Reduction of rocket jet stream dispersion

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10094643-B2
Application number	US-201414897227-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 1, 2014
Priority date	Jul 1, 2013
Publication date	Oct 9, 2018
Grant date	Oct 9, 2018

Abstract

The presently disclosed subject matter includes a method, apparatus and computer storage device for reducing dispersion of a rocket caused by jet-stream misalignment, the rocket comprising a rocket engine. Information indicative of a division of total operation time of the rocket engine into a first time period and a second time period is obtained; wherein an impulse which is generated during the first time period is at least approximately the same as an impulse generated during the second time period; a period of time which equals to the first time period starting from time of activation of the rocket engine is measured; upon termination of the period of time, the rocket is rotated around the rocket's longitudinal axis; and the angle of rotation measured; and the rotation is stopped once a 180° rotation is completed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of reducing dispersion of a rocket caused by jet-stream misalignment, the rocket including a rocket engine, the method comprising:
operating a computer processor operatively coupled to a computer memory and configured to control operation of a rocket spinning mechanism on the rocket by:
obtaining information indicative of a division of total operation time of the rocket engine into a first time period and a second time period, wherein an impulse that is generated during the first time period is at least approximately the same as an impulse generated during the second time period;
measuring a period of time that is approximately equal to the first time period starting from time of activation of the rocket engine; and
upon termination of the period of time, generating instructions for causing the rocket spinning mechanism to rotate the rocket around a longitudinal axis of the rocket, wherein the rocket rotates responsive to the rocket spinning mechanism according to the instructions;
measuring an angle of rotation; and
once approximately 180° rotation of the rocket is completed, generating additional instructions for causing the rocket spinning mechanism to stop the rotation of the rocket.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
obtaining data with respect to a thrust curve of the rocket; and
dividing the total operation time of the rocket engine into the first time period and the second time period.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein a difference between the impulse that is generated during the first time period and the impulse that is generated during the second time period is smaller than a predefined value.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the impulse that is generated during the first time period is equal to the impulse that is generated during the second time period.

5. A system for reducing dispersion in a launched rocket cause by jet-stream misalignment, the system comprising:
a processing unit and a rocket spinning mechanism, the processing unit comprising a computer processor and computer memory and being configured to control operation of the rocket spinning mechanism, the rocket spinning mechanism being configured, responsive to instructions received from the processing unit, to spin the rocket around a longitudinal axis of the rocket;
the processing unit is configured for reducing jet-stream misalignment, to:
obtain information indicative of a division of total operation time of the rocket engine into a first time period and a second time period wherein an impulse that is generated during the first time period is at least approximately the same as an impulse generated during the second time period;
measure a period of time that is approximately equal to the first time period starting from time of activation of the rocket engine; and
upon termination of the period of time, generate instructions for the rocket spinning mechanism to rotate the rocket around a longitudinal axis thereof, wherein the rocket spinning mechanism rotates the rocket according to the instructions received;
measure an angle of rotation; and
generate additional instructions for the rocket spinning mechanism to stop rotation of the rocket once approximately 180° rotation is completed, wherein the rocket spinning mechanism stops rotation of the rocket according to the additional instructions received.

6. The system according to claim 5 wherein the processing unit is further configured to divide the total operation time of the rocket engine into the first time period and the second time period, based on data with respect to a thrust curve of the rocket.

7. The system according to claim 5 wherein the rocket spinning mechanism includes a servomechanism.

8. A non-transitory program storage device readable by a computer processor, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer processor to perform a method of reducing dispersion of a launched rocket caused by jet-stream misalignment, the method comprising:
obtaining information indicative of a division of total operation time of a rocket engine of the rocket into a first time period and a second time period, wherein an impulse that is generated during the first time period is at least approximately the same as an impulse generated during the second time period;
measuring a period of time that is approximately equal to the first time period starting from time of activation of the rocket engine;
upon termination of the period of time, generating instructions for causing the rocket to rotate around a longitudinal axis of the rocket;
measuring an angle of rotation; and
once approximately 180° rotation of the rocket is completed, generating additional instructions for causing the rocket to stop rotating.

9. A rocket with reduced dispersion from an intended flight path caused by jet-stream misalignment, the rocket comprising a subsystem for reducing jet-stream misalignment in the rocket after launch, the subsystem comprising:
a processing unit and a rocket spinning mechanism, the processing unit comprising a computer processor and computer memory and configured to control the rocket spinning mechanism; the rocket spinning mechanism is configured, responsive to instructions received from the processing unit, to spin the rocket around a longitudinal axis of the rocket;
the processing unit is configured for reducing jet-stream misalignment, to:
obtain information indicative of a division of total operation time of the rocket engine into a first time period and a second time period, wherein an impulse that is generated during the first time period is at least approximately the same as an impulse generated during the second time period;
measure a period of time in accordance with the first time period starting from time of activation of the rocket engine; and
upon termination of the period of time, generate instructions to the rocket spinning mechanism to rotate the rocket around a longitudinal axis thereof, wherein the rocket spinning mechanism rotates the rocket according to the instructions received;
measure an angle of rotation; and
generate additional instructions to the rocket spinning mechanism to stop rotation of the rocket once approximately 180° rotation is completed, wherein the rocket spinning mechanism stops rotation of the rocket according to the additional instructions received.

Assignees

• Israel Aerospace Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Levy Benjamin
• Goldberg Shmuel

Classifications

• F42B10/30 Primary

  using rocket motor nozzles · CPC title

• F02K9/97 Primary

  Rocket nozzles (thrust or thrust vector control F02K9/80) · CPC title

• F42B10/60

  Steering arrangements (F42B19/01 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F42B10/26

  using spin (F42B10/04, F42B10/12, F42B10/14, F42B10/24, F42B14/02 take precedence) · CPC title

• G05D2109/28

  Missiles · CPC title