TURRET SYSTEM FOR LIGHTWEIGHT MILITARY VEHICLE

TOURELLES POUR VEHICULES MILITAIRES LEGERS

English Abstract

TURRET SYSTEM FOR LIGHTWEIGHT
MILITARY VEHICLE


ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE


A lightweight military vehicle is provided
with an unmanned turret for interchangeably supporting
large weapon stations. Elastomers filled stanchions
connected to a turret platform serve to isolate weapon
impulse forces from the vehicle frame. Driver,
commander and gunner seats are located externally to the
turret and provided with side doors to enable quick
exiting. Both powered and manual backup drives are
external to the rotating turret disk and are accessible
from the gunner's seat. The elevation drive employs a
ball and socket joint connecting an upper yoke mounted
to the weapon with a fixed lower portion controlling
vertical movement of the yoke and thereby the elevation
of the gun.

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:




1. In a vehicle having a frame, the improvement
comprising:
a platform, a weapon mounted to the platform,
and a plurality of vertically extending stanchions connected
at their upper ends to the platform and at their lower ends
to the vehicle frame, with the stanchions including an outer
casing, and an energy absorbing material filling the outer
casing and being of different material than the outer casing
material whereby said stanchions flex during firing of the
weapon to thereby minimize the transfer of weapon impulse
forces to the vehicle frame.
2. The improvement of claim 1 wherein each
of said stanchions comprises:
a metallic outer casing and an interior hollow
tube, and energy absorbing elastomeric material filling the
space between the tube and inner walls of the casing.
3. The improvement of claim 1 wherein said
vehicle frame includes a pair of side rails running parallel
to the length of the vehicle, and wherein said weapon is
about centrally located with respect to the stanchions so
that the impulse force created thereby is distributed to
the stanchions.
4. In a vehicle for carrying a weapon, the
improvement comprising:
a platform for supporting the weapon and being
capable of moving relative to the vehicle, a plurality of


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stanchions connected at their one ends to the platform and
at their opposite ends to the vehicle, with the stanchions
including an outer casing and an energy absorbing material
filling the outer casing, and being of different material
than the outer casing whereby said stanchions flex during
firing of the weapon to thereby minimize the transfer of
weapon impulse forces to the vehicle.
5. The improvement of claim 4 wherein each
of said stanchions comprises:
a metallic outer casing and an interior hollow
tube, and energy absorbing elastomeric material filling the
space between the tube and inner wells of the casing.
6. The improvement of claim 4 wherein said
vehicle is a land vehicle including a frame having a pair
of side rails running parallel to the length of the vehicle,
and wherein said stanchions are substantially equally spaced
about the weapon so that the impulse force created thereby
is substantially equally distributed to the stanchions.
7. The improvement of claim 6 wherein said
vehicle is a lightweight military land vehicle and wherein
said weapon is a large weapon.
8. The improvement of claim 7 wherein said
vehicle includes a roof portion with an opening therein,
with the platform being located underneath the roof opening,
said weapon being mounted on a disk adapted for rotation
on the platform, and said vehicle further including azimuth
drive means for rotating the disk and elevation drive means
for controlling elevation of the weapon.
9. The improvement of claim 8 which further
includes power control means including at least one motor



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for activating the elevation and azimuth drive means; and
manual control means for manually actuating the elevation
and azimuth drive means as a back-up to the power control
means.
10. The improvement of claim 9 wherein said
elevation drive means includes:
a first elongated member centrally disposed
about the axis of rotation of the disk, a second member coupled
to the weapon, and means defining a rotating coupling between
the first and second members constructed so that vertical
movement of the first member controls elevation of the weapon,
with said second member being capable of rotating with the
weapon during azimuth positioning thereof.
11. The improvement of claim 10 wherein said
first member comprises a rack, and said elevation drive means
including a pinion for engaging the rack, with the power
control means including a motor for imparting rotational
movement to the pinion thereby controlling vertical movement
of the rack, and wherein said manual control means includes
means for manually rotating the pinion.
12. The improvement of claim 8 wherein said
azimuth drive means includes:
a ring gear mounted to the periphery of the
disk and having radially outwardly extending teeth, a second
pinion mounted on the platform and engaging said ring gear,
with said power control means including a motor for imparting
rotational movement to the pinion and wherein said manual
control means includes means for manually rotating said second
pinion.








