Gun Barrel Instrumentation Port Drilling

Quality instrumentation is crucial to the success of any live-fire ballistic program. Instrumentation requirements typically include pressure transducers, thermocouples, accelerometers and other measurement devices dependant on the needs of the test program. Proper installation of these instrumentation ports requires great precision during the machining process.

When instrumentation is to be installed in large-caliber gun tubes, such as cannon and artillery, transducer manufacturers suggest using a large-diameter adapter to hold the transducer. While an adapter makes it easier to precisely machine the instrumentation port (in a mill, for example), the adapter requires a very large hole (often 3/4-inch or larger) to be bored through the wall of the gun tube. A large through-hole will damage any protective plating on the bore surface, such as chrome, which will cause accelerated wear around the transducer, reducing the useful life of the barrel. Also, it is often impossible to remove the adapters once they have been in the gun during live fire testing.

At Veritay, we believe that minimal intrusion through the bore surface is the best way to install instrumentation. Because of this, we have developed the techniques and equipment that allow us to precisely machine instrumentation ports directly into the gun tube, eliminating the need for large adapters.

Each instrumentation location is mapped using an ultrasonic transducer to ensure accurate measurement of the tube wall thickness and to locate the transducer in the center of a rifled groove. Our precision portable drilling equipment then is mounted securely onto the barrel itself (see photos). This enables precise instrumentation ports to be drilled directly into the barrel, to provide the highest quality ports possible. Our pressure transducer installations typically only require a 0.089-inch diameter through hole, dramatically increasing barrel life and improving data quality.

Our personnel provide on-site instrumentation machining at your facility using our precision portable drilling equipment. Barrels can also be shipped to our Buffalo, NY location for instrumentation port installation. Typical instrumentation ports for ballistic testing include:

• Pressure Transducers
  • PCB Piezotronics
  • Kistler
  • Yuma
• Temperature
  • Veritay Type-K Fast Response Thermocouple
  • Veritay Type-K Slow Response Thermocouple
• Custom Instrumentation
  • Send us your port requirements

Our unique combination of precisely-positioned, high quality instrumentation ports and the flexible on-site service we provide make Veritay the industry leader in large caliber instrumentation port installations.
Please contact us with your instrumentation needs.

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