SMALL CALIBER MUNITIONS MANEUVERING USING PIEZO-ACTUATED COMPLIANT MECHANISMS

Controlled guidance of small-caliber gun-fired munitions is currently limited by the severity of inertial loads from the launch event, which can be 60,000g in small-caliber munitions. There is a need for more robust mechanical guidance-control systems in small-caliber munitions that can provide substantial control authority while being able to survive extreme launch loads.Compliant mechanisms, activated by piezoelectric actuators, can be integrated into a fin-stabilized .50 caliber bullet without the vulnerabilities of conventional actuators. Through the elimination of moving parts, pins, and joints, these piezo-actuated compliant control surfaces (PACCS) are equipped to survive high launch loads. These same characteristics also produce a zero-backlash system that can be precisely driven at very high rates to give the munitions excellent controllability. The proposed Phase I program will produce a structurally-optimized PACCS design for use in a notional .50-caliber bullet. This design could significantly augment the state of the art in guided munitions technologies and is scalable for munitions of different sizes.