13. The improvement of claim 12 wherein said
vehicle includes a plurality of forward looking seats, one
of the seats being a gunner's seat, both of said manual and
power control means being accessible from the gunner's seat,
and wherein said vehicle further includes exterior side doors
adjacent each seat.
14. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the
vehicle includes weather seal means between said disk and
said roof bridging said ring gear.
15. The improvement of claim 14 wherein said
weather seal means includes a resilient portion contacting
the roof whereby friction energy created by relative motion
between the platform and roof serves to absorb a portion
of the weapon energy during firing and isolates the vehicle
roof from weapon impulse forces.
16. The improvement of claim 12 wherein said
ring gear is part of a bearing device mounted on said platform,
and wherein said disk is removably attached to said bearing
device whereby to permit disks with different weapons mounted
thereon to be used with the vehicle.
17. In a lightweight military vehicle, an
improved turret system adapted for use with large weapons,
said turret system comprising:
a platform;
a plurality of vertically extending stanchions
connected at their upper ends to the platform and at their
lower ends to side rails of the vehicle frame each of said
stanchions including an outer casing and an energy absorbing
material filling the outer casing, and being of a different
material than the outer casing;



16


a disk mounted for rotation about a vertical
axis on said platform;
mounting means connected to the disk for receiving
a large weapon and being adapted to pivot the weapon in elevation
about a pair of horizontally disposed trunnions;
elevation drive means vertically extending
upwardly from central interior portions of the vehicle for
controlling elevation of the weapon, said drive means having
a lower fixed actuator portion rotatably coupled to an upper
portion, said upper portion being connected to the weapon
mounting means offset from the trunnions whereby vertical
motion thereof controls elevation of the weapon, with said
upper portion being capable of rotating with the weapon during
azimuth positioning thereof;
a plurality of forward looking seats within
the interior of the vehicle, one seat being for a gunner;
power drive control means accessible from the
gunner's seat for activating the elevation drive means and
for rotating the disk to move the weapon in elevation and
azimuth, respectively; and
manual control means accessible from the gunner's
seat for manually actuating the elevation drive means and
for rotating the disk as a backup to the power drive control
means.
18. The vehicle of claim 17 wherein said stanchions
absorb impulse forces generated during firing of the weapon.
19. The vehicle of claim 17 wherein said elevation
drive means includes:
an upper yoke member connected by a way of
ball and socket joint to a shaft, upper ends of the yoke
17





being connected to the weapon mounting means and lower portions
of the shaft being engaged with a gearing arrangement for
controlling vertical movement thereof.
20. The vehicle of claim 19 wherein said gearing
arrangement includes a rack connected to the shaft, and a
pinion driven by a motor activated by the power drive control
means or alternatively by the manual control means.
21. The vehicle of claim 17 which further
includes exterior side doors adjacent each seat.
22. The vehicle of claim 17 which further
includes:
bearing means having a ring gear with teeth;
means for removably mounting said disk to the
ring gear; and
a pinion engaging said gear ring for rotating
the disk and moving the weapon in azimuth.
23. The vehicle of claim 22 wherein the vehicle
includes a roof spaced from said platform and including an
opening in which said disk is located, and weather seal means
between upper portions of said disk and said roof bridging
said ring gear.
24. The vehicle of claim 23 wherein said weather
seal means includes a resilient portion contacting the roof
whereby friction energy created by relative motion between
the platform and roof serves to absorb a portion of the weapon
energy during firing and isolates the vehicle roof from weapon
impulse forces.
25. The vehicle of claim 22 wherein said pinion
is rotatable either by a motor actuated by the power drive
control means or by said manual control means.



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26. The vehicle of claim 17 which further
includes:
a camera mounted coccal with the weapon
adapted to be used as a sighting device, and a video display
connected to the camera and located in view of the gunner.
27. A military vehicle having an unmanned
turret system, said vehicle comprising:
a platform;
a plurality of stanchions connected at one
end to the platform and at an opposite end to fixed portions
of the vehicle;
a disk mounted for rotation on the platform
about an axis extending generally normal to the plane of
the platform;
mounting means connected to the disk for receiving
a weapon, with said weapon being adapted to pivot in elevation
about a pair of trunnions disposed in a plane generally parallel
to the plane of the disk;
elevation drive means for controlling elevation
of the weapon, said means including first and second portions
rotatable coupled together at their inner ends, said first
portion being located within the vehicle and centrally disposed
about the axis of rotation of the disk, with the opposite
end of said second portion being coupled to the weapon, and
means for imparting axial movement to said first portion
whereby said movement controls elevation of said weapon,
with the second portion being capable of notating with the
weapon during azimuth positioning thereof;
at least one seat in the vehicle for a runner,
said seat being spaced from said disk and being mounted to



19





the vehicle so that it is free from rotation with the disk;
azimuth drive means for rotating the disk to
control azimuth positioning of the weapon;
control means accessible from the gunner's
seat and coupled to the elevation and azimuth drive means
for positioning and firing the weapon; and
said stanchions including an outer casing and
an energy absorbing material filling the outer casing, and
being of different material than the outer casing whereby
said stanchions absorb impulse forces generated during firing
of the weapon to thereby minimize the transfer of the forces
to the vehicle.
28. The vehicle of claim 27 wherein said elevation
drive means includes:
an upper yoke member comprising said second
portion connected by way of a ball and socket joint to a
shaft which comprises said first portion, upper ends of the
yoke being connected to the weapon mounting means and lower
portions of the shaft being engaged with a gearing arrangement
for controlling vertical movement thereof.
29. The vehicle of claim 28 wherein said gearing
arrangement includes a rack connected to the shaft, a pinion
engaging the rack, and means, including the control means,
for selectively rotating said pinion.
30. The vehicle of claim 28 which further
includes exterior side doors adjacent each seat.
31. The vehicle of claim 29 wherein said azimuth
drive means includes:
bearing means having a ring gear with teeth;









means for removably mounting said disk to the
ring gear; and
a second pinion engaging said gear ring for
rotating the disk and moving the weapon in azimuth.
32. The vehicle of claim 31 wherein the vehicle
includes a roof spaced from said platform and including an
opening in which said disk is located, and weather seal means
between upper portions of said disk and said roof bridging
said ring gear.
33. The vehicle of claim 32 wherein said weather
seal means includes a resilient portion contacting the roof
whereby friction energy created by relative motion between
the platform and roof serves to absorb a portion of the weapon
energy during firing and isolates the vehicle roof from weapon
impulse forces.
34. The vehicle of claim 31 wherein said pinions
of the elevation and azimuth drive means are rotatable either
by a motor actuated by power drive control means or manually
by a manual control means.
35. A military vehicle comprising:
a platform connected to the vehicle;
a plurality of stanchions connecting said platform
to the vehicle, each of said stanchions including an outer
casing and an energy absorbing material filling the casing,
and being of different material than the casing whereby said
stanchions flex during firing of the weapon to thereby minimize
the transfer of weapon impulse forces to the vehicle;
a disk rotatable mounted on the platform;
a weapon mounted on the disk and capable of
pivoting in elevation;


