Background
Soon after the adoption of the 7.62x51mm NATO M14 rifle in 1957, the U.S. Army's Continental Army Command (CONARC) began an investigation of Small Caliber High Velocity (SCHV) rifles as an off-shoot of the military's existing research program, Project SALVO. ArmaLite and Winchester Arms were solicited by CONARC to provide prototype automatic rifles chambered for high velocity centerfire .22 rounds. ArmaLite's AR-15 was a scaled down version of the 7.62mm AR-10, which had appeared too late to be a serious contender against the M14 for adoption by the US Army. Its competitor was the Winchester .224 Light Rifle, a 'Carbine' Williams prototype carbine design re-made in a .22 high velocty round which was similar to, but not interchangeable with, the .223 Remington (5.56x45mm).
Read more about this topic: Armalite AR-18
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