PROPELLER WITH BIonic STRUCTURES

Description

[0001] The invention concerns the production of a sabot for a sub-caliber kinetic energy projectile in the small-caliber, medium-caliber, and large-caliber ranges. The invention considers a weight-reduced, bionic sabot, for example, by incorporating globulitic cavities in the sabot.

[0002] To achieve high penetration performance, so-called KE (kinetic energy) ammunition is used. The ammunition usually consists of a metallic penetrator (kinetic energy projectile), preferably made of heavy metal with high strength and toughness. The penetrators have a nail-like or arrow-like shape. They are smaller in caliber (subcaliber) than the gun barrel from which they are fired. In order to be fired from a gun barrel, a sabot, sabot cage, or sabot is required to enclose the penetrator and ensure caliber stability to the barrel. The sabot is responsible for sealing off powder gases from the gun barrel during firing. A force is applied across projected surfaces of the sabot using the gas pressure created by the combustion of the powder, which accelerates the sabot together.

[0003] The task of the sabot is to carry the penetrator along as it passes through the barrel, to generate acceleration, to seal it against the gun barrel, to guide the penetrator and to release the penetrator smoothly after it leaves the muzzle.

[0004] Depending on the caliber, the sabots are made of plastic, metal, or a combination of both. The heavier the sabot, the lower the acceleration and thus the achievable muzzle velocity. Therefore, the lighter the sabot, the higher the muzzle velocity and the greater the achievable engagement distance. At the same engagement distance, a greater penetration depth / penetration power of the penetrator can be achieved.

[0005] In practice, high-strength aluminum or packed plastic is used for the sabots of main battle tank ammunition. Further weight savings are achieved by inserting holes, slots, etc.

[0006] DE 196 25 273 A1 discloses a sub-caliber kinetic energy projectile whose sabot is made of a fiber-reinforced material. The sabot base is provided with openings. The fiber-reinforced material is a carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic or a carbon-fiber-reinforced carbon. Additional reinforcing fibers for plastics can be aramid fibers or polyethylene fibers. Reinforcing fibers for metals such as aluminum, magnesium, or titanium include Al2O3 fibers or SiC fibers.

[0007] DE 29 24 041 C2 discloses a sabot for a sub-caliber sabot projectile. The sabot material is a pre-stressed ceramic or glass. Toughened glass or other ceramic materials with corresponding behavior possess very high mechanical strength. The sabot's disintegration is initiated by a mass that is thrown against the sabot's inner wall. The mass itself is housed in a cavity.

[0008] DE 30 34 471 A1 describes a sub-caliber kinetic energy projectile with a detachable guide. To achieve a low dead weight while maintaining compressive and tensile strength, the guide is manufactured as a pressed part made of hollow glass spheres with a plastic or glass binding material. Alternatively, foam glass or syntactic foams are mentioned.

[0009] A sabot according to DE 10 2009 049 440 A1 is characterized by a complete, or at least partial, construction made of a foam material. The foam material can be a metal foam, such as aluminum foam, zinc foam, or foaminale, whereby the foam material can be used as a sandwich component with layers of the same or a different material, a reinforced fiber material, and / or a core of another material.

[0010] US 3,430,572 A discloses a self-disintegrating sabot, wherein the sabot consists of porous foam or sintered nylon powder and disintegrates due to excess pressure in the porous interior after passing through the muzzle. DE 30 34 471 A1 shows a bullet guide formed as a pressed part made of hollow glass spheres with a plastic / glass binding material. DE 10 2012 022 894 A1 discloses a method and a system for personalizing and supplying energy to bullets and bullet delivery systems, whereby this document relates to shotgun slugs. DE 40 34 062 A1 discloses a longitudinally segmented driving ring, wherein a material with a lower density is used in areas of low material stress on the driving ring or, alternatively, holes are introduced. US 4,155,308 A discloses a sabot for simulation purposes in order to accommodate cuboid-shaped payloads inside the sabot and to investigate their behavior upon impact.The published patent application WO 93 / 02333 A1 discloses another projectile with a segmented sabot.

[0011] In the case of plastics / fiber composites, aging, chemical compatibility with the powders, susceptibility to UV radiation, etc., combined with high manufacturing costs, are disadvantages. The required robustness in handling the ammunition (dropping, vibration during travel in the ammunition containers) is problematic.

[0012] The invention aims to ensure cost-effectively manufactured sabot parts that are lighter in weight than existing systems and have sufficient environmental resistance, while maintaining a maximum muzzle velocity.

[0013] The problem is solved by the features of patent claim 1 .

[0014] The invention is based on the idea of ​​producing the sabot or sabot parts with reduced weight using bionic structures, whereby these structures ensure sufficient stability, etc., of the sabot or sabot parts. These structures are only created during the manufacturing process. This means that the bionic structures, namely honeycombs, struts, bubbles, spherical cavities, and combinations thereof, are created by the manufacturing process by omitting them during production.

