Patent Application
20240255250
The invention relates to firing mechanisms for paintball markers.
Paintball is a competitive team sport where players eliminate their opponents by firing spherical paint-filled capsules called paintballs at the opposing team. Paintballs break on impact and mark a player—indicating elimination from a match. Paintballs are fired using pneumatic guns called paintball markers. Markers were initially used for remotely and safely marking trees and cattle. Paintball is currently played for recreation and at the formal sporting level, with numerous organized competitions involving major tournaments, professional teams, and players. The paintball sporting industry generates roughly 1.3 billion dollars annually. Military forces, law enforcement, paramilitary, and security organizations also utilize paintball markers to supplement military and other training.
Paintball markers use compressed gas to propel paintballs through a barrel, such as carbon dioxide or compressed air from an air tank. Generally, paintball markers have four main components: a body, a loader, a barrel, and an air tank. Housed within the body is an engine that propels the paintballs, i.e., a firing mechanism. The engine primarily has four positions or functions when firing: resting, actuating, firing, and returning to resting.
A conventional firing mechanism typically encompasses a bolt and valve assembly, which launches paintballs obtained from the loader through the barrel and out the marker. The bolt and valve are actuated by the marker's trigger and control the airflow from the air tank to the barrel with the paintball. The bolt and valve assembly may be separate components embodied in blowback and poppet-based electro-pneumatic markers but are mechanically coupled. Alternatively, the valve can be built directly into the bolt, becoming one component, as embodied in spool-valve electro-pneumatic markers.
The most commonly used bolt and valve assembly design is an open bolt design. In open designs, when the engine is resting, the bolt is in a back position, while the firing chamber is exposed to a paintball fed by the loader. Some markers have a closed-bolt design. Closed designs provide that when the engine is in a resting position, the bolt and paintball to be fired are pushed forward, and a feed stack is closed off from the chamber.
Furthermore, paintball markers' firing mechanisms are either mechanically powered or electro-pneumatic. Most mechanically powered markers employ a simple blowback design utilizing a poppet or pin valve. A spring propels a hammer, which creates a compression force to strike the poppet valve open. When the hammer retracts backward, the internal spring compresses and exerts pressure against the hammer's continued backward motion. As the hammer and spring mechanism reaches the maximum backward retraction range, the hammer and spring are caught and locked in place by a metal catching device—the sear. The sear holds the hammer in place, thus allowing the energy of the bolt's forward motion to be released when the sear is depressed. The sear depresses once a user pulls the marker's trigger to allow the hammer to propel forward because of the built-up spring tension. The hammer then collides with the valve that releases gas from an external pressurized tank, where the gas then flows into an internal bolt chamber. The corresponding gas burst channels through the bolt's front end, propelling the paintball down the barrel. The remaining gas pushes the hammer and bolt backward until the mechanism catches on the sear again. Once caught, the hammer is ready to repeat this blowback process. The poppet valves used in mechanically powered markers are easy to replace and require little maintenance. However, the design leads to high operating pressures of up to 1,100 psi, which produce dramatic recoil and less accuracy. In addition, the blowback process utilizing the hammer creates a firing delay.
Instead of using a spring and hammer design to actuate the valve and cycle the bolt assembly in mechanical markers, electro-pneumatic markers use air routing to different locations throughout the marker. A solenoid, activated by a trigger, controls the air routing process. Poppet-valve and spool-valve designs are the two general types of bolt and valve mechanisms in electro-pneumatic markers.
Poppet-valve-based electro-pneumatic markers have a stacked-tube design. The valve and hammer are encompassed in a lower tube, while a bolt connected to the hammer is housed in an upper tube. The stacked-tube construction is built around a poppet valve that opens when a force strikes the valve. The valve activates by a pneumatic ram connected to the bolt to create a force pushing on the valve to release air. Poppet-valve markers benefit from their gas efficiency because the poppet valve opens rapidly and guides air into the firing chamber at a high average speed. However, they also have disadvantages because they have many external moving parts, require high forces of up to 20-inch pounds for the poppet to seal, need a reciprocating mass, and have a loud firing signature that leads to opponent detection.
Meanwhile, spool-valve-based electro-pneumatic markers have a bolt that acts as a valve eliminating the need for stacked tube construction. An air reservoir behind the bolt holds the air to fire the paintball. When the engine is resting, the air is routed to the front of the bolt to prevent the air in the reservoir from escaping. Air routing controls the bolt's movement into small chambers in front of or behind the bolt. Thus, the spool-valve designs have a more compact profile and provide a more efficient and maintainable firing process.
In an unbalanced spool valve design, when the marker's trigger is pulled, the air is exhausted from the marker, allowing the reservoir air to push the bolt forward. Comparatively, in a balanced spool valve design, the air in the reservoir cannot force the bolt open. The air from the front of the bolt is re-routed to a small chamber behind the bolt. The chamber is separated from the reservoir and then pushes the bolt forward. In both designs, when the bolt moves forward, pathways in the bolt or engine are exposed to allow air in the reservoir behind the bolt to surge ahead and fire the paintball. Afterward, the air returns to the front of the bolt, and the bolt is pushed back into a resting position. Advantageously, because spool-valve markers have reduced reciprocating mass and operate at low pressures—the markers have less recoil—and in turn, increased accuracy. Additionally, the spool-valve design creates a reduced sound signature.
Spool-valve-based electro-pneumatic markers provide many other advantages over existing engine designs, while the present invention improves on electro-pneumatic markers. An advantage of the present invention is an increase in a paintball marker's firing rate and efficiency. After a secondary valve in the marker engine opens, a secondary firing chamber is created within a primary firing chamber. Once the secondary valve opens, a valve core closes and traps air in the primary firing chamber, but it does not use all the trapped air. The remaining air is transferred to a secondary firing chamber to launch a projectile and repeat the firing process. Thus, increasing the efficiency at which the marker launches the projectile.
