The invention relates to firearms.
1. Background Art
This invention has particular, but not exclusive, application to a handguns including shotgun type firearms which utilise barrels such as the barrels described in my earlier International Patent Applications Nos. PCT/AU94/00124 and PCT/AU96/00459.
Such barrels each have a plurality of projectiles stacked axially within the barrel together with discrete selectively ignitable propellant charges for propelling the projectiles sequentially through the muzzle of the barrel and the sealing engagement between projectiles and barrel being such as to prevent rearward travel of the ignited propellant charge to trailing propellant charges. These barrels will be referred to hereinafter as of the type described.
This invention aims to alleviate perceived shortcomings in conventional weapons such as shotguns which fire a collection of round pellet like shot randomly oriented in the cartridge, which when fired exit from a relatively large bore barrel in a random orientation and at a relatively slow muzzle velocity.
The shot immediately disperses to cover a relatively large target zone. This effect is useful but the effective range of the shot is very short. Shotguns also require reloading between shots and this reduces their effectiveness.
Handguns such as pistols also have significant limitations for many reasons including the limited number of shots which may be contained in the weapon and the relatively slow rate of fire available. However they are very portable and concealable and this makes them very useful.
2. Disclosure of Invention
According to one aspect this invention resides broadly in a shotgun assembly having:
a cluster of small bore barrels of the type described each having a longitudinal arrangement of aerodynamically shaped, directional projectiles and interposed propellant charges whereby the barrel assembly has longitudinal arrays or layers of projectiles and interposed propellant charges arranged in longitudinally spaced relationship in their respective barrels, and ignition means for simultaneously igniting the propellant charges in a respective layer of propellant charges.
According to one aspect this invention resides broadly in a shotgun assembly having:
a barrel assembly including a cluster of barrels of the type described;
each barrel including a longitudinal arrangement of aerodynamically shaped, directional projectiles and interposed propellant charges whereby the barrel assembly has longitudinal arrays or layers of projectiles and interposed propellant charges, and
ignition means for simultaneously igniting the propellant charges in a respective layer of propellant charges.
The foregoing may form the entire barrel assembly of the handgun or the barrel assembly may constitute only a portion of the handgun""s barrel assembly, such as by being a replaceable cartridge communicating with fixed barrels in the handgun. The barrels may be parallel or may splay slightly to achieve a desired firing pattern.
Each barrel may have its own electronic ignition means. Preferably however the barrels are clustered about one or more ignition passages extending substantially parallel to the barrels and communicating therewith through longitudinally spaced arrays of transverse bleed passages so as to selectively initiate ignition of primers in the or each ignition passage spreads through the respective aligned one of the longitudinal array of transverse bleed passages and causes ignition of the respective propellant charges communicating therewith.
The barrels may also be clustered about one or more bypass passages extending substantially parallel to the barrels and communicating therewith through a valved port communicating with longitudinally spaced arrays of transverse bleed passages whereby in the event of an accidental ignition of a primer in a trailing round, the valved port will open to enable the ignited propellant charges to bleed to atmosphere through the bypass passage.
Alternatively, individual barrels may be provided with valved ports enabling each to discharge to a bypass passage in the event of a hang fire or similar accidental ignition of a trailing propellant charge. Suitably the valved port is in the form of a plugged port in which the plug will be dislodged at a preselected pressure above the normal operating pressures within the barrels.
The handgun may be in the form of a shotgun and have a large number of small bore barrels clustered about the or each ignition passage, but preferably a central ignition passage. The ignition passage may constitute a main barrel provided with primer initiation means for selective initiation of the propellant charges therein. The main barrel is suitably the center barrel and may have a larger bore than the others if desired.
For example, a cluster of approximately sixty-four 2 mm barrels could be provided. This provides a shotgun in which all the simultaneously fired projectiles are individually barrelled. The projectiles would be in the order of 2 mm diameter and 5 mm in length. If the leading primer in the main barrel is ignited, then all sixty-four projectiles in the leading layer will be fired.
The barrels may be rifled and the projectiles may be loaded therein in cartridges. Alternatively the barrel may be provided as a disposable barrel containing the projectiles and propellant charges stacked therein.
The cartridges could align with a single large open barrel of the shotgun but preferably the barrels of the cartridge align with correspondingly arranged small bore barrels in the shotgun. For this purpose the cartridge is provided with locating means for locating it in operative alignment with the shotgun barrels and most preferably the cartridge has a square section housing for operative location with any of its rectangular side faces entered through the loading ejection port. This port could be a side, top or underside port.
Any number of groups of sixty-four pellets/projectiles may be fired at any electronically available rate. This provides on the one hand, a low degree of lethality in the case where say a single group of pellets is fired, or an exceedingly high degree of lethality if a number of groups are fired in rapid succession. The weapon may be operated as a shotgun machine-gun.
The primer initiation is suitably electronically controlled and may be electrical, chemical, laser, mechanical or any other available means as is appropriate.
In yet a further aspect this invention resides in a method of igniting the propellant charges for rounds in a cluster of barrels, including:
providing an ignition passage containing a longitudinal array of primers and communicating with corresponding propellant charges in the barrels through respective longitudinally spaced arrays of bleed passages, and
selectively and sequentially igniting the primers in the ignition passage to causes ignition of the respective propellant charges communicating therewith.