Automatic guns including a recoiling system

Jan. 28,1958 a. billard 2,821,118

AUTOMATIC GUNS INCLUDING A RECOILING SYSTEM

Filed Jan. 21. 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1

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Jan. 28, 1958

A. BILLARD

2,821,118

AUTOMATIC GUNS INCLUDING A RECOILING SYSTEM

Filed Jan. 21, 1954

Sheets-Sheet 2

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United States Patent Office

2,821,118

Patented Jan. 28, 1958

2,821,118

AUTOMATIC GUNS INCLUDING A RECOILING SYSTEM

Alexandre Billard, Paris, France, assignor to Societe d’Exploitation des Materiels Hispano-Suiza, Bois-Colombes, France, a society of France

Application January 21,1954, Serial No. 405,426

Claims priority, application France January 30,1953

Claims. (Cl. 89—137)

The present invention relates to automatic guns including a plurality of parts movable with respect to one another, said parts performing, every time a shot is fired, a series or cycle of operations which will be hereinafter called “firing cycle,” while one of said parts has, upon every firing of a shot, a recoil movement followed by a return into initial position with respect to its support (counter-recoil movement), this recoil and counter-recoil cycle being hereinafter called “recoil cycle.” Of course, the recoil cycle period cannot be longer than the firing cycle period. As a matter of fact, it is generally much shorter.

My invention is exclusively concerned, among such guns, with those in which the recoil cycle serves to perform at least one of the operations of the firing cycle, for instance the feed of cartridges to guns.

Of course, in such guns, this operation must be so timed with respect to the firing cycle that said cycle can take place without perturbance. However, jamming sometimes occurs, in particular when the firing circumstances are abnormal, for instance under very low temperatures, with a defective lubrication, and so on.

My invention consists chiefly in arranging the guns above described in such manner that their recoil cycle is delayed when necessary so that when a part cooperating in the firing cycle has been accidentally slowed down, said firing cycle can catch up with the recoil thus delayed.

My invention is especially applicable to guns including a breech-block movable with respect to a recoiling system and in which the frontward return movement of this recoiling system with respect to the support serves to control, at the end of the transverse feed of the next fresh cartridge to be fired toward its waiting position (position from which said cartridge is to be pushed frontwardly by the breech-block into the cartridge chamber), and in this case my invention consists in providing the gun with temporary locking means interposed between the recoiling system and the support, so as to prevent the end of the transverse feed movement of the next cartridge from being caused by the return of the recoil system in the frontward direction before the breech-block, which is then moving rearwardly, has fully cleared the place that is to be occupied by said cartridge, at the end of its transverse feed movement.

A preferred embodiment of my invention will be hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings, given merely by way of example, and in which:

Figs. 1 and 2 diagrammatically show in horizontal section an automatic gun made according to my invention, the parts being shown in two different relative positions in these two figures, respectively.

Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views on the lines III—ΠΙ of Fig. 1 and IV—IV of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 shows the same gun in top plan view, with parts cut away.

The gun shown by the drawing includes a movable breech-block 1 slidable in a breech-case 2 rigid with the barrel 3 of the gun, this breech-case 2 and this barrel 3 constituting what has been called the recoiling system in the preceding paragraphs.

This recoiling system 2—3 is slidable with respect to a fixed system or support 4, and between this support 4 and the recoiling system 2—3 there is interposed a resilient device such as known in the art and diagrammatically represented in the drawing by a spring 5. Of course, this spring can be combined with any suitable shock absorbing system, for instance a hydraulic one.

Preferably, at the rear of support 4 there is provided a firing accelerator which may be constituted by a spring 6 against which breech-block 1 rebounds at the end of its stroke.

This gun is provided with a cartridge feed device such that the counter-recoil movement of the recoiling system 2—3 with respect to support 4 causes, every time a shot is fired, said feed device to bring a cartridge into waiting position.

For this purpose, said feed device is made for instance as shown by Figs. 3 to 5.

The feed device includes a carriage 7 reciprocable transversely with respect to support 4 in a guide 8, this carriage 7 carrying at least one retractable pawl 9.

During every stroke of carriage toward the right hand side of Fig. 4, pawl 9 retracts when meeting the links (constituted by cartridges) of the cartridge belt.

During the next stroke in the opposed direction pawl 9 pushes the cartridge belt toward the left a distance equal to the pitch, so as to bring the first cartridge of said belt into its position shown at A on Fig. 4 where it is ready for introduction into the cartridge chamber.