Current designs attempt to cycle the bolt very quickly to maintain a reasonable amount of shots on a pre-charged tank. Because the bolt engages the paintball directly, this high speed has a detrimental effect on the marker's ability to fire easily broken paintballs. Prior designs open the valve away from the bolt's direction of travel so that the valve must close against some residual pressure resulting from the firing pulse of air.
The present invention overcomes these and other deficiencies of the prior art by providing a more efficient firing system and bolt kit design for a paintball marker. The bolt kit of the present invention comprises a bolt and a valve that are not mechanically joined together, so the valve opens and closes independently of the bolt's position. The valve opens away from a seat or seal in the same direction of travel as the paintball. The valve is part of the control system for the bolt such that the valve is acted upon to initiate the firing sequence.
In an embodiment of the invention, a firing mechanism comprises a valve; and a bolt, wherein the bolt is configured to move relative to the valve. The valve is not mechanically joined to the bolt, opens and closes independently of the bolt's position, and opens away from a seat, seal, or an occluded air passage between the bolt and a plunger in the same direction of travel as a projectile fired by the firing mechanism. The valve is configured to initiate the movement of the bolt. The firing mechanism further comprises a spring or air supply to resist forward movement of the bolt but not the valve. The valve and the bolt move along a same central axis.
In another embodiment of the invention, a paintball marker comprises a valve and a bolt movable along a common central axis from an unfired position to a fired position and back to an unfired position, the valve housing a shot chamber coupled to a regulator supplying pressurized gas; wherein the bolt is configured to move relative to the valve during a firing cycle, and in the fired position, the bolt has moved away from the valve. The valve is not mechanically joined to the bolt, opens and closes independently of the bolt's position, and opens in the same direction of travel as a projectile fired by the paintball maker. The valve is configured to initiate the movement of the bolt. The paintball marker further comprises a spring or air supply to resist the forward movement of the bolt but not the valve.
In yet another embodiment of the invention, a method of firing a projectile comprises the steps of supplying a shot chamber within a valve with pressurized gas from a regulator, using the pressuring gas in the shot chamber to drive the valve forward, closing off the pressurized gas from the regulator; opening a primary valve to permit pressurized gas from the shot chamber to drive a bolt forward independently of the valve; and opening a secondary valve to permit the pressurized gas from the shot chamber to act upon the projectile. The method further comprises driving the valve rearward to close the primary valve and moving the bolt rearward to close the secondary valve. The method further comprises opening the pressurized gas from the regulator to resupply the shot chamber. The method further comprises filling an air sear chamber and holding the valve in a rearward position. The method further comprises venting the air sear chamber to permit the valve to move forward. Moving the bolt rearward is performed using a spring or air supply. The step of opening a secondary valves comprises the step of moving the bolt forward relative to the valve.
The present invention provides significant benefits compared to existing bolt and valve assemblies because it enables a quick-firing action with no firing delay, fewer moving parts, and a more efficient and maintainable firing process. The bolt assembly is compact and lightweight due to the routing of air and no required reciprocating mass. Additionally, the bolt assembly generates the same amount of paintball velocity as existing markers while operating at a lower pressure, reducing recoil, improving accuracy, and prolonging the use of the air source. Moreover, there is a reduction in the noise signature when firing the marker, helping protect against detection and elimination from a paintball match. By using a separate bolt and primary valve are used, the direction of the opening improves the ability of the valve to close quickly. A significant performance advantage is gained by closing the valve in the opposite direction of the bolt's travel.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following, more particular description of the invention's preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings.
For a complete understanding of the present invention, the objects, and advantages thereof, reference is now made to the ensuing descriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings briefly described as follows:
Preferred embodiments of the present invention and their advantages may be understood by referring to
The present invention is an improvement over existing paintball marker engines. The valve opens and closes independently by separating the mechanical operation of the bolt and valve. The bolt's position does not influence the operation of the valve. Another novel aspect is that the valve opens away from a seat or seal in the same direction of travel as the projectile. Because the value is part of the control system for the bolt, the valve is acted upon to initiate a firing sequence. This design more efficiently uses and distributes pressurized air or gas to a firing chamber because after firing, the bolt independently and automatically returns to its initial resting position resulting in an increased ratio of firing velocity to air pressure. Projectiles, specifically paintballs, are fed more efficiently, cleaner, and without the likelihood of engine locks or jams. Paintballs are fragile, and because the present invention provides a new and advantageous mechanical variant of the bolt returning to fire a projectile at a lower air pressure, it reduces paintballs from breaking and ruining the internal workings of markers with paint.
The firing mechanism 100 is coupled to a barrel (not shown) of a marker at the end where bolt 110 is located. A paintball is loaded in the barrel. Then, upon initiation of the firing cycle, pressurized air flowing through plunger 120 and bolt 110 fires the paintball out the barrel and away from the marker (not shown), as the following describes in greater detail.
Referring to
As shown in
Now referring to
Turning to
The present invention improves the efficiency of a paintball engine. The design permits the bolt to remain in a forward position longer. Thus, firing efficiency increases because the shot chamber is opened and closed with more precise timing.
While the invention has been described in connection with a number of embodiments and implementations, the invention is not so limited but covers various apparent modifications and equivalent arrangements, which fall within the purview of the appended claims. Although features of the invention are expressed in certain combinations among the claims, it is contemplated that these features can be arranged in any variety and order. The invention has been described herein using specific embodiments for illustrative purposes only. It will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, however, that the principles of the invention can be embodied in other ways. Therefore, the invention should not be limited in scope to the specific embodiments disclosed herein; it should be fully commensurate with the following claims.
