Patent ID: 6895850

Claim:
A pressure-released brake assembly for restraining a projectile in a launch tube prior to launch and for automatically releasing the projectile at launch, said brake assembly comprising: a housing configured for fixed attachment to a projectile, said housing defining a plurality of cavities therein, each of said plurality of cavities having a longitudinal axis that extends substantially radially out from the projectile when said housing is attached thereto wherein at least two of said plurality of cavities are angled towards one another; a brake pad adjoining said housing and having a plurality of holes formed therethrough with each of said plurality of holes aligned with one of said plurality of cavities in said housing; a pin sized to loosely fit in each of said plurality of holes and at least a portion of each of said plurality of cavities; and means for positioning each said pin to reside partially in one of said plurality of holes and partially in a correspondingly aligned one of said plurality of cavities wherein said brake pad is coupled to said housing and wherein, when a launch pressure is generated in the launch tube, said launch pressure acts on each said pin via said plurality of holes causing said means for positioning to fail whereby each said pin is driven out of engagement with said brake pad so that said brake pad is uncoupled from said housing.