May 13, 2025

US12298115 - Vacuum insulated warhead

A vacuum insulation layer is wrapped around the length of a warhead to thermally insulate the warhead from fire or aerodynamic heating. The vacuum insulation layer may be integrally formed into the warhead casing or provided as a sleeve that may be permanently or removably positioned about the warhead casing. The vacuum insulation layer is held under vacuum with a pressure of less than 25 Torr and a thermal conductivity Tcond_vac of less than one-third of the thermal conductivity of air Tcond_air.

Assignee: Raytheon Company
Inventors: John Rascon, John Regis Leach, Jonathan Charles French, Manuel E. Gonzales
Filing date: 2023-09-21

The patent describes a warhead featuring a vacuum insulation layer that thermally protects it from fire and aerodynamic heating, utilizing a casing with an annular void space maintained under vacuum. This innovative design aims to enhance the performance and safety of the warhead by reducing thermal conductivity significantly.

Claim 1

A warhead, comprising: an explosive material positioned inside a warhead casing; and a vacuum insulated casing including inner and outer walls defining an annular void space around a length of the warhead casing and explosive material, wherein the annular void space is held under vacuum with a pressure of less than 25 Torr and a thermal conductivity Tcond_vac of less than one-third of the thermal conductivity of air Tcond_air to form a vacuum insulation layer around the length of the warhead casing and explosive material. an explosive material positioned inside a warhead casing; and a vacuum insulated casing including inner and outer walls defining an annular void space around a length of the warhead casing and explosive material, wherein the annular void space is held under vacuum with a pressure of less than 25 Torr and a thermal conductivity Tcond_vac of less than one-third of the thermal conductivity of air Tcond_air to form a vacuum insulation layer around the length of the warhead casing and explosive material.

Google Patents

https://patents.google.com/patent/US12298115

USPTO PDF

https://image-ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/12298115