Apparatus and method for dispensing payloads

A chaff dispenser comprising:

• a wrapper,
• a bundle of chaff enclosed within the wrapper;
• said chaff bundle being substantially toroidal in shape and having an axially oriented passage,
• tubular means positioned in said passage in substantially coaxial relation therewith;
• said tubular means containing an ignitable fluid-generating material;
• said ignitable fluid-generating material including a combustible material and an oxidizer, the combustible material and the oxidizer having characteristics to produce, upon combustion, fluids radially expansible at a temperature above the temperature for oxidizing the chaff in the bundle;
• and
• means in said tubular means for cooling the temperature of the expansible fluids produced by the combustion to provide a temperature of the expansible fluids at the chaff bundle lower than the temperature for oxidizing the chaff in the bundle, the expansible fluids being operative to expel the chaff radially from the wrapper;
• and
• means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff during the expulsion of the chaff from the wrapper.

A chaff dispenser comprising:

• a selectively activated source of fluids under pressure;
• a wrapper,
• a bundle of chaff enclosed within the wrapper and disposed in at least partially enveloping juxtaposed relation with said source, said wrapper having openings for channeling said fluids under pressure through said bundle to obtain an expulsion of said chaff out of said wrapper;
• said chaff bundle having an axially oriented passage and said source of fluid under pressure comprising a tubular member which is positioned in said passage in substantially coaxial relation therewith;
• said tubular member comprising two concentric burstable tubes, said source including a combustible material which is disposed in the inner tube and which combusts to generate fluids and said source also including a hydrate which is disposed in the outer tube for cooling said generated fluids and for generating additional cooled fluids, and
• means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff during the expulsion of the chaff from the wrapper.

A method of dispensing chaff comprising a plurality of dipole elements disposed in a bundle, comprising the steps of:

• providing a source of fluids under pressure, the source including chemicals for reacting upon the activation of the source to produce the fluid pressure;
• disposing said bundle within a wrapper;
• positioning said bundle of dipole elements in at least partially enveloping relation with said source;
• activating said source to obtain the chemical reaction for producing the fluids under pressure to blow said dipole elements radially out of said wrapper;
• maintaining the temperature of the fluids under pressure on the bundle of dipole elements after the chemical reaction at a temperature below the temperature for oxidizing the dipole elements, and
• preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the dipole elements during the expulsion of the dipole elements from the wrapper.

A dispenser for a payload, comprising:

• a plurality of axially aligned, spaced apart disks disposed in a generally cylindrical array;
• a plurality of elongated columns, each such column operatively coupled to the disks and extending the length of said array and having a plurality of grooves for attachment to said disks for structural support thereof;
• each pair of adjacent disks forming the axial walls of a payload section receiving a payload to be dispensed therefrom;
• each said disk having an aperture, the apertures of the respective disks being substantially aligned with one another to form a continuous passageway extending the length of said array;
• and
• a selectively activated source of fluids, the source being positioned in said passageway for emitting said payload out of said payload sections.

In combination,

• a burstable, membrane-enclosed chamber containing a first burstable tube and a second burstable tube enclosing the first tube;
• and
• a mixture of a combustible material and an oxidizer within said first burstable tube for generating expansible fluids upon the combustion of the mixture and for bursting the first burstable tube upon such combustion;
• and
• an endothermic material within said second burstable tube for cooling the expansible fluids;
• chaff particles enclosing said second burstable tube for dissemination upon the combustion of the mixture within the first burstable tube and the bursting of the first and second burstable tubes;
• the chaff particles being disposed in a bundle for expulsion from the bundle upon the combustion of the mixture;
• a wrapper holding the bundle of chaff particles;
• and
• means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff particles during the expulsion of the chaff particles from the wrapper.

In combination,

• a burstable membrane-enclosed chamber defined by a first tube and a second tube enclosing the first tube;
• a pyrotechnic mixture as a heat source within the first tube;
• a hydrated salt as a coolant and water source within the second tube;
• the first tube being constructed to burst upon the generation of fluids at elevated temperatures from the combustion of the pyrotechnic mixture and the second tube being constructed to burst upon the passage of the combusted fluids into the second tube;
• chaff disposed in the path of the fluids after the second tube has burst;
• a wrapper holding the chaff;
• means for providing for the expulsion of the chaff from the wrapper upon the generation of the fluids;
• and
• means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff during the expulsion of the chaff from the wrapper.

A method of dispensing chaff, comprising the steps of:

• a) providing a combustible material;
• b) providing an oxidizer for oxidizing said material to produce resultant fluids;
• c) providing an endothermic compound for cooling the resultant fluids;
• d) arranging said combustible material, said oxidizer and said endothermic compound for a combustion of the combustible material by the oxidizer to produce combusted fluids and a subsequent cooling of the fluids by the endothermic compound;
• e) introducing the cooled combusted fluids to chaff to disseminate the chaff without oxidizing the chaff,
• f) disposing the chaff within a wrapper having properties of providing for the dissemination of the chaff from the wrapper;
• and
• g) preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff during the dissemination of the chaff from the wrapper.

A chaff dispenser comprising:

• a selectively activated source of pressurized fluid;
• a plurality of compartments disposed in communication with said source for holding the chaff;
• at least two of said compartments respectively having disposed therein chaff having different characteristics;
• dye chemicals of respectively different colors associated with individual ones of said two compartments for visually distinguishing the dispensed chaff from such individual ones of the compartments;
• and
• means for activating said source for dispensing said chaff and said dye chemicals from said compartments while preventing chemical destruction of said chaff and said dye chemicals.

