US4457206A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Microwave-type projectile communication apparatus for guns
Assignee: Ares Inc
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Filing: 1981-06-02
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Granted: 1984-07-03
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Expires: 2001-06-02
Abstract
Abstract Microwave projectile communication apparatus comprises a microwave probe fixed to a gun barrel at its muzzle end. A microwave oscillator, having a reference frequency selected for exciting the single fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel, is connected to the probe, for example, through a hybrid mixer configured for extracting, from moving projectile-reflected microwaves, a true Doppler signal for projectile velocity measurements. Connected between the oscillator and the probe is a signal modulator for modulating the reference oscillator signal to the probe. Connected to the signal modulator is a driver signal generator which controls the modulator in a manner enabling information, such as fuse delay time or target range, to be communicated to the projectile fuse. A conventional fire control computer may be used to provide to the modulator the data to be transmitted to the projectile. The barrel muzzle end may be internally shaped to function more effectively as a microwave antenna to enhance communication with projectiles after they have left the barrel. Corresponding methods for microwave communication with fired projectiles are provided.
Inventors
- 👤 Peter P. Toulios
- 👤 Kenneth D. Hartman
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 02:31
CPC Classifications
F; F41; F41A; F41A21/00; F41A21/32; F41G; F41G3/00; F41G3/12; F41G5/00; F41G5/08; F42; F42C; F42C17/00; F42C17/04; G; G01; G01P; G01P3/00; G01P3/64; G01P3/66; G01P3/665; G01S; G01S13/00; G01S13/02; G01S13/50; G01S13/58; H; H01; H01Q; H01Q1/00; H01Q1/44
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
127 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, frequency of said oscillator means being selected, relative to barrel diameter, to excite a single fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a moving projectile in the barrel.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
127 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, frequency of said oscillator means being selected, relative to barrel diameter, to excite a single fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a moving projectile in the barrel.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
140 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, frequency of said oscillator means being selected relative to barrel diameter to be below the barrel cutoff frequency of the fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a moving projectile after the projectile has passed the probe and exited the barrel.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
140 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, frequency of said oscillator means being selected relative to barrel diameter to be below the barrel cutoff frequency of the fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a moving projectile after the projectile has passed the probe and exited the barrel.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
194 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communication with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto at a preselected frequency for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed; (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a fired projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight; and, (e) means defining an outwardly flared exit aperture at a muzzle end of the barrel beyond the probe, said aperture thereby forming an antenna which enhances coupling of the microwave energy, introduced into the barrel by the probe, into free space beyond the muzzle end, and thereby increasing the amount of microwave energy radiated outwardly from the barrel in the direction of the projectile in said free flight and increasing the communication range relative thereto.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
194 words
Projectile communicating apparatus, for microwave communication with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy thereto at a preselected frequency for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed; (d) means enabling selective modulation of the reference oscillator frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be communicated, through the probe and barrel, to a fired projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight; and, (e) means defining an outwardly flared exit aperture at a muzzle end of the barrel beyond the probe, said aperture thereby forming an antenna which enhances coupling of the microwave energy, introduced into the barrel by the probe, into free space beyond the muzzle end, and thereby increasing the amount of microwave energy radiated outwardly from the barrel in the direction of the projectile in said free flight and increasing the communication range relative thereto.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
35 words
The projectile communication apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the reference oscillator frequency is preselected, relative to barrel diameter, to be below the barrel cut off frequency of the fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
183 words
Projectile communicating apparatus for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles passing through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, said reference oscillator having first and second output frequencies, said first output frequency being selected relative to barrel diameter, to excite a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel and said second output frequency being selected, relative to said barrel diameter to be below the cutoff frequency of said electromagnetic mode, (d) means for selectively modulating the reference oscillator output frequencies to encode information thereon for transmitting to fired projectiles; and (e) means enabling selecting said first output frequency for communicating with fired projectiles which are still in the barrel and enabling selecting said second output frequency for communicating with projectiles which have exited the barrel and are in free flight.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
183 words
