Side impactor

Abstract

A side impactor is a propulsion machine whose operation can be described in four steps: (I) two colliding bodies (21 and 22) driven in the left (31) and right (32) accelerators approach each other in a straight line on the track (10) (or, in another embodiment, move away); (II) two colliding bodies (21 and 22) simultaneously collide eccentrically with the collision wedges (41 and 42) placed on the same side of the track, and rotate in the same direction, and towards a direction perpendicular to the previous direction of movement; the trajectory of the colliding bodies (21 and 22) after the collision depends on their speed, mass, shape and the place of impact with the collision wedge (41 or 42);(III) during the rotation, in a position perpendicular to the original direction of movement, the two colliding bodies (21 and 22) collide perfectly inelastically with the collision obstacles (43 and 44), whereby their collision surfaces (51 to 54) adhere, and they continue to move with the collision obstacles (43 and 44) ​​in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which they approached, and via the collision obstacles (43 and 44) ​​the motion is transmitted to the entire assembly; (IV) the return links (60) return the two colliding bodies (21 and 22) to their starting positions (81 and 82); thus the machine is ready for the first step again. In this way, in the first, second and fourth steps, the two bodies (21 and 22) perform movements whose effects cancel each other out and do not affect the surrounding assembly, while in the third step they create a thrust perpendicular to the direction of their initial movement, thus converting the "internal" motion of the two bodies (21 and 22) into a single motion of the entire assembly relative to its reference frame.;