US2803061A - Shore bombardment fire control - Google Patents

Description

INVENTOR.-

Arry 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 SS HH:

R. E. JORTBERG SHORE BOMBARDMENT FIRE CONTROL COURSE RECEIVER Aug. 20, 1957 'Filed Ooi. 3, 1951` R/(JHA D E JORTSERG lBY R. E. JORTBERG 4SHORE] BOMBARDMENT FIRE CONTROL Filed Oct. 5, 1951` JNVENTUR: /WCHED E 109755 RG Arr'y United This invention relates to a tire-control apparatus by means of which range and bearing of a target from a moving gun carrier such as a ship can be obtained from a reference point.

Frequently it is impossible to sight directly upon a shore target from a ship, and so it then becomes necessary to employ a reference point for sighting which has a known location with respect to the target.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved fire-control apparatus that will enable a ship to obtain range and bearing of a target from range and bearing of a reference point. Modifying data relating the reference point to the target is introduced in the apparatus, whereby a continuous indication of bearing and range from ship to target is automatically obtained.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. l shows the relative location of ship, target, and reference point.

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic View partially in elevation and perspective, showing a portion of the apparatus of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view of the rest of the apparatus, Figs. 2 and 3 fitting together at a dash-dot line at the right of Fig. 2 and the left of Fig. 3 to present a complete showing of the apparatus.

The relative positions of ship, target, and refernce point are indicated, respectively, by points S, T, and R in Fig. l. The east-west and north-south distances from ship S to reference point R are indicated by Sx and Sy, respectively. The east-west and north-south distances from target T to reference point R are indicated by Tx and Ty, respectively. The east-west and north-south distances from ship S to target T are, respectively, the algebraic sums of the above east-west and north-south distances. With the novel apparatus of the present invention, the distances of Sy and Sx are obtained and are modified by the distances Ty and Tx. Thus the distances from S to T are automatically obtained.

The moving gun carrier, which for illustrative purposes is a ship in the present application, has a director train receiver, own ships course receiver, and range receiver that continuously provide data that are transformed into cast-west and north-south components of distance from ship S to reference point R. Shafts and 11 leading from the director train receiver and the own ships course receiver are connected by a differential 12 with a shaft 13, which is connected through bevel gears 14 with a vector gear 16, forming part of a component solver 17.

Shaft 13 is thus adjusted in rotation in accordance with momentary changes in bearing of the geographic reference point R or other point being tracked. Likewise, the rotational position of shaft 30 at the output of the range receiver is continuously adjusted in accordance with momentary changes in range of the point being tracked. The component solver also has a cam 18 with a spiral track 19. The cam meshes with a cam input gear 20, which is driven by bevel gears 21 from a shaft 22, which is driven by gears 23 and 24 from gear 25 of a difierential 26. Spider 27 of differential 26 is driven by gears 28 and 29 from shaft 30 leading from the range receiver. Shaft 13 acts through gears 31 and 32 to drive gear 33 of the differential 26. A cam follower 34 rides in the slot 19 in cam 18 and is connected to a pin 35. The pin carries a block 36 riding in a slot 37 in vector gear 16 and another block 38 riding in slots in racks 39 and 40. Output gears 41 and 42, which mesh with the racks 39 and 40, indicate by their rotation changes in the east-west and north-south components of the distance from the ship S to the reference point R. Gear 41 indicates the east-west component, and gear 42 the north-south component.

Gears 41 and 42 are connected through differentials 43 and 44, respectively, with input gears 45 and 46 of a vector solver 47. The gears 45 and 46 mesh with input racks 48 and 49, which have slots receiving a pin 50. The pin is mounted in a rack 51 slidably carried in guides 52 on a vector gear 53. The rack 51 meshes with a gear 54, which is drivingly secured to another gear not shown which meshes with a range output gear 55. An angle or bearing output gear 56 meshes with the vector gear 53.

