Projectile fuze containing a floating body

A fuze adapted to be fitted to one end of a munitions projectile, said fuze comprising an elongate housing member having an elongate cavity therein between its forward and rearward ends, arming means mounted in said housing member rearward of said elongated cavity and in communication therewith, and being movable between safe and armed positions;

• said cavity and said housing member having elongate axes coinciding substantially with one another;
• a fluid contained in and substantially filling said cavity;
• a body member accommodated in said cavity for free sliding movements fore and aft of said cavity and immersed in said fluid, said fluid having a specific gravity greater than the average specific gravity of said body member whereby said body member is buoyant;
• resilient means acting on said body member and being of such capacity as to overcome the buoyancy of said body member and bias the latter to a position at the rearward end of said cavity;
• fluid passage means between said members enabling sufficient fluid flow aft of said cavity in response to forward acceleration of said housing member to overcome the bias of said resilient means and displace said body member forwardly of said cavity;
• and releasable locking means mounted on said body member acting on said arming means to maintain the latter in its safe position when said body member is in a position at the rearward end of said cavity and responsive to forward displacement of said body member to release said arming means whereby the latter is enabled to move to its armed position.