Common carrier munition

Abstract

The invention relates to a common carrier munition ammunition device, more particularly to common carrier payload delivery shell. There is provided a common carrier munition comprising a tail unit, a main body which comprises a payload cavity for receiving a payload, a fuze, and located between said main body and the fuze an ogive element, wherein the tail unit and main body comprise cooperatively engaging male and female threaded portions, wherein at least one of the threads is a shearable thread.

Claims

1. A common carrier munition comprising a tail unit, a main body which comprises a payload cavity for receiving a payload, a fuze, and located between said main body and the fuze an ogive element, wherein the tail unit and main body comprise cooperatively engaging male and female threaded portions, wherein at least one of the threads is a shearable thread, wherein the ogive element is reversibly engaged with the fuze and main body, and a frangible link that retains the ogive element and main body in operable arrangement, such that upon an impact, said frangible link is caused to fail, and such that said shearable thread has a lower shear strength than the frangible link to allow for the shearable thread to fail during flight of the common carrier munition.

2. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the main body comprises a threaded portion manufactured from a first material, and the tail unit comprises a threaded portion manufactured from second material, wherein the second material has a lower hardness value than the first material.

3. The munition according to claim 2, wherein the first material is selected from a steel alloy and the second material is selected from aluminium or alloy thereof.

4. The munition according to claim 1, wherein there is a locking ring located between the main body and said ogive element, to retain said payload within the payload cavity.

5. The munition according to claim 4, wherein the locking ring and main body comprise cooperatively engaging threaded portions.

6. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the ogive element has a forward end locatable with said fuze and an aft end locatable with said main body, wherein the internal diameter of the aft end of said ogive element is substantially the same as the internal diameter of said payload cavity.

7. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the fuze is operably connected to at least one expulsion charge, wherein said charge is suspended in free space.

8. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the payload cavity has substantially parallel walls, which extend from the intersection of the tail unit to the locking ring.

9. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the payload is a modular unit.

10. The munition according to claim 9, wherein the modular unit, is reversibly loadable from the aft end of the main body.

11. The munition according to claim 1, wherein the payload is capable of being dispensed rearwardly from the main body, upon shearing the shearable thread.

12. A method of dispensing a payload from a munition according to claim 1, comprising causing initiation of an expulsion charge, and causing shearing of the shearable thread, wherein the fuze is operably connected to the expulsion charge.

13. A common carrier shell comprising a tail unit, a main body which comprises a payload cavity for receiving a uniform payload, a fuze, and located between said main body and the fuze an ogive element, wherein the ogive element is reversibly engaged with the fuze and main body, wherein said payload is selected from a smoke, illumination or UAV payload, and a frangible link that retains the ogive element and main body in operable arrangement, such that upon an impact, said frangible link is caused to fail, and such that said shearable thread has a lower shear strength than the frangible link to allow for the shearable thread to fail during flight of the common carrier munition.

14. The common carrier shell according to claim 13, wherein the uniform payload cavity has a fixed uniform volume, such that it may receive a fixed uniform volume payload, thereby allowing the carrier shell to be configured with a variety of interchangeable payloads.

15. A common carrier shell comprising: a tail unit; a main body including a uniform payload cavity for receiving a modular payload, wherein the payload is selected from a smoke, illumination or UAV payload; a fuze; an ogive element located between the main body and the fuze, wherein the tail unit and main body comprise cooperatively engaging threaded portions, wherein at least one of the threads is a shearable thread, wherein the ogive element is reversibly engaged with the fuze and main body; and a frangible link that retains the ogive element and main body in operable arrangement, such that upon an impact, said frangible link is caused to fail, and such that said shearable thread has a lower shear strength than the frangible link to allow for the shearable thread to fail during flight of the common carrier munition.

16. The common carrier shell according to claim 15, wherein the main body comprises a threaded portion manufactured from a first material, and the tail unit comprises a threaded portion manufactured from second material, wherein the second material has a lower hardness value than the first material.

17. The common carrier shell according to claim 15, wherein the ogive element has a forward end locatable with said fuze and an aft end locatable with said main body, wherein the internal diameter of the aft end of said ogive element is substantially the same as the internal diameter of said payload cavity.

18. The common carrier shell according to claim 15, wherein the ogive element is reversibly engaged with the fuze and main body.

19. The common carrier shell according to claim 15, wherein the fuze is operably connected to at least one expulsion charge, wherein said charge is suspended in free space.

Description

(1) Exemplary embodiments of the device in accordance with the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

(2) FIG. 1 show an exploded side view of a shell according to the invention.

(3) FIG. 2 shows a cross section along the axis of the shell in FIG. 1.

(4) Turning to FIG. 1 there is provided a shell 1, with a main body 5, which is manufactured from a steel alloy. Located around the circumference of the main body 5 is a copper driving band 4, which allows engagement with the rifling on the bore of a barrel, so as to impart spin. A tail unit 2 is located at the aft of the main body 5. The tail unit 2 is made from aluminium and contains a male threaded portion 3, which engages with a reciprocal female threaded portion (not shown) located in the aft of the main body 5. The payload 10 (shown external to the shell 1), when located in the payload cavity (not shown), inside the main body, is retained in place by use of a locking ring 6, which screws into the forward end of main body 5. The ogive element 7 is removable and is fastened to the locking ring 6. The ogive element receives the expulsion charge 8 and fuze 9. Upon operation of the fuze 9, the expulsion charge 8 builds up pressure within the ogive element and at the bursting pressure the thread 3 shears and the payload 10 is expelled from the aft of the main body 5. The payload 10 is of uniform dimension may be deliver a smoke, illumination, UAV etc output.

(5) FIG. 2 shows an illumination shell 20, with a main body 24 formed from a steel alloy, with a driving band 26 located thereupon. A tail unit 12 is located at the aft of the main body 24. The tail unit 12 is made from aluminium and contains a male threaded portion 13, which engages with a reciprocal female threaded portion 14 located at the aft of the main body 24.

(6) The payload 22 is located in the payload cavity 15, and is retained in place by use of a locking ring 16, which screws into the forward end of main body 24.

(7) The ogive element 17 is removable and is fastened to the locking ring 16. The ogive element receives the expulsion charge 18 and fuze 19. Upon operation of the fuze 19, the expulsion charge 18 builds up pressure within the ogive element and at the bursting pressure the thread 13 shears and the payload 22 is expelled from the aft of the main body 24.

(8) The payload 22, is a modular illumination unit, which slides into the payload cavity 15. The illumination unit contains a parachute bay 27 which houses a parachute (not shown) and an energetic material bay 26, which houses an energetic material 26a.

(9) Upon operation of the fuze 19, the expulsion charge 18 builds up pressure within the ogive element 17 and at the bursting pressure the thread 13 shears and the payload 22 is expelled from the aft of the main body 24. The expulsion charge may cause a delay composition 11 to ignite the energetic material 25.