The ringer: an efficient, high repetition rate circuit for electromagnetic launchers

The Meatgrinder is an efficient, current-multiplying circuit which can be used to optimize the energy transfer to various electromagnetic gun configurations. The authors present a simple variant of the Meatgrinder circuit which permits a first-order current profiling into the gun and recovery of the inductive energy in the barrel at a high repetition rate. The circuit is basically a one-stage Meatgrinder which utilizes the ringing of the energy storage capacitor (less than 40% reversal) to perform the opening switch function and a solid-state diode as the crowbar switch between the two mutually coupled inductors. With resonant charging, this results in a completely passive, high-repetition-rate electromagnetic-gun power supply. Since most of the barrel energy is recovered, a railgun with negligible muzzle flash can be realized