US2079625A - Apparatus for fire control - Google Patents

Description

OF? 2', 0799625 W vi v 7 U W 1 LC. i. 1

May 11, 1937. c. H. "MORGAN 1 2,079,625 APPARATUS foR FIRE CONTROL I Filed Aug. 21, 19:54 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Ely-d2 H-Mnr |an May 11, 1937. c. H. MORGAN v 2,079,625

APPARATUS FOR FIRE CONTROL Filed Aug. 21, 1934 2 SHeets-Sheet 2 CURREQTA'D 7'0 DIRECTM Inventor lycla H Mnr 'an Patented May 11, 1937 UNITED STATES APPARATUS FOR FIRE CONTROL Clyde H. Morgan, Lakewood, Ohio Application August 21, 1934, Serial No. 740,803

2 Claims.

(Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

The subject of this invention is apparatus for fire control.

The main objects of the invention are to provide a mechanism for correcting the height furnished by a self-contained base height finder through the use of one or more auxiliary stations at the extremities of known base lines; to provide a system in which corrected values of height are supplied for final computation of data.

The system is so designed that; should an auxiliary station become inoperative a switch may be made to another auxiliary station and the system continues tofunction; should the computing mechanism become inoperative, the system still functions by directing the height determined by the self-contained base height finder directly into the director.

With these and such other objects as may hereinafter more fully appear the invention consists in the novel system and structure hereinafter described and claimed it being understood however, that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings illustrative of the invention:

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 are extracts from the altimetric roof shown in Fig. 4 to make more clear the calculations involved;

Fig. 4 is a view of the altimetric roof, showing a location of a target T, a primary station P, and one of the auxiliary stations P;

Fig. 5 is a schematic view showing the arrangement of the stations and a form of calculating device.

Referring to the drawings by characters of reference:

From Fig. 4, which shows a primary station P and one of the auxiliary stations P, we have the relation sin a'= sin a where e represents the elevation angle at the auxiliary station and a. the azimuth angle at the auxiliary station.

Having previously determined the values of C, H, A and a, the values of e" and a for the auxiliary station are computed and transmitted to the auxiliary station. If the optical axis of the telescope at the auxiliary station is not accurately upon the target when the values of a and e are inserted, it is due to error in the value of H, as the other factors entering the computation are either known or accurately measured. Accordingly a differential correction for H is set in at the auxiliary station and transmitted back to the primary station and through the comp-uting mechanism. In this manner new values of e and a are automatically and continuously generated, the operator at the auxiliary station merely keeping the optical axis of the telescope at that station on the target by inserting the required differential value for H. The differential value of H is added to the original estimated or measured value and furnishes the corrected value of H which is transmitted to the guns or to a director for determination of firing data.

While this system may be carried out in various ways, as through calculations worked out by personnel or by the use of any well known transmitting and calculating devices, there has been shown herein one preferred form of calculator which is incorporated in the system.

At the primary station P is provided a height finding telemeter I of well known design, the elevation angle of which is transmitted to the calculator through the line 2, and the azimuth angle a of which is likewise transmitted to the calculator through the line 3. The height, as determined by the height finder l, is transmitted to the calculator through the line 4.

The means of transmitting such data is old and well known and forms no part of the present invention.

The value of the elevation angle is set into the calculator through rotation of a cam designed to produce a lift proportional to log Got 6 in a follower 6 formed with a rack meshing with a pinion l on one end of a shaft 8 on the other end of which shaft is a pinion 9 meshing with a pinion l0 rotatable with one element of a differential II. The movement proportional to log cot e is combined in differential II with a movement proportional to log H through means of the follow the pointer hand operated mechanism l2 and shaft I3 and the resultant movement, log 0 or log H+log cot e, is imparted to shaft l4 and from it to shaft l5 through the medium of gearing l6 which has a 2 to 1 ratio.

Shaft l4 moves proportional to log C while shaft l5 moves proportional to log 0 The shaft I 5 has mounted thereon a cam I! designed to lift its follower l8 proportional to C The 01- UUH lower I8 is provided with a rack meshing with a pinion I9 on a shaft 20, and the shaft 20 is connected through gearing 2I with a shaft 22 which drives one side of a differential 23 imparting thereto a movement proportional to C The value log B is set into the instrument through the medium of a hand wheel 24 on a shaft 25 which shaft drives, through gearing 26,

shaft 21 which, through gearing 28 having a 2 to 1 ratio, drives shaft 29 on which is a cam 30 designed to impart a lift to its follower 3| proportional to B The follower 3| is provided with a rack meshing with a pinion 32 on a shaft 33 which shaft drives the planetary gears of differential 23 so that the resultant movement from the differential is proportional to B +C and this movement is imparted to a shaft 34 connected to one side of the differential.

The value a. is introduced into the instrument through a shaft 35 which, through gearing 36, drives a shaft 31, and this shaft in turn, through gearing 38, drives a shaft 39 on which is a cam 40 designed to impart a lift to its follower 4| proportional to log cos a. The follower 4| is provided with a rack meshing with a pinion 42 on one end of a shaft 43 the other end of which has a driving connection with one side of a differential 44. The other side of this differential 44 is connected through a shaft 45 with a differential 46 one side of which is driven through the shaft 25 and the other side of which is driven through a shaft 41 connected through gearing 48 with the shaft I4. The resultant movement of differential 46, log BC, is imported through differential 44 to shaft 49 which, through gearing 50, drives a shaft 5| with movement log BC cos a, driving through gearing 52 a shaft 53 on which is mounted a cam 54 designed to impart a lift to its follower 55 proportional to 2 BC cos a. The follower 55 is provided with a rack meshing with a pinion 56 on one end of a shaft 51 the other end of which has a driving connection with the planetary gears of a differential 58, one side of which is driven by the shaft 34 and the other side of which drives a shaft 59, of movement A or 3 0 -2 BC cos a, which, through gearing 60, imparts motion to shaft 6| and this shaft in turn, through gearing 62, drives shaft 63.

Mounted on the shaft 63 is a cam 64 designed to impart to its follower 65 a lift proportional to log A The follower 65 is provided with a rack meshing with a pinion 66 on a shaft 61 which, through the 1 to 2 reduction gearing 68, drives shaft 69 proportional to log A. The shaft 69, through gearing I0, drives shaft H, which shaft is connected to and drives one side of differential 12, the other side of which is driven through gearing I3, shaft I4, gearing I5 and shaft 16 giving a resultant movement proportional to log This resultant movement is imparted to shaft I1 and, through gearing I8, to shaft I9 connected to one side of differential 80. The planetary gearing of differential receives movement, log sin a, from shaft 8| which is driven through gearing 82 by a shaft 83 which shaft is rotated through a pinion 84 fast thereon and engaged by a rack formed on the follower 85 of cam 40. The other side of differential 80 drives shaft 86 which, through gearing 81, drives shaft 88 and the rotation of shaft 83, through gearing 89. im'parts rotation to shaft 90,

log sin a=log sin a-I-log E and cam 9| mounted thereon. The cam 9| is designed to impart a lift to its follower 92 proportional to a and the lift of the follower, through its rack, rotates pinion 93 and shaft 94 which,

log =log tan 0 drives shaft I 05, gearing I06, shaft I01, gearing I08, shaft I09 and its cam H0. The cam I I0 is designed to impart a lift to its follower III proportional to e. The follower, through its rack, rotates pinion II2, shaft II3, gearing H4 and shaft II5 connected to a data transmitter II6 through which the value of e' is transmitted to the auxiliary station.

The value a is transmitted to the auxiliary station through line Ill and the value of e is transmitted through line H8. The transmitters and receivers are any of the old and well known devices now in use for such purposes. The telem-- eter or telescopes, as the case may be, at the auxiliary station, indicated by the numeral I I9, is elevated and traversed in accordance with the received values, which, if the value of H was correct would place the optical axis of the instrument on the target. If the target does not appear on the cross lines of the instrument then the instrument must be moved to place the cross lines squarely on the target. This movement imparted to the instrument is transmitted through line I20 back to the primary station where it is incorporated through differential I2I into the setting of the instrument at the primary station, and also into the calculating device, or director.

I claim.

1. In a system for gun fire control, a height finder, an auxiliary sighting instrument at a predetermined distance therefrom, a calculator, means for transmitting data from the height finder to the calculator, means for transmitting resulting data from the calculator to the auxil iary instrument, and means for transmitting corrections in height necessary to place the auxiliary instrument on the target back to the calculator.

2. In a system of gun fire control, means by which height of a target may be measured, an auxiliary sighting instrument at a predetermined distance therefrom, means connected to and operated from the height finding station for calculating necessary data, means for transmitting such data to the auxiliary sighting instrument, means for transmitting corrections in height necessary to place the sighting instrument on the target back to the calculator, and means for transmitting the resulting height to a fire control instrument.

CLYDE H. MORGAN.

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