US3362293A - Round feeding mechanism for automatic guns - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 9, 1968 E. w. JAFVERT 3,

ROUND FEEDING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC GUNS Filed Feb. 15, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN'KOR. EB/K W/LA ELM JAIN/R7- BY Mm hm! mm A 1- TQRNE rs Jan. 9, 1968 E. w. JAFVERT 3,362,293-

ROUND FEEDING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC GUNS Filed Feb. 15, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. v ERIK W/L'HELM \JAFVERT QMA E. w. JAFVERT 3,362,293

ROUND FEEDING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC GUNS Jan. 9, 1968 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 15, 1966 INVENTOR. EE/K W/L HELM d/IF'VEET A-rramvsy v Jan. 9, 1968 Filed Feb. 15, 1966 E. W. JAFVERT ROUND FEEDING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC GUNS 4 Sheets-$heet 4 INVENTOR.

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Patented Jan. 9, 1968 3,362,293 ROUND FEEDENG MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC GUNS Erik Wilhelm Jiifvert, Karlskoga, Sweden, assignor to Aktiebolaget Bolors, Bofors, Sweden Filed Feb. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 527,592 Claims priority, application Sweden, Mar. 2, 1965, 2,7 03/ 65 7 Claims. (Cl. 89-33) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A round feeding mechanism for an automatic gun in which rounds in a compartment of the gun mechanism are successively fed downwardly and discharged at the lower end of the compartment by the pressure exerted upon the rounds by said force generating means in the compartment. The rate of discharge of the rounds from the compartment is controlled by gating means. Discharge is effected in two steps, one being carried out during recoil movement of the gun and the other during recuperation of the gun.

The present invention is related to a round feeding mechanism for automatic guns, in particular anti-aircraft automatic guns, for feeding rounds in a direction perpendicular to their longitudinal direction from a round compartment, which is located at the one side of the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun and which can hold a single vertical stack of rounds lying one above the other with their longitudinal directions substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the barrel, to a position in the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun. Said last-mentioned position can then be either a ramming position in the rear prolongation of the barrel, from which ramming position the round can be pushed into the loading chamber in the breech ring of the gun by the ramming mechanism, or an intermediate position, which is located straight above the ramming position and from which the round can be pushed downwards into the ramming position by a special round feeding mechanism.

Earlier anti-aircraft automatic guns are generally provided only with a single vertical round compartment, which is located in the same vertical plane as the barrel of the gun straight above the ramming position and from which the rounds can consequently be fed directly doWnwards into the ramming position. Such a design means of course that the gun be loaded with only a comparatively small number of rounds. It is therefore desired that the round magazine of the gun can be arranged at the side of the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun, as it will then be possible to provide the gun with two round magazines located on opposite sides of the gun and each one of these round magazines can then comprise one or several vertical round compartments disposed side by side. In this way it will be possible to load the gun with a substantially larger number of rounds than earlier. Even if each one of the'two round magazines located on opposite sides of the gun comprises only one round compartment, the number of rounds which can be loaded into the gun will obviously be twice as large as earlier. Furthermore, it will be possible to load different types of ammunition in the two rounds magazines, whereby it becomes possible to choose and change the type of ammunition rapidly during fire.

A round compartment located at the side of the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun causes, however, certain problems with respect to the feeding of the rounds from the round compartment to the ramming position. From the discharge opening of the round magazine, normally the lower end of the round compartment, the round must be moved over a certain distance in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the round and to the vertical plane containing the barrel, if the round is to be brought into said vertical plane either directly to the ramming position or to an intermediate position straight above the ramming position. The time available for this traverse feeding of the round is the time from the moment when the recoil movement of the barrel starts to the moment during the recuperation of the barrel, when the ramming of the round is to be started. At a high firing rate for the gun this time becomes very short and furthermore the round cannot be moved into the vertical plane containing the barrel at an arbitrary moment during this period of time. During part of this period of time the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun is occupied by the empty shell being ejected from the breech ring during the recoil movement of the gun. In a gun provided with a round magazine located at the side of the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun the rounds are normally not fed from the round magazine directly to the ramming position but to an intermediate position straight above the ramming position. In this case, however, the down-feeding mechanism for the down-feeding of the rounds from the intermediate position to the ramming position will during a substantial part of the above-mentioned period of time be in such a position that it obstructs the feeding of a new round to the intermediate position from the round compartment. The feeding mechanism for feeding the rounds from the round magazine to the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun must consequently be very fast and also very accurate with respect to the moment at which the rounds are moved into the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun.

Object of the present invention is therefore to provide a simple and reliable round feeding mechanism for automatic guns for feeding rounds from a round magazine, which is located at the one side of the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun and which comprises a single vertical round compartment holding a vertical stack of rounds lying one above the other with their longitudinal directions substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the barrel of the gun, to a position in the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun. The round feeding mechanism according to the invention comprises means, preferably spring means, exerting a permanent downwards pressure on the rounds in the round compartment, a rotatable shaft mounted adjacent the lower, downwards open end of the round compartment substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the rounds in the compartment, two star-wheels having spaces between their arms corresponding to the outer diameter of the rounds and being mounted on said shaft with one arm on each star-Wheel projecting into the lower portion of the round compartment beneath and in the way of the lowermost round in the round compartment, whereby one round at a time can be discharged from the round compartment by rotation of the star-wheels and the starwheel shaft about one pitch angle at a time. The round feeding mechanism comprises further rotation checking means for the star-wheel shaft including two, alternatively releasable ratchet and stop devices, each of said ratchet and stop devices having a number of circumferentially evenly spaced stop positions corresponding to the number of arms of the star-wheels and the stop positions of the one ratchet and stop device being circumferentially offset relative to the stop positions of the other ratchet and stop device, and release control means for said ratchet and stop devices actuated by a movable cam path to connected to the recoiling system of the gun for releasing one of said ratchet and stop devices during the recoil movement of the gun and the other ratchet and stop device during the recuperation of the gun.

With the feeding mechanism according to the invention the feed movement of a new round from the round compartment to the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun will consist of two separate, accurately defined feed steps, the first of which is performed during the recoil movement of the gun and the second during the recuperation. In this way the entire period of time available is used for the feeding of the round, as this is started already during the recoil movement, and it is at the same time made certain that the round is not moved into the vertical plane containing the barrel until this is possible, i.e., at the end of the recuperation of the gun. The round feeding mechanism according to the invention is also comparatively simple in design.

In order to make it possible to feed the rounds manually from the round compartment, for instance in order to empty the round compartment or in order to feed the first round out of the round compartment after the loading of the gun, the round feeding mechanism according to the invention comprises preferably a manually operable coupling between the release control means for the rotation checking means of the star-wheel shaft and the cam path connected to the recoiling system of the gun, so that the release control means can be disconnected from said cam path by means of said manually operable coupling. The round feeding mechanism is then also provided with a manually movable cam path for actuating the release control means, when said release control means are disconnected from the first mentioned cam path connected to the recoiling system of the gun.

In the following the invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which by way of example an embodiment of a round feeding mechanism according to the invention is shown for an anti-aircraft automatic gun, in which the rounds are fed by the round feeding mechanism according to the invention from the round compartment to an intermediate position located in the vertical plane containing the barrel of the gun straight above the ramming position and which the rounds are fed from this intermediate position to the ramming position by a special downfeeding mechanism of the type described in detail in our co-pending patent application 475,939 issued as Patent 3,222,636 on May 30. 1967. As already mentioned the invention can, however, also be used in automatic guns of the type, in which the rounds are fed from the round compartment by a round feeding mechanism according to the invention directly to the ramming position.

In the drawing FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 show the round feeding mechanism according to the invention in perspective and partially in section seen from the front and from the left side of the gun.

FIG. 1 shows the round feeding mechanism in its neutral position, whereas FIG. 2 shows the round feeding mechanism at the beginning of a feed movement controlled by the recoil and recuperation movement of the barrel, and

FIG. 3 shows the round feeding mechanism at the beginning of a manually controlled feed movement.

FIG. 4 shows the round feeding mechanism and the round compartment schematically from the rear.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show a detail of the round feeding mechanism in section and in two different operating stages.

FIG. 7 shows another detail of the round feeding mechanism.

FIG. 1 shows the rear end of the barrel 1 of the gun and the breech ring 2. These parts are in the conventional manner located inside a recoil or breech casing not shown in the drawing. Within this breech casing there is a nonrecoiling loading tray 3 located in the rear prolongation of the barrel. This loading tray is assumed to be a socalled shift tongue, which is swingable about a shaft 4 in the breech casing between a lower position, in which the upper side of the shift tongue is serving as a ramming path for a round lying upon the shift tongue, and a somewhat raised position, in which the lower side of the shift tongue can serve as a guide path for an empty shell being ejected from the breech ring. Straight above the shift tongue 3, that is in the same vertical plane as the shift tongue and consequently also in the same vertical plane as the barrel of the gun, there is an intermediate or ready position, in which a round can be held by a lock device comprising two flaps 5, which are pivoted about two mutually parallel shafts and which are spring-loaded towards one another. The down-feeding of a round lying in the ready position, that is on the flaps 5, downwards onto the shift tongue 3, that is to the ramming position for the gun, is carried out during the recoil movement of the gun by a special down-feeding mechanism. This down-feeding mechanism is of the type described in detail in Patent 3,322,036, wherefore only the down-feeder arm 6, which is swingable in a vertical plane, and the down-feeder 7 mounted on the lower end of the downfeeder arm are schematically shown in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1 the down-feeder arm 6 and the down-feeder 7 are shown in the uppermost position, which they occupy at the end of the recuperation of the gun. During the recoil movement, when a round has been fired, the down-feeder arm 6 will, as described in detail in the abovementioned patent, swing in clockwise direction in FIG. 1 so that the down-feeder 7 pushes a round located in the ready position on the flaps 5 between the flaps downwards onto the shift tongue 3, whereafter during the recuperation of the barrel the down-feeder arm 6 is swung back in couner-clockwise direction, so that the down-feeder '7 is returned to its starting position. It should be noted, however, that the invention is not dependent upon this design of the down-feeding mechanism, but that the invention can be used in connection with mechanisms of any other design for the down-feeding of the rounds from the ready position to the ramming position.

Two mutually parallel vertical Walls of the breech casing are designated 8 and 9, respectively. These walls are located on opposite sides of the vertical plane containing the barrel 1 of the gun, the shift tongue 3 and the ready position, and the down-feeder arm 6 with the downfeeder 7 and the other parts of the down-feeding mechanism are consequently located between these walls. On the outside of the wall 8 there is a vertical round cornpartment 10, in which a vertical stack of rounds 11 lying one above the other with their longitudinal directions substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the barrel of the gun can be disposed. The wall 8 is forming one side wall in this round compartment. The outer side wall of the round compartment is designated with 12. The inner sides of the walls 8 and 12 facing the interior of the round compartment 19 are provided with guide ribs or similar means guiding the rounds. The lower end of the round compartment is open and in the upper portion of the round compartment there is a spring device 13 shown only schematically in FIG. 3, which exerts a permanent downwards pressure upon the rounds disposed in the round compartment.

In FIG. 3 the barrel 1, the breech ring 2, the shift tongue 3, the flaps 5, the down-feeder 7, the outer wall 12 of the round compartment and most of the rounds in the round compartment are omitted for the sake of clearness.

The rounds are to be fed one by one from the lower, open, discharge end of the round compartment 10 to the ready position on the flaps 5 in synchronism with the firing of the gun. The time available for the feeding of a new round to the ready position is consequently the interval from the moment, when the recoil movement of the barrel starts, to the end of the recuperation of the barrel. It can, however, not be permitted that the new round reaches the ready position until at the end of the recuperation movement, as during the time before that the down-feeder 7 will be in the Way of the new round. The mechanism according to the invention for feeding rounds from the round compartment 10 to the ready position on the flaps comprises two five-armed star- wheels 14 and 15 attached to a shaft 16 mounted for rotation in the breech casing. The shaft 16 is located close to the lower end of the round compartment in the same plane as the wall 8 between the round compartment and the downfeeder 7 and is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the rounds. The star-wheels 14 and have such a diameter that they project partially into the lower portion of the round compartment 10 in such a way that one arm 17a and 17b, respectively, of each star-wheel lies beneath and in the way of the lowermost round 11 in the round compartment 10. The spaces between the arms of the star-wheels correspond to the outer diameter of the rounds. In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawing the pitch angle of the star-wheels has such a value that between the lowermost round 11 in the round compartment 10 and the round 11b lying in the ready position on the flaps 5 there is one arm space of the star wheels 14 and 15, in which a round 11a already discharged from the round compartment 10 lies. This round 11a is kept in this position by the star- wheels 14 and 15 and is resting on a number of curved guide plates 18, which are stationarily mounted in the breech casing and extend from the lower edge of the outer wall 12 of the round compartment 10 to the adjacent flap 5. For each rotation of the star- wheels 14 and 15 about an angle corresponding to the pitch angle of the star-wheels a new round will consequently be moved forward to the ready position on the flaps 5 and a new round be discharged from the round compartment 10.

The rounds are fed forward under the pressure exerted by the spring device 13, whereas the rate of feed is determined by the rate, with which the star- wheels 14 and 15 are permitted to rotate. The rotation of the starwheels 14, 15 and thus the feeding of the rounds from the round compartment 10 is controlled by a rotation checking device for the star-wheel shaft 16. This rotation checking device comprises two crown tooth wheels 19 and fixed to the shaft 16 so as to face each other and a non-rotatable, but axially displaceable sleeve 21 disposed coaxially around the shaft 16 between the crown tooth wheels. Both ends of the sleeve 21 are provided with axially projecting teeth arranged to cooperate with the two fixed crown tooth wheels 19 and 20. The sleeve 21 can be displaced in axial direction so that either its one end cooperates with the crown tooth wheel 19 or its other end cooperates with the crown tooth wheel 20. The two crown tooth wheels 19 and 20 fixed to the star-wheel shaft 16 and the axially displaceable sleeve 21 form consequently together two ratchet and stop devices, each having five stop positions, that is the same number of stop positions as the number of arms on the star- wheels 14 and 15. As most readily seen in FIG. 7, the teeth of the crown tooth wheel 19 are somewhat offset circumferentially relative to the teeth of the crown tooth wheel 20, wherefore the ratchet and stop device formed by the crown tooth wheel 19 and the sleeve 21 has its stop positions offset circumferentially relative to the stop positions of the ratchet and stop device formed by the crown tooth wheel 20 and the sleeve 21. Within the sleeve 21 there is a coil spring 22 acting between the sleeve 21 and a fixed spring seat 23 on the shaft 16 so that the spring urges the sleeve 21 towards the crown tooth wheel 20. As can be seen in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the sleeve 21 is provided with an upwards projecting arm 22a. At the upper end of this arm a roller 23 is mounted. This roller is running in a groove 24 in a guide member 25 attached to the Wall 8 and this guide member 25 will consequently take up any torques transmitted to the sleeve 21 from the star-wheel shaft 16. The axial position of the sleeve 21 is determined by a fork 26, which has its two arms coupled to taps 27 on opposite sides of the sleeve 21 and which is pivoted about a shaft 28 mounted in the wall 8- perpendicularly to the star-wheel shaft 16. At the end of the shaft 28 projecting into the round compartment 10 the fork 26 is provided with an upwards pointing rocker lever 29, the upper end of which is coupled to a lever 30 attached to the one end of a shaft 31 mounted for rotation in the walls 8 and 9. As most readily seen in FIGS. 5 and 6, the shaft 30 carries an axially displaceable, but non-rotating tooth clutch member 32, which is kept in engagement by means of a coil spring 33 with a corresponding tooth clutch member 34 on a lever 35, which is rotatable on the shaft 31, so that the lever 35 is coupled through the tooth clutch 32, 34 to the shaft 31 and thus to the lever 30. The object of the tooth clutch 32, 34 will be further described in the following. The outer end of the lever 35 is provided with a roller 36 resting against the uper side of the down-feeder arm 6, which is serving as a movable cam path for the roller 36 and thus for the lever 35 for controlling the rotation checking device 19, 20, 21 and thus the star- wheels 14, 15 in dependence of the recoil and recuperation movements of the gun.

In the neutral position of the round feeding mechanism, shown in FIG. 1, the sleeve 21 is engaging the crown tooth wheel 19 and is kept in this position against the action of the spring 22 due to the fact that the roller 36 on the lever 35 is resting against the upper side of the downfeeder arm 6, wherefore the lever 35 and the shaft 31 and the lever 30 cannot be rotated in counter-clockwise direction in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, and the fork 26 can consequently not be rotated in clockwise direction, which would be necessary in order to disengage the sleeve 21 from the crown tooth wheel 19. A swingable locking lever 37 can by means of a control rod 38 be operated manually from the outside of the breech casing and is in the position shown in FIG. 1 cooperating with a recess on the lever 29 and locks in this position the round-feeding mechanism in the neutral position shown in FIG. 1. The object of this locking device is only to make it possible to ascertain that the round-feeding mechanism will not become operative unintentionally, for instance if the rounds are to be fed to the ready position from some other round magazine of the gun than the magazine shown in the drawing. When the rounds are to be fed from the round compartment 10, the locking lever 37 must, before the firing of the gun is started, be moved by means of the control rod 38 to the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in which position the round-feeding mechanism is unlocked and can start to operate.

When the gun is fired, the round-feeding mechanism described above will operate in the following manner. During the recoil movement of the barrel, when a round has been fired, the down-feeder arm 6 will, as already mentioned and as shown in FIG. 2, swing in clockwise direction so that the down-feeder 7 is moved downwards and pushes a round 1117, which has been fed to the ready position on the flaps 5 at an earlier stage, between the flaps 5 down onto the shift tongue 3. Due to the rotation of the down-feeder arm 6 in clockwise direction it will be possible for the lever 35 to rotate in counter-clockwise direction together with the shaft 31 and the lever 30 so that the rocking lever 29 and the fork 26 can be rotated in clockwise direction about the shaft 28. The spring 22 inside the sleeve 21 can consequently now displace the sleeve 21 towards the crown tooth wheel 20, whereby the sleeve 21 is disengaged from the crown tooth wheel 19. The downwards pressure exerted by the spring device 13 upon the rounds 11 in the round compartment 10 has hitherto been taken up by the arms 17a and 17b on the star- wheels 14 and 15, respectively, which are lying beneath the lowermost round 11 in the round compartment 10, but can now rotate the star-wheels and their shaft 16 in the direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. 2, that is in clockwise direction in FIG. 1, about a predetermined angle, until the rotation of the starwheels and the starwheel shaft is checked once more in that the teeth on the crown tooth wheel 20 engage the teeth on the adjacent end of the sleeve 21. During the recoil movement of the barrel the star- wheels 14 and 15 are consequently rotated about a certain angle, which is, however, smaller than the pitch angle of the star-wheels, whereby the round 11a and the rounds 11 in the round compartment 16 are fed forward a predetermined distance, which is, however, not long enough to move the round lin all the way to the ready position on the flaps 5. There is consequently no risk that the commenced feeding of a new round to the ready position will interfere with the downfeeding of the round 11b from the ready position to the shift tongue 3. During the subsequent recuperation of the barrel the down-feeder arm 6 is, as already described, swung back in counter-clockwise direction in FIG. 2, whereby the lever 35 is swung in clockwise direction together with the shaft 31 and the lever 30. Due to this the rocking lever 29 and the fork 26 are swung in counter-clockwise direction in FIG. 2 about the shaft 28, whereby the sleeve 21 is moved to the right in FIG. 7 against the action of the spring 22. The sleeve 21 is consequently disengaged from the crown tooth wheel 20 and brought back to its neutral position, in which it cooperates with the crown tooth wheel 19. When the crown tooth wheel 20 is disengaged by the sleeve 21, the shaft 16 and thus the star- wheels 14, 15 can be rotated again by the force from the spring de vice 13 in the round compartment 1t}, whereby the feeding of the round 11a to the ready position and the discharging of the lowermost round 11 from the round compartment 10 is continued. This feed movement is stopped, when the teeth on the crown tooth wheel 19 due to the rotation of the star-wheels and the star-wheel shaft engage the teeth on the adjacent end of the sleeve 21. The feeding of the rounds is consequently interrupted, when the star- wheels 14 and 15 have been rotated about exactly one pitch angle and thus when the round 11a has been moved forward to the ready position on the flaps 5. The complete feeding movement for a new round to the ready position is consequently divided in two separate, well defined steps, one of which is carried out during the recoil movement of the barrel, whereas the second step is carried out during the recuperation of the barrel. In the described embodiment of the invention the first feed step consists of a rotation of the star-wheels about an angle of 10 and the second feed step consists of a rotation of the star-wheels about the remaining 62 so that the star-wheels are rotated in total one fifth of one complete revolution, that is about one pitch angle. The invention is of course not limited to only this specific ratio between the magnitudes of the first and the second feed steps, but other ratios can of course be used in other embodiments of the invention.

