US-12618627-B2 - Laser ignition system for large-caliber artillery

US12618627B2US 12618627 B2US12618627 B2US 12618627B2US-12618627-B2

Abstract

The present invention relates to a laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery, which provides a linear laser beam shape, and the ignition system of the present invention evenly combusts a cylindrical large-caliber artillery propellant with a hollow center in an energy-efficient manner using a laser in longitudinal and radial directions.

Inventors

Yong-seon Lee
Sang-Tae Ahn
Yun-Jung OH

Assignees

AGENCY FOR DEFENSE DEVELOPMENT

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20241113
Priority Date: 20240610

Claims (19)

1 . A laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery propellant, comprising: a breech block coupled to a gun barrel to seal combustion gas generated by combustion; a laser transfer part mounted in front of an inclined through hole of the breech block to transfer a laser from a laser generator to the large-caliber artillery propellant; a laser diffusion part mounted behind the through hole of the breech block; and the large-caliber artillery propellant mounted inside the gun barrel and formed with a center through hole for firing a shell.
2 . The laser ignition system of claim 1 , wherein a laser shape conversion part is mounted at a front of the laser diffusion part, and the laser shape conversion part converts a circular shape of the laser received from the laser transfer part into a linear shape.
3 . The laser ignition system of claim 2 , wherein the laser shape conversion part includes a Powell lens.
4 . The laser ignition system of any one of claim 3 , wherein the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted.
5 . The laser ignition system of claim 2 , wherein a laser transmission part is mounted at a rear of the laser diffusion part, and the laser transmission part seals propellant combustion gas generated in the gun barrel while transmitting the converted laser received from the laser shape conversion part.
6 . The laser ignition system of claim 5 , wherein an outer diameter of the laser transmission part is formed to be equal to or larger than an inner diameter of a center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant.
7 . The laser ignition system of any one of claim 6 , wherein the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted.
8 . The laser ignition system of any one of claim 5 , wherein the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted.
9 . The laser ignition system of any one of claim 2 , wherein the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted.
10 . The laser ignition system of claim 1 , wherein the laser passing through the laser diffusion part causes local combustion in the large-caliber artillery propellant.
11 . The laser ignition system of claim 10 , wherein the laser passing through the laser diffusion part maintains the combustion for the large-caliber artillery propellant, and when the combustion gas in the gun barrel reaches temperatures and pressures sufficient to ignite remaining propellant, combustion proceeds in both longitudinal and radial directions in the center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant.
12 . The laser ignition system of claim 1 , wherein an ignition tube is installed on the large-caliber artillery propellant, and the ignition tube is positioned in the center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant.
13 . The laser ignition system of claim 12 , wherein gunpowder ignited by energy of the laser to generate the combustion gas is applied to an inside of the ignition tube.
14 . The laser ignition system of claim 12 , wherein whether the ignition tube ignites is determined by an irradiance.
15 . The laser ignition system of claim 1 , wherein an inner diameter portion is formed at a rear of the breech block, and the inner diameter portion is formed to a predetermined depth at which a front of the gun barrel is inserted to prevent leakage of the combustion gas into an installation gap between the breech block and the gun barrel.
16 . A laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery propellant, comprising: a laser generator configured to generate a laser; a gun barrel in which combustion gas is generated by combustion; a breech block having a rear inner diameter portion into which a front of the gun barrel is inserted, thereby preventing leakage of the combustion gas to an installation gap of the gun barrel; a laser diffusion part mounted behind a through hole of the breech block; a laser shape conversion part positioned at a front of the laser diffusion part and converting a circular shape of the laser into a linear shape using a Powell lens; a laser transmission part positioned at a rear of the laser diffusion part and sealing propellant combustion gas generated in the gun barrel while transmitting the converted laser received from the laser shape conversion part; and a large-caliber artillery propellant mounted inside the gun barrel, formed with a center through hole, and causing local combustion using the converted laser passing through the laser diffusion part.
17 . The laser ignition system of claim 16 , wherein the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted, and an outer diameter of the laser transmission part is formed to be equal to or larger than an inner diameter of a center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant.