In order to control the reciprocating movement of carriage 7, there is provided a lever 10 the rear end 11 of which acts upon a trunnion carried by carriage 7 and the front end 12 of which carries a roller 13 engaged in an oblique slot 14 provided in a part of the recoiling system 2—3.

The general arrangement is such that, during the recoil movement of the recoiling system 2—3, slot 14, which acts upon roller 13, produces an oscillation of lever 10 such that the head 11 of this lever moves carriage 7 transversely (toward the right of Fig. 4) a distance at least equal to the pitch of the movement of the cartridge belt. During the next counter-recoil movement of the recoiling system 2—3, carriage 7 is moved transversely in the opposed direction (that is to say toward the left hand side of Fig. 4) whereby at the end of this movement the first cartridge of the cartridge belt has been brought into its introduction position A.

Now, according to my invention, I interpose, advantageously between breech-case 2 and support 4, temporary locking means capable of postponing the end of the transverse feed movement of the first fresh cartridge until breech-block 1, in the course of its rearward movement, has temporarily cleared the place which is to be occupied by a fresh cartridge in introduction position, i. e. until breech-block 1, in the course of its rearward movement, has reached a position where the distance between its front end and the rear end of the cartridge chamber is greater than the length of a cartridge.

For this purpose, for instance, I pivot on each of the side walls of support 4, on either side of the side walls of breech-case 2, a pawl 15 capable of cooperating in such manner with a bearing surface 16 provided in the corresponding side wall of the breech-case that, for a predetermined position of the recoiling system in the course of its counter-recoil movement, a spring 17 tends to bring each pawl 15 into contact with the corresponding bearing surface 16. It will be understood that if this takes place the recoiling system is held back in a position for which spring 5 is compressed.

But I provide each of the pawls 15 with a surface 18

2,821,118 such that, if said pawl has been able to act as an abutment for the corresponding bearing surface 16, this surface 18 comes across the path followed by breech-block 1 in its rearward movement. And, in such a case, the action of the movable breech-block 1 on inclined surface 18 disengages pawl 15 from its bearing surface 16, and the recoiling system 2—3 is released and can finish its counter-recoil stroke, thus causing the first fresh cartridge to be fed into introduction position A.

It will be understood that if care is taken to time the meeting of surfaces 18 with breech-block 1 so that it takes place only after said breech-block has moved rearwardly a distance sufficient to clear the place to be occupied by a fresh cartridge in position A, no jamming can then take place if, accidentally, the rearward movement of breechblock 1 is abnormally slowed down.

Advantageously, instead of pivoting each of the pawls 15 directly upon the support 4, shock absorbing means are interposed between these two elements, these means being for instance constituted by pivoting each pawl about a spindle 19 mounted on a sliding piece 20 capable of being pushed back rearwardly, with respect to support 4, by a spring 21, a hydraulic shock absorber being advantageously further interposed between each sliding member 20 and support 4 so as to brake the frontward displacement undergone by the two sliding pieces under the effect of the shock which takes place when the recoiling system 2—3 engages pawls 15.

Of course, when firing takes place normally, synchronism of the recoil cycle and of the firing cycle is ensured without any action of the postponing system 15—16 which has just been described, this synchronism resulting from the suitable determination of the ballistic effects, from the characteristics of the springs that are brought into play, upon the state of the surfaces of sliding pieces and upon the viscosity of the lubricants.

As a matter of fact, it is perfectly possible to provide a firearm which has, under protected working conditions for a sufficiently long time, a good synchronism of the two cycles which achieves a satisfactory stability of its operation.

But, as above stated, when used in active service, at very high or very low temperatures, under the effect of wear and tear of the parts and of the weakening of the springs, it happens that the desired synchronism is no longer obtained. In this case, the postponing system which has just been described starts operating, whereby, if for some reason the breech-block is lagging in its rearward movement with respect to the movement of the breech-case, the end of the counter-recoil movement of the recoiling system is delayed so that a fresh cartridge can in no case come to jam the movable breech-block and stop the operation of the gun.

In a general manner, while I have, in the above description, disclosed what I deem to be practical and efficient embodiments of my invention, it should be well understood that I do not wish to be limited thereto as there might be changes made in the arrangement, disposition and form of the parts without departing from the principle of the present invention as comprehended within the scope of the accompanying claims.