Projectile Impact Sensor System for Weapon Evaluation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Evaluating the effectiveness of new military weapons under actual combat conditions requires correlating each bullet fired with its impact point, which is challenging due to the lack of information on the bullet's origin, time, and location, especially when bullets miss or are destroyed.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that include a sensor to detect projectile impacts, a time tracking device, a location detection device, and a controller to determine the angle of incidence and record the time and location of scoring events, using a global positioning system (GPS) for precise tracking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If bullets are marked through coloration to link them to respective weapons, then bullets can be linked back to the weapons, but no information is provided about where and when the bullet was fired
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple tracking functions (bullet identification, location tracking, time recording, and trajectory detection) into a single integrated sensor system. The sensor simultaneously captures bullet characteristics and environmental data, merging what were previously separate tracking mechanisms into one unified device that records comprehensive firing information without requiring multiple separate systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor acts as an intermediary between the bullet and the evaluation system. Rather than directly tracking the bullet throughout its flight or requiring complex marking systems, the sensor captures indirect evidence (trajectory, impact location, time) that mediates the connection between the fired bullet and its origin, enabling comprehensive tracking without direct continuous observation.
2Reliability
If soldiers are run through actual platoon attack scenarios with live fire to evaluate weapons, then weapon effectiveness can be evaluated under actual combat conditions, but it becomes difficult to correlate each bullet fired with its impact point
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides immediate feedback by recording and storing the correlation between each bullet fired and its impact point during live fire exercises. The sensor captures trajectory data, impact location, and timing information that feeds back into the evaluation system, allowing real-time or post-event analysis of weapon effectiveness without requiring manual tracking or observation during the actual firing scenarios.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual or mechanical tracking methods (such as visual observation, manual recording, or physical bullet marking) with an electronic sensor-based system. The sensor automatically detects and records bullet trajectories and impact points, substituting mechanical human effort with electronic detection that can simultaneously track multiple bullets without additional complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple bullets are fired simultaneously in combat scenarios, then realistic combat conditions are simulated, but tracking and correlating each bullet's origin and impact becomes increasingly difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor system segments the tracking of multiple simultaneous bullets by capturing individual trajectory data for each bullet. Rather than attempting to track all bullets as a single group, the sensor divides the measurement task into separate detectable events, recording each bullet's unique path, timing, and impact point independently, even when multiple bullets are fired in rapid succession or simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds temporal and spatial dimensions to bullet tracking by recording not just impact location but also precise timing and trajectory information. This multi-dimensional data capture allows the system to distinguish between multiple bullets fired simultaneously by separating them in the time dimension and tracking their individual paths through space, enabling precise correlation even in complex multi-bullet scenarios.
Data Source
AI summary
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention sets forth an apparatus for registering a scoring event. The apparatus includes a target having a surface; a sensor, positioned in proximity to the target, adapted to detect the occurrence of a scoring event caused by the presence of a projectile in the scoring area and to determine a trajectory of the projectile; a time tracking device adapted to keep track of time of the scoring event; a location sensing device adapted to identify a location of the apparatus; a true north detection device adapted to detect the direction of true north with respect to the surface of the target; and a controller, coupled to the sensor and the true north detection device.