Flowforming Gun Barrels and Similar Tubular Devices
AssigneeATI Properties, Inc.
InventorMatthew V. Fonte
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Gun barrels and similar tubular devices for repeatedly guiding fired projectiles are fabricated from superalloys, titanium metals, tantalum metals, and similar metal materials by a flowforming process. Combinations of these metals are also flowformed to produce gun barrels and projectile-guiding tubes. In addition, inner liners for such barrels and tubes are made with these metals and flowforming processes. These barrels and tubular devices can withstand high temperatures and corrosive environments. The flowforming process is efficient and produces strong, yet thin and/or light weight, gun barrels and similar tubular devices.
Claims10
1-56. (canceled)
A method of making a machine gun barrel, the method comprising:
- flowforming a metal preform below the recrystallization temperature of the metal preform to provide an inner liner comprising an inner surface, wherein the metal preform includes a first metal and a second metal integrally bonded together, wherein the first metal is selected from the group consisting of tantalum, a tantalum alloy, chromium, a chromium alloy, zirconium, a zirconium alloy, niobium, and a niobium alloy, and the second metal consists of a steel that is not an iron-based superalloy or a high strength steel, and wherein flowforming the metal preform includes imparting helical rifling to the inner surface;
- and
- assembling the inner liner together with an outer supporting structure to form a machine gun barrel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.