Inertial restraint mechanism for rail-mounted missiles

Abstract

An inertial restraint mechanism restrains a rail mounted missile against forward movement along a missile launch rail in response to a deceleration force. The restraint mechanism comprises a mass the movement of which is opposed by a spring force. When the mass overcomes the spring force due to a deceleration force in excess of a threshold magnitude, a locking mechanism is activated to a missile restraining position, thereby restraining the missile against forward movement. The restraint mechanism is locked in the missile restraining position to prevent release of a missile in response to multiple deceleration forces experienced by the missile and launch rail. Additionally, a detent may be provided which prevents actuation of the restraint mechanism to the missile restraining position unless the missile is stored in a storage compartment.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.