FIELD

[0001] This invention relates to the field of firearms. More particularly, this invention relates to a tapered-bore firearm and a caseless ammunition cartridge therefor.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Traditionally, ammunition cartridges for small and medium caliber firearms have included a metallic case in which the propellant (gunpowder) is contained. When the ammunition is fired, the metallic case of the traditional cartridge is retained within the firing chamber until it is expelled during reloading. There has been significant effort in recent years to eliminate the metallic case from small and medium caliber firearms. The major advantages of case elimination are reductions in cartridge weight and volume.

[0003] The traditional metallic cartridge case serves multiple purposes. It provides: a container to hold the propellant in place; a mechanism to hold primer that initiates the propellant;

- protection from environmental and handling damage; safety from accidental combustion; a heat sink to remove excess heat from the chamber; a gas seal around the chamber and firing pin; and

- means for extraction and ejection of misfired cartridges.

Eliminating the metallic cartridge case requires the cartridge and/or the firearm to provide all these functions.

[0004] Previous attempts to eliminate the metallic cartridge case have used one of two approaches. In a first approach, the projectile serves as the cartridge case. This approach has the disadvantage of having limited propellant capacity and a projectile with low sectional density. As a result, the projectile typically has lower initial energy and loses velocity more rapidly, resulting in limited range. In a second approach, compacted consolidated propellant is attached to the projectile. As a result of the low structural integrity compared to a metallic cartridge case, the propellant is subject to environmental and handling damage. In addition, the risk of inadvertent combustion is increased. This approach also requires a more complex chamber to provide for misfire extraction and ejection. In both approaches, the gas seal function is designed into the firearm.

[0005] What is needed, therefore, is an approach to the elimination of the metallic cartridge case that combines features of both approaches described above with other technologies, thereby addressing each of their disadvantages.

SUMMARY

[0006] The above and other needs are met by a caseless tapered-bore (CTB) ammunition and tapered-bore firearm configured to fire the CTB ammunition.

[0007] Some preferred embodiments described herein are directed to a caseless ammunition cartridge that includes a unitary outer portion having a forward section, a central section and a rear section. The forward section has an aerodynamic profile defined by a forward surface of revolution having a first radius that increases from the front to the rear of the forward section. The rear section has a cylindrical profile with a second radius. The central section has a profile defined by a central surface of revolution having a third radius that transitions from the first radius of the forward section to the second radius of the rear section. An inner core is disposed within the unitary metallic outer portion on the center axis of the cartridge. The inner core has a front portion that is encased by the forward section of the unitary outer portion, and a cylindrical rear portion disposed within the central and rear sections of the unitary outer portion. The inner core has a fourth radius that is less than the second and third radii. An annular cavity is disposed between the unitary outer portion and the rear portion of the inner core, and a propellant is disposed within the annular cavity. A combustible seal, which is attached to a rear opening of the rear section of the unitary outer portion, covers the annular cavity to protect the propellant.

[0008] In some embodiments, the surface of revolution of the forward section of the unitary outer portion comprises a tangent ogive shape.

[0009] In some embodiments, the surface of revolution of the central section of the unitary outer portion comprises a conical shape. [0010] In some embodiments, the rear surface of the inner core includes a primer cavity for holding primer, and the combustible seal covers the primer cavity to protect the primer.

[0011] In some embodiments, the unitary outer portion has an inner radius TAI and an outer radius TA2 at the rear of the forward section, an inner radius IBI and an outer radius TB2 within the central section, and an inner radius rci and an outer radius rc2 within the rear section, wherein

[0012] In another aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a barrel for firing a caseless ammunition cartridge. One preferred embodiment of the barrel includes a chamber, an initial section, a tapered section and a rifled section. The chamber has a rear section with a rear section inner diameter and a forward section with a forward section inner diameter. The initial section has a cylindrical bore in communication with the chamber. The cylindrical bore has a cylindrical bore inner diameter that is less than the forward section inner diameter of the chamber. The tapered section has a tapered bore in communication with the cylindrical bore of the initial section. The tapered bore has a rear inner diameter matching the cylindrical bore inner diameter, which tapers down to a forward inner diameter that is less than the rear inner diameter. The rifled section has a rifled bore in communication with the tapered bore of the tapered section. The rifled bore has an inner diameter matching the forward inner diameter of the tapered bore.

