Patent Application
20250052540
The present disclosure relates generally to devices for mounting accessories to a weapon, and more specifically to articulating devices for mounting accessories to a weapon.
A weapon such a rifle is often used in combination with one or more aiming assistance devices, such as a holographic weapon sight and/or accessories for a weapon sight, such as a magnifier or night vision accessory. It is often desirable to quickly adjust a position of the accessory, such as a magnifier, between a use position where the accessory is aligned with the sight when the accessory is needed, and a storage position where the accessory is out of alignment with the sight when the accessory is not needed. It is desirable to quickly and reliably transition the sight between the use position and the storage position.
Conventional designs for articulating accessory mounts for use with a weapon sighting device, or weapon sight, can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 8,438,773, entitled Articulating Mount For Weapon Sight Accessory, issued May 14, 2013, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein. Such conventional articulating mounts may include complex mechanisms and provide a storage position that disposes the sight accessory to the side, increasing the overall envelope of the weapon's volume. Therefore, opportunities exist to provide improved articulating mounts that overcome the shortcomings of the conventional designs.
Like reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the drawings.
The articulating mount for weapon sight accessory of the present disclosure is described in several aspects that may be practiced separately or in combination. The articulating mount allows an accessory to move between a use position where the accessory is aligned with a weapon sight and a storage position where the accessory is out of alignment with the weapon sight. The storage position may be in closer proximity to the weapon to provide a compact and low profile arrangement. With reference to the figures,
The mount 10 includes a base portion 20 and an upper portion 30 configured to articulate relative to the base portion 20. The upper portion 30 is configured to articulate by pivoting about an axis between a use position (shown in
The base portion 20 includes a mounting assembly 22 arranged to engage with the accessory rail 14. The mounting assembly 22 may include a locking quick release clamp arranged to secure the mount 10 to a Picatinny rail. A conventional clamp mechanism may be known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 8,438,965, entitled Mounting Device For Weapon, issued May 14, 2013, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein. The mounting assembly 22 may be formed integrally with the base portion 20, or may be formed separately and secured to the base portion 20 via any suitable assembly method, such as with the use of threaded fasteners.
The base portion 20 includes a side wall 24 that extends upwardly from the mounting assembly 22. The side wall 24 supports the upper portion 30 opposite the mounting assembly 22 for movement of the upper portion 30 between the use position and the storage position. The side wall 24 may optionally include a rotation stop 26 for preventing the upper portion 30 from over-rotation beyond the use position. The upper portion 30 may include a complementary rotation stop 28 for engaging with the rotation stop 26 of the base portion 20 to restrict the motion of the upper portion 30. The upper portion 30 is coupled to the base portion 20 and extends away from the base portion 20 to an accessory mount 25. The accessory mount 25 may take different forms depending on the desired accessory to be used with the mount 10. In an alternative implementation and without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the upper portion 30 may be integrated to the accessory 12 without an intermediate connection at an accessory mount 25.
With reference to
In the implementation illustrated in the figures, the first bore 32 of base portion 20 includes a first section 36 that extends on a first side of the upper portion 30 and a second section 38 that extends on a second opposite side of the upper portion 30. The first section 36 includes a first diameter and the second section 38 includes a second diameter, different from the first diameter (e.g., smaller than the first diameter as shown). The second section 38 may also include a pocket 44. The second bore 34 of the upper portion 30 includes a third diameter, different from the first diameter, the second diameter or both (e.g., being smaller than each of the first diameter and the second diameter, as shown).
The pivot pin 40 includes segments sized for a close clearance fit with the first and second sections 36, 38 of first bore 32 (i.e., of the base portion 20) and the second bore 34 (i.e., of the upper portion 30). The pivot pin 40 is rotationally restrained to the upper portion 30 with a spline interface, where the second bore 34 has an internal spline surface 46 and the pivot pin 40 has a complimentary external spline segment 48. The pivot pin 40 may be secured to the upper portion 30 in other ways than a spline interface. In one example, the second bore 34 and the pivot pin 40 may be formed with complementary gear teeth. For another example, there may be a threaded bore through a portion of the upper portion 30 and into or through the pivot pin 40 for receiving a set screw or roll pin to secure the pivot pin 40 to the upper portion 30. This is not intended to be limiting, and other means of securing the pivot pin 40 for simultaneous rotation with the upper portion 30 may be used.
