Multi-Chamber Breech Assembly for Faster Large-Caliber Reloading
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Large-caliber rear-loading guns have slow reloading times and limited rates of fire, which hinder rapid engagement of elusive targets, and existing solutions with ammunition drums are bulky, heavy, and increase vehicle size and inertia.
Innovation Solution
A breech assembly with multiple movable chambers that can be quickly reloaded and aligned with the barrel, featuring a mechanism for translating chambers between feeding and firing positions, and a locking mechanism for rapid chamber exchange.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a conventional single-chamber breech assembly is used, then the structure is simple, but the reloading time is long and the rate of fire is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The breech assembly is divided into multiple independent chambers (at least two chambers: first chamber and second chamber) that can be independently loaded and fired. This segmentation allows one chamber to be fired while another is being loaded, enabling parallel operations that reduce reloading time and increase the rate of fire.
Solution Approach 2:
The second chamber can be pre-loaded with ammunition while the first chamber is being fired or is still in the process of being unloaded. This preliminary action of loading the second chamber in advance eliminates the sequential bottleneck of traditional single-chamber systems, allowing immediate succession of shots.
2Productivity
If ammunition drums are used to increase the rate of fire, then the reloading speed is improved, but the device becomes bulky and heavy
Solution Approach 1:
The multiple chambers are integrated directly into the breech assembly structure itself, with chambers nested within the breechblock. This eliminates the need for separate external ammunition drums, reducing the overall weight and size of the ammunition storage system while maintaining the capability for rapid successive firing.
Solution Approach 2:
The ammunition storage function is merged with the firing mechanism by integrating multiple chambers directly into the breech assembly. This combination eliminates the separate ammunition drum subsystem, reducing weight and complexity while achieving rapid fire capability through the multi-chamber design.
3Productivity
If ammunition drums are used, then the rate of fire is increased, but the vehicle or turret size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The multiple chambers are nested within the existing breech assembly volume, utilizing the internal space of the breechblock rather than adding external drums. This nesting approach increases firepower without significantly increasing the overall volume of the gun system or the vehicle/turret carrying it.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of adding ammunition storage in the radial direction (external drums), the patent utilizes the longitudinal dimension of the breech assembly by creating multiple chambers along the axis of the breechblock. This dimensional reorganization increases capacity without proportionally increasing external dimensions.
4Reliability
If drums are placed at a distance from the closed breech to allow recoil, then the gun can function properly, but the size of the vehicle or turret increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ammunition chambers are merged with the recoiling mass by integrating them into the breech assembly, which moves with the barrel during recoil. This eliminates the need for separate stationary drum positions at a distance from the breech, reducing the required space while maintaining proper gun function during recoil.
Solution Approach 2:
The chambers are designed to move with the breech assembly during recoil, rather than being fixed in stationary positions. This dynamic integration allows the chambers to follow the natural recoil motion of the gun, eliminating the need for additional clearance space that would be required for fixed external drums.
5Reliability
If the gun must be realigned with the drum between shots, then the firing sequence can be maintained, but the duration of doubled firing sequence increases
Solution Approach 1:
The desired chamber is pre-positioned in the breech assembly before firing begins. Since the chambers are integrated into the moving breechblock, the correct chamber is already in place and moves with the barrel, eliminating the need for time-consuming realignment operations between shots.
Solution Approach 2:
The chambers are dynamically integrated with the breech assembly, moving together as a single unit during all gun operations including elevation changes and recoil. This dynamic integration ensures that chamber alignment is maintained automatically throughout the firing sequence, eliminating the need for separate realignment steps.
6Adaptability or versatility
If a single chamber is used, then the structure is simple, but the ability to choose ammunition types is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The breech assembly is segmented into multiple independent chambers, each capable of holding different types of ammunition. This segmentation provides versatility in ammunition selection while maintaining relative structural simplicity, as each chamber is a self-contained unit that can be independently configured for different ammunition types.
Data Source
AI summary
A large-calibre firearm including a breech assembly including a breech block rigidly connected to a firearm barrel, a breech support movable in axial translation relative to the breech block and coupled to a breech head, the assembly further includes a plurality of loading chambers, a mechanism for moving the chambers, configured to support the chambers and successively place one of the chambers in a firing position, and at least one other chamber in a supply position, in which the at least one chamber is able to receive ammunition via its rear end, and a locking mechanism configured to move the breech head and the chamber placed in the firing position between an unlocked position and a locked position, in which the chamber is closed off at its rear end by the breech head and opens out at its front end into the firearm barrel.