Two Rail Electromagnetic Gun

Abstract

Electromagnetic gun with a cavity extending through its barrel, two power rails with cavity surface their length, a plurality of wall (conductor) coils circumscribing and orthogonal the cavity, distributed its length with contact means at the cavity on one end a bus common to all wall coils on the other. Projectiles for traversing said cavity, having a propulsion bus coil with continuity at one end with one power rail and its other with the second power rail. A projectile forward current shunt for continuity between one power rail and forward wall coil's contact means and aft current shunt for continuity between the second power rail and aft wall coils contact means. Magnetic fields of forward and aft wall conductor coils interact with propulsion bus coil current propelling projectile in barrel towards muzzle. The above combination wherein the projectile includes propellant ignited by a bursting bridge.

1 . An electromagnetic gun comprising: 
 a barrel with 
 a cavity therein that extends the length of said barrel and having: 
 a breech end opening at one end, and  
 a muzzle end opening at the other end, and  
 a central axis which extends from said breech end opening to said muzzle end opening, and  
 a uniform right section profile to said central axis throughout said cavity; and  
 
   two power rails which: 
 are located in the barrel cavity wall, and  
 have fixed angular displacement to each other at fixed radiuses about said barrel cavity axis throughout their length, and  
 are electrically insulated from direct electrical continuity with one another and other electrically conductive elements in said barrel cavity wall, and  
   each said power rail has: 
 connection means to outside said barrel for attachment of circuitry from an outside power source, and  
 continuous surface its length that is part of the barrel cavity's surface; and  
   a wall conductor assembly 
 located in the barrel cavity wall, and  
 comprising: 
 a barrel bus which is located: 
 outside the barrel cavity, and  
 along the same barrel length as said power rails and  
 electrically insulated therefrom, and  
 
 a plurality of wall conductor coils that: 
 are located outside said barrel cavity, and  
 have like directed windings about said cavity, and  
 are oriented orthogonal said barrel cavity's axis, and  
 are separated from one another in distribution along the length of said cavity, and  
 
 
 each said wall conductor coil: 
 is a continuous insulated conductor between its ends, and  
 circumscribes said barrel cavity one or more times in the barrel cavity wall, and  
 is at or very near the barrel cavity surface except where shaped to avoid physical and electrical continuity with the power rails, and  
 has, at one end, electrical and physical continuity with said barrel bus, and  
 has, at its other end, an electrical contact means at said barrel cavity through a mating opening in said cavity's surface, and  
 is electrically insulated from its surroundings beyond said barrel bus except at said contact means; and  
 
 projectiles for: 
 insertion into the breech end of said barrel cavity, and  
 propulsion through said cavity towards its muzzle end, and  
 
   in the barrel cavity each said projectile has: 
 its central axes very close or coincident said barrel cavity's central axis, and  
 right section profiles smaller then said barrel cavity's right section profile, and  
 a portion of the said projectile's profiles similar to the barrel cavity's right section profile in shape and slightly undersized thereof, and  
   each said projectile has: 
 a forward current shunt in its surface near its muzzle end, and 
 said shunt is electrically insulated from all other electrically conducting elements in said projectile, and  
 
 with said projectile in said barrel cavity,  
 said forward current shunt has: 
 surface with continuous electrical continuity with said cavity surface of one power rail, and  
 surface with continuous electrical continuity with the contact means of the wall conductor coils at its barrel cavity location; and  
 
   forward wall conductor coils which are: 
 extant when a projectile is in said barrel's cavity, and  
 comprised of the group of one or more consecutive wall conductors coils that at any instant have electrical continuity via their contact means with said projectile's forward current shunt; and  
   said forward current shunt maintains continuous electrical continuity between the wall conductor coils comprising at any instant said forward wall conductor coils of said wall conductor assembly and said power rail; and    each said projectile also has: 
 an aft current shunt in its surface near its breech end, and 
 said shunt is electrically insulated from all other electrically conducting elements in said projectile, and  
 
 with said projectile in the barrel cavity,  
 said projectile's aft current shunt has: 
 surface with continuous electrical continuity with said cavity surface of the power rail without said forward current shunt's electrical continuity, and  
 surface with continuous electrical continuity with the contact means of the wall conductor coils at its barrel cavity location; and  
 
   aft wall conductor coils which are: 
 extant when a projectile is in said barrel's cavity, and  
 comprised of the group of one or more consecutive wall conductors coils that at any instant have electrical continuity via their contact means with said projectile's aft current shunt; and  
   said aft current shunt maintains continuous electrical continuity between said wall conductor coils comprising at any instant said aft wall conductor coils of said wall conductor assembly and said power rail; and    each said projectile also has 
 a propulsion bus coil which is located: 
 forward said aft current shunt, and  
 aft said forward current shunt, and  
 orthogonal to the axis of the projectile and  
 
 said coil is a continuous insulated conductor 
 with one or more turns which circumscribe said projectile's axis, and  
 located at or close to the projectile's surface proximal the barrel cavity's surface, and  
 
 said propulsion bus coil has: 
 a contact means at both ends in the surface of the projectile, and  
 
 with said projectile in the barrel cavity, 
 one said contact means has continuous electrical continuity with one said power rail and  
 the second said contact means has continuous electrical continuity with the second said power rail,  
 
 so that in the energized gun, 
 the current circulation about the cavity axis in the propulsion bus coil has the same direction as the current circulation about said axis in said forward wall conductor coils and counter the direction of the current circulation in said aft wall conductor coils; and  
 
 with a projectile in said barrel cavity, 
 there are two circuits extant between the two power rails, and one said circuit includes: 
 said forward current shunt of said projectile, and  
 said forward wall conductor coils of said wall conductor assembly, and  
 said barrel bus, and  
 said aft wall conductor coils of said wall conductor assembly, and  
 said aft current shunt of said projectile, and  
 
 said second circuit includes said projectile's propulsion bus coil; and  
 
   with power supplied to the power rails via their said connection means, 
 the magnetic fields of the current in said forward wall conductors, and  
 the magnetic fields of the current is said aft wall conductor coils interact with  
 the current in said propulsion bus coil of said projectile to propel said projectile from breech to muzzle in said barrel cavity.  
   
   
   
       2 - 12 . (canceled)