US3877157A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Weapon training systems
Assignee: Lockheed Martin UK Ltd
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Filing: 1973-08-08
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Granted: 1975-04-15
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Expires: 1993-08-08
Abstract
Abstract Equipment for simulating the effects of gunfire provides for a zone centred on the point of aim to be scanned in azimuth and elevation by a narrow beam or beams of energy, for example from a laser, to determine the position of the target in relation to a calculated impact point of a projectile. One or two beams may be employed and measurement of the transit time of the energy allows range corrections and the simulation of a laser rangefinder.
Inventors
- 👤 David William Ashford
- 👤 Sydney Stuart Hartley
- 👤 Bruce John Pike
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 15:08
CPC Classifications
F; F41; F41G; F41G3/00; F41G3/26; F41G3/2616; F41G3/2622; F41G3/265
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
187 words
Equipment for use in a system for simulating the firing of a projectile from a weapon in a trajectory at a target comprising in combination: source means for producing a beam of electromagnetic radiation; support means adapted to be mounted in predetermined relationship with an assumed direction of orientation of a weapon for establishing a datum direction relative to the simulated direction of initial trajectory of the projectile, and for supporting said source means; steering means on said support means for varying the direction in which said beam is directed relative to said datum direction; scan controlling means for causing said steering means to vary the direction of said beam separately in two substantially orthogonal planes and for providing signals representative of the direction in which the beam is directed; detecting means for detecting when the beam is incident on the target; and discriminator means responsive to signals representative of the direction in which the beam is directed when the detecting means detects that the beam is incident on the target for providing signals representative of the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
187 words
Equipment for use in a system for simulating the firing of a projectile from a weapon in a trajectory at a target comprising in combination: source means for producing a beam of electromagnetic radiation; support means adapted to be mounted in predetermined relationship with an assumed direction of orientation of a weapon for establishing a datum direction relative to the simulated direction of initial trajectory of the projectile, and for supporting said source means; steering means on said support means for varying the direction in which said beam is directed relative to said datum direction; scan controlling means for causing said steering means to vary the direction of said beam separately in two substantially orthogonal planes and for providing signals representative of the direction in which the beam is directed; detecting means for detecting when the beam is incident on the target; and discriminator means responsive to signals representative of the direction in which the beam is directed when the detecting means detects that the beam is incident on the target for providing signals representative of the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
55 words
Equipment according to claim 1 wherein the discriminator means further includes means for receiving sIgnals representative of the angular extremes of direction between which limits the beam is incident on the target and for interpolating between said extremes to provide signals representative of the mean direction of the target in relation to said datum direction.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
49 words
Equipment according to claim 1 wherein the beam has a minimum angular divergence in a first one of said orthogonal planes and said minimum angular divergence in said first plane is less than one-third of the angular divergence of said beam in the second one of said orthogonal planes.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
53 words
Equipment according to claim 3 wherein said source means comprises a diode laser and collimating means defining a focal plane; and wherein said diode laser is displaced from the focal plane of said collimating means to provide a beam the minimum divergence whereof in any plane is more than one-fifth of a milliradian.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
51 words
Equipment according to claim 3 wherein means are provided for rotating the said first plane of minimum divergence of the beam through approximately 90* to make said first plane co-planar with the plane in which the beam is moved by said steering means in either of said two substantially orthogonal planes.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
56 words
Equipment according to claim 3 adapted to simulate the operation of a pulse rangefinder and including means for rotating said plane of minimum divergence of the beam; and means for generating third and fourth signals respectively separated in time by a time interval equal to twice the transit time of electromagnetic radiation between source and target.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
46 words
Equipment according to claim 1 and further comprising a hit signal circuit for receiving information concerning the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction for providing a hit signal if the direction of the target is within defined limits of the datum direction.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
102 words
Equipment according to claim 7 further comprising means for generating a first signal related in time to the release of radiation from the source and a second signal related in time to the incidence of radiation from the source on the detecting means and a time measuring circuit adapted to measure the time between said first and second signals and to provide therefrom a signal representative of the range of the target from the weapon wherein said defined limits are dependent on said range so as to define a hit zone the size of which is substantially constant with respect to range.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
77 words
Equipment according to claim 7 wherien the minimum angular divergence of said beam lies in a first plane and is less than one-third of the angular divergence of said beam in a second plane orthogonal to the first plane and the hit signal is transmitted to the target by modulation of the beam and means are provided for rotating said first plane of minimum divergence of the beam during transmission of the hit signal to the target.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
183 words
Equipment for use in a system for simulating the firing of a projectile from a weapon in a trajectory at a target comprising in combination: source means for producing first and second beams of electromagnetic radiation; support means adapted to be mounted in predetermined relationship with an assumed direction of orientation of a weapon for establishing a datum direction relative to the simulated direction of initial trajectory of the projectile, and for supporting said source means; steering means on said support means for varying the directions in which said beams are directed relative to said datum direction; scan controlling means for causing said steering means to vary the directions of said beams separately in two substantially orthogonal planes and for providing signals representative of beam direction; detecting means for detecting when a beam is incident on the target; and discriminator means responsive to signals representative of the direction in which a beam is directed when the detecting means detects that a beam is incident on the target for providing signals representative of the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
183 words
Equipment for use in a system for simulating the firing of a projectile from a weapon in a trajectory at a target comprising in combination: source means for producing first and second beams of electromagnetic radiation; support means adapted to be mounted in predetermined relationship with an assumed direction of orientation of a weapon for establishing a datum direction relative to the simulated direction of initial trajectory of the projectile, and for supporting said source means; steering means on said support means for varying the directions in which said beams are directed relative to said datum direction; scan controlling means for causing said steering means to vary the directions of said beams separately in two substantially orthogonal planes and for providing signals representative of beam direction; detecting means for detecting when a beam is incident on the target; and discriminator means responsive to signals representative of the direction in which a beam is directed when the detecting means detects that a beam is incident on the target for providing signals representative of the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
49 words
Equipment according to claim 10 further comprisng modulating means for modulating said first and second beams respectively at different frequencies; and frequency sensitive circuits for receiving signals from the detecting means, said circuits being selectively responsive to said modulating frequencies for determining which beam is incident on the target.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
59 words
Equipment according to claim 10 and further comprising means for correlating signals associated with the incidence of the first beam on the detecting means with signals associated with the incidence of said second beam on said detecting means according to the time interval between release of radiation in each beam and incidence of each beam on the detecting means.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
44 words
Equipment according to claim 12 adapted to simulate the operation of a pulse range-finder further comprising means for generating third and fourth signals respectively separated in time by a time interval equal to twice the transit time of electro-magnetic radiation between source and target.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
48 words
Equipment according to claim 10 wherein a hit signal circuit is provided for receiving signals representative of the direction of the target in relation to the datum direction and for providing a hit signal when the direction of the target is within defined limits of the datum direction.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
104 words
Equipment according to claim 14 and further comprising means for generating a first signal related in time to the release of radiation from the source and a second signal related in time to the incidence of radiation from the source on the detecting means; and time measuring circuit means for measuring the time between said first and second signals and for providing therefrom a signal representative of the range of the target from the weapon; and wherein said defined limits are inversely related to said range so as to define a hit zone the size of which is substantially constant with respect to range.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
75 words
Equipment according to claim 14 further comprising means for modulating said first and said second beams by pulses of the same frequency such that pulses from said respective beams are transmitted alternately and frequency sensitive circuit means for receiving signals from said detecting means, said circuit means being selectively responsive to a frequency equal to twice the modulating frequency so that the frequency sensitive circuit means responds selectively only to signals received from both beams.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3588108A
Cited
US3701206A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-04-14 | 1978-10-14 | 1979-04-15 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-04-14 | 1982-10-14 | 1983-04-15 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-04-14 | 1986-10-14 | 1987-04-15 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |