A weapons system including a mortar and a vehicle. The vehicle has a body including a side wall having an opening and a region constructed for receiving the mortar. The mortar includes a dividable tube having a lower tube section and a mechanism for pivotally mounting the lower tube section for movement about an essentially horizontal axis to a loading position in which it is aligned with the opening in the side wall for breech loading of the mortar. A mounting device is connected with the vehicle for mounting the mortar for movement between a traveling position in which the mortar is positioned to travel with the vehicle and a firing position in which the mortar is positioned to fire a projectile. The traveling position is delimited by the region provided in the side wall for receiving the mortar and the firing position is located on the ground in the vicinity of the vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a weapons system including a mortar 
fastened to the rear end of a vehicle, such as an armored vehicle, the 
mortar being lowerable by means of a lifting device fastened at the rear 
wall of the vehicle from a traveling position to a firing position on the 
ground in the vicinity of the vehicle, with the mortar in the firing 
position being mounted in a ball joint which is connected with a bottom 
plate, the system further including devices operable from the vehicle 
interior for making lateral and elevational adjustments. 
Such a weapons system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,818,781 where a 
mortar is mounted at the lower rear end of the interior of an armored 
vehicle, the breech of the mortar, in the travelling position, being 
mounted in a ball joint which is disposed on a lowerable platform and the 
frontal region of the mortar tube being mounted on two adjustable support 
arms. To lower the platform to the ground, two hydraulically operated 
telescopic carries are required. During the lowering process, the 
adjustable supports must be shifted backwards on rails disposed in the 
interior of the vehicle. The drawbacks of this arrangement are that an 
additional hydraulic assembly is required for raising and lowering the 
mortar, the crew is not protected during loading and the weapons systems 
requires a large amount of space in the vehicle. Moreover, steering in the 
lateral and elevational direction is complicated and time consuming 
because, for example, for lateral adjustment of the mortar, both support 
arms must be adjusted differently but simultaneously. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is an object of the present invention to provide a weapons system of the 
above-mentioned type in which the change from the traveling position into 
the firing position in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle and vice 
versa can be accomplished quickly and safely and loading of the ammunition 
units, as well as elevation and lateral adjustments of the mortar, are 
easily possible for the crew from a protected position. 
The above and other objects are accomplished according to the invention by 
the provision of a weapons system including: 
(a) a vehicle having a body including a side wall provided with a lower 
recess and defining an overhang with respect to the lower recess; 
(b) first and second wall portions attached to the body and defining an 
opening in the region of the lower recess, the opening being covered by 
the overhang to provide a covered loading passage for ammunition units; 
(c) a mortar including an upper tube portion disposed outside the side 
wall, a lower tube portion having a lower region and a ball joint with a 
cut-out section disposed at the lower region, a plate containing a socket 
for receiving a ball joint, the ball joint being mounted in the ball 
socket for allowing the lower tube portion to be pivoted, axis means 
defining a horizontal axis pivotally mounted in the cut-out section of the 
ball joint, bearings disposed on both sides of the lower tube portion, a 
housing for at least partially enclosing the lower tube portion in a 
firing position of the lower tube portion and having one end connected to 
the upper tube portion and another end connected, within the ball joint 
and via the bearings, with the axis means; 
(d) a lifting carriage including first and second members each being 
disposed at a respective one of the first and second wall portions and 
having pivot bearings fastened to the axis means, the first and second 
members defining a path which is disposed in the opening and which is 
slightly inwardly inclined with respect to the vehicle for guiding 
movement of the lower tube portion through the opening; 
(e) lifting means drivingly coupled to the carriage at the first wall 
portion for raising the mortar to a traveling position with respect to 
said vehicle and for lowering the mortar to a firing position with the 
plate resting on the ground in the vicinity of the vehicle; 