18 . The laser ignition system of claim 16 , wherein, when the combustion gas in the gun barrel reaches temperatures and pressures sufficient to ignite remaining propellant, combustion proceeds in both longitudinal and radial directions in the center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant.
19 . The laser ignition system of claim 16 , wherein an ignition tube is installed on the large-caliber artillery propellant, and whether the ignition tube ignites is determined by an irradiance, and wherein when a minimum irradiance required for igniting the ignition tube is E, the irradiance of the circular laser before passing through the laser shape conversion part is 4LE/πd or more, where diameter of the laser is d and an inner length of the ignition tube is L.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0074808, filed Jun. 10, 2024, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laser ignition system, and more specifically, to a laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery, which is capable of providing a linear laser shape to quickly ignite a cylindrical artillery propellant with a hollow center. 2. Description of Related Art Recent large-caliber artillery propellants have been developed in a cylindrical shape with a hollow center, and these propellants are characterized by being capable of efficiently increasing a speed of a shell through even combustion in longitudinal and radial directions when ignited. In addition, research for replacing a primer in a method of igniting an artillery propellant using a laser is being recently conducted in a firearm weapon system, and this is because the use of the artillery propellant ignition method using the laser does not need a consumable primer and thus the operability of the firearm weapon system can be greatly improved. In this case, the firearm weapon system is a weapon system for converting the chemical energy of an artillery propellant into the kinetic energy of a shell to suppress distant enemies. For example, when a large-caliber artillery propellant with a hollow center is combined with a laser ignition device, it is necessary to resolve a disadvantage of not being capable of igniting the large-caliber artillery propellant with a hollow center due to the characteristics of the laser ignition device that provides a circular shape of a linearly moving laser. As one method for resolving this, a direction in which a laser linearly moves may be adjusted so that the energy of the laser may be transmitted to an inner wall of a cylindrical large-caliber artillery propellant with a hollow center. Matters described above in the background art are intended to help understanding of the background of the disclosure and may include matters not related to the related art already known to those skilled in the art to which this technology pertains. However, even when conventional laser ignition devices provide a circular laser shape, energy is transmitted only to one point of the inner wall of the large-caliber artillery propellant, and thus it takes a long time for the energy to be transmitted to the entire large-caliber artillery propellant. Therefore, there is a need for a large-caliber artillery laser ignition system that can resolve the disadvantage of the conventional laser ignition device. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, the present invention considering this point is directed to providing a laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery, which shortens the time for energy to be transmitted to the entire cylindrical large-caliber artillery propellant with a hollow center by changing a circular shape of a linearly moving laser into a linear laser shape and particularly, by changing a circular shape of a linearly moving laser generated from a laser source into an energy-efficient shape. A laser ignition system for a large-caliber artillery of the present invention for achieving the above object includes a breech block coupled to a gun barrel to seal combustion gas generated by combustion, a laser transfer part mounted in front of an inclined through hole of the breech block to transfer a laser of a laser generator to an artillery, a laser diffusion part mounted behind the through hole of the breech block, and a large-caliber artillery propellant mounted inside the gun barrel and formed with a center through hole to fire a shell. Preferably, a laser shape conversion part including a Powell lens is mounted at a front of the laser diffusion part to change a circular shape of the laser received from the laser transfer part into a linear shape, and a laser transmission part is mounted at a rear of the laser diffusion part to seal propellant combustion gas generated in the gun barrel while transmitting the converted laser received from the laser shape conversion part. Preferably, the laser diffusion part is formed so that the rear at which the laser shape transmission part is mounted is wider than the front at which the laser shape conversion part is mounted, and an outer diameter of the laser transmission part is formed to be equal to or larger than an inner diameter of a center through hole of the large-caliber artillery propellant. Preferably, the laser passing through the laser diffusion part causes local combustion in the large-caliber artillery propellant, in particular, the laser passing through the laser diffusion part maintains the combustion for the large-caliber artillery propellant, and when the combustion gas fills the inside of the gun barrel at a high temperature and high pressure, evenly combusts