[0015] Such processes can be, for example, 3D printing, e.g. from plastics, or laser sintering. Using plastic laser sintering, the sabot or the sabot parts or segments with bionic structures can be manufactured from plastic. Metal laser sintering enables the production of the sabot or the sabot parts or segments with the bionic structures from a metal such as aluminum. The range here extends from light metal to superalloys. Also not excluded from these considerations, but not part of the invention, is production using a 3D cocooner, although this process appears more complex. Here, the bionic structures are created from a handling spinneret. Currently, glass fibers are bonded to complex structures while being laminated with UV-curing resin.

[0016] The sabot or sabot segments receive the necessary strength and rigidity for the pipe passage through the bionic structures while achieving maximum weight reduction.

[0017] The advantage of such processes lies in the definable design of the cavities, etc. The size and shape (volume) of the cavities can be directly influenced (3D programming). Direct influence is also possible on the number, quantity, and distribution within the sabot segments (sabot parts).

[0018] A sabot is proposed in which bionic structures are provided which are generated or first created by a 3D manufacturing process, namely by a 3D printing process or by an SLS process, defined in size, shape and / or volume and targeted within the sabot segments during the manufacture of the sabot. The targeted factors are the local embedding within the sabot and the number of bionic structures, ie the local and numerical embedding within the sabot.

[0019] The invention will be explained in more detail using an exemplary embodiment with a drawing. The single figure shows a sketch of a munition 1 with a sabot 2 and a penetrator 3. The sabot 2 encloses the penetrator 2 and can be connected to the penetrator 2 at least in the form-fitting area 4. The form-fitting area 4 can have a thread (not shown in detail). The sabot 2 consists of several segments 2.1, 2.2, which are held together by a sealing and / or guide band (not shown in detail).

[0020] To reduce weight, the segmented sabots 2.1, 2.2 feature bionic structures 5. Shapes such as honeycombs, struts, bubbles, cavities, and combinations thereof are defined as bionic structures 5. The cavities 6 can be spherical, angular, etc.

[0021] The sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 can be manufactured using 3D printing or the SLS (laser sintering) process. The geometric data for the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 are available in three dimensions and stored as layer data.

[0022] During metal laser sintering, a casting model is also created from the geometric shapes (not shown in detail). Using the available CAD data for the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 (e.g., in STL format), the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 are then built up layer by layer in a layered structure. Areas are left out in the layers so that the bionic structures 5, such as globulitic cavities 6, can be incorporated into the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 with a defined shape, size, and volume.

[0023] During 3D printing, the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2 are built up layer by layer without a mold. For this purpose, the sabot segments 2.1 and 2.2, along with their bionic structures 5 and 6, are available as three-dimensional data and are built up layer by layer.

Claims

1. Sabot (2) for a sub-caliber projectile (3), the sabot (2) consisting of at least two sabot segments (2.1, 2.2), bionic structures (5, 6) being provided in the sabot (2), the bionic structures (5, 6) being honeycombs, struts, bubbles, spherical cavities and / or combinations thereof, and the bionic structures (5, 6) being embedded within the sabot segments (2.1, 2.2), characterized in that the bionic structures (5, 6) are defined by a 3D printing process or by an SLS process and are created in a targeted manner during the manufacture of the sabot (2).

2. Sabot (2) according to claim 1, characterized in that the size, shape and / or volume of the bionic structures (5, 6) can be predetermined.

3. Sabot (2) according to any of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the number of bionic structures (5, 6) can be predetermined.

4. Sabot (2) according to any of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the material of the sabot (2) is a light metal, a metal and / or plastics material.

5. Method for manufacturing a sabot (2) consisting of at least two sabot segments (2.1, 2.2), wherein bionic structures (5, 6) are provided in the sabot (2) in a defined and targeted manner by a 3D printing process during the manufacture of the sabot (2), wherein the bionic structures (5, 6) are honeycombs, struts, bubbles, spherical cavities and / or combinations thereof, and wherein the bionic structures (5, 6) are embedded within the sabot segments (2.1, 2.2).

6. Method for manufacturing a sabot (2) consisting of at least two sabot segments (2.1, 2.2), wherein bionic structures (5, 6) are provided in the sabot (2) in a defined and targeted manner by an SLS process during the manufacture of the sabot (2), wherein the bionic structures (5, 6) are honeycombs, struts, bubbles, spherical cavities and / or combinations thereof, and wherein the bionic structures (5, 6) are embedded within the sabot segments (2.1, 2.2).

7. Ammunition (1) comprising a sabot (2) according to any of claims 1 to 4 and a sub-caliber projectile (3).

8. Ammunition (1) comprising a sabot (2) manufactured according to claim 5 or 6 and a sub-caliber projectile (3).