In order to make it possible to empty the round compartment by hand it must be possible to control and drive the round feeding mechanism manually. The object of the previously described tooth clutch 32, 34 between the lever 35 and the shaft 31 is to make such a manual operation of the round feeding mechanism possible. By displacement of the tooth clutch member 32, which is axially displaceable on the shaft 31, to the left in FIGS. and 6, the shaft 31 and thus the round feeding mechanism is disconnected from the lever 35 and thus from the downfeeder arm 6. Such a disconnection is necessary, if the round feeding mechanism is to be manually controlled, as the down-feeder arm 6 is moving only when the gun is fired. The tooth clutch member 32 can be disengaged from the tooth clutch member 34 by means of a fork 39, which is pivoted about a shaft 4% stationarily mounted in the breech casing. When the fork 39 is pivoted in clockwise direction in FIGS. 5 and 6 so that the tooth clutch member 32 is disengaged from the tooth clutch member 34. a spring-loaded locking pin 41 mounted in the wall 9 will project from the wall 9 into a recess 42 in a short arm 43 attached to the tooth clutch member 34, whereby the 55 tooth clutch 34, which is rotatable on the shaft 31, is locked in its original position. In this way it is ascertained that the tooth clutch member 32 can be brought into engagement with the tooth clutch member 34, when the fork 39 is swung back to its original position.

The manual control means for the round feeding mechanism comprise a bar 44 mounted in guide members 45 on the outside of the wall 8 so as to be reciprocatable in its longitudinal direction. The bar 44 can be reciprocated from the outside of the breech casing by means of a handoperating bell-crank 46, which is coupled to the bar 44 through a link 4'7. When the round feeding mechanism is to be operated manually, for instance in order to empty the round compartment, the hand-operating bell-crank 46 is moved from its neutral position, shown in FIG. 1, in clockwise direction as shown in FIG. 3. The bar 44 is then moved to the left in FIG. 1 and a cam 48 on the upper edge of the bar 44 will then raise a pin 50 attached to the boss sleeve 49 of the fork 39. The outer end of the pin 5t) carries a roller 51 resting against the upper edge of the bar 44. Hereby the fork 39 is pivoted about its shaft 40 in the manner shown in FIG. 6, whereby the tooth clutch member 32 is disengaged from the tooth clutch member 34 so that the shaft 31 is disconnected from the lever 35. A roller 52 is mounted on the lower edge of the bar 44. When the bar 44 is moved to the left, this roller 52 will pass over a head 53 on the lever 36. When the roller 52 has passed the head 53 and the tooth clutch member 32 has been disengaged as described from the tooth clutch member 34, the lever 30 will be free to swing in counter-clockwise direction in FIG. 3, whereby the rocking lever 29 and the fork 26 can swing in clockwise direction in FIG. 3 and thus the sleeve 21 be moved by the spring 22 to the left so as to disengage the crown tooth wheel 19. Due to this the star- wheels 14 and 15 are rotated together with their shaft 16 in the manner already described about the angle corresponding to the first feed step, until the rotation is interrupted through the cooperation between the sleeve 21 and the crown tooth wheel 20. When the hand-operating bellcrank 46 is subsequently swung back in counter-clockwise direction in FIG. 3 to its neutral position and the bar 44 is returned to the right, the roller 52 on the bar 44 will press downwards against the head 53 on the lever 30 so that the lever is swung in counter-clockwise direction, whereby the rocking lever 29 and the fork 2.6 are swung in counter-clockwise direction and the sleeve 21 is returned towards the crown tooth wheel 19 and disengages then crown tooth wheel 20. As already described the star-wheels 1'4 and 15 will then together with their shaft 16 be rotated about the angle corresponding to the second feed step, until the rotation is interrupted through the cooperation between the sleeve 21 and the crown-tooth wheel 19. When the bar 44 is completely returned to its neutral position by means of the hand-operating bell-crank 46, the roller 51 leaves the cam 48 on the bar 44, whereby the fork 39 swings back to its neutral position shown in FIG. 5 and the tooth clutch member 32 is brought by the spring 33 into engagement with the tooth clutch member 34. By rocking the hand-operating bell-crank 46 once to and fro in the manner described above, one round has consequently been fed to the ready position on the flap 5, from which it can be removed by hand, if the round compartment 10 is to be emptied. At the same time a new round has of course been discharged from the round compartment.