21






azimuth drive means for rotating the disk thereby
positioning the weapon in azimuth;
elevation drive means for controlling elevation
of the weapon;
a seat for a gunner within the interior of
the vehicle;
power control means accessible from the gunner's
seat and including at least one motor for activating the
elevation and azimuth drive means; and manual control means
accessible from the gunner's seat for manually actuating
the elevation and azimuth drive means as a back-up to the
power control means.
36. The vehicle of claim 35 wherein said elevation
drive means includes:
a first elongated member centrally located
about the axis of rotation of said disk, a second member
coupled at the weapon, and means defining a rotating coupling
between the first and second members constructed so that
vertical movement of the first member controls elevation
of the weapon, with said second member being capable of rotating
with the weapon during azimuth positioning thereof.
37. The vehicle of claim 36 wherein said first
member comprises a rack, the elevation drive means includes
a pinion for engaging the rack, with the power control means
including a motor for imparting rotational movement to the
pinion thereby controlling vertical movement of the rack,
and wherein said manual control means includes means for
manually rotating the pinion.
38. The vehicle of claim 36 wherein said azimuth
drive means includes:



22






a ring gear mounted to the periphery of the
disk and having radially outwardly extending teeth, a second
pinion mounted on the platform and engaging said ring gear,
with said power control means including a motor for imparting
rotational movement to the second pinion and wherein said
manual control means includes means for manually rotating
said second pinion.
39. The vehicle of claim 38, wherein:
said power control means includes a joy stick
controller adapted to selectively activate the moors for
imparting rotation to the pinions of the elevation and azimuth
drive means to thereby automatically control the position
of the weapon; and
said manual control means includes a first
wheel coupled to the pinion of the elevation drive means,
with the first wheel being capable of being manually rotated
by the gunner from his seat to thereby manually position
the weapon in elevation, and said manual control means further
including a second wheel coupled to the second pinion of
the azimuth drive means, with the second wheel beng capable
of being manually rotated by the gunner from his seat to
thereby manually position the weapon in azimuth.
40. The vehicle of claim 39 wherein said vehicle
is a land vehicle having a plurality of forward looking seats,
one of the seats being said gunner's seat, and wherein said
vehicle further includes exterior side doors adjacent each
seat.
41. The vehicle of claim 40 wherein the vehicle
includes a roof portion having an opening therein, said platform




23






being located within said opening and spaced from said roof,
with the vehicle further including weather seal means between
said disk and said roof bridging said ring gear.
42. The vehicle of claim 41 wherein said weather
seal means includes a resilient portion contacting the roof
whereby friction energy created by relative motion between
the platform and roof serves to absorb a portion of the weapon
energy during firing and isolates the vehicle roof from weapon
impulse forces.
43. The vehicle of claim 40 wherein each of
said stanchions comprises:
a metallic outer casing and an interior hollow
tube, and energy absorbing elastomeric material filling the
space between the tube and inner walls of the casing.
44. The vehicle of claim 43 which includes
a frame having a pair of side rails running parallel to the
length of the vehicle, and wherein said stanchions are connected
between the platform and the side rails substantially equally
spaced about the weapon.
The vehicle of claim 38 wherein said ring
gear is part of a bearing device mounted on said platform
and wherein said disk is removably attached to said bearing
device whereby to permit disks with different weapons mounted
thereon to be used with the vehicle.




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Description

AGO - 1 -




TURRET SYSTEM FOR LIGHTWEIGHT
MILITARY VEHICLE


Description
Technical Field
This invention relates to ordinances and, more
particularly, to weapon turret systems for a military
vehicle.



