[Research] Firing on the move?

[Artsy Astra]

With Armored Vehicle development in full swing, the Marrish DOD has internally commissioned a research project into single and dual axis stabilization mechanisms for guns. The specifications are as follows.

A gun stabilization mechanism that can:

• Be effective up to 15 MPH.
• Allow a gun to maintain its point of aim within 30 degrees of a target.
• Maintain aim in at minimum 1 axis/plane of movement (Vertical).
  
• Rely on mechanical rather than electrical mechanisms is possible for easier production/integration with existing traversal mechanisms.
  

The R&D team would set out and began research and testing first into using gyroscopic stabilizers that use the gunners set position as an 'anchor' to then correct off of.
They have also begun drawing examples from naval and artillery mechanical fire control systems.

[Marrlan begins research on gun stabilizers for its armored vehicles.]

[Artsy Astra]

The project would move forward with initial testing of mechanical prototypes on existing hulls like TM-32 and TMJ-32 Tankettes. One prototype however found itself on a TM-34 test chassis. All, at this point, took up considerable space within and outside of the vehicle. Being a very clearly visible mechanism on the manlet that extended to the end of the barrel and was a somewhat hassle to move around within the fighting compartment. It worked, barely, but it did. A marginal improvement was made in stability made more reliably reproducible by the preexisting designs lower speeds. Though even when slow it was only stable half the time. More work had to be done.

[Artsy Astra]

COncepting and testing continued as the single axis stabilizer made mild progress in dropping its teething issues. Space optimization and further testing continued and allowed more and more of the assembly to be housed within the turret until only a small pole under the barrel was visible. The gyroscopic stabilizer showed better performance but still fell below expectations. Only being effective up to 4 MPH, even still the fact it worked at all kept the teams hopes up.

Concepting on a horizontal stabilizer showed progress when 3 engineers on a bender of coffee and sleep delusion cooked up the idea for a basic clock-based orientation computer connected to the electric turret drive. A mechanical computer that simply kept the turret facing a vague direction between 2 points while the vehicle moved that could be toggled on or off by the gunner via a switch on the traverse control. Working on a clock directional system the traversal computer would hold very basic directional data simply derived from whether or not the gun had passed or gotten close to the thresholds of each hour/direction. The computer would be tested on GPLAV-HSV/TMD (Heavy Support Variant/Tracked Machine Destroyer) using bustle space in the back of the turret to house the mechanical computer(roughly the size of an enlarged HAM radio). Basic testing would begin with both axis systems being employed on the chassis to test their paired effectiveness.

[Artsy Astra]

The vertical axis vehicle gun stabilizer, or VAVGS, had made a breakthrough. Rather than previously tested optical gyroscopes, a mechanical variant was tested and showed great promise allowing stabilization up to 10 MPH. Further tweaking was needed, but testing continued and the guide pole was whittled down further until it was no longer needed. Soon the stabilizer would be ready for deployment on more expensive tanks until a further cheapened version could be worked out with similar efficiency.

The horizontal axis vehicle turret stabilizer, or HAVTS, also showed promise as the mechanical 'computer' coupled with the VAVGS had made for a very rough but stabilized gun under low-speed maneuvering. Even at higher speeds a gunner was more accurately able to engage an area target at speed. While full fire on the move capability was far away, tactics involving shortstop engagement and area targeting of infantry and large structures was possible, as well as quicker engagement of previously designated targets after maneuvering. Prototyping would soon begin with test beds immediately being placed in Armored Hen test beds.

[EpicToaster1]

RESEARCH STATUS

Mechanical Vertical Gun Stabilization - Completed; Can be in tanks as of this season [Winter 1935].

Mechanical Horizontal Gun Stabilization - Completed; Will become available to tank productions in the next season.
*For the HAVTS, Mechanical Computers are not small enough to fit within a tank. So this is being altered to a Mechanical Balance system in which weights balance the horizontal movement approximately. They're not effective above 10 mph, but are sorta what you're looking for without having tech that doesn't exist yet.