[0013] In some embodiments, a bolt is received at least partially within the rear section of the chamber. The bolt has a forward outer section and an inner face disposed within the forward outer section. An inner gas seal is disposed within the forward outer section of the bolt and against the inner face. The inner seal comprises an inner circular disc portion and an outer portion. The inner circular disc portion has a rear surface disposed against the inner face of the bolt and has a central striker. The outer portion of the inner seal comprises a Belleville spring attached to an outer perimeter of the inner circular disc portion. The outer portion has a cylindrical lip inserted into the inner face of the bolt. A firing pin, which is disposed along a central axis of the bolt, is operable to contact the rear surface of the inner disc portion of the inner gas seal, thereby causing forward movement of the central striker with respect to the inner face of the bolt. [0014] In some embodiments, a cylindrical outer gas seal is disposed around the forward outer section of the bolt. The outer gas seal has an outer diameter matching the inner diameter of the rear section of the chamber. The outer gas seal is configured to block passage of gas between an inner surface of the rear section of the chamber and the forward outer section of the bolt.

[0015] In some embodiments, the inner gas seal and the outer gas seal are fabricated from high- temperature spring material.

[0016] In yet another aspect, embodiments of the invention provide a method for operating a firearm, including the following steps:

(a) providing a caseless ammunition cartridge as described herein;

(b) providing a barrel as described herein;

(c) loading the caseless ammunition cartridge into the chamber of the barrel;

(d) igniting the propellant, thereby creating pressure in the chamber behind the caseless ammunition cartridge which propels the caseless ammunition cartridge into the cylindrical bore of the initial section of the barrel;

(e) consuming the propellant as the caseless ammunition cartridge travels through the cylindrical bore;

(f) propelling the caseless ammunition cartridge through the tapered bore of the tapered section of the barrel;

(g) collapsing the central and rear sections of the unitary outer portion onto the inner core as the caseless ammunition cartridge travels through the tapered bore of the tapered section of the barrel, thereby forming a proj ectile having an outer diameter matching the first radius at the rear of the forward section of the unitary outer portion; and

(h) propelling the projectile through the rifled bore of the rifled section of the barrel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Other embodiments of the invention will become apparent by reference to the detailed description in conjunction with the figures, wherein elements are not to scale so as to more clearly show the details, wherein like reference numbers indicate like elements throughout the several views, and wherein:

[0018] FIG. 1 depicts an unfired caseless tapered-bore (CTB) cartridge according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0019] FIGS. 2A and 2B depict cross section views of the unfired CTB cartridge depicted in FIG. 1;

[0020] FIG. 3 depicts a CTB rifle barrel according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0021] FIG. 4 depicts a cross-section view of the CTB rifle barrel depicted in FIG. 3;

[0022] FIG. 5 depicts a zoomed-in cross-section view of a firing chamber of the CTB rifle barrel depicted in FIG. 4;

[0023] FIG. 6 depicts a zoomed-in cross-section view of a tapered portion of the CTB rifle barrel depicted in FIG. 4;

[0024] FIG. 7 depicts an unfired CTB rifle cartridge in the firing chamber of the CTB rifle barrel depicted in FIG. 4;

[0001] FIG. 8 depicts a CTB projectile after passing through the tapered portion of the CTB rifle barrel depicted in FIG. 4;

[0002] FIG. 9 depicts a CTB projectile after exiting a CTB rifle barrel according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0003] FIG. 10 depicts a cross-section view a CTB projectile after exiting a CTB rifle barrel according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0004] FIG. 11 depicts a front perspective view of a forward section of a bolt of a CTB rifle according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0005] FIG. 12 depicts a rear perspective view of the forward section of the bolt depicted in FIG. 11; [0006] FIG. 13 depicts a cross-section view of the forward section of the bolt depicted in FIG. 11 ;

[0007] FIG. 14 depicts a front perspective view of an outer bolt seal of a bolt of a CTB rifle according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0008] FIG. 15 depicts a cross-section view of the outer bolt seal depicted in FIG. 14;

[0001] FIG. 16 depicts a front perspective view of an inner bolt seal of a bolt of a CTB rifle according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0002] FIG. 17 depicts a rear perspective view of the inner bolt seal depicted in FIG. 16;

[0003] FIG. 18 depicts a cross-section view of the inner bolt seal depicted in FIG. 16; and

[0004] FIG. 19 depicts a plot of pressure and velocity versus distance of travel of a CTB projectile according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0005] FIGS. 1 and 2 depict a preferred embodiment of a caseless tapered bore (CTB) small arms cartridge 10 prior to firing. The unitary outer portion 14 of the cartridge 10 is a unitary metallic component comprising a forward section 12a, central section 12b and rear section 12c. The forward section 12a has an aerodynamic, tangent ogive shape similar to existing projectiles. The rear of the forward section 12a transitions to the hollow conical central section 12b. The rear of the central section 12b transitions to the cylindrical rear section 12c. The cylindrical rear section 12c is hollow and has an extraction groove 13 near its rear end.

[0006] In a preferred embodiment, the unitary outer portion 14 is formed from a copper alloy. The specific composition of the alloy would be determined by the cartridge purpose. For a 6.5 mm ball-type cartridge, an alloy with a density of 8.53 g/cm ³ (cartridge brass) would be specified. The copper alloy composition can be chosen to insure a consistent projectile weight for other types of cartridges, such as armor piercing and tracer cartridges.

[0007] As shown in the cross-section view of FIG. 2 A, a metallic inner core 18 is disposed on the central axis of the cartridge 10. In a preferred embodiment, the inner core 18 is formed from steel alloy, the specific composition of which is determined by the cartridge purpose. A mild steel would be acceptable for a ball-type cartridge. For a tracer cartridge, the steel inner core would include a cavity forward of the primer cavity that contains the tracer compound. A hardened steel alloy would be used for the inner core 18 in armor piercing applications. Thermally-consolidated propellant 16 is disposed around the inner core 18 within an annular cavity 19 formed by the rear and central sections 12c and 12b. A primer cavity 22 is disposed at the rear of the inner core 18. A combustible seal 20 is disposed over the primer cavity 22 and over the annular cavity 19 between the inner core 18 and the rear section 12c to protect the propellant 16 from environmental damage. In a preferred embodiment, the combustible seal 20 is formed from an epoxy resin.

[0008] The outer radius of the inner core 18 and inner radii of the central section 12b and the rear section 12c are sized such that the cross-sectional areas, Ab and A _c , of these sections of the outer portion 14 are identical - within an acceptable tolerance - to the cross-sectional area A _a of the rear portion of the forward section 12a of the outer portion 14. With reference to FIG. 2B,

A _a = 7i x (r _A2 ² - r _A i ² ),

Ab = 7t x (r _B2 ² - TBI ² ), and

A _c = 7t x (r _C2 ² - Ici ² ).

Thus, in a preferred embodiment of the cartridge 10,

(rA2 ² - r _Ai ² ) = (r _B2 ² - r _B i ² ) = (r _C2 ² - r _C i ² ), so that

A _a A A _c .

[0009] A preferred embodiment of a firearm barrel 30 configured for firing the cartridge 10 is depicted in FIGS. 3-8. The barrel 30 preferably includes a chamber 34, an initial section 32a having a cylindrical bore 38, a tapered section 32b having a tapered bore 40, and a rifled section 32c having a rifled bore 42.

[0010] As shown in the cross-section views of FIGS. 5 and 7, the chamber 34 includes a cylindrical forward section 35a and a cylindrical rear section 35b. The diameter of the chamber forward section 35a is sized to allow a slip fit between the inner wall of the forward section 35a and the outer surface of the rear section 12c of the cartridge 10. In a preferred embodiment, the diameter of the chamber forward section is 11.3 mm (0.445 inch). Between the rear section 35b and the forward section 35a is a conical decrease in diameter to provide proper headspace for locating the cartridge 10 axially within the chamber 34. At the forward end of the forward section 35a is a step 36 that locates the cartridge 10 within the chamber 34 prior to firing.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment, the overall length of the barrel is 450 mm (17.72 inch), the diameter of the cylindrical bore 38 is 10.5 mm (0.413 inch) and its length is 250 mm (9.84 inch), the length of the tapered bore 40 is 76 mm (3.00 inch), and the length of the rifled bore is 124 mm (4.88 inch) and its diameter is 6.7 mm (0.264 inch).

[0012] When the propellant 16 is initiated, the cartridge 10 is forced past the step 36 in the chamber 34 by the increased pressure, and it enters the cylindrical bore 38 of the initial section 32a of the barrel 30. Most of the propellant 16 is consumed as the cartridge 10 travels through this initial section 32a. After the cartridge 10 has accelerated through the initial section 32a, the cartridge 10 enters the tapered bore 40 of the tapered section 32b, depicted in FIG. 6.

[0013] The initial inner diameter of the tapered bore 40 matches the inner diameter of the initial section 32a. As the cartridge 10 is forced through the tapered bore 40 by gas pressure, the outer diameter of the rear section 12c of the cartridge 10 is reduced to the inner diameter of the rifled bore 42, thereby collapsing the annular cavity 19. The resulting projectile 50 at the entrance to the rifled bore 42 is shown in FIG. 8. Because the cross-sectional area A _c of the rear section 12c and the cross-sectional area Ab of the central section 12b are identical to the cross-sectional area A _a of the forward section 12a, the tapered bore 40 compresses the sections 12c and 12b down against the core 18 to form a projectile 50 having a solid cross-section with no internal void. FIG. 9 depicts the projectile 50 after passing through the tapered bore 40. The projectile 50 then enters the rifled bore 42 which provides spinning stabilization to the projectile 50 as it exits the barrel 30. FIG. 10 depicts a cross-section view of the projectile 50 after exiting the barrel 30.

[0014] Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the force that propels a projectile through a firearm barrel is a function of the pressure in the barrel multiplied by the area of the projectile base. Thus, a larger projectile base will result in greater force and greater acceleration for a given pressure and projectile weight. The relatively large base area of the CTB projectile 50, relative to its mass, results in improved propellant efficiency.

[0015] FIGS. 11-13 depict a bolt 44 configured for use with the barrel 30. Generally, the bolt 44 operates in a manner similar to typical firearm bolts, cycling forward to load the cartridge into the chamber 34 and backward after firing in preparation for loading another cartridge. As shown in the cross-section view of FIG. 13, the bolt 44 has a forward outer section 43 having a cylindrical outside profile disposed around an inner face 45. The firing pin 52 of the bolt 44 is configured to penetrate a central aperture in the inner face 45. A preferred embodiment of the bolt 44 includes two seals to prevent combustion gas from escaping past the bolt: an outer seal 46 and an inner seal 48.

[0016] As depicted in FIGS. 14 and 15, the outer seal 46 consists of a hollow cylinder fabricated from a high-temperature spring material. This cylindrical seal 46 is disposed around the forward outer section 43 of the bolt 44 and includes a forward conical section 47 that contacts the forward outer section 43 to provide a sealing capability similar to a typical metallic cartridge case. The use of a high temperature spring material allows the seal 46 to be used for millions of cycles.

[0017] As depicted in FIGS. 11, 12 and 16-18, the inner seal 48, which is also fabricated from high-temperature spring material, has a cylindrical lip 54 that inserts into a circular slot in the inner face 45 of the bolt 44. The outer portion 51 of the inner seal 48 comprises a Belleville spring that surrounds the cylindrical lip 54. An inner circular disc portion 49 of the inner seal 48 contains a central striker 53 to initiate the firing sequence. The inner seal 48 prevents gas leakage around the firing pin 52.

[0018] Preferred embodiments of the cartridge 10 provide all the functions of a conventional cartridge having a metallic case while significantly reducing the weight and volume. Further, the cartridge 10 provides: a cavity 19 within by the cylindrical and conical sections 12c and 12b for containing the propellant 16; a cavity 22 within the inner core 18 for containing the primer that initiates propellant combustion; - protection of the propellant 16 from environmental and handling damage, which is provided by the cylindrical and conical sections 12c and 12b and the combustible environmental seal 20; safety from accidental combustion, provided by the rear cylindrical section 12c in a manner superior to other caseless concepts; and a heat sink that removes excess heat from the chamber - as the heated projectile 50 exits the barrel, heat is removed with it.

[0019] The barrel 30 and the bolt 44 function as well as or better than those used with traditional metallic cartridge cases, while providing: a gas seal around the chamber 34 and firing pin 52, wherein the cylindrical outer seal 46 around the outside of the bolt 44 and the inner seal 48 that includes a Belleville washer type spring 51 provide an efficient sealing system similar to that provided by a traditional metallic cartridge case; and extraction and ejection of misfired cartridges in a manner substantially identical to traditional metallic cartridge cases.

[0020] Computer analyses have been completed for several small caliber projectiles to validate the CTB cartridge concept. One such numerical analysis addressed a nominal 6.5mm caliber firearm using the following parameters:

Chamber Diameter: 11.3 mm (0.445 inch)

Initial Barrel Diameter: 10.5 mm (0.413 inch)

Barrel Length @ 10.5mm: 250 mm (9.84 inch)

Taper Length: 76 mm (3.00 inch)

Projectile Caliber: 6.7 mm (0.264 inch)

Overall Barrel Length: 450 mm (17.72 inch)

Maximum Pressure: 220 MPa (32,000 psi)

Projectile Weight: 8.0 grams (123 grains)

Propellant Weight: 1.4 grams (22 grains)

Based on these parameters, the numerical analysis generated theoretical pressure and velocity performance curves for this conceptual design, as plotted in FIG. 19. The plotted data indicate that acceptable velocity and energy can be achieved with a peak pressure less than that of existing weapon/cartridge combinations.

[0021] The following table compares the characteristics and performance of the CTB cartridge and firearm described herein to the performance of a standard U.S. military individual weapon.

[0022] The overall weight of the CTB cartridge is 23% less, while its initial projectile kinetic energy is 42% greater. Additionally, the space required for storage of an individual cartridge is reduced by 12%. The projectile sectional density of the CTB cartridge is 44% greater, resulting in increased effective range. For the CTB cartridge used in this comparison, the initial energy of the CTB projectile was limited to reduce recoil energy, thereby improving accuracy when fully automatic fire is required. The lower peak pressure to achieve this performance results in lower stresses on the barrel and bolt components. As a result, the overall weight of the CTB firearm can be less than the standard comparable weapon.

[0023] The foregoing description of preferred embodiments for this invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments are chosen and described in an effort to provide the best illustrations of the principles of the invention and its practical application, and to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally, and equitably entitled.