Granted Patent B2

US 8,635,937 · App. 12/875,797 · Granted Jan 28, 2014

Abstract

Claims (27)

1. A system for launching munitions from a vehicle, the system comprising:

a launcher coupled to a vehicle and configured to retain a munition during transport by a vehicle, the launcher configured to route electrical signals from the vehicle to the munition;

the launcher having a first point of contact and the munition having a second point of contact on the body of the munition; and

a flexible, peel-away connector extending in the launch direction from a first end portion to a second end portion, the peel-away connector coupled to the launcher at the first point of contact, the peel-away connector comprising a detachable adhesive film for adhesively coupling to at least a portion of the munition at the second point of contact, wherein the first end portion of the peel-away connector is adhesively attached to the munition at the second point of contact, and the second end portion is coupled to the launcher, the second end portion being folded back over the adhesively attached first end portion in a direction opposite the launch direction and being not adhesively attached to the munition, the peel-away connector configured to:

route electrical signals from the launcher to the munition during transport, wherein the munition receives the electrical signals at the second point of contact; and

adhesively decouple completely from the body of the munition at the second point of contact by peeling back in a direction opposite the launch direction toward the launcher as the munition exits from the launcher during a launch.

2. The system according to claim 1 , the peel away connector comprising a polyimide adhesive film or an epoxy adhesive film.

3. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle comprises an unmanned vehicle, an aircraft vehicle, a land vehicle, or a watercraft vehicle.

4. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the munition is a precision-guided munition (PGM), a smart bomb, a smart weapon, a guided bomb unit (GBU), a guided missile, or a smart rocket.

5. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the peel-away connector further comprises at least one embedded conductor configured to conduct the electrical signals between the first contact point of the launcher and the second contact point of the munition.

6. A launcher, comprising:

a launch tube configured to retain a munition during transport by a vehicle;

the launch tube having a first point of contact and the munition having a second point of contact on the body of the munition;

a flexible, peel-away connector extending in the launch direction from a first end portion to a second end portion, the peel-away connector coupled to the launcher at the first point of contact, the peel-away connector comprising a detachable adhesive film for adhesively coupling to at least a portion of the munition at the second point of contact, wherein the first end portion of the peel-away connector is adhesively attached to the munition at the second point of contact, and the second end portion is coupled to the launcher, the second end portion being folded back over the adhesively attached first end portion in a direction opposite the launch direction and being not adhesively attached to the munition, the peel-away connector configured to:

route electrical signals from the launcher to the munition during transport, wherein the munition receives the electrical signals at the second point of contact; and

adhesively decouple completely from the body of the munition at the second point of contact by peeling back in a direction opposite the launch direction toward the launcher as the munition exits from the launcher during a launch.

7. The launcher according to claim 6 , the peel-away connector comprises a polyimide adhesive film or an epoxy adhesive film.

8. The launcher according to claim 6 , wherein the vehicle comprises an unmanned vehicle, an aircraft vehicle, a land vehicle, or a watercraft vehicle.

9. The launcher according to claim 6 , wherein the munition is a precision-guided munition (PGM), a smart bomb, a smart weapon, a guided bomb unit (GBU), a guided missile or a smart rocket.

10. A method for launching a munition from a launcher coupled to a vehicle, the method comprising:

coupling a flexible, peel-away connector to a first contact point of the launcher;

adhering the flexible, peel-away connector comprising an elongated ribbon extending from a first end portion to a second end portion and a detachable adhesive film to the body of the munition at a second point of contact; wherein the first end portion of the peel-away connector is adhesively attached to the munition at the second point of contact, and the second end portion is coupled to the launcher, the second end portion being folded back over the adhesively attached first end portion in a direction opposite the launch direction and being not adhesively attached to the munition,

routing electrical signals between the first contact point of the launcher to the second contact point of the munition during transport; and

adhesively decoupling completely from the body of the munition at the second point of contact by peeling back in a direction opposite the launch direction toward the launcher as the munition exits from the launcher during a launch.

11. The method according to claim 10 , the peel-away connector comprises a polyimide adhesive film or an epoxy adhesive film.

12. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the peel-away conductor comprises at least one embedded conductor, and wherein the method further comprises conducting the electrical signals between the first contact point of the launcher and the second contact point of the munition via the at least one embedded conductor.

13. The method according to claim 10 , wherein coupling the peel-away connector to the first contact point of the launcher comprises coupling the peel-away connector to an adaptor or interface of the launcher.

Assignments (9)