The differential 44 receives drive from a setting motor 57 of the type used in servo-systems and herein called a servomotor, which also drives a step-by-step signal transmitter 58. The signal transmitter consists of an eccentric 59, three contacts 60, 61, and 62 with which the eccentric comes into contact in succession, and a contact 63 with which the eccentric stays in contact. The contacts 60, 61, and 62 are spaced 120 yapart and are each adjusted to make contact during 180 of the revolution of the eccentric. This allows 60 overlap in the closing of adjacent contacts. Each contact is connected to a pair of diametrically opposite coils in a six-pole step motor 64 (Fig. 3). Four conductors 65 anda switch 66 connect the transmitter 58 and the motor 64. A voltage V applied to the transmitter as indicated drives the motor. The step motor 64, also referred to as the east-west drive motor, is connected through a changespeed transmission 67 and gears 68 with a transverse lead screw 69, carrying indicating means in the form of a tracking head 70 with a pencil 71 and a light 72. The transverse screw 69 and uprights 73 in which the screw is mounted comprise a carriage 73a which forms part of a direct reference tracer. The carriage also includes Ia transverse beam 74 extending between the uprights in spaced relation to the transverse lead screw 69 and also plate members 75 secured to the uprights 73 and carrying rollers 76, by means of which the carriage is slidably mounted on rails 77 for movement therealong. The transverse beam 74 carries a nut 78, through which a longitudinal lead screw 79 extends. The longitudinal screw is driven by a step-by-step motor 80, also referred to as the north-south drive motor, similar to motor 64,

through a change-speed transmission 81. Motor 80 is connected with a step-by-step transmitter 82 (Fig. 2) similar to transmitter 58, through four conductors 83 and a switch 84. A voltage V applied as indicated to the transmitter 58 drives the motor 80. The transmitter 82 is driven by a setting motor 85 of the typte used in servo-systems and herein called a servomotor, which is also drivingly connected with the differential 43.

Now to digress for a moment from the operation of the carriage 73@ and the tracking head 70 from the servo- motors 57 and 85, which operation is a feature of the present invention, applicant desires to point out how the tracking head and carriage would normally be operated as part of a dead reckoning tracer. Referring to the upper central part of Fig. 3, the reference character 86 designates a distance input motor that may be connected to a log distance transmitter, not shown, which indicates the distance traveled by the ship. Motor 86, acting through gears 87 and 88, drives a shaft 89, carrying discs 90 and 91 at its ends. The discs 90 and 91, respectively, drive rollers 92 and 93. Roller 92 is mounted on a shaft 94, which is axially adjustable so as to cause the roller 92 to contact the disc 90 at various distances from its center. The shaft 94 is carried by a bracket 95 secured to a carriage 96, which is mounted by rollers not shown upon a shaft 97. Two parts 98 forming a guideway are secured to the carriage 96. The parts 98 engage the pin of a crank 99 which is secured to one end of a shaft 100. The angular position of the shaft 100 is determined by the direction in which the ship is traveling. As the ship direction changes, the crank 99 is turned to shift the carriage 96 and thus axially displace the shaft 94. Thus the roller 92 moves toward or away from the center of the disc 90, and the speed of the roller changes with respect to the disc. In this way, one component of travel of the ship, for example the north-south component, is indicated by the rotation of the shaft 94. Similarly, roller 93 is shifted with respect to the center of the disc 91 as a shaft 101 carrying the roller 93 is axially shifted. Axial displacement of shaft 101 is accomplished by movement of bracket 102 and carriage 103, mounted on shaft 104 by rollers not shown. The carriage 103 is shifted by a pin on crank 105 on the end of shaft 100, the crank pin being received in a guideway formed by members 106 secured to carriage 103. Crank 105 is transverse, i. e., angularly displaced 90 on the shaft 100 relative to crank 99 so that as roller 92 moves toward the center of disc 90, roller 93 moves away from the center of disc 91, and vice-versa. Thus if as stated the rotation of shaft 94 represents a north-south component of ship travel, the rotation of shaft 101 represents an east-west component of ship travel.

Shaft 89 acting through gears 107 drives a recorder 108 indicating total distance traveled by the ship. A recorder 109, driven from shaft 94 by worm 110 and worm wheel 111, indicates total distance in a north-south direction. A recorder 112, driven from shaft 101 by worm 113 and worm wheel 114, indicates total distance in an east-west direction.

Course indications of the ship are received from a master gyro compass, not shown, by a low-power servo motor 115, which rotates a contact brush 116 into contact with segment 117 or segment 118. When this happens, a follow-up motor 119 is energized in one direction or the other to rotate shaft 100 through worms 120 and 121 and worm wheels 122 and 123. Rotation of the shaft 100 shifts cranks 99 and 105 and varies the positions of rollers 92 and 93 with respect to the centers of discs 90 and 91. When the segments 117 and 118, driven by the motor 119 through worms 120 and 121, worm wheels 122 and gears 125 and 126, move out of contact with the brush 116, the follow-up motor stops.

