An Automated Projectile Loader And A Method Of Loading Projectiles For A Vehicle

A method (1300) of loading projectiles in a turret of a vehicle, the method (1300) comprising:

• receiving an input indicative of selection of a projectile from one of a bustle storage and a carousal storage to be loaded in a barrel of the turret;
• and
• operating an automated arm (200) and one of a bustle projectile unit (220) and a carousal projectile unit (210) based on the received input,
• wherein if the received input is indicative of selection of the projectile from the bustle storage, the method comprising:
• driving a plurality of sprocket drives (224) of the bustle projectile unit (220) to align a bustle bin with the barrel of the turret;
• actuating a bin rammer (240) of the bustle projectile unit (220) to push the bustle bin towards the barrel of the turret;
• operating the automated arm (200) to hold the bustle bin and align the bustle bin with a central axis of the barrel, wherein a solenoid pin mounted at a bin gripper of the automated arm is actuated to lock the bustle bin with the bin gripper;
• actuating a rammer (230) positioned at a rear end of the barrel to load the projectile and propellant from the bustle bin in the barrel of the turret;
• and
• actuating the bin rammer (240) to pull the bustle bin towards the bustle storage of the bustle projectile unit (220);
• and
• wherein if the received input is indicative of selection of the projectile from the carousal storage, the method comprising:
• moving a carousal base (218) of the carousal projectile unit (210) to align a carousal twin bin (211) to be aligned with the barrel of the turret;
• operating the automated arm (200) to hold the carousal twin bin (211) and align the carousal twin bin (211) with the central axis of the barrel, wherein the solenoid pin mounted at the bin gripper is actuated to lock the carousal twin bin (211) with the bin gripper;
• and
• actuating the rammer (230) to load the projectile and propellant from the carousal twin bin in the barrel, wherein the rammer (230) is adapted to slide the projectile from a first bin of the carousal twin bin (211) and subsequently slide the propellant from a second bin of the carousal twin bin (211).