This invention generally relates to a projectile weapon, and more particularly to an archery bow with a handle riser including an integrated means for attaching an accessory for the bow.
Archery bows include risers 10, which generally form a central body of the bow. With reference to the prior art of
A sight window 20 may be included above the handle 16, which may provide a location from which an arrow is shot from the bow. The sight window 20 may include a lower wall 22, which is sometimes referred to as an arrow shelf, and may further include at least one vertical wall 24, which in turn may connect to an upper wall 26. The upper wall 26 may be horizontal, may project at an angle upward from horizontal, or may be curved. The upper wall 26 may connect the sight window 20 to the upper end 12 of the riser 10.
As can be seen in the prior art of
Accessories such as arrow rests, sights, cable guards, range finders, scopes, flashlights, cameras, fishing reels, and stabilizers are often attached to the riser, such as by way of the vertical wall 24. This is often accomplished through the use of one or more attachment means, such as a hole, on the vertical wall 24. For example, in some instances, a berger hole is used to mount an arrow rest. The sizes of these holes and thread specifications may be based on Archery Manufacturers' Organization (AMO) standards.
The accessories may be fastened from the outside of the vertical wall 24 of the sight window. This attachment arrangement may create certain problems, such as in the context of tuning the bow in order to center the accessory along a center plane of the riser and/or string. For example, because the accessory is attached from the outside of the sight window, at least some lateral positioning or adjustment may be required in order to center the accessory with respect to the riser and/or string.
In addition, the added weight of the accessory may compromise the balance of the bow riser, such as by shifting the center of gravity of the bow to the left or right. This may lead to the bow requiring one or more further weight stabilizers, such as a side stabilizer, a back bar, or a stabilizer weight slide bar to compensate for the added weight of the accessory. This addition of a stabilizing element simply adds further weight to the overall bow.
Accordingly, a need has been identified for a bow riser with an improved attachment system for accessories which addresses these and other shortcomings of traditional risers.
In one embodiment, the present invention generally relates to an archery bow riser comprising an upper end, a lower end, a handle above the lower end, and a sight window between handle and the upper end. The sight window may comprise a lower wall adjacent the handle, at least one vertical side wall, and an upper wall. The riser may further include at least one mount adapted to receive and attach an archer accessory to the riser, the mount being located above the lower wall and at least partially within a centerline plane of the archery bow riser. The archery accessory could be any of an arrow rest, a sight, a cable guard, a range finder, a scope, a flashlight, a camera, a fishing reel, a stabilizer, etc.
For purposes of this disclosure, the centerline plane is the plane through which a bowstring is adapted to travel when firing an arrow through the sight window of the bow riser. The centerline plane generally divides the riser in half between a left side and a right side.
In one aspect, the riser may further include a second vertical wall above the sight window, and the mount may be positioned on the second vertical wall.
The mount may comprise a recess adapted to receive at least a portion of the archery accessory. In one aspect, the mount may comprise an elongated groove running in a direction from a front to a back of the riser. The elongated groove may include at least one receiver adapted to engage the archery accessory and restrict movement of the archery accessory along the elongated groove. For example, the at least one receiver may be one or more indentations adapted to engage a detent associated with the archery accessory.
In another aspect, the mount may comprise an extension projecting from the riser. For example, the mount may comprise an extension running in a direction from a front to a back of the riser.
A second mount adapted for attaching a second archery accessory to the riser may be provided in or on at least one of the vertical side wall of the sight window or the lower wall. The second mount may be of the same configuration as the first mount, or may be of a different configuration.
The upper wall which includes the mount may be a generally horizontal wall. Alternately, the upper wall may extend from the at least one vertical side wall at an angle from horizontal greater than zero degrees. In one aspect, the upper wall may be a curved wall.
In another embodiment, the invention relates to an archery bow for use in association with a bowstring used to fire an arrow. The archery bow may comprise a riser including a centerline plane through which the bowstring is adapted to travel when firing said arrow. The riser may include a handle and a sight window above the handle, the sight window at least partially defined by a lower wall, a vertical side wall, and an upper wall. The archery bow may further comprise at least one first mount within the centerline plane, said mount being above the lower wall of the sight window and adapted to attach an archery accessory to the bow.
At least one of the vertical side wall of the sight window and the lower wall may include at least one second mount adapted to attach a second archery accessory to the bow. The first mount and the second mount may be of the same shape. Alternately, the first mount and the second mount may be different shapes.