(f) lateral adjusting means disposed at the second wall portion for 
engaging the second member of the lifting means for laterally adjusting 
the mortar, the lateral adjusting means being operable from within the 
vehicle; 
(g) pivoting means including a first ring gear fixed to the lower tube 
portion, a first drive pinion operatively engaged with the first ring 
gear, and a first shaft mounted to the lifting carriage, drivingly 
connected to the first drive pinion and controllable from the interior of 
the vehicle for pivoting the lower tube portion between a loading position 
in which the lower tube portion is aligned with the opening for receiving 
an ammunition unit therethrough and a firing position in which the lower 
tube portion is aligned with the upper tube portion; 
(h) elevation adjusting means including a second ring gear fixed to the 
housing, a second drive pinion operatively engaged with the second ring 
gear, and a second shaft mounted to the lifting carriage, drivingly 
connected to the second drive pinion and controllable from the interior of 
the vehicle for adjusting the elevation of the upper tube portion; and 
(i) firing means contained within the ball joint and including a firing pin 
and a tensioning means operatively connected with the firing pin, the 
tensioning means being responsive to a pivoting of the lower tube portion 
into the loading position for automatically being placed into a state of 
tension and responsive to a pivoting of the lower tube portion into the 
firing position for releasing the state of tension and urging the 
tensioning means against the firing pin.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an armored vehicle 10 is provided at its rear 
with an overhang 12 which is defined on the exterior by an upper rear side 
wall 13 and at the underside by a lower rear side wall 13' which changes 
into the vehicle bottom 15. A recess 12' is formed which can be brought 
into a communicating connection with the interior 14 via an opening 16. 
The opening 16 is defined by a rear wall 11 and a front wall 11' parallel 
thereto. A path 18 parallel to walls 11 and 11' and in the central plane 
of opening 16 is slightly inclined with respect to the vehicle 10 and 
forms an angle of approximately 80.degree. with the plane of the bottom 
surface 54. A mortar 19 having a housing 24 is provided with a two-part 
tube having an upper tube section 26 and a lower tube section 28. The 
latter is arranged to be pivotal with respect to the upper tube section 26 
about a shaft 32 defining an axis 32'. The shaft 32 traverses a ball joint 
30 at the lower end 29 of the tube section 28. Through a cover 44, the 
ball joint 30 is mounted in a ball socket 42 in a bottom plate 40. 
In a recess 31 in the ball joint 30 there is disposed a firing pin 34 
equipped with a firing pin spring 38 and a tensioning device 39 for 
cooperating with the firing pin spring 38 as described below. A bore 36 
provides a passage into the interior 28' of the lower tube section 28 for 
the firing pin 34. 
The housing 24 of the mortar 19 is provided with a first rear section 24' 
and a second rear section 24". Both housing sections 24' and 24" are 
designed to serve as a lifting carriage for the mortar. Section 24' is 
connected, via a toothed strip 17, with a device 46 disposed at the wall 
11' for raising and lowering the mortar 19. For the sake of clarity, only 
the pinion 47 of this device 46 is shown. Section 24" is connected with a 
traversing device 48 disposed at the wall 11, of which, for reasons of 
clarity, only a pinion 49 driven via a shaft 49' is shown. 
The mortar 19 is shown in its traveling position in a dot-dash illustration 
marked with the letter "T". From this position, it can be lowered by means 
of device 46 in the direction of arrow 60 into the firing position in 
which it is shown in solid lines. The bottom plate 40 then rests on the 
bottom surface 54 and occupies a region 56 thereon which is at least in 
part covered by the overhang 12 at the tail of the vehicle 10. 
An elevation adjustment device 50 (FIG. 2) and its drive pinion 51 as well 
as a member 50' in form-locking connection therewith are shown in the 
region near the bottom of housing 24. Member 50' is fastened to housing 24 
and thus moves as if part of the upper tube section 26 and, on the side of 
drive pinion 51 (FIG. 2), member 50' is designed as a ring gear. In the 
region of shaft 32, member 50' is designed as a form-locking bearing 50" 
disposed on both sides of lower tube section 28. Rear housing sections 24' 
and 24" serve as a lifting carriage and have pivot bearings 24'" which are 
fastened to the exterior of shaft 32 within a cut-out section of ball 
joint 30. At the rear end 29 of the lower tube section 28, a pivoting 
device 52 for the tube section 28, the latter constituting a swivel 
breech, is connected with a drive pinion 53 and with a ring gear 52' 
form-lockingly connected therewith. 
