Field gun tow
AssigneeBAE SYSTEMS plc
InventorDavid Andrew Eagleston
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A towed howitzer interchangeable between a travelling mode and a firing mode, the towed howitzer being suitable for deployment on a ground plane, the towed howitzer includes: a barrel for firing a projectile, the barrel defining a barrel axis, a cradle for holding the barrel at an azimuth and an elevation, a mechanism for varying the elevation and the azimuth of the barrel and a front leg for supporting an aiming mechanism. The front leg includes a wheel intended for contacting the ground at a foremost ground contact point; a suspension mechanism for resiliently mounting the wheel and a restraining mechanism for selectively enabling the suspension. The howitzer includes a back leg for contacting the ground at a backmost ground contact point. The back leg includes a hinging for swinging the back leg out of contact with the round.
Claims9
A towed howitzer, interchangeable between a travelling mode and a firing mode, the towed howitzer being suitable for deployment on a ground plane, the towed howitzer comprising:
- a barrel for firing a projectile, the barrel defining a barrel axis;
- a cradle for holding the barrel at an azimuth and an elevation;
- an aiming mechanism capable of varying the elevation and the azimuth of the barrel;
- a front leg, for supporting the aiming mechanism, comprising a wheel intended for contacting the ground at a foremost ground contact point and a sliding mechanism for extending and retracting the wheel along a longitudinal front leg axis;
- a suspension system for resiliently mounting the wheel
- a restraining mechanism for selectively enabling the suspension system;
- and
- a back leg for contacting the ground at a backmost ground contact point, the back leg comprising a hinging for swinging the back leg out of contact with the ground,
- wherein in the firing mode, the suspension system is locked and the back leg contacts the ground at the backmost contact point, and in the travelling mode, the back leg is lifted off the backmost contact point and the suspension system is applied.
A method of converting a towed howitzer from a travelling position to a firing position, the towed howitzer comprising:
- a barrel for firing a projectile, the barrel defining a barrel axis;
- a cradle for holding the barrel at an azimuth and an elevation;
- an aiming mechanism capable of varying the elevation and the azimuth of the barrel;
- a front leg for supporting the aiming mechanism comprising a wheel intended for contacting the ground at a foremost ground contact point and a sliding mechanism for extending and retracting the wheel along a longitudinal front leg axis;
- a suspension system for resiliently mounting the wheel;
- and a suspension restraining mechanism;
- a back leg for contacting the ground at a backmost ground contact point, the back leg comprising a hinging for swinging the back leg out of contact with the ground,
- wherein the method comprises the steps of:
- extending the wheel to the foremost ground contact point;
- swinging the back leg about the hinging so as to move the back leg from a resting position over the cradle to a position where the back leg contacts the ground at the backmost contact point;
- and
- applying the suspension restraining mechanism.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.