Stackable collaborative engagement munition

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9939239-B1
Application number	US-201414267091-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	May 1, 2014
Priority date	May 3, 2013
Publication date	Apr 10, 2018
Grant date	Apr 10, 2018

Abstract

A stacked, collaborative engagement ammunition round is presented. The round includes plural stacked miniaturized projectiles where such projectiles separate after launch and then swarm as a group towards a target or targets. At launch, the projectiles may fly in a preselected formation, leader-follower towards the target. Or, the projectiles may deploy propellers, tri-copter or quad-copter vanes, and self steer swarming to the target. Each projectile has its own miniaturized guidance, navigation and control components, autopilot, cameras, transmitter, receiver, antennae, power source, sensors, fuzes and/or flex circuits.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A stacked, collaborative engagement mortar round comprising plural stacked miniaturized self-propelled projectiles wherein:
the stacked miniaturized self-propelled projectiles are interlocking discs which form a body of the mortar round including an outer surface of the body; and
each of the projectiles further comprise a set-back pin which is broken upon the mortar round being fired thereby causing the projectiles to separate after launch and before an apogee point of the mortar round and then collaboratively swarm towards a target wherein there is ground processor interaction included to control said projectiles which may optionally be used to direct the projectiles to fly to a designated particular target.

2. The mortar round of claim 1 wherein said ground processor interaction is manned.

3. The mortar round of claim 2 wherein it is possible to change the original direction to fly the projectiles to a differently designated target.

4. The mortar round of claim 3 wherein it is possible to change the original directions to instead just perform surveillance by the projectiles.

5. The mortar round of claim 2 wherein it is possible to direct all the projectiles to transition into UAV units.

6. A stacked collaborative engagement mortar round comprising plural self-propelled stacked miniaturized projectiles wherein:
the stacked miniaturized projectiles are interlocking discs which form a body of the mortar round including an outer surface of the body; and
each of the projectiles further comprises a set-back pin which is broken upon the mortar round being fired, thereby causing the projectiles to separate after launch and before an apogee point of the mortar round and then collaboratively swarm towards a target wherein each projectile has its own miniaturized guidance, navigation and control components, autopilot, cameras, transmitter, receiver, antennae, power source, sensors, fuzes and/or flex circuits.

7. The mortar round of claim 6 wherein the projectiles are mines which are dispersed by such round.

8. The round of claim 6 wherein the projectiles separate upon launch as plural munitions of which of said munitions deploy propeller units and with assist of such propeller units for navigation, swarm towards said target.

9. The round of claim 8 wherein all said munitions deploy propeller units.

10. The round of claim 9 wherein said propeller units are tri-copter type propeller units.

11. The round of claim 9 wherein said propeller units are quad-copter type propeller units.

12. The round of claim 9 wherein some of said propeller units are quad-copter type propeller units and some are tri-copter type propeller units.

13. The mortar round of claim 1 wherein there are plural targets for the said round.

Assignees

• Manole Leon
• Young Mark
• Us Army

Inventors

• Manole Leon
• Young Mark

Classifications

• F42B5/035

  the cartridge or barrel assembly having a plurality of axially stacked projectiles each having a separate propellant charge · CPC title

• F42B12/58 Primary

  Cluster or cargo ammunition, i.e. projectiles containing one or more submissiles (F42B12/32 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F42B12/34 Primary

  expanding before or on impact, i.e. of dumdum or mushroom type · CPC title

• F42B30/10

  Mortar projectiles · CPC title

• F42B15/01

  Arrangements thereon for guidance or control ({steering arrangements F42B10/60}; aircraft flight control B64C; guidance systems other than those installed aboard F41G7/00, F41G9/00; locating by use of radio or other waves G01S; flight control in general G05D1/00; computer aspects G06]) · CPC title