US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Mcdonnell Douglas Helicopter Company

Greyden International

John H Peck

Clifford E LaFever

William C Baldwin

Charles E Rostcil

A heavy support weapon, for example, of 30 mm caliber, designed for firing from conventional machine gun mounts without undue recoil loads transferred to the gun mount. The weapon is designed for first round accuracy whether in the automatic open bolt or semi-automatic closed bolt mode. The weapon 10 includes a barrel 13 joined to a barrel yoke 21 in a receiver 14 aft of a front housing assembly 15. The recoil system includes a main recoil spring 30, a secondary spring 23, a buffer group including rods 60, springs 61 and plate 63. A slide bolt assembly 40 includes a slide 41, a bolt 42, a face 43, bolt face levers 44 and actuating pins 45, all within the receiver 14. The bolt face 43 is driven vertically by the bolt face levers 44 to receive a new round, load it and remove and discharge a spent casing. The slide bolt assembly 40 travels forward and aft during the firing cycle. On rearward travel it is accelerated rearward by accelerator 70 until reaching the buffer group and transfers its kinetic energy to the buffer group which in turn transfers that energy to the barrel 13 and the recoil spring 30 where it is absorbed without transferring the impact loading to the weapon mount.

Heavy support weapon

A linkage is provided between various components within the feed mechanism of an automated gun which allows a feed cover, which includes some of the components of the feed mechanism, to be opened relative to other elements within the feed mechanism in order to allow access or changing of ammunition within the feed mechanism without unlinking the various feed mechanism components. Feed mechanism components within the gun are linked to other feed mechanism components within the rotatable feed cover by means of a ball and bracket combination. The feed cover rotates about a pivot pin on a predetermined axis. The bracket, through which the motive power supplied to the components of the feed mechanism and the feed cover is disposed to lie on and is rotatable about the predetermined axis defined by the pivot pin. The ball, which is disposed on a rotatable lever coupled to feed mechanism components within the remaining portion of the gun, extends into the bracket so that the bracket may rotate about the ball when the feed cover is rotated on the predetermined axis defined by the pivot pin, and yet the bracket and ball remain operatively connected while the lever upon which the ball is disposed rotates about the differently oriented axis of rotation. The ball and bracket coupling is thus never disengaged even when the feed cover and the bracket with it is rotated relative to the ball.

Firearm loading mechanism for an automated cannon

A machine gun ammunition loading system employs cantilevered support memb on a magazine holding a leading round of belted ammunition supported above a cover of the magazine. The cover of the magazine includes mating parts which permit sliding engagement below the machine gun. When fully mated, the cantilevered members, with the leading round between them, are inserted into the receiver in a loading position from whence charging can be performed by single-handed motion of an operator while upright and walking.

Machine gun ammunition loading system

A belt-fed automatic weapon includes a retainer for holding one or more of he leading rounds on the belt exposed external to the magazine in a position where they can be picked up and automatically fed into the automatic weapon by a feed sprocket in the automatic weapon during insertion of the magazine into the weapon. This permits one-hand loading by an erect walking operator whose second hand is occupied supporting the weapon. A belt guide at the exit of the magazine prevents jamming of linked rounds when the weapon is fired upside down or on its sides.

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Fountain Valley, CA, United States of America

John H Peck