Patent ID: 7147181

Claim:
A canard fin unit suitable for attachment to an artillery projectile having an aerodynamic outer shape, the fin unit comprising: a plurality of canard fins which are each capable of deployment from a retracted position within the aerodynamic outer shape into a deployed position, wherein each of the plurality of canard fins is located outside the aerodynamic outer shape after the artillery projectile has been launched; a plurality of swivel arms each arranged along a longitudinal direction of the artillery projectile and coupled to an associated one of the plurality of canard fins so that each of the plurality of canard fins is individually pivotable on the associated swivel arm about a control shaft that is arranged in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction of the artillery projectile and supported by the swivel arm; a plurality of control arms, each of which is coupled to a respective one of the plurality of swivel arms, wherein each of the plurality of control arms is aligned transversely to a surface area of an associated canard fin; and a plurality of operating rods, each of said plurality of operating rods being operably connected to a respective one of the plurality of control arms, wherein, when the associated canard fin is in the deployed position, said each of said plurality of operating rods is displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the projectile to effect a control function of the projectile, wherein each of the plurality of swivel arms are supported at one end thereof in a manner that allows each of the plurality of swivel arms to rotate about an associated swivel shaft arranged transversely to the longitudinal direction of the artillery projectile and perpendicular to said control shaft, and wherein a movement pattern of each of the plurality of swivel arms comprises rotating the associated one of the plurality of canard fins outward from the retracted position within the aerodynamic outer shape into the deployed position.