Shaft 94 drives a step-by-step transmitter 127 which is similar to the transmitter 58 and may actually be mounted 4 on shaft 94 below bracket 9S. Transmitter 127 is connected by four conductors 128 and switch 66 with the step-by-step motor 64. A voltage V applied to transmitter 127 drives the motor 64 when the switch 66 contacts the conductors 128. As previously stated, the motor 64, acting through the transmission 67 and gears 68, rotates the transverse lead screw 69 to move the member 70 with the pencil 71 and light 72 along the screw 69.

Shaft 101 drives a stepby-step transmitter 129, which is similar to the transmitter 58 and may actually be mounted on shaft 101 below bracket 102. Transmitter 129 is connected by conductors 130 and switch 84 with motor 80. A voltage V applied to the transmitter 129 drives the motor when the switch 84 contacts the conductors 130. As previously stated, the motor 80, through the change-speed transmission 81, rotates the screw 79. The screw by rotating causes the nut 78 and the carriage 73a to shift along the rails 77.

The parts shown on Fig. 3 constitute a dead reckoning tracer. A board may be placed below the transverse lead screw 69 and the pencil 71, and the course of the ship will be marked by the pencil on the board. Alternately a glass may be mounted above the light 72, and a translucent sheet of paper placed on the glass. A spot of light from the light 72 will indicate the ships position on the paper.

In the practice of the applicants invention, only the lower portion of the apparatus of Fig. 3 is employed in conjunction with the part of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2. The switches 66 and 84 are shifted to connect the transmitters 58 and 82 with the motors 64 and 80, respectively. Now a map including the reference point R and the target T is placed on the board below the pencil 71 or on the glass above the light 72 and is properly alined for east-west and north-south directions for the carriage 73a. The pencil or the light is brought to the reference point either by the servo- motors 57 and 85 or by manual means not shown for actuating the screws 69 and 79. The scale of the map is taken into consideration by suitable adjustment of the transmissions 67 and 81. Now the servo- motors 57 and 85 are actuated to r0- tate the transverse screw 69 and the longitudinal screw 79 to shift the pencil 71 or the light 72 from the reference point R to the target T. Since the servo-motors 57 and also drive the differentials 44 and 43, the north-south and east-west components of movement from reference point R to target T will be introduced through the differentials to modify the continuously corrected north-south and the east-west components of movements coming from the component solver 17. These modified components are introduced in the vector solver 47, and so the outputs therefrom indicate bearing and range from ship S to target T.

A very significant feature of applicants new and novel apparatus is that data on the relation of ship S to reference point R is applied to the apparatus continuously, and data on the realtion of ship S to target T is obtained continuously. The transformation from one relation to the other relation is direct, continuous, and accurate. This is in contrast with a system by which the north-south and east-west components of distance from reference point R to target T are computed and are applied separately and repeatedly to each new set of data on the corresponding components of distance from reference point R to ship S. Each new set of computations would be very time-consuming, and the chances for error would be great because of the need for actually measuring the components from reference point R to target S with scale and dividers.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for obtaining range and bearing from a ship to a tixed target from a geographic reference point, said apparatus comprising means receiving data on the positional relation of ship to reference point, a component solver means transmitting said data to the component solver, the component solver breaking down the data into 'east-west and north-south components, a map, a pointer movable along said map from reference point to target as shown on the map, east-west and north-south m-otive power means for moving the pointer -in east-west and north-south directions, a vector solver having a range output and a bearing output and having east-west and northsouth inputs receiving east-west and north-south components from the component solver, and means connecting the east-west motive power means and the northsouth motive power means, respectively, with said eastwest input and said north-south `input to modify the east-west and the north-south components coming from the component solver with east-west and north-south components from the reference point to the target as derived from shifting yof the pointer between the reference point and the target.

2. Apparatus for obtaining range and bearing from a ship to a target from a geographic reference point, said apparatus comprising an own ship course receiver, la train receiver, and a range receiver, a component solver coupled to said receivers breaking down data on the relation of -ship to said reference point into east-West and north-south components, a map, an indicator adapted to be moved -along said map between reference point and target as shown on the map, east-west and north-south motor means moving the indicator in east-west and northsouth directions, means associated with the east-west motor means and the north-south motor means combining the east-west components and the nort-h-south components from the component solver, respectively, with the east-west components and the north-south components of movement of the indicator between reference point and target, a vector solver receiving the combined east-west components and the combined north-south components 'and yielding range and bearing from lship to target, and means responsive to said vector solver to indicate said range and bearing.

