The present disclosure relates generally to bipods. In particular, but not by way of limitation, the present disclosure relates to systems, methods and apparatuses for a bipod configured for coupling to a sling stud mount of a firearm.
Modern firearms, such as rifles in particular, may be more accurately and conveniently fired by the shooter if the firearm is equipped with a bipod device for supporting and steadying the barrel. Bipods may be fixedly or removably mounted onto firearms, and have been found to be most convenient if they can further be retracted in a storage position when not in use. Exemplary bipods and mounting devices are taught in prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,422 issued Jun. 27, 1967; U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,216 issued Sep. 11, 1984; U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,620 issued Dec. 2, 1986; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,641,451 issued Feb. 10, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,425 issued Feb. 27, 1990; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,103 issued Jan. 27, 1998, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,779,572 issued Aug. 24, 2010, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Existing bipods attach to firearms via a number of interfaces including M-LOK, NATO
Rail, Picatinny Rail, and the sling stud. The Harris Bipod is one very common bipod that attaches to the sling stud, but tends to be finicky and difficult to install. Thus, there is a need for a simpler and more secure method of attaching a bipod to a sling stud, and one that is quicker and less prone to mounting errors.
The following presents a simplified summary relating to one or more aspects and/or embodiments disclosed herein. As such, the following summary should not be considered an extensive overview relating to all contemplated aspects and/or embodiments, nor should the following summary be regarded to identify key or critical elements relating to all contemplated aspects and/or embodiments or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect and/or embodiment. Accordingly, the following summary has the sole purpose to present certain concepts relating to one or more aspects and/or embodiments relating to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form to precede the detailed description presented below.
The present disclosure relates generally to a bipod-to-firearm interface for a sling stud (or sling swivel stud). More specifically, but without limitation, the present disclosure relates to a bipod having a firearm forend interface, a sling stud clasp assembly optionally including spring-loaded pawls that open and close to grasp a firearm's sling stud, and these pawls being biased toward an open position, and opening and closing of the sling stud clasp assembly being effected by rotation of a sling stud locking mechanism coupled to the sling stud clasp assembly. The sling stud clasp assembly can be arranged below and partially passing up and through an aperture in a mounting plate. The sling stud locking mechanism can be positioned below the firearm forend interface, and in some instances can include a rotating knob having a threading relationship to the sling stud clasp assembly. More specifically, the sling stud clasp assembly can include spring-loaded pawls that pivot on a pivot axis. The pivot axis can be held within a pivot holder having outer threads on a lower portion thereof that can threadingly couple to inner threads of the rotating knob. Accordingly, when the knob is rotated in a first direction, the pivot holder is pulled downward relative to the knob and mounting plate and consequently, the pivot axis and the spring-loaded pawls are also pulled downward relative to the knob and mounting plate. As the spring-loaded pawls are pulled downward through the aperture in the mounting plate they are pressed inward and can pivot or close on a sling stud thereby grasping and locking the sling stud to the bipod-to-firearm interface (e.g., see
The firearm forend interface can include its own sling stud, for instance, extending rearward from a back of the firearm forend interface. This sling stud of the bipod can enable sling stud access for the user since the firearm's forend sling stud is used to mount the bipod and thus isn't available for a sling or other accessory attachment.
Generally, the bipod can include a housing with two leg assemblies attached thereto. The housing can include an aperture through which passes a pivot rod, the pivot rod having a threaded coupling to a locking knob arranged below the housing, wherein turning of the locking knob results in the pivot rod moving up or down along a vertical axis passing through the pivot rod and the housing. A top of the pivot rod can be coupled to a cant nut having a tubular shape and a longitudinal axis perpendicular to the vertical axis. A firearm forend interface can include an aperture having a similar shape to the cant nut, and the cant nut arranged within this aperture in the firearm forend interface. The firearm forend interface can rotate or cant around the cant nut to provide canting to a firearm mounted to the firearm forend interface. A pivot block can be arranged between the housing and the firearm forend interface and can pivot atop the housing. The pivot block can include a concave hollow into which a portion of a bottom of the firearm forend interface is shaped to rest in such that when the locking knob is tightened, the pivot block and firearm forend interface pivot in unison. Rotation of the locking knob pushes the cant nut and thereby the firearm forend interface up or down to lock or unlock the firearm forend interface into the concave hollow in the pivot block. The firearm forend interface can be shaped to fit a variety of known and yet-to-be-known accessory interfaces, such as, but not limited, to M-LOK, Picatinny rail, and NATO rail.
Some embodiments of the disclosure may be characterized as a bipod assembly comprising a firearm forend interface, a pivot holder, two pawls, and a sling stud locking mechanism. The firearm forend interface can have a vertical aperture shaped to receive the pivot holder. The pivot holder can be shaped to slidingly move vertically with the vertical aperture in the firearm forend interface. The two pawls can be pivotally coupled to each other and pivotally coupled to the pivot holder via a pivot pin. The sling stud locking mechanism can be threadingly coupled to the pivot holder and can be configured to cause the vertical movement of the pivot holder via rotation of the sling stud locking mechanism. Upward vertical movement of the pivot holder can cause opening of the two pawls, whereas downward vertical movement of the pivot holder can cause closing of the two pawls.
Other embodiments of the disclosure can be characterized as a firearm assembly. The assembly may comprise a firearm having a forend, a firearm forend interface, a pivot holder, two pawls, and a sling stud locking mechanism. The firearm forend interface can be configured for coupling to a bottom of the forend and may have a vertical aperture shaped to receive a pivot holder. The pivot holder may be shaped to slidingly move vertically within the vertical aperture in the firearm forend interface. The two pawls may be pivotally coupled to each other and to the pivot holder via a pivot pin. The sling stud locking mechanism may be threadingly coupled to the pivot holder and configured to, via rotation of the sling stud locking mechanism, cause the vertical movement of the pivot holder. The movement of the pivot holder within the vertical aperture in a first direction may cause opening of the two pawls, and movement of the pivot holder within the vertical aperture in a second direction may cause closing of the two pawls.
Various objects and advantages and a more complete understanding of the present disclosure are apparent and more readily appreciated by referring to the following detailed description and to the appended claims when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings:
The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.
The legs 102, housing 104, locking knob 108, and pivot block 107 are substantially the same as described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,161,706 and 10,168,119, and those disclosures are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
In some embodiments, the firearm forend interface 106 can comprise two components: a soft flange (not shown in
The loosening and tightening of the sling stud clasp assembly 112 is best seen in
Specifically, as the sling stud locking mechanism 110 is rotated in a first direction, the threaded portion 126 of the pivot holder 124 threadingly engages inner threads of the sling stud locking mechanism 110 and this interaction pulls the pivot holder 124 downward. Downward movement of the pivot holder 124 brings the pivot pin 138 with it, and with this comes the spring-loaded pawls 132, 134 (see
As the sling stud locking mechanism 110 continues to rotate in the first direction, the pivot holder 124 continues to descend further pulling the pawls 132, 134 inward and clamping them into a horizontal aperture in the sling stud (not shown) until a fully closed position is reached at
From the closed position in
A bottom outer edge of each pawl 132, 134 may include an angled surface that aligns with a top of the pivot holder 124 when the pawls 132, 134 are fully-opened, as best seen in
While
In
A clevis 125 (see
It should be understood that the detent 146 and groove 147 are just one example of an interface structure between the spring-loaded pawls 132, 134 and the detent 144, and other interfaces are also contemplated without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Further, although the detent 144 is shown as a sphere, in other embodiments, a cylindrical plunger or curved component could also be implemented. In another embodiment, part of the detent 144 could be curved or even spherical, while another portion could be cylindrical (e.g., a lower portion could be cylindrical and an upper portion could be curved). For instance, the detent 144 could have a “bullet” shape.
Non-limiting examples of the biasing component include, a compression spring, a conical spring, a coil spring, leaf spring, disc or Bellevile spring, barrel spring, elliptical helical spring, volute spring, and a pneumatic plunger. Non-limiting examples of the detent 144 include a curved or spherical detent, a cylindrical detent, and a pointed detent.
As used herein, the recitation of “at least one of A, B and C” is intended to mean “either A, B, C or any combination of A, B and C.” The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.
The present Application for Patent is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/256,250 entitled “BIPOD WITH SLING STUD MOUNT” filed Dec. 28, 2020, which is a 371 of International Patent Application No. PCTUS2020028498 entitled “BIPOD WITH SLING STUD MOUNT” filed Apr. 16, 2020, which claims priority to Provisional Application No. 62/835,333 entitled “BIPOD WITH SLING STUD MOUNT” filed Apr. 17, 2019, and assigned to the assignee hereof and hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20220214130 A1 | Jul 2022 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62835333 | Apr 2019 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 17256250 | US | |
Child | 17702981 | US |