In combination,

• first means defining at least one bundle having a central opening,
• a plurality of chaff particles disposed in the bundle, each of the chaff particles having an electrically conductive surface to define a dipole,
• wrapper means for retaining the chaff particles in the bundle,
• second means including a combustible material disposed in the central opening in the bundle and constructed to provide a combustion of the combustible material and a generation of expansible fluids as a result of the combustion and including an endothermic material disposed relative to the expansible fluids for expelling the chaff particles radially from the bundle at a temperature inhibiting the oxidation of the electrically conductive surfaces of the chaff particles,
• the wrapper means slit to provide for the expulsion of the chaff particles from the bundle upon the generation of the expansible fluids, and
• third means for preventing the wrapper means from being expelled with the chaff particles during the expulsion of the chaff particles from the wrapper means.

In combination,

• first means defining a bundle,
• a plurality of chaff particles disposed in the bundle and constructed to define electrical dipoles and having electrically conductive external surfaces,
• the bundle having a central opening,
• second means disposed in the central opening of the bundle for initially reacting chemically on an exothermic basis to generate fluids expansible radially into the bundle from the central opening for expelling the chaff particles radially from the bundle,
• third means disposed in the central opening of the bundle for subsequently providing an endothermic reaction in response to the heat from the fluids to limit the fluids to a temperature below the temperature for oxidizing the electrically conductive external surfaces of the chaff particles,
• a wrapper,
• the chaff particles in the bundle being retained in the wrapper, and
• fourth means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff particles when the chaff particles are expelled radially from the bundle.

In combination,

• first means defining at least one bundle having a central opening,
• a wrapper disposed in the bundle,
• a plurality of chaff particles disposed in the wrapper, each of the chaff particles having an electrically conductive surface to define a dipole, the wrapper being constructed to prevent the expulsion of chaff particles from the wrapper,
• second means disposed in the opening in the bundle and including materials for reacting chemically to generate fluids expansible radially to expel the chaff particles radially from the bundle,
• the wrapper being slit prior to the generation of the expansible fluids to facilitate the expulsion of the chaff particles from the bundle, and
• third means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled during the expulsion of the chaff particles from the bundle.

In combination,

• first means defining at least one bundle having a central opening,
• a wrapper disposed in the bundle,
• a plurality of chaff particles disposed in the wrapper, each of the chaff particles having an electrically conductive surface to define a dipole,
• second means disposed relative to the opening in the bundle for initially reacting chemically to generate fluids expansible radially into the bundle to expel the chaff particles radially from the bundle and for subsequently maintaining the temperatures of the expansible fluids in the bundle, before the expansion of the expansible fluids into the bundle, at a temperature below the temperature at which the conductive surfaces of the chaff particles oxidize,
• the wrapper being slit to facilitate the expulsion of the chaff particles from the bundle upon the generation of the expansible fluids,
• third means associated with the second means for retaining the second means in the central opening in the bundle and for providing for the expansion of the fluids from the second means into the bundle upon the generation of the fluids,
• fourth means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff particles during the expulsion of the chaff particles radially from the bundle.

In combination,

• first means defining at least one bundle having a central opening,
• a plurality of chaff particles disposed in the bundle, each of the chaff particles having an electrically conductive surface to define a dipole,
• first chemical means disposed in the central opening in the bundle for initially reacting chemically to generate a controlled exothermic reaction, at a temperature above the temperature for oxidizing the conductive surfaces of the chaff particles, to produce fluids expansible into the bundle to expel the chaff particles from the bundle,
• second chemical means disposed in the central opening in the bundle for generating a controlled endothermic reaction to provide in the expansible fluids a temperature below the temperature for oxidizing the electrically conductive surfaces of the chaff particles,
• third chemical means disposed in the bundle for expulsion with the chaff particles and responsive to the heat from the expansible gases in the bundle for generating an individual color in the space occupied by the chaff particles outside of the bundle without increasing the temperature on the electrically conductive surfaces of the chaff particles to a temperature at which the electrically conductive surfaces of the chaff particles become oxidized,
• the first means including a wrapper holding the chaff particles, and
• means for preventing the wrapper from being expelled with the chaff particles during the expulsion of the chaff particles from the bundle.

In combination,

• means defining a dispenser structure,
• means including a plurality of discs and at least one column in the dispenser structure for dividing the dispenser structure into a plurality of sections,
• a plurality of wrapper means each disposed in the dispenser structure and configured in accordance with the configuration of an individual one of the sections,
• a projectile including the dispenser structure and means covering the dispenser structure means, the covering means being separable from the dispenser structure in an axial direction,
• a plurality of particles of chaff disposed in each individual one of the sections and confined by the wrapper means in such individual one of the sections for radial movement from such individual one of the sections,
• means disposed in the dispenser structure radially interior to the chaff particles and expansible radially for expelling the chaff particles from the sections,
• the wrapper means being slit to facilitate the expulsion of the chaff particles from the sections, and
• means for preventing the wrapper means from being expelled during the expulsion of the chaff particles from the sections.

In combination,

• a plurality of sectioning means disposed in a spaced relationship in a first direction,
• a plurality of supporting means extending in the first direction and spaced from one another in a second direction transverse to the first direction and operatively coupled to the sectioning means to define with the sectioning means a plurality of compartments spaced from one another in the first direction,
• a plurality of wrapper means each disposed in an individual one of the compartments and supported by one of the supporting means,
• pluralities of chaff particles, each of the pluralities of chaff particles being disposed in an individual one of the wrapper means,
• first means disposed in the compartments for producing fluids under pressure and for providing for the introduction of such fluids under pressure into the compartments to provide for the expulsion of the chaff particles from the wrapper means
• the wrapper means being slit before the production of the fluids under pressure to facilitate the expulsion of the chaff particles in the pluralities from the wrapper means, and
• second means for preventing each of the wrapper means from being expelled from each of the compartments during the expulsion of the chaff particles from said wrapper means.