METHOD FOR PRODUTION OF A PROJECTILE ,AS WELL AS A PROJECTILE

• US 20100139518A1
• Filed: 07/25/2008
• Published: 06/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH (Rheinmetall AG)
• Original Assignee: Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH (Rheinmetall AG)
• Inventors: Baumann, Christian, Brase, Holger, Vagedes, Michael, Heitmann, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 8,561,544 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 102/523
• CPC Class Codes: F42B 14/064 Sabots enclosing the rear end of a kinetic energy projectile, i.e. having a closed disk shaped obturator base and petals extending forward from said base
• CPC Class Codes: F42B 14/065 Sabots carrying several projectiles

Abstract

The invention relates to a projectile (1) having a sub-caliber projectile core (2) and a guide cage or sabot (3) that comprises a driving element (4), which acts on the projectile core (2) at the rear thereof and is in the form of a plate composed of metal. In order to produce such a projectile (1) at low cost, the projectile core (2) and the driving element (4), which is in the form of a plate, are inserted as inserts into an injection-molding tool, and are extrusion-coated so that the injection-mold shape is chosen so that the contour of the guide cage or sabot (3) of the projectile (1) is produced after the injection-molding process.

Claims

1. A method for production of a projectile, wherein the projectile has a subcaliber projectile core and a sabot provided as a guide sabot that has a drive element, wherein the drive element is in the form of a plate and is disposed to act on the projectile core at a rear end of the projectile core, wherein the projectile core is adjacent to the drive element, wherein the method comprises the steps of:

(a) providing the sabot as an essentially cylindrical guide sabot comprising a plastic;

(b) detachably connecting the drive element and the projectile core to one another to form an insert;

(c) inserting the insert into an injection-molding tool, and using the injection-molding tool to produce a contour of the guide sabot; and

(d) injection molding the insert in the injection-molding tool with a material so as to produce the projectile.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein weak points are also injection molded in the projectile during step (d).

3. The method as claimed in claim 1,

wherein guide sabot segments are injection molded in the projectile at the same time by using a number of gates corresponding to the number of guide sabot segments so the material that flows into mold areas and form the guide sabot segments meet at the weak points formed in a rear wall of the guide sabot.

14. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the weak points injection molded in the projectile during step (d) include first weak points, second weak points and third weak points, wherein the first weak points are formed in an outer wall of the guide sabot, and the second weak points are formed in a wall of a sleeve that surrounds the projectile core, and the third weak points are formed a rear wall of the guide sabot.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein at least one first weak point, and at least one second weak point, and at least one third weak point are formed by injection molding so as to be radially aligned along a single radial line extending from a longitudinal axis of the projectile core.

16. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein weld lines are formed when the material meets at the weak points formed in the rear wall of the guide sabot, and the weld lines weaken the material at the weak points formed in the rear wall of the guide sabot.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the material includes fibers, and the fibers are aligned parallel to an injection direction during injection molding.

18. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein guide sabot segments are injection molded in the projectile at the same time by using a number of gates corresponding to the number of guide sabot segments so the material that flows into mold areas and form the guide sabot segments meet at the weak points formed in a rear wall of the guide sabot.

4. A projectile comprising:

(a) a subcaliber projectile core; and

(b) a sabot provided as a guide sabot that has a drive element, wherein the drive element is in the form of a plate and is disposed to act on the projectile core at a rear end of the projectile core, and the guide sabot is an essentially cylindrical guide sabot disposed adjacent to the drive element, and the guide sabot comprises plastic, and the drive element is firmly incorporated in the guide sabot at a rear end of the projectile.

5. The projectile as claimed in claim 4, wherein

the guide sabot has an outer wall in which at least two weak points are provided, wherein the at least two weak points are arranged and distributed uniformly over a circumference of the outer wall and extend in an axial direction, and the guide sabot has a rear wall that is adjacent to the drive element, and the rear wall extends radially with respect to a longitudinal axis of the projectile and the rear wall is likewise provided with weak points, wherein the weak points of the rear wall are adjacent to the weak points in the outer wall.

6. The projectile as claimed in claim 4,

wherein the projectile core is connected to an inner surface of the outer wall of the guide sabot via at least two spacing elements that are in the form of longitudinal ribs, wherein each longitudinal rib is associated with a guide sabot segment, wherein each guide sabot segment is defined by adjacent weak points formed in the outer wall and that extend axially from the rear wall of the guide sabot into a nose area of the guide sabot.

7. The projectile as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide sabot is formed integrally with the drive element and at least partially surrounds the drive element on an outside surface of the drive element.

8. The projectile as claimed in claim 6, wherein the longitudinal ribs have recesses, in the form of pockets, located at a front end of the longitudinal ribs.

9. The projectile as claimed in claim 6, wherein the longitudinal ribs each have a conically tapering profile that extends forward from the rear wall of the guide sabot.

10. The projectile as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide sabot has a sleeve that surrounds the projectile core and is in the form of a web, wherein longitudinal ribs are connected on a projectile side to the web, and the sleeve is also provided with weak points that extend in an axial direction with respect to a longitudinal axis of the projectile core, and the weak points of the sleeve are adjacent to weak points disposed in a rear wall of the guide sabot.

11. The projectile as claimed in claim 6,

wherein the weak points formed in the outer wall of the guide sabot extend to a surface of the projectile core.

12. The projectile as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide sabot is comprised of a glass-fiber-reinforced polyamide plastic or a carbon-fiber-reinforced polyamide plastic.

13. The projectile as claimed in claim 6, wherein the guide sabot has four weak points formed in the outer wall of the guide sabot, wherein the four weak points are arranged and distributed uniformly over an inner circumference of the outer wall and extend in the axial direction, wherein the four weak points formed in the outer wall of the guide sabot are located so as to be rotated through 45°

with respect to the longitudinal ribs.

19. The projectile as claimed in claim 5, wherein the projectile core is connected to an inner surface of the outer wall of the guide sabot via at least two spacing elements that are in the form of longitudinal ribs, wherein each longitudinal rib is associated with a guide sabot segment, wherein each guide sabot segment is defined by adjacent weak points formed in the outer wall and that extend axially from the rear wall of the guide sabot into a nose area of the guide sabot.

20. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide sabot includes first weak points, second weak points and third weak points formed therein, wherein the first weak points are formed in an outer wall of the guide sabot, and the second weak points are formed in a wall of a sleeve of the guide sabot that surrounds the projectile core, and the third weak points are formed a rear wall of the guide sabot, wherein at least one first weak point, and at least one second weak point, and at least one third weak point are formed so as to be radially aligned along a single radial line extending from a longitudinal axis of the projectile core, and wherein weld lines are formed in material of the guide sabot at the weak points formed in the rear wall of the guide sabot, and the weld lines weaken the material at the weak points formed in the rear wall of the guide sabot.