Electronically configurable towed decoy for dispensing infrared emitting flares, and method for dispensing flare material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-RE46051-E
Application number	US-13710702-A
Country	US
Kind code	E1
Filing date	May 2, 2002
Priority date	Sep 28, 1998
Publication date	Jul 5, 2016
Grant date	Jul 5, 2016

Abstract

This invention proposes to make use of an already developed set of hardware which dispenses and controls the performance of towed decoys capable of defeating radar guided weapons. Using this same hardware, a new and unique payload, payload control and dispensing mechanism is inserted into a decoy towbody. The payload consists of foils and/or foil packs of a pyrophoric material. This material creates an infrared (IR) signature behind the decoy that is more attractive than the infrared plume emitted by the aircraft engine. The fact that the IR decoy is towed insures that it will be kinematically correct by flying the same profile as the aircraft so as to remain within the field of view of the missile's seeker. Because the pyrophoric material can be metered (dispensed at varying and controllable rates) its radiant intensity can be matched with that of the engine of the towing aircraft. As the burn characteristics of the selected pyrophoric material match the burn profile of hydrocarbon based jet fuels, the towed IR decoy also emits a plume that spectrally matches that of its host aircraft's engine.

First claim

Wherefore, having thus described the present invention, what is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the decoy is towed at a distance behind the aircraft that places it close enough to the aircraft's an exhaust plume of the aircraft that both the IR emissions from the aircraft's exhaust plume and the IR emissions of at least some of the flares dispensed from the towed decoy are in the a field of view of a seeker of an IR guided missile, but far enough behind the aircraft's exhaust plume that the seeker of the missile miscalculates the a location of the aircraft.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the apparatus is for use to defeat an IR guided missile employing kinematic counter--counter measures (CCMs) designed to discriminate between an aircraft moving through the air and an IR emitting flare falling away from the aircraft once deployed therefrom,
wherein said dispensing means continuously dispenses flares at a distance behind the aircraft that ensures both the IR emissions from the aircraft's an exhaust plume of the aircraft and the IR emissions of at least some of the flares dispensed from said decoy are in the a field of view of a seeker of the IR guided missile, thereby preventing the IR guided missile from distinguishing between the aircraft's exhaust plume and the flares, thereby defeating said kinematic CCMs.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the apparatus is for use to defeat an IR guided missile employing spectral CCMs designed to discriminate between the an IR spectra of an aircraft's exhaust plume of the aircraft and the an IR spectra of an IR emitting flare, wherein said dispensing means dispenses IR emitting flares comprising pyrophoric flare materials which emit, when exposed to air, an IR spectra similar to that emitted by the aircraft's exhaust plume, thereby defeating said spectral CCMs.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the apparatus is for use to defeat an IR guided missile employing IR radiation intensity CCMs designed to discriminate between the a radiant intensity of the IR emissions from the aircraft's an exhaust plume of the aircraft and the a radiant intensity of the IR emissions from an IR emitting flare, wherein said dispensing means dispenses the IR emitting flares at rates which create IR energy levels behind the decoy which cannot be effectively distinguished from that of the aircraft's exhaust plume, thereby defeating said intensity CCMs.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the IR emitting flares are dispensed at a steady rate which creates IR energy levels behind the decoy that substantially match the IR energy levels associated with the aircraft's exhaust plume.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the IR emitting flares are dispensed at rates which produce a varying IR radiation intensity pattern behind the decoy, said pattern comprising a repeating sequence of at least two IR radiation intensity spikes wherein one of the at least two spikes peaks at an IR radiation intensity above that of the aircraft's exhaust plume and another of the at least two spikes peaks at an IR radiation intensity below that of the aircraft's exhaust plume.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the IR emitting flares are dispensed at rates which produce a varying IR radiation intensity pattern behind the decoy, said pattern comprising a repeating sequence of at least two IR radiation intensity spikes followed by a period of time in which no flares are dispensed, wherein one of the at least two spikes peaks at an IR radiation intensity above that of the aircraft's exhaust plume and another of the at least two spikes peaks at an IR radiation intensity below that of the aircraft's exhaust plume.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the apparatus is for use to defeat an IR-guided missile employing temporal CCMs designed to distinguish between continuous IR emissions associated with the aircraft's an exhaust plume of the aircraft and rapidly decreasing IR emissions associated with aircraft-launch IR emitting flares as sensed by the IR-guided missile, wherein said dispensing means dispenses IR emitting flares from the decoy at rates that prevent the average IR emissions associated with the decoy's flares from decreasing in intensity over time, thereby defeating said temporal CCMs.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 An apparatus for defeating infrared (IR)-guided missile attacks on an aircraft, comprising:
a decoy towed behind the aircraft, said decoy being capable of receiving commands transmitted from said aircraft; and
means, disposed within said decoy, for dispensing IR emitting flares carried on the decoy in solid form, wherein the rate at which said flares are dispensed is determined by said commands,
wherein the towed IR decoy has a forward and an aft section, said forward section comprising:
a housing;
a towline attachment connected to the housing for attaching a towline from the aircraft;
a motor disposed within the housing;
a motor controller disposed within the housing and connected to the motor, said controller being capable of controlling the motor's a speed of the motor;
a communications modem disposed within said housing and connected to the motor controller, said modem being capable of receiving said commands communicated from the aircraft and passing said commands on to the motor controller; and
an electrical interconnect connected t

Assignees

• Sweeny L Ray
• O'Neill Mary Dominique
• Raytheon Co

Inventors

• Sweeny L Ray
• O'Neill Mary Dominique

Classifications

• B64D3/02 Primary

  for towing targets · CPC title

• F41J9/10

  towed · CPC title

• F41J2/02 Primary

  Active targets transmitting infrared radiation · CPC title

• F41H11/02 Primary

  Anti-aircraft or anti-guided missile {or anti-torpedo} defence installations or systems (cartridges or missiles for producing smoke or for dispensing radar chaff or infrared material F42B5/15, F42B12/48, F42B12/70; {informative reference: details of radar or sonar systems G01S7/00; jamming or electronic countermeasures G01S7/38, G01S7/495, H04K3/00}) · CPC title