What is claimed is:

i. A round feeding mechanism for an automatic gun having a vertical round compartment with a lower, downwards open discharge end for the rounds, said round compartment being fixed relative to the gun and located at the one side of the vertical plane including the barrel of the gun, and being capable of holding a vertical stack of rounds lying one above the other with their longitudinal directions substantially parallel to the longitudinal direc- 9 tion of the barrel of the gun, for feeding rounds from said compartment through said discharge end of the compartment to a position in said vertical plane, said feeding mechanism comprising force generating feed means exerting a permanent downwards pressure upon said rounds in said compartment for urging the rounds downwards in the compartment and out through said discharge end; passive gating means for controlling the rate of discharge of rounds through said discharge end, said gating means including two jointly rotatable star-wheels having spacings between their arms corresponding to the outer diameter of said rounds and mounted with one arm of each starwheel projecting into the lowermost portion of said compartment beneath and in the Way of the lowermost rounds in said compartment so as to be rotatable only due to the pressure exerted upon the rounds by said force generating feed means; a rotation impeding device for said starwheels including first and second alternatively inoperative ratchet and stop devices, each having a number of circumferentially evenly spaced stop positions corresponding to the number of arms of said star-wheels and the stop positions of said first ratchet and stop device being circumferentially offset relative to the stop positions of said second ratchet and stop device; control means for said ratchet and stop devices actuated by a movable first cam path coupled to the recoiling and recuperating system of the gun for inactivating said first ratchet and stop device during the recoil movement of the gun and inactivating said second ratchet and stop device during the recuperation of the gun.

2. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 1, comprising manually operated coupling means between said control means and said first cam path for disconnecting said control means from said first cam path, and a manually movable second cam path for actuating said release control means, when said control means is disconnected from said first cam path.

3. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein said star-wheels are mounted on a common rtatable shaft, and said first and second ratchet and stop devices include two crown tooth wheels mounted on said shaft spaced from each other and facing each other, an axially displaceable, non-rotating sleeve coaxially disposed wheels and having axially projecting teeth in both ends for alternatively engaging said crown tooth wheels and spring means urging said sleeve towards one of said crown tooth wheels.

4. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 3, wherein said control means comprise a double-armed rocker lever pivoted about an axis perpendicular to said star-wheel shaft and having its one end coupled to said axially displaceable sleeve and its opposite end coupled to a first lever attached to a shaft perpendicular to said star- Wheel shaft, a second lever being coupled to said shaft and cooperating with said first movable cam path coupled to the recoiling and recuperating system of the gun so as to be rotated in opposite directions during the recoil movement and the recuperation respectively of the gun.

5. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 4, wherein said manually operated coupling is arranged between said first and said second levers and said manually movable second cam path is cooperating with said first lever so as to rotate said first lever in opposite directions upon reciprocation of said manually movable second cam path.

6. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 5, wherein said manually operated coupling is operated by said manually movable second cam path.

7. A round feeding mechanism as claimed in claim 3, comprising manually operated locking means for locking said sleeve in a position engaging one of said crown tooth wheels.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 247,158 9/1881 Bruce 89-33 430,210 6/1890 Maxim 89-33 661,897 11/1900 Toll 89-33 1,310,053 7/1919 Brower 89-33 2,377,828 6/ 1945 Trotter et al. 89-33 2,591,896 4/1952 Walsh et a1. 89-33 2,756,637 7/ 1956 Maillard 89-33 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner. S. C. BENTLEY, Assistant Examiner.

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