Projectile communicating apparatus for microwave communicating with projectiles having microwave receiving means, said apparatus comprising: (a) a microwave probe; (b) means adapted for fixing the probe to a projectile barrel with a probe inner end adjacent to, but out of, the path of projectiles passing through the barrel; (c) microwave reference oscillator means connected to the probe for providing microwave energy for introduction thereby into the barrel to which the probe is fixed, said reference oscillator having first and second output frequencies, said first output frequency being selected relative to barrel diameter, to excite a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel and said second output frequency being selected, relative to said barrel diameter to be below the cutoff frequency of said electromagnetic mode, (d) means for selectively modulating the reference oscillator output frequencies to encode information thereon for transmitting to fired projectiles; and (e) means enabling selecting said first output frequency for communicating with fired projectiles which are still in the barrel and enabling selecting said second output frequency for communicating with projectiles which have exited the barrel and are in free flight.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
81 words
The projectile communicating apparatus according to claims 1, 2, 3 or 5, wherein said microwave probe comprises a probe body having means defining a cylindrical aperture which extends to said probe inner end and which is perpendicular to a barrel bore axis, and a cylindrical, dielectric insert having a preselected dielectric constant disposed in said aperture, an antenna portion of an interconnection between the reference oscillator means and the probe being disposed radially inwardly into a recess formed in said insert.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
18 words
The projectile communicating apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the dielectric constant of said insert is about 5.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
100 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an end of the probe adjacent to, but out of the path of, projectiles traveling through the barrel; (b) introducing into the barrel, through the probe, microwave energy having a reference frequency selected to propagate a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (c) modulating the reference frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be transmitted to a fired projectile and communicating with a fired projectile.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
100 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an end of the probe adjacent to, but out of the path of, projectiles traveling through the barrel; (b) introducing into the barrel, through the probe, microwave energy having a reference frequency selected to propagate a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel; and, (c) modulating the reference frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be transmitted to a fired projectile and communicating with a fired projectile.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
129 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means, which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an end of the probe adjacent to, but out of the path of, projectiles traveling through the barrel; (b) introducing into the barrel, through the probe, microwave energy having a preselected reference frequency; (c) forming a muzzle end of the barrel into a conical antenna shape for enhancing coupling of microwave energy from the barrel into free space beyond the barrel; and, (d) modulating the reference frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be transmitted to a projectile and communicating with the projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
129 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means, which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an end of the probe adjacent to, but out of the path of, projectiles traveling through the barrel; (b) introducing into the barrel, through the probe, microwave energy having a preselected reference frequency; (c) forming a muzzle end of the barrel into a conical antenna shape for enhancing coupling of microwave energy from the barrel into free space beyond the barrel; and, (d) modulating the reference frequency in a manner encoding therein information to be transmitted to a projectile and communicating with the projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight.
Claim 16
Independent Claim
155 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means, which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an inner end of the probe adjacent to the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel and communicating with interior regions of the barrel; (b) connecting a source of microwave energy to the probe; (c) selecting a first microwave energy frequency, relative to barrel diameter, to excite a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel and modulating said first frequency for communicating information to a fired projectile while the projectile is still in the barrel; and, (d) selecting a second microwave energy frequency, relative to said barrel diameter, to be below a barrel cutoff frequency of the fundamental mode and modulating said second frequency for communicating information to a fired projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight.
Claim 17
Independent Claim
155 words
A method for microwave communication with a projectile having microwave receiving means, which comprises the steps of: (a) fixing a microwave probe to a projectile barrel, adjacent to a muzzle end thereof, with an inner end of the probe adjacent to the path of projectiles traveling through the barrel and communicating with interior regions of the barrel; (b) connecting a source of microwave energy to the probe; (c) selecting a first microwave energy frequency, relative to barrel diameter, to excite a fundamental electromagnetic mode in the barrel and modulating said first frequency for communicating information to a fired projectile while the projectile is still in the barrel; and, (d) selecting a second microwave energy frequency, relative to said barrel diameter, to be below a barrel cutoff frequency of the fundamental mode and modulating said second frequency for communicating information to a fired projectile after the projectile has exited the barrel and is in free flight.
Claim 18
Independent Claim
34 words
The method for microwave communicating with a projectile according to claims 9 or 10, including the step of forming the microwave probe to have a dielectric insert having a dielectric constant of about 5.
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) | 1987-07-03 | 1988-01-02 | 1988-07-03 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1991-07-03 | 1992-01-02 | 1992-07-03 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1995-07-03 | 1996-01-02 | 1996-07-03 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |