Projectile with Reduced Ricochet Risk

Abstract

The invention relates to a projectile (5) with a frangible material, for short-range ammunition. To prevent any significant losses of precision and prevent the internal ballistic loading from being so great that it leads to the destruction of the projectile, it is suggested according to the invention that the projectile (5) consists of a shell (4) made of brass, the shell (4) has, seen in the direction of flight, a front cylindrical receiving space (4a) and a rear cylindrical receiving space (4b), the two receiving spaces (4a, 4b) are arranged coaxially with the longitudinal axis (15) of the projectile and are separated from each other by a partition wall (16), the partition wall (16) forms the floor (18) of the front receiving space (4a), and a core (1) of a frangible material is inserted in the front receiving space (4a), the tip (17) of the core (1) protrudes out of the front receiving space (4a), and at least one predetermined breaking point (2), running around the circumference of the shell (4), is formed in the shell (4) in the region of the partition wall (16).

Claims

1. A projectile with a frangible material, for short-range ammunition, characterized in that the projectile consists of a shell made of brass, the shell, seen in the direction of flight, has a front cylindrical receiving space and a rear cylindrical receiving space, both receiving spaces are arranged coaxially with the projectile longitudinal axis and are separated from each other by a partition, the partition forms the floor of the front receiving space, and a core made of a frangible material is inserted into the front receiving space, the tip of the core protrudes out of the front receiving space, and at least one predetermined breaking point, running around the circumference of the shell, is formed in the shell in the region of the partition.

2. A projectile according to claim 1, characterized in that a tracer composition is arranged in the rear receiving space.

3. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein the core is glued or pressed into the front receiving space.

4. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein the core has bevels or grooves running parallel to the projectile longitudinal axis on the outer surface from the rear end to the front end of the shell.

5. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein a bore hole which connects the front receiving space to the rear receiving space is arranged in the partition wall.

6. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein a blind bore is inserted into the partition wall and has a connection to the front receiving space.

7. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein two predetermined breaking points running around the circumference of the shell are formed on the shell in the region of the partition wall, wherein one predetermined breaking point is formed in the rear end of the partition wall as seen in the direction of flight.

8. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined breaking points are formed at right angles to the projectile longitudinal axis and are V-shaped or U-shaped in cross-section.

9. A projectile according to claim 1, wherein the inner wall of the front receiving space has one or more notches which are parallel to the projectile axis or run in a spiral.

Description

[0020] The invention is explained in greater detail below with reference to four figures.

[0021] FIG. 1 shows the prior art and is described above.

[0022] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a projectile according to the invention, consisting of a shell 4 made of brass and a frangible core 1. The shell 4 has, seen in the direction of flight 19, a front 4a and a rear cylindrical receiving space 4b in the projectile tail 11. The front receiving space 4a was inserted from the front, and the rear receiving space 4b was inserted from the rear, of the shell 4. Both receiving spaces 4a, 4b are arranged coaxially with the projectile longitudinal axis 15 of the projectile, and are separated from each other by a partition wall 16. The partition wall 16 forms the floor of the receiving space 4a. The frangible core is inserted into the front receiving space 4a, preferably via a press fit. The front tip 17 of the frangible core 1 projects out of the front receiving space 4a and/or the shell 4. A tracer composition (not shown in the figure) is inserted in one embodiment of the invention in the rear receiving space 4b. A predetermined breaking point 2 running around the circumference of the shell 4 is formed in the shell 4 adjoining the partition wall 16. This predetermined breaking point 2 is formed at a right angle to the projectile longitudinal axis 15, and can be constructed with a rectangular cross-section, as shown. However, a V-shaped predetermined breaking point 2 is preferred, as shown in FIG. 4.

[0023] The external geometry of the projectile, consisting therefore of a frangible core 1 and a shell 4, largely corresponds to a known and proven short-range projectile of the applicant. This meets requirements in terms of precision, loading safety, and trajectory. The risk to the surroundings is reduced by two systems. On the one hand, a core 1 which is made of frangible material is inserted into the shell 4 from the front, as seen in the shooting direction. A “frangible core” means a core which breaks apart—for example, to dust—upon impact with a hard target. On the other hand, predetermined breaking points 2 are introduced into the projectile tail 11 so that the residual mass of the individual parts corresponds at most to the mass of a conventional small-caliber projectile.

[0024] The shell 4 of the projectile is preferably made of brass. With brass as the shell, the projectile according to the invention has largely broken apart to dust upon impact. This was surprising for a person skilled in the art, and not predicted. Upon the impact of the projectile 5 against a hard target 17 (see FIG. 3), the frangible core 1 is pressed into the shell 4. During this pressing, the frangible core 1 abruptly produces a high hydrostatic pressure (see arrows 20 in FIG. 3). This causes a splintering of the majority of the projectile. The brass of the shell 4 naturally demonstrates a brittle behavior over such a short stress period. The multiaxial stress state when the frangible core 1 bursts also supports the brittle behavior of the brass of the shell 4. In this way, the impact energy is reduced to an extreme degree, and nearly negated. The rest of the projectile then breaks apart into lighter parts due to the defined predetermined breaking point 2. These individual parts have very low sectional density due to their geometry. This significantly decreases the risk to the surroundings. In a particularly advantageous solution, the frangible core 1 of the projectile is a sub-caliber projectile which is simply inserted into the front receiving space 4a. The attachment between the shell 4 and the frangible core 1 can be realized by means of adhesive or a press fit. If a press fit is selected, lateral bevels on the core can direct the compressed air away. A further possibility is that the compressed air is directed away, when the projectile is assembled, by a bore hole in the projectile longitudinal axis 15 through the partition 16, or by a blind bore in the partition wall, so that the pressure can be minimized. The projectile tail 11 is also made of brass, since brass is suitable for press-fitting tracer compositions.

[0025] FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of a projectile 5 according to the invention, consisting of a shell 4 made of brass and a frangible core 1. The shell 4 has in this case as well, seen in the direction of flight 19, a front 4a and a rear cylindrical receiving space 4b in the projectile tail 11. The front receiving space 4a was inserted from the front, and the rear receiving space 4b was inserted from the rear, of the shell 4. Both receiving spaces 4a, 4b are arranged coaxially with the projectile longitudinal axis 15 of the projectile, and are separated from each other by a partition wall 16. The partition wall 16 in this embodiment is substantially thicker than in the embodiment of FIG. 2. The partition wall 16 in this case also forms the floor of the receiving space 4a. The frangible core 1 is inserted into the front receiving space 4a, preferably via a press fit. The front tip 17 of the frangible core 1 projects in this case as well out of the front receiving space 4a and/or the shell 4. A tracer composition (not shown in the figure) can be inserted in the rear receiving space 4b. A predetermined breaking point 2a running around the circumference of the shell 4 is formed on the shell 4 adjoining the rear segment—seen in the shooting direction—of the partition wall 16. In the embodiment shown here—also seen in the shooting direction—a predetermined breaking point 2b is also formed on the front segment of the partition wall 16. These predetermined breaking points 2a, 2b are formed at a right angle to the projectile longitudinal axis 15 and are V-shaped in cross-section.