Ballistic Machine

Apparatus for finding the initial or other velocity of a projectile. The ballistic pendulum, devised by Robins ab. 1740, was the first of these machines. The gun pendulum consisted of a gun suspended in the same manner as the block with the axis of the bore coincident with the line of percu ion. On being fired, the extent of the arc of oscillation determined the initial velocity of the shot. From 1860 electro ballistic machines were devised, such as Benton's and Navez's: but the Le Boulenge's chronograph has superseded them all. In principle it depends on the time of fall of a rod while a shot pa es from one point to another along along the range. Other ballistic machines are the Schultz Chronoscope and Sebert's Velocimeter.