The detent mechanism 42 includes a third bore 50 formed in the base portion 20. The third bore 50 may be perpendicular to the first bore 32. The third bore 50 includes a threaded portion 52. The detent mechanism 42 includes a ball 54 or other plunger disposed in the third bore 50. The ball 54 is supported on a spring 56 disposed in the third bore 50. The spring 56 may be a coil spring, or other resilient remember that can be compressed to apply a biasing force against the ball 54. The ball 54 and spring 56 may be secured in the third bore 50 by a retainer 58. The retainer 58 may be a threaded set screw received in the threaded portion 52 of the third bore 50. The biasing force of the detent mechanism 42 may be adjusted by changing the position of the retainer 58 along the threaded portion 52 of the third bore 50 to change the compression of the spring 56.
The pivot pin 40 includes a first recess 60 and a second recess 62 formed in a first end segment 64 of the pivot pin 40 for receiving the ball 54 of the detent mechanism 42. The first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are disposed at the same axial position along the longitudinal axis of the pivot pin 40, and rotational spaced apart from each other about the circumference of the end segment 64 of the pivot pin 40 by an amount substantially equal to the rotation of the upper portion 30 relative to the base portion 20 to move between the use position and the storage position. The upper portion may rotate between about 60° to about 80° between the use position and the storage position. The first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are therefore positioned about 60° to about 80° apart about the circumference of the pivot pin 40 (e.g., central positions of the first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are spaced about 60° to about 80° apart, as shown). In one exemplary implementation, the first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are positioned 65° apart. In another exemplary implementation, the first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are positioned 75° apart. The precise angle of separation between the use position and the storage position may be determined according to the selected weapon sight, accessory, and the relative dimensions thereof. This is not intended to be limiting and other angles of rotation may be used.
The detent mechanism 42 may also be controlled by the depth of the first and second recesses 60 and 62, such that a different magnitude of force is required to move from the use position than to move from the storage position. In one example, the first recess 60 and the second recess 62 are the same so that the force needed to move between use and storage positions is the same. In an alternative example, the first recess 60 may be deeper than the second recess 62, such that the force required to move from the use position is greater than moving from the storage position (e.g., with the first recess 60 corresponding to the use position) or vice versa. The selection of geometry and material for the spring 56, and the difference in depth between the first recess 60 and the second recess 62 may result in a difference in force of about 25%, about 50%, greater than 100%, or other suitable difference. The selection of force may be adapted to require manual input to move from a first one of the use or storage position, but a lower amount of force, such as may be obtained from a rapid twisting motion of the weapon, to move from the other of the use or storage position.
The pivot pin 40 may optionally include a third recess 63, spaced apart from the first recess 60 by an amount substantially equal to the separation between the first recess 60 and the second recess 62, for example, between about 60° to about 80°. The third recess 63 has a depth equal to the depth of the second recess 62. When the mount 10 is assembled with the pivot pin 40 in the first orientation, the first recess 60, having a greater depth is associated with the use position and the second recess 62 having a lesser depth is associated with the storage position. By assembling the mount 10 with the pivot pin 40 in a second orientation, rotational offset from the first orientation, the first recess 60 is associated with the storage position and the third recess, having the same depth as the second recess 62 less than the first recess 60, is associated with the use position. In this way, the mount 10 may be selectively reconfigurable to have different force to move between the use position and the storage position with a greater force needed to move from one of the use position or the storage position. That is, the pivot pin 40 is reconfigurable relative to the base portion 20 and the upper portion 30 between a first configuration and a second configuration to have different force to move from the use position. In the first configuration the detent mechanism 42 engages the first recess 60 in the use position, engages the second recess 62 in the storage position, and does not engage either third recess 64 in either the use position or the storage position. In the second configuration the detent mechanism 42 engages the second recess 62 in the use position, engages the third recess 64 in the storage position, and does not engage the first recess 60 in either the use position or the storage position.
The pivot pin 40 may be retained to the mount 10 at least in part by the ball 54 being received in the first recess 60 or the second recess 62. The mount 10 may further include one or more of each of O-ring 66, packing ring 68, or spacer 70 disposed about the pivot pin 40 in the pocket 44. The O-ring 66, or packing ring 68, or both, may be formed of a resilient material, such as a rubber material. The spacer 70 may be similarly formed of a resilient material or other plastic, metal, or suitable spacing material. The O-ring 66, packing ring 68, or spacer 70 may all be the same, that is, being made of the same material and sized to the same dimensions, or may be different in material, size, shape, or other characteristic or combination of characteristics.
The O-ring 66, or packing ring 68, or both may have an inner diameter in a relaxed condition smaller than the outer diameter of a second end segment 72 of the pivot pin 40. The second end segment 72 may be arranged to position proximate to the pocket 44 in the assembled configuration. The O-ring 66, or packing ring 68, or both may have an outer diameter in a relaxed condition that is larger than the inner diameter of the pocket 44. The O-ring 66, or packing ring 68, or both may be compressed between the pivot pin 40 and the pocket 44 to add resistance to moving the upper portion 30 between the use position and the storage position. Providing the compressed O-ring 66 and packing ring 68 separated by a spacer 70 may help ensure that the pivot pin 40 remains axially aligned between the base portion 20 and the upper portion 30. The compressed O-ring 66 and packing ring 68 may also help retain the pivot pin 40 against undesired axial displacement out of the assembled configuration.
Illustrated in
In the use position, a first line-of-sight axis 112 centered through the magnifier 108 is aligned with a second line of sight axis 114 centered through the weapon sight 102 and which is centered above the accessory rail 106. In the use position, the magnifier 108 and the mount 110 are spaced from the weapon sight 102 to allow access to user controls provided on a rear aspect of the weapon sight 102. The user controls may include one or more of brightness selectors 116, 118 for selectively increasing or decreasing the brightness of a displayed holographic reticle, and a mode selector 120 for selectively toggling different operational modes, which may include reticle selection, night vision mode selection, or the like. In the storage position, the magnifier 108, and the upper portion 130 of the mount 110 are disposed below the sight window of the weapon sight 102 so that the entirety of the sight window 122 remains unobstructed to the user's view (best illustrated in
The weapon sight system 100 provides a compact profile for the weapon sight 102 and the magnifier 108, or other accessory, in both the use position and in the storage position. The compact profile is defined by the relative proportions of the sight 102 on the riser 104, the mount 110, and the position of the pivot axis 124 of the mount 110 relative to the sight window 122. As illustrated primarily in
The pivot axis 124 of the mount 110 is positioned vertically below the sight window 122 of the weapon sight 102 to facilitate the rotation of the sight accessory downward from the use position to the storage position. The pivot axis 124 is positioned below, but nearer to the sight window 122 than to the accessory rail 106. More specifically, the pivot axis 124 is positioned at a distance 126 from a bottom of the sight window 122 that is between one quarter and one half of the distance 128 from the bottom of the sight window to the accessory rail 106. Positioning the pivot axis 124 within the width of the weapon sight 102 and near but spaced from the height of the bottom of the sight window 122 provides for a compact form, avoids obstructing any portion of the sight window 122, and avoids obstructing additional area of the scene downrange of the weapon.
For purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” (in all of its forms, couple, coupling, coupled, etc.) generally means the joining of two components (electrical or mechanical) directly or indirectly to one another. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature; may be achieved with the two components (electrical or mechanical) and any additional intermediate members being integrally formed as a single unitary body with one another or with the two components; and may be permanent in nature or may be removable or releasable in nature, unless otherwise stated. Similarly, the terms “supported,” “joined,” “mounted,” in all their forms, should be understood similarly to include directly or indirectly, permanently or impermanently, rigidly or resiliently, unless stated otherwise.
The articles “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements in the preceding descriptions. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements. Additionally, it should be understood that references to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” of the present disclosure are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional implementations that also incorporate the recited features. Furthermore, the terms “first,” “second,” and the like, as used herein do not denote any order, quantity, or importance, but rather are used to denote element from another.
Numbers, percentages, ratios, or other values stated herein are intended to include that value, and also other values that are “about” or “approximately” the stated value, as would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art encompassed by implementations of the present disclosure. A stated value should therefore be interpreted broadly enough to encompass values that are at least close enough to the stated value to perform a desired function or achieve a desired result. For example, the terms “approximately,” “about,” and “substantially” may refer to an amount that is within less than 5% of, within less than 1% of, within less than 0.1% of, and within less than 0.01% of a stated amount.
Further, it should be understood that any directions or reference frames in the preceding description are merely relative directions or movements. For example, the terms “upper,” “lower,” “right,” “left,” “rear,” “front,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the orientation shown in
Changes and modifications in the specifically described embodiments may be carried out without departing from the principles of the present invention, which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims as interpreted according to the principles of patent law. The disclosure has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. Many modifications and variations of the present disclosure are possible in light of the above teachings, and the disclosure may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described
This application claims priority to and benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/516,156, filed Jul. 28, 2023, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63516156 | Jul 2023 | US |
