Sensitivity Analysis of Michelson Type Microwave Interferometry for the Measurement of Projectile In-Bore Motion

摘要

Analysis of projectile-cannon interface problems quite often requires accurate determination of the projectile in-bore and launch motion. Microwave interferometry and Doppler radar are the two most commonly used instrumentation and measurement techniques for obtaining projectile travel and velocity. To determine whether microwave interferometry can be used for an accurate measurement of projectile in-bore travel, a sensitivity analysis is presented. It shows that the current, commonly used measurement procedures lead to errors in projectile in-bore travel unacceptable for the analysis of projectile-cannon interface problems. However, the analysis reveals also that the maximum uncertainty in projectile travel can be reduced to less than one millimeter, if the microwave interferometry technique is employed diligently, with close attention given to the determination of the parameters in the guide wavelength equation.