Background Art
It is highly desirable to be able to employ a
basic vehicle design that can be adapted to be used in
various configurations for different military purposes.
Examples of such desirable configurations include
vehicles for transporting cargo or personnel,
ambulances, command vehicles and as a weapons carrier.
In order to provide this versatility where speed is
important in most configurations and to facilitate
transport by airlifts and the like, the basic vehicle
must normally be relatively light.
When used as a weapons carrier these
lightweight vehicles have generally been restricted in
the size of the weapon that it can support. It has been
conventional to mount manually operated machine guns on

a ring connected to the roof of the vehicle. The gunner


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AMIGO - 2 -




is required to stand up in the vehicle with his upper
torso exposed while aiming and firing the weapon. These
types of weapon mounts have several drawbacks. One is
that they expose the gunner to enemy fire, toxic gases,
radiation and the like. The other is that only rota-
lively small caliber weapons could be used with
reasonable success. This is because the impulse forces
generated by many larger caliber weapons enlarger
than .50 caliber) create such impulses that damage to
commonly used lightweight vehicles could occur
It has been normal practice to use heavier
vehicles such as tanks, half-tracks or the like to
support medium to large caliber weapons. Typically, the
tanks include a turret having a protected personnel
compartment which carries the gunner and is rotated with
the turret. This approach keeps the gunner shielded but
adds substantial weight and increased silhouette to the
vehicle. Consequently, these heavier vehicles
sacrifice mobility and transportability in order to
protect the gunner and support the weapon. Add-
tonally, many of the known tank configurations are
characterized by cramped quarters which are us-
comfortable and hard to quickly exit in emergency situp-
lions. Many tanks include hatches in the hull roof




structure thereby requiring that the turret be indexed to
a position that will allow the hull hatch to open to allow
exiting by the crew.
Power drives are normally used for controlling
the elevation and azimuth of the weapon. The power drives
are often located in the turret thereby requiring slip rings
or the like to transfer power from a fixed external electrical
or hydraulic source to the drive motors. These slip rings
are subject to corrosion and general deterioration thereby
posing a threat of drive failure. It would be advantageous
to provide manual backup systems that can maneuver the weapon
in the event of power failure. The inclusion of manual backup
drives has been difficult to obtain in an efficient manner
with some of the turret constructions used in the past.
The present invention resides in a vehicle
having a frame, and it includes a platform with a weapon
mounted to the platform with a plurality of vertically extending
stanchions connected at their upper ends to the platform
and at their lower ends to the vehicle frame. The stanchions
include an outer casing and an energy absorbing material
filling the outer casing and being of different material
than the outer casing material so that the stanchions flex
during firing of the weapon to thereby minimize the transfer
of weapon impulse forces to the vehicle frame.
In a specific embodiment of the invention,
the stanchions have a metallic outer casing with an interior
hollow tube. An energy absorbing elastomeric material fills
the space between the tube and the inner walls of the casing.
In the illustrated embodiment, the crew sits




mob/


in chassis/hull mounted seats, one of the seats being reserved
for a gunner. The crew is thus provided with comfortable
quarters and are preferably provided with exterior side doors
adjacent each seat for quick exit if required. Both powered
and manual backup drives are provided for moving the weapon
in elevation and azimuth. The elevation drive includes a
stationarily mounted lower portion having a manually actable
member accessible by the gunner from his seat. The upper
portion of the elevation drive is rotatable coupled to the
lower portion so that the upper portion may rotate with the
turret during azimuth positioning and yet still provide elevation
control.
Among the advantages of the turret construction
of this invention is that the crew members are located comfortably
within the protected interior of the vehicle. Since the
gunner does not ride in the turret, the turret construction
is simplified, of minimal silhouette and comparatively light-
weight. As will appear, the construction of the present
invention




I

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AMIGO - 5 -



enables various weapons and/or weapon stations to be
interchangeably used in an easy manner. All of these
advantages and more are provided while employing a basic
lightweight vehicle design that can be used in a variety
of other configurations as desired.



Brief Description of the Drawings
_
These and other advantages of the present
invention will become apparent to those skilled in the
art after reading the following specification and by
reference to the drawings in which:
FIGURE 1 is a side view of a military vehicle
incorporating the teachings of the preferred embodiment
of this invention;
FIGURE 2 is a top view thereof;
FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 of the
vehicle showing the gun in various orientations;
FIGURE is a rear view thereof;
FIGURE 5 is a perspective view with parts cut
away of the turret construction preferably employed;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view diagrammatically
illustrating flexor of the turret stanchions during
firing of the weapon;
FIGURE 7 is a cross sectional view along the

lines 7-7 of FIGURE 6; and


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FIGURE 8 is a cross sectional view
illustrating in detail the turret bearing and sealing
arrangements.



Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Referring now to the drawings, the present
invention employs a turret system 10 that may be used in
connection with a lightweight vehicle 12. Vehicle 12 is
designed to meet requirements for a high mobility,
multi-purpose wheeled vehicle. For purposes of this
lo invention a lightweight vehicle means a wheeled vehicle
having a gross vehicle weight of less than 10,000 pounds
including payload. These drawings illustrate the
"Hummer" vehicle manufactured by the assignee ox the
present invention, although other lightweight vehicles
can be employed. Such lightweight vehicles are capable
of being used in various configurations. One configure-
lion is as a weapon carrier. The present invention is
drawn to this configuration. More particularly, it is
directed to a turret construction capable of supporting
large weapons such as gun I which is a 25 millimeter
M2~2 chain guru. Large weapons will be defined for
purposes of this invention as weapons characterized by
impulse forces (recoil force x duration) of at least
about 50 pounds-seconds during firing Generally,


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AMIGO 7 -




weapons of this type are of the variety greater than .50
caliber. By way of illustration the M242 chain gun 14
exhibits an impulse force of about 60 pounds-seconds.
The exterior of vehicle 12 is provided with
armor for protecting the crew seated in the interior of
the vehicle. As can be seen most clearly in FIGURE 2, a
plurality of forward mounted, forward looking seats 16,
18 and 20 are provided in the interior of the vehicle
12. Seat 16 is for the driver, seat 18 for the
commander and seat 20 for the gunner. Each member of
the crew is provided with his own access door
immediately adjacent to his respective seat. In this
example there are four doors 22 - 28.
- The crew's seating arrangement of this
invention provides comfort and safety for the personnel.
The crew members are seated in normal passenger car
fashion with 360 degree visibility through windows
surrounding the crew seating area. The gunner's seat is
located outside of the turret 10 in a comfortable
vehicle seat from which he can perform the gunner
functions while seated and protected.
Turn now to the construction of turret 10
which is best illustrated in FIGURE 5. A platform 30
having a generally rectangular periphery extends


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AGO - 8 -



horizontally above the crew near the top of the vehicle
12. A plurality of vertically extending stanchions 32 -
38 are employed to support the platform 30. Upper ends
of stanchions 32, 38 are connected to lower portions of
platform 30 and their lower ends are bolted to side
rails 40 and 42 which are part of the vehicle frame. As
can be seen most clearly in FIGURES 6 and 7, each
stanchion includes a rectangular extruded aluminum
casing 44 and an inner hollow aluminum tube 46. The
space between outer casing 44 and tube 46 is filled with
an energy absorbing elastomeric material 48. In the
preferred embodiment elastomeric material 48 is a polyp
sulfide available from em Corporation as HO 801, which
may be suitably mixed and poured within the space be-

tweet casing 44 and tube 46 and allowed to cure. Suit-
able other energy absorbing materials such as sand may
be used.
Gun 14 is located centrally to the stanchions
32 - 38 so that the horizontal component of the gun
impulse force is distributed amongst the stanchions. As
shown in FIGURE 6, the stanchions are designed to flex
or deflect in response to the forces during firing of
the gun and thereby isolate the vehicle frame from
damage to a great extent. The elastomeric material 48
in each stanchion serves to absorb energy created by the


