Revolving ammunition magazine

#The present invention relates to a revolving ammunition magazine, in particular for shells, where the magazine comprises an ammunition holder unit which is mounted in a frame in a revolving manner around a longitudinal centre axis.

#In connection with loading a shell-throwing weapon from the rear end of the barrel of the weapon, there is frequently a requirement for great storage capacity and thus compact design of the ammunition magazine when such weapons are mounted in mobile units in which the space is limited. Likewise, such shell magazines are to be capable of being coordinated with loading mechanisms for rear-loading of the weapon.

#For this purpose, the revolving ammunition magazine according to the invention referred to in the introduction is characterized in that the ammunition holder unit comprises a number of elongate, first ammunition holder elements which are distributed uniformly in relation to one another around the centre axis and designed and positioned so as to be capable of holding at least two shells lying essentially parallel to and at a different radial distance from the centre axis, and second ammunition holder elements designed and arranged so as to be capable of holding at least one shell essentially parallel to the centre axis and between the first ammunition holder elements at the same radial distance from the centre axis as the radially outer shells in the first holder elements. By virtue of such a construction of the magazine, a large number of shells can be stored in a very limited area, it being possible for shells in a radially inner storage location in the first ammunition holder elements to be transferred automatically to a radially outer ejection position by gravitational force acting on them during the revolving motion of the magazine, when a radially outer shell in the same holder element has previously been ejected.

#The invention is described in greater detail below with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

#FIG. 1 is an end view of an empty ammunition holder unit for a revolving ammunition magazine according to the invention;

#FIG. 2 is an end view similar to FIG. 1 of the holder unit filled with shells;

#In FIG. 1, 10 designates generally an ammunition holder unit for a revolving ammunition magazine for shells according to the invention. The holder unit 10 comprises five elongate shell holder elements 14 of fundamentally U-shaped cross section, which are distributed uniformly in the circumferential direction around a longitudinal centre axis 12 and which can each accommodate two shells G1 and G2 lying parallel to and at a different radial distance from the centre axis 12, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Mounted at the outer ends of the legs 14a, 14b of the holder elements are curved wing elements 16 and, respectively, 18, an arcuate flange part 16a of the wing element 16 being directed towards a corresponding arcuate flange part 18a of the curved wing element 18 on the end of the leg 14b, so that the flange parts 16a, 18a directed towards one another partly bridge the distance between the leg ends and delimit a space 20 so as to be capable of securing a radially outer shell G1 in the holder element 14, while a radially inner arcuate web portion 14c of the holder 14 delimits a space 22 for securing a radially inner shell G2. The curved wing elements 16, 18 also have an arcuate flange part 16b and, respectively, 18b, which flange parts are directed towards one another in such a manner that they delimit, between two adjacent holder elements 14 and in interaction with the outside of the legs 14a and 14b of two adjacent holder elements 14, a space 24 for accommodating a shell G3 (FIGS. 2 and 3) at the same radial distance from the centre axis 12 as the shells G1 in the spaces 20 of the holder elements 14. In this way, the ammunition unit 10 can accommodate ten shells G1 and G3 in a radially outer storage location and five shells G2 in a radially inner storage location.

#The wing elements 16, 18 can be arranged in a push-on manner on the outer end portion of the legs 14a, 14b by means of a dovetail-like connection 25.

#Mounted on the inside of the legs 14b is an essentially V-shaped plate spring element 26 which is arranged so as to yield and allow movement of a radially inner shell G2 in the space 22 to the radially outer space 20, when the latter has previously been emptied of its shell G1 and when the shell G2 is acted on by gravity during the revolving motion of the ammunition holder unit 10 and thus drops down into the space 20. The plate spring element 26 then springs back out and prevents the now outer shell from dropping back into the now empty, radially inner space 22.