3. Apparatus for obtaining range land bearing from a ship to a target by use lof a geographic reference point, said apparatus comprising an own ship course receiver, a train receiver, and a range receiver, a component solver coupled to said receivers breaking down range and bearing data from ship to reference point received from said receivers into east-west and north-south components, -a map, `an indicator adapted to be moved in east-west and north-south directions between reference point and target Ias shown on said map, means associated with :the indicator for combining the east-west components and the north-south components from the component solver, respectively, with the east-west components and the northsouth components of movement of the indicator between reference point and target -on the map, and a vector solver receiving the combined east-west components and the combined north-south components and yielding range and bearing from ship to target.

4. Apparatus for obtaining range and bearing from a ship to a target by use `of a geographic reference point, said apparatus comprising a train receiver and a range receiver, a component solver coupled to said receivers for breaking down data on range and bearing from ship to reference point into east-west and north-south components, a map, an indicator adapted to be moved in east-west and north-south direc-tions between the reference point and the target as shown on said map, eastwest and north-south step-by-step servo motor means for moving the indicator in east-west and north-south directions, `signal transmitters controlling the motor means, means associated with the transmitters modifying the east-west components and the north-south components from the component solver, respectively, in accordance with the east-west components and the north-south components of movement of the indicator between the reference point and the target, 'and a vector solver receiving the modified east-west and north-south components originating with the component ysolver and transmitters and yielding bearing and range from ship to target.

5. Apparatus for employing a reference point to obtain range and bearing from a ship to a target, said apparatus comprising .a train receiver and a range receiver and a component solver coupled to said receivers for breaking down data on range and bearing from ship to a geographic reference point into east-west and north-south components, an indicator adapted to move between reference point and target as shown on a map, a carriage supporting the indicator for movement Ewith respect to the carriage only in one of east-west and north-south directions along the map, the carriage .and the indicator being conjointly movable only in the other of the east-west and north-south directions along the map, a first motor for moving the indicator along the carriage in the said one direction, a second motor for moving the carriage and the indicator in the said other direction, means connected `with the outputs of the motors for modifying the eastwest components and the north-south components from the component solver, respectively, `in accordance with east-west components and north-south components of movement of the indicator between reference point and target on the map, and a vector solver receiving the modiiied east-west and north-south components and yielding `bearing and range from ship to target.

6. Apparatus for employing a reference point to obtain range and bearing from a ship to a target, said apparatus comprising a train receiver and a range recevier, a component solver coupled to said receiver for breaking down data on range and bearing from ship to an observable geographic reference point into east-west land north-south components, an indicator adapted to move between reference point and target as shown on a map, a carriage supporting the indicator for movement with respect to the carriage only in one of east-West and north-south directions along the map, the carriage and the indicator being conjointly movable only in the other of the east-west and north-south directions along the map, a first step-by-step motor for moving the indicator along the carriage in the said one direction, a second step-by-step motor for moving the carriage and the indicator inthe said other directions, transmitters for driving the step-by-step motors, servo-motors `for driving -the transmitters, and differential means connected with the servo-motors and with outputs of said component solver for modifying the east-West components and the north-south components from the component solver, respectively, in .accordance with east-west components and north-south components of movement of the indicator between reference point and target on the map, and a vector solver receiving the modified east-west and north-south components and yielding `bearing and range from ship to target.

7. Apparatus for obtaining range and bearing from a ship to a target Iby use of a geographic reference point, said apparatus comprising ya component solver for breaking down data on range and bearing from ship to reference point into east-West and north-south components, a dead reckoning tracer comprising a tracking head adapted to `be moved along a map to indicate the ships course, east-west .and north-South step-by-step motors for moving the -tracking head in east-west and north-south directions along the map and main transmitters for the motors responsive to change in ships position, auxiliary transmitters for causing the motors to move the tracking head between the reference point and the target as indicated on the map, means associated with the auxiliary transmitters for modifying the east-west components and the north-south components from the component solver, respectively, in accordance with the east-west components and the north-south components of movement of the tracking head between the reference point and the target, and a vector solver receiving the modied east-west and north-south components originating with the component solver and transmitter and yielding bearing and lange from ship to target.

1,985,265 Smith Dec. 25, 1934 8 Smith et al Dec. 25, 1934 Omberg Feb. 7, 1950 Omberg et a1. Feb. 13, 1951 Pierce et a1 Aug. 28, 1951 Omberg Sept. 25, 1951 Palmer Ian. 8, 1952 Ranger uly 15, 1952 Best Augl 26, 1952 Whitaker et al. Aug. 31, 1954

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