Homing process
OwnerManfred Kustersinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention describes a target approach procedure for a guided, mobile missile for use against ground targets, particularly bridges, roads, rail junctions, hangars, shelters, command posts, harbor installations as well as ships, in which the missile is released at a great distance from the target and flies automatically to the target, with guidance by parallel lines that characterize ground structures, and hits it from the most favorable approach direction.
Claims19
A target approach procedure for a guided missile having a search head, guidance electronics and a warhead and which is launched by a carrier flight device at a great distance from a target and approaches the target in a guided manner, wherein the missile is guided from a launch site over earth to the target on a trajectory characterized by the following flight phases (A, B, C, D):
- a) in a first flight phase (A) after launch of the missile a passive search head of the missile searches the earth in a given flight direction for a ground structure having sections of approximately parallel running lines, stores in said guidance electronics characteristics of such a ground structure and automatically compares those characteristics in the guidance electronics with stored terrain characteristics and determines from this the position of the missile relative to such a ground structure;
- b) in a second flight phase (B) the missile automatically follows a selected ground structure leading to the target, characterized by segments of about parallel lines, up to a point of the flight trajectory (A, B, C, D) where the target can just be acquired;
- c) in a third flight phase (C) the missile, after acquisition of the target by the search head, changes from an approximately horizontal flight position of the second flight phase (B) to a trajectory about 30.degree. deviating from the horizontal and directed toward an optimal impact point in the target, which is continued in a straight line (D) until target impact;
- and
- d) after reaching a straight-line flight phase (D), the warhead is accelerated by means of its own engine.
Method of determining the trajectory of a launched missile toward a target comprising:
- seeking and finding via a launched missile itself a ground structure having approximately parallel lines running toward said target, and
- causing said missile to follow those lines toward said target.
Method of determining the trajectory of a launched missile toward a target comprising:
- searching the terrain by said launched missile for a ground structure continuously having approximately parallel running lines running toward said target,
- comparing in said missile characteristics of searched terrain with previously stored terrain characteristics to cause the missile to follow the approximately parallel lines of a selected ground structure toward said target in a generally horizontal flight path until said missile acquires said target, and then
- changing the flight path of the missile to head downward toward said target while following the parallel lines of said selected ground structure.
In a missile, apparatus for determining the trajectory of a launched missile toward a target, comprising:
- means for seeking and finding a given ground structure having approximately parallel lines running toward said target, and
- means for causing said missile to follow those lines toward said target.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.