Abstract: An active defense system against ballistic missiles. The system includes a fleet consisting of a plurality of flying platforms fitted with interceptor missiles which loiter over hostile territory. The flying platforms communicate with each other by suitable data links and at least some of them also communicate with a ground station located in friendly territory. The interceptor missiles have electro-optical seeking and tracking capabilities and the data which the missile generates while in captive flight are communicated to a processor of the associated flight platform for autonomous decision whether to launch or not to launch the missile.

Abstract: A mobile pneumatic apparatus for combined pneumatic and manual lifting and lowering of heavy objects. A vertically reciprocable carriage is mounted on a trolley and is linked by a hauling device to a vertically reciprocable pneumatic piston associated with gas flow controls and a weight sensor. The piston may optionally be coupled with hydraulic braking means.

Abstract: A device, particularly a missile, includes a body having an appendage, e.g., a wing, normally folded in an inoperative position and to be unfolded to an operative position when the body is accelerated in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the body. The appendage is pivotally mounted about a first pivot axis extending perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the body, and also about a second pivot axis extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the body. The center of gravity of the appendage is outwardly of the first pivot axis in the folded condition of the appendage such that the acceleration of the body produces a moment pivotting the appendage about the first pivot axis.

Abstract: A device for cleaning surfaces of chemical contaminants. The device comprises a hopper-like vessel having upper and lower chambers separated by a horizontal partition that constitutes the bottom of the upper chamber; an inverted U-shaped withdrawal tube located within said upper chamber and having intake and delivery legs which intake leg terminates short of the bottom of the upper chamber and which delivery leg opens into said lower chamber; an injector pipe having a nozzle located within the lower chamber and aligned therewith a delivery pipe having its intake end located within the lower chamber, the injection and delivery pipes producing together a pumping effect whereby the decontaminating agent is sucked from the upper chamber and a dispersion is formed in situ.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for determining the rate of rotation of a body rotating with an angular velocity .omega. about a first axis. The apparatus comprises a housing adapted to be fixed to the body so as to rotate with the angular velocity .omega. about the first axis and a mechanical system within the housing having more than two degrees of freedom. Electromagnetic drive coils are provided for applying a forced vibration to the mechanical system about a second axis substantially perpendicular to the first axis, thereby producing a Coriolis response along a third axis mutually perpendicular to the first and second axes, the forced vibration having a predetermined magnitude and a frequency which is constrained to lie within a predetermined range such that there is produced a coupling between the degrees of freedom whereby the magnitude of the Coriolis response is substantially insensitive to frequency.

Abstract: An electromagnetic pulse simulator includes two large-area electrodes mounted in spaced apart relation, and a high voltage generator electrically connected to the two electrodes to apply a high voltage between them. The electrical connection of the high-voltage generator and at least one of the electrodes comprises a plurality of electrical conductors in mutually-spaced relation with each conductor being enclosed within an insulating sheath filled with an insulating gas under pressure.

Abstract: A new two-axis accelerometer comprising a rotating body linked to the motor rotor via a flexure zone. In a first type the rotating mass is concentrated and the flexure zone permits the rotating mass to perform a transversal parallel shift. In a second type the rotating body is an inertia rotor and the flexure zone is an extension of the rotor shaft that embodies a flexible portion. In either type the rotating body/flexure zone combination has two degrees of flexing freedom with two different flexure coefficients in two mutually perpendicular directions both normal to the electric motor shaft. The accelerometer further comprises a deflector shaft coaxial with the rotor shaft and extending beyond the rotating body and associated with electro-optical measuring means and processor means for measuring linear acceleration components in said two mutually perpendicular directions.

Abstract: A composite protective body suitable, among others, for making protective garments comprises a pliable flat case with at least one panel of soft ballistic material, and an insert within the case. The insert is composed of a plurality of consituent bodies of glass or ceramic material. The constituent bodies of the insert are of axisymmetrical or centrosymmetrical shape and of a size commensurate with that of the kinetic missiles against which protection is to be afforded. The bodies are arranged in at least two superimposed layers in each of which the constituent bodies are spaced from each other by a distance smaller than the size of a body with each body in one layer bridging a gap between two bodies of the adjacent layer. Each constituent body of the insert is glued to all surrounding bodies by thermoplastic or thermosetting material.

Abstract: A sighting system for arming a gun mounted on a self-propelled platform. The system comprising a periscope with a collimator having a source of monochromatic light and a swivelling mirror, and in association therewith an auxiliary sighting system so devised that a reticle or spot is projected from the collimator simultaneously into the lines of sight of the gunner and the commander. The auxiliary sighting system comprises a first dichroic mirror or beam splitter facing the head mirror and a second dichroic mirror or beam splitter vertically removed from the first one so as to be located in the commander's field of vision; and means for transmitting light between these two dichroic mirrors or beam splitters.

Abstract: Protection of land vehicles such as tanks, armoured cars or the like against shaped charge projectiles. Protection is achieved by a cover member having suspended therefrom on the side that faces the substrate at least one explosive insert comprising an explosive layer sandwiched between two metal layers, such that when the element is mounted on the substrate the explosive insert remains distanced therefrom.

Abstract: A method of separating and feeding sheets from a stack comprises the steps of bringing a pick-up head into engagement with an intermediate portion of the top sheet of the stack while leaving the opposite ends of the sheet free, applying an air stream from each of the opposite sides of the stack and directed inwardly to impinge against the stack and to cause the free ends of the top sheets of the stack to separate from the underlying sheets, and moving the pick-up head with the picked-up top sheet away from the stack.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus includes an edge aligning device for aligning an edge of individually fed sheets with respect to an underlying table. A tray overlies the table and has an upper sheet-receiving surface for receiving the individually fed sheets. An aligning member mounted to overly the tray includes an aligning wall having a knife edge lightly engageable with the tray. The tray is reciprocated by a reciprocating drive through a forward stroke positioning the tray to receive a sheet on its sheet-receiving surface laterally of the knife edge, and a return stroke moving the sheet-receiving surface towards the knife edge to move the sheet thereon against the knife edge, thereby to align the sheet therewith, and then past the knife edge while further movement of the sheet is arrested by the knife edge, thereby permitting the sheet to drop onto the underlying table.

Abstract: A microstrip antenna comprises a first dielectric layer having a permittivity of 2.5-12.5 carrying the ground plane on one face and a feeder-resonator on the opposite face; a second dielectric layer thereover having a permittivity of 2.2-2.5 and carrying on its outer face a radiator electromagnetically coupled to the feeder-resonator; and spacing means spacing the second dielectric layer from the first a distance of up to seven times the thickness of the first, and providing a permittivity between the two dielectric layers which is approximately that of air. Matching of the antenna is obtained by varying the spacing between the two dielectric layers. The gain of the radiating element is better than 7.5 dbi for bandwidth of 15%. Sidelobe level is less than 15 dB in azimuth and elevation plan. The radiation pattern of the antenna is symmetric in both azimuth and elevation plan.

Abstract: A space-discharge electronic device is described, particularly useful as a flash X-ray tube, which device includes a cathode of planar shape and formed with a circular opening therethrough, and a target anode of conical shape and having a pointed tip at the end facing the cathode, the longitudinal axis of the target anode being normal to the plane of the cathode. The pointed tip of the target anode is located in the plane of the planar cathode at the center of its circular opening. When used as a flash X-ray tube, the target anode is made of a material which emits X-rays when impinged by the electrons from the cathode.