The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 14, 2011
Filed:
Sep. 24, 2007
Thomas G. Lee, Oro Valley, AZ (US);
Shek M. Cheung, Tucson, AZ (US);
Gregory E. Longerich, Oro Valley, AZ (US);
Thomas G. Lee, Oro Valley, AZ (US);
Shek M. Cheung, Tucson, AZ (US);
Gregory E. Longerich, Oro Valley, AZ (US);
Raytheon Company, Waltham, MA (US);
Abstract
A multi-stage vehicle separation system and method that facilitates an active separation on the booster by igniting a small quantity of propellant in the dead volume between the second stage rocket motor nozzle and the booster dome. In the most general embodiment, the invention includes a nozzle; a first fuel propellant disposed within the nozzle; a thermal barrier separating the first and second fuel propellant, an environmental seal protecting the second fuel propellant and an arrangement for activating the first fuel propellant. The nozzle is disposed in an upper stage of a two-stage vehicle. An arrangement such as a V-Band clamp is included for retaining the lower stage of the two-stage vehicle. Electronic commands release the lower stage and activate the first propellant in a timely manner to effectively separate the lower stage from the upper stage. The embedded propellant is activated with an arm fire device.