US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Anthony P Farina

Stewart Gilman

Brian C Wong

Leon Manole

Andrew Gowarty

Mark Young

John J Dineen

Francis Renner

Joseph D Wu

Wilfredo Toledo

Daniel Vo

Marco Duca

Peter Georgantzis

Nicholas Liggett Grossman

Henry E Hudgins

Keith J Martin

Thomas Presutti

Carlton Adam

William Rice

Andrew A Molina

Eric Skoglund

Francis Donlon

Michael J Amoruso

Frank Renner

Robert Sayer

Donald Chin

A projectile having a spin stabilized gyroscopically stable flight path due to a base flange. With the base flange, the aerodynamic overturning moment about the center of gravity is reduced to increase the gyroscopic stability factor for stable flight. In one application, a medium-caliber untethered human electro-muscular incapacitation (HEMI) projectile has improved effectiveness due to its stable flight from launch to targets. Other applications for damping resulted in significant improvement in ground dispersion of 40 mm projectiles. The increased stability and increased aerodynamic damping reduce coning motion during flight which ensures that the projectile arrives at the target with greater accuracy, and with its nose oriented for effective incapacitation of the target.

Projectile with improved flight performance

A gun-launched, non-lethal, anti-personnel projectile includes a variable thrust, solid propellant rocket motor. The rocket motor has a variable thrust profile that maintains a substantially constant kinetic energy of the projectile below a lethal threshold from a range of about 5 meters to about 400 meters.

Gun-launched non-lethal projectile with solid propellant rocket motor

A kinetic energy training cartridge simulates the performance, weight, length, and external geometry of a tactical cartridge. The training cartridge includes a cartridge case and a projectile that is secured to cartridge case by means of a sabot. The sabot includes a rearward extension that encapsulates part of the projectile, to add weight and to increase a length to diameter ratio of the projectile, so as to decrease an intrusion volume of the projectile within the cartridge case. In a preferred embodiment, the length to diameter ratio of the projectile is at least 15.

Kinetic energy training projectile

Demolition projectile

A finless projectile provides improved ease of use, aerodynamics, muzzle velocity, drag, target, and excursion accuracy, structural integrity, terminal effectiveness and safety, at lower cost. The finless projectile includes a slug, a forward projectile body, an aft projectile body, an obturator, and a pad. The finless projectile is a full bore projectile that defines a hollow core, but does not include a sabot nor does it carry explosives. The finless projectile functions by kinetic energy transfer from the projectile to the target by deforming the target. The center of gravity of the finless projectile is forward of the center of pressure to provide static stability to the finless projectile.

Aerodynamically stable finless projectile

A finless cone-nosed, ogival-nosed, or combination ogive-cone nosed training projectile is statically stable, yet has adequate spin rate to compensate for aerodynamic or mass asymmetries. In addition, the training projectile can be fired from smooth bore or rifled cannons of various calibers, including 120 mm and 105 mm. Spin torque and stability augmentation are provided by a radially angled slotted tail flange attached to the rear of the training projectile, providing high performance and improved accuracy at low cost for use in training exercises. The training projectile has a higher static margin than conventional devices, and provides the ability to train personnel with a training projectile that achieves flight ranges similar to its matching tactical projectile, and has improved accuracy.

Finless training projectile with improved flight stability over an extended range

Anti-personnel tank fired ammunition designed for attacking personnel at various ranges includes a hollow base member adapted with an electric primer and a plastic or aluminum canister containing a payload at one end thereof. In operation, the hollow cartridge is loaded with a solid propellant. The electric primer which is centrally located in the solid propellant is fired and provides a flash together with the gasses needed to ignite the propellant. The burning propellant then provides the gasses needed to force the canister from the gun tube in which the ammunition is positioned.

Anti-personnel ammunition

A long-range training cartridge meets current US Army requirements. The long-range cartridge design enables its sub-projectile to be range limited to less than 8000 meters when fired at a 10-degree gun elevation. The long-range training projectile includes a three-piece aluminum or steel sabot with a similar exterior profile to the kinetic energy tactical sabot. The sabot encapsulates a light-weight sub-projectile comprised of a steel rod and an aluminum fin or cone. Since the sub-projectile is encapsulated in the sabot, it will not be subjected to differential pressures associated with interior ballistic gun gasses. As a result the sub-projectile will therefore have less bending and better flight characteristics. The sub-projectile meets the guidelines for target accuracy and precision at ranges beyond 3000 meters.

Long range training cartridge

A guidance device for projectiles has stationary canards ( ) and thrusters ( ) positioned on the nose ( ) of the projectile ( ). The thrusters ( ) are initiated from remote or local sensor to provide flight maneuverability to a target.

Fixed canards maneuverability enhancement

An aerodynamic device, such as a projectile includes an elongated forebody, and an aft section secured to the forebody. The aft section acts as a d control device, and includes a connecting member that extends integrally in a conically shaped flared section, for generating a lift force to help stabilize the projectile during forward flight. The aft section further includes a flange that extends from the flared section, and that provides velocity decay and optimal drag, in order to limit the projectile flight and descent within a predetermined safety or emergency range. The flared section is defined between an innermost edge positioned adjacent to the connecting member, and an outermost edge positioned adjacent to the flange. The flange includes a forward facing wall that extends from the outermost edge and that has a height 'H' that controls the amount of drag on the projectile, such that the outer diameter of the aft section is less than, or equal to the inner diameter of the gun barrel from which the projectile is fired.

Training projectile

A projectile to be, fired from a non-rifled tube includes an elongated foody and a stabilizer secured to the tail end of the forebody for enhancing the projectile flight stability and for imparting spin to the projectile. The stabilizer includes a threaded member that extends integrally into a forward section, a peripheral channel and a grooved aft section. The forward section has a generally smooth cylindrical shape. The peripheral channel extends along the entire peripheral contour of the stabilizer and has a generally semi-circular cross-section, for generating an expansion wave and for directing air flow toward the grooved aft section. The grooved aft section is cylindrically shaped relative to a longitudinal axis, and has a predetermined number of identical, equally spaced, circumferentially positioned grooves which traverse the entire axial length of the aft section, and which are angled relative to the longitudinal axis. Each angled groove is defined by two substantially parallel side walls.

Expansion wave spin inducing generator

The disclosure is of a projectile having a main body, a nose and a tail iuding a flared tail member, the projectile having its center of gravity close to the nose thereof.

A cylindrical device connected to the nose of a projectile for imparting n to the projectile fired from a non-rifled bore of a cannon. The device has at least two coaxial, adjacent, and integrally connected cylindrical segments of different diameter. The segment having the larger diameter is positioned most rearwardly of the projectile, relative to the nose of the projectile, and the periphery of this segment has circumferentially spaced angled slots for catching air moving past the projectile to spin the projectile. The segment with the smaller diameter attaches the cylindrical device to the aft end of the nose of the projectile and directs the flow of air to and through the angled slots of the segment having the larger diameter.

Growing community of inventors

Hackettstown, NJ, United States of America

Anthony P Farina