pawl groove positioned in the interior wall of the forward end of said body member; piston means for controlling therethrough the flow of gas generated by said charge means and for expelling said payload from said sabot means which includes; a piston member having a rear side and a forward side, a circumferential shoulder disposed around the periphery of said piston member, said rear side being provided with an enlarged concentric channel aligned and communicating with said annular gas cavity of said body member, said forward side having a plurality of radially extending grooves therein, a pair of piston gas flow passages transversely disposed in said piston member intermediate said forward side and said enlarged concentric channel permit gas generated from said propellant to flow from said enlarged concentric channel to said forward side of said piston member; a first disc shaped member positioned in said body member which abuts against said forward side of said piston member; a plurality of metal shot disposed in said body member, said shot abutting against said first disc member; a second disc shaped member positioned in said body member so that it abuts against said plurality of metal short, said second disc holding said metal shot intermediate said first and second disc members; a disc shaped flexible pad positioned in said body member intermediate said second disc shaped member and said nose cone means; a free fitting rigid plastic adaptor ring operatively positioned on said formed circumferential shoulder of the rear end of said body member; a first rubber chevron shaped obturator positioned intermediate said adaptor ring and the interior wall of said cup shaped cartridge member; a second chevron shaped rubber obturator positioned in said piston shoulder; and an "O" ring seal operatively positioned in said sabot "O" ring groove intermediate the exterior wall of said body member and the interior wall of said cartridge member; and releasable nose cone means for providing moisture protection for the interior of said sabot means and for said charge means, and means for sequentially releasing said nose cone means from said sabot means after set-back acceleration so that said nose cone means can move forwardly away from said sabot means.