In one aspect, the first mount may comprise a recess. The recess may be a threaded aperture adapted to receive a threaded projection associated with the archery accessory.
In another aspect, the recess may comprise an elongated groove extending in a direction along the centerline plane. The elongated groove may include at least one receiver adapted for limiting movement of the archery accessory upon engagement of the archery accessory and the elongated groove.
The archery bow may further include a second vertical wall above the sight window, and the second vertical wall may comprise the at least one first mount. The at least one first mount may comprise one of a recess or an elongated ridge, the recess or elongated ridge extending in a direction along the centerline plane.
The description provided below and in regard to the figures applies to all embodiments unless noted otherwise, and features common to each embodiment are similarly shown and numbered.
With reference to
In the illustrated embodiment of
The riser 100 may be adapted for use with a bowstring (not pictured), which is adapted to fire the arrow through the sight window 120. A path through which the bowstring travels while firing and arrow may define a centerline plane 128. This centerline plane 128 may generally divide the riser 100 into a left portion and right portion. In one aspect, the centerline plane 128 may divide the riser 100 in half between the left portion and the right portion. As illustrated, the centerline plane 128 extends from a front to a back of the riser 100, and is perpendicular to the plane of the cross-section of the riser 100 as illustrated.
At least one mount 130 may be provided in the upper wall 126 of the sight window. The mount 130 may be positioned at least partially within the centerline plane 128. In one aspect, the mount 130 may be centered within the centerline plane 128. The mount 130 may be adapted to engage an archery accessory and affix the archery accessory to the riser 100. For example, the archery accessory may comprise any of an arrow rest, a sight, a cable guard, a range finder, a scope, a flashlight, a camera, a fishing reel, or a stabilizer. The mount 130 may take one of many forms, such as those outlined below.
With further reference to
The mount 230 may comprise a recess 232, which is adapted for receiving at least a portion of the archery accessory. For example, the recess 232 may comprise a female connector, which may be adapted to mate with a male connector or extension on the archery accessory. The recess 232 may be a slot or groove running in a direction from a front to a back of the riser, such as along the centerline plane 228. A cross-sectional shape of the recess 232 may be rectangular, trapezoidal, polygonal, or may include a rounded or arcuate cross-section. In one aspect, the recess 232 may comprise a dovetail slot, or may be a slot for receiving a picatinny rail or a weaver rail.
Turning to
The upper wall 326 may include a mount 330. The mount 330 may be provided at least partially within the centerline plane 328 of the riser 300. In a further aspect, the mount 330 may be centered within the centerline plane 328. The mount 330 may comprise an extension 332 projecting from the upper wall 326 into the sight window. The extension 332 may run in a direction from a front to a back of the riser, such as along the centerline plane 328. A cross-sectional shape of the extension 332 may be rectangular, trapezoidal, polygonal, or may include a rounded or arcuate cross-section. In one aspect, the extension 332 may comprise a dovetail slide, or may be an extension such as that of a picatinny rail or a weaver rail.
Similarly, in the case of a mount 330 of a riser 300 being in the form of an extension 332, a corresponding archery accessory may be equipped with a receiver of a corresponding shape, thereby allowing the extension 332 to engage the receiver of the archery accessory, attaching and fixing the archery accessory to the riser 300.
In another aspect, as shown in
In a further aspect,
In the recess 632, one or more receivers 634 may be provided. The receivers 634 may be adapted to engage the archery accessory and restrict movement of the archery accessory, such as in a direction along the elongated groove. The receiver 634 may comprise an indentation adapted to engage a detent associated with the archery accessory. As shown in
Similarly, with reference to
The extension 732 may include one or more receivers 734, which may be adapted to engage the archery accessory and restrict movement of the archery accessory, such as in a direction along the centerline plane. The receiver 734 may comprise an indentation adapted to engage a detent associated with the archery accessory. As shown in
With reference to
Similarly,
Turning to
In another aspect, a riser may include a mount outside the sight window, but at least partially overlapping with a centerline plane of the riser. As illustrated in
The riser 1100 may further include a second vertical wall 1140 outside the sight window 1120. The second vertical wall 1140 may be above the sight window 1120 (as shown in
The mount 1142 may comprise a recess 1142a, which is adapted for receiving at least a portion of the archery accessory. For example, the recess 1142a may comprise