US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Richard W Currie

Walter E Miller, Jr

An open loop seeker aiming guiding system for directing a guided missile m its launching to its impact with a target. The system includes a fire control mechanism for initially controlling the flight of missile toward the target. Located on the missile itself is a seeker homing system for homing the missile onto the target signature. The system includes transition means for transferring control of the missile flight from the ground base fire control to the homing guidance control on the missile itself whenever the signal from the fire control is interrupted, the missile has been in flight a predetermined time, or the homing device on the missile itself locks in on the target to an extent predetermined, by comparing the image it receives from the target to an image stored in a storing device on the missile itself. Whenever either of these conditions occur control of the missile is transferred from fire control to the homing device on the missile. Significantly, the seeker is blindly pointed approximately at the target, using information derived from the line of sight guidance during the early portion of the flight. This approximate pointing in flight is what enables seeker target acquisition autonomously later in flight with no area target search required.

Open loop seeker aiming guiding system

A triggering system that provides for fusing a self-forging warhead or ot warhead to fire down on a target as the vehicle carrying the warhead flys horizontal by just over the top of the target. The triggering method uses an active optical system (transmitter-receiver) on board the vehicle which establishes a triggering window in space just below the vehicle. A triggering or detonating signal is developed when a target enters the window.

Growing community of inventors

Huntsville, AL, United States of America

Richard W Currie