Werkzeugmaschinenfabrik Oerlikon-buhrle Ag

Oerlikon Contraves Ag

Hanspeter Novet

Bruno Ruppen

Erwin Bohler

Kurt Muller

Robert Ramseyer

Robert Gerber

When using a multi-barrel firing weapon, such as a Gatling-type gun or canon, it is desired during a firing burst, to first fire the initial or lead cartridge or ammunition round when the rotating array of weapon barrels, during running up to speed, has attained its full rotational speed, that is, when the firing weapon is capable of firing at the full or maximum firing rate. In this way there is realized the desired high precision and low round scattering of the weapon system. The cartridge infeed apparatus requires a certain amount of time until it has reached its full cartridge infeed velocity. The initial or lead cartridge therefore should only then be delivered to the multi-barrel firing weapon after completion of the running up to speed of the array of weapon barrels and after the cartridge infeed apparatus has reached its full or maximum cartridge infeed velocity. To that end, there are provided two cartridge transfer wheels which are interconnected by a clutch, these cartridge transfer wheels being arranged between two endless chains. There are also provided a separate cartridge return channel and a sensor for determining the starting position of the initial or lead cartridge.

Apparatus for infeeding cartridges

During delivery of ammunition to a firing weapon from an ammunition magazine, in which the ammunition is arranged in an endless storage and conveyor chain, high acceleration forces occur, since the entire ammunition supply in the ammunition magazine must be accelerated to the required infeed velocity in the shortest possible time. In order to maintain as small as possible these acceleration forces in the ammunition magazine, the endless storage and conveyor chain is telescopically structured according to the invention, so that not all cartridges in the ammunition magazine have to be simultaneously accelerated.

Endless storage and conveyor chain in an ammunition magazine

A cradle or bucket chain of an ammunition conveyor system serves to deliver cartridges from an ammunition magazine through a cartridge infeed channel to an automatic firing weapon. The cradle chain is able to easily move through a markedly curved cartridge infeed channel. This cradle chain is constructed such that there is not needed a separate guide track or rail and such that the cartridges can be easily withdrawn from or cammed out of the cradle chain in the vicinity of the automatic firing weapon. For this purpose the individual cradle elements of the cradle chain are each provided with a cartridge infeed cam for infeeding the cartridges to the automatic firing weapon. Each cradle element further possesses a sword or tongue member projecting into a guide groove of the cartridge infeed channel. Additionally, each cradle element of the cradle chain is guided by means of two oppositely situated walls of the cartridge infeed channel.

Cradle or bucket chain for infeeding cartridges to an automatic firing

An ammunition container having at least one compartment in which there is located a loop of a cartridge belt consisting of two adjacently arranged loop portions. The compartment having a rack-like support and recesses or gaps of such support serving for the reception of a respective cartridge of one loop portion of the cartridge belt.

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Volketswil, Switzerland

Hanspeter Novet