AMIGO - 9 -




weapon and prevents much of it from being transferred
directly to the vehicle frame.
The platform 30 is free to move in the
horizontal direction independently of the roof 50. As
best shown in FIGURES 8, there is a gap between roof 50
and platform 30. Weather seal 52 includes a resilient
lip portion 53 riding on roof 50 that provides a Eric-
lion joint with the roof or vehicle superstructure.
Gun 14 is mounted in a cradle 60 which is
pivot able about a pair of trunnions 62. Ammunitions
fed to the gun I by way of dual ammunition feeds 63 and
65. The cradle 60 includes a rearwardly reasonably ox-
tending portion connected to vertically extending
struts of a yoke 64 through bearings 67 and 69. The
lower portion of yoke 64 is pivotal connected to a
shaft 66 by way of a ball and socket joint 68. Elena-
lion of gun 14 is controlled by the vertical movement of
shaft 66 likewise causing potion in the vertical direct
lion of yoke 64 thereby pivoting the gun about its
grunions 62. Power drive is provided via motor 70 con-
trolling rotation of pinion 72 in engagement with rack
74~
Azimuth control of gun 14 is provided by way
of a rotating disk 76 to which cradle 60 is connected by



AMIGO - 10 -

way of trunnion mounts 71 and 73. As shown most clearly
in FIGURE 8, disk 76 is located within an opening in
roof 50 and is bolted to a ring gear 78 which is incur-
prorated in the outer race of the turret bearing whose
inner race 75 is bolted to platform 30. Ring gear 78
includes radially extending teeth on its outer
periphery. The teeth of gear 78 are meshed with a
pinion 80 (FIGURE 5) whose rotation is controlled by
drive motor 82. In addition to its energy absorbing
function, weather seal 52 bridges the gearing arrange-
mint protecting it from adverse environmental conditions
and also serving as a ballistic shield.
Added stability for the elevation drive is
provided by way of a basket 77, Basket 77 includes a
plurality of struts whose upper ends are connected to
the lower portions of platform 30 and whose lower ends
are connected to a bearing guide 79 surrounding shaft
66.
As noted before, the gunner sits externally of
the turret 10 in a comfortable and protected position
within the vehicle The gunner is provided with a
suitable joy stick-type controller 88 for activating
elevation motor 70 and azimuth motor 82 to aim the gun.
A video camera 90 coccal mounted to gun I is ad van-
tageously employed as a sighting device. An auxiliary


AMIGO - 11 -




laser beam sight 91 may also be employed. Camera 90 is
connected to display 92 for viewing by the gunner.
Other crew members such as the commander may also be
provided with their own display and controller 94 and
96, respectively, so that they can also operate the
weapon system, if desired.
The turret system of the present invention
also preferably includes manual backup drives to control
the gun in the event of power failure. To this end, a
lo wheel go is connected by way of a clutching arrangement
to drive pinion 72 in the event of power loss. Audi
tonally, a wheel 100 suitably connected to pinion 80
via a belt or chain is employed for effecting azimuth
movement of the gun.
Among the advantages of the present invention
is that various weapon stations can be interchangeably
used with this construction. Each weapon station would
include a particular type of weapon mounted on its own
disk in a manner like that described above. Each weapon
station can be easily removed from the vehicle by us-
bolting the disk 76, disconnecting yoke 64, and disco-
netting the cables coupling camera 90 to the video
displays and controllers 92, 96 to the weapon firing
mechanisms (not shown). The weapon station can then be


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AMIGO - 12 -



lifted from the vehicle and a new weapon station with a
similar mounting scheme reattached. The video displays,
gunner controls, manual and power drives all remain
fixed and are common to all weapon variants. This
system is ideally suited, but not limited to weapons
such as a 30 mm chain gun, Tow family of missiles 40 mm
grenade launcher, .50 caliber machine guns, 7 62 mm
machine guns and other high velocity guns including the
illustrated 25 mm chain gun.
The unmanned turret system of this invention
extends the capability of lightweight conventional
vehicles to support high impulse weapons. This allows
the light vehicle to employ high impulse cannons
designed to deliver ammunition at extended ranges.
Various other advantages and modifications of
the illustrated embodiment of this invention will become
apparent to those skilled in the art after a study of
the drawings, specification and following claims.