Beamrider guidance system
AssigneeHughes Aircraft Company
InventorHans A. Maurer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A guidance apparatus (10) for guiding a missile (18) to a target (20) by a beam (16) is disclosed. The apparatus (10) includes a device (12) for projecting the beam (16), the orientation of which controls the flight path of the missile (18). The missile (18) includes a circuit for generating a signal when the missile (18) is in a predetermined spatial relationship (e.g., the center coded portion) with respect to said beam (16). When such signal is generated, the angular position of the missile with respect to the target is determined. This positioned relationship is then provided to ground based circuitry (56, 58 and 60) which forms a part of apparatus (10) and which adjusts the orientation of the beam (16) to reduce the angular separation of missile and target.
Claims17
A guidance apparatus for guiding a missile along a flight path to a target by a beam comprising:
- means for projecting said beam, said flight path of said missile being determined by the orientation of said beam;
- means for generating a signal when said missile is in a predetermined spatial relationship with respect to said beam;
- and
- means for adjusting the orientation of said beam in response to said signal.
A guidance apparatus for guiding a missile to a target by a spatially encoded beam comprising:
- projection means for projecting said spatially encoded beam;
- means for receiving said spatially encoded beam disposed on said missile;
- means for producing a beacon signal when said missile is within a predetermined spatial relationship with respect to said spatially encoded beam;
- means for determining the position of said missile relative to said target;
- and
- means for generating a control signal determined by said relative position, said control signal operable to cause said projection means to adjust the orientation of said beam.
A method for guiding a missile along a flight path to a target comprising the steps of:
- projecting a spatially encoded beam from a projector in the direction of said target, said flight path of said missile being determined by the orientation of said spatially encoded beam;
- receiving said spatially encoded beam by said missile;
- generating a beacon signal when said missile is within a predetermined spatial relationship with respect to said spatially encoded beam;
- receiving said beacon signal to allow the position of said missile with respect to said target to be determined;
- and
- adjusting the orientation of said spatially encoded beam in response to the position of said missile with respect to said target.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.