Drive pinion 51 of elevation adjustment device 50 is driven by means of a 
shaft 51' mounted in the lifting carriage and extending into the interior 
14 of vehicle 10. A shaft 53' for drive pinion 53 of pivoting device 52 is 
also mounted in the lifting carriage and likewise extends into the 
interior 14 of vehicle 10. 
Ring gears 50' and 52' have different radii of curvature with respect to 
axis 32' so that, within the possible elevational setting of the mortar, 
the swivel breech i.e., lower tube section 28, can pivot from the loading 
position back to the respective firing position. Ring gear 50' has a space 
in its interior region for the pivoting movement of lower tube section 28 
(FIG. 3). By arranging shaft 32 and bearing 24'" and 50" within the 
cut-out section of ball joint 30, mortar 19 can be adjusted in every 
elevational position over the pivoting range defined in FIG. 4 by guide 
slots 11" and 11'" through which shafts 51' and 53' pass, and also 
separately adjusted in the lateral direction by means of lateral 
adjustment device 48. 
Referring to FIG. 1, the mortar 19 is disposed in the firing position 
identified as "F1". To load it, the lower tube section 28 is pivoted in 
the direction of arrow 66 by means of the pivoting device 52, 52', 53 and 
53' operated from the interior 14 until the bore axis 22 of the lower tube 
section 28 lies in the path 18 defined by a central plane of opening 16. 
This causes the tensioning device 39 (FIG. 2) to tension the firing pin 
spring 38 and cock the firing pin 34. From the interior 14, a unit of 
ammunition (not shown) is now inserted into the lower tube section 28 and 
the latter is pivoted in the direction of arrow 68 until it is again flush 
with the upper tube section 26 and forms a gas-tight seal by known means 
which need not be described in detail. By actuating the firing device, 
described in greater detail below, shot development is initiated. 
Referring to FIGS. 5 to 8, the tensioning process and unlocking of firing 
pin 34 is effected automatically by the pivoting movement of lower tube 
portion 28 which forms the breech. During tensioning, firing pin spring 38 
is pretensioned by means of a pretensioning lever 74 fastened to firing 
pin 34. Pretensioning lever 74 is guided by a lifting cam 77 formed by a 
groove 75 disposed in recess 31 of the ball joint 30, until a block 70, 
charged by a spring 71, and held in holders 72 at the cylinder of 
tensioning device 39, engages in a notch 69 of the firing pin and retains 
the latter until, in the firing position, block 70 contacts an abutment 73 
also disposed in recess 31 and releases firing pin 34. In the firing 
position, pretensioning lever 74 snaps, under tension of spring 38, from 
position 78" and moves beyond starting position 78' which it had occupied 
at the beginning of the tensioning of spring 38, and urges toward position 
78 within a groove 76 of shaft 32 so that firing pin 34, after passing 
through the bores in axis 32 and ball joint 30, can initiate firing. 
Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, lowering the barrel, as shown for example 
at "F2", is effected via the elevation adjusting device 50, 50' and 51, 
which is operated from the interior 14. The traversing device 48 is also 
operated from the interior 14 so that the operating personnel is afforded 
protection by the side wall 13, 13' and the upper cover 13". By lowering 
the mortar into the firing position on the bottom surface 54, forces 
developed during firing are not introduced into the vehicle 10; 
consequently, the vehicle may be designed as a very light-weight vehicle. 
Lowering from the traveling position "T" into the firing position "F1" 
along a straight line over a range of 80.degree. advantageously assures 
not only very quick taking of position and changing of position but also 
enables loading of the mortar 19 from the interior 14. 
It will be understood that the above description of the present invention 
is susceptible to various modifications, changes and adaptations, and the 
same are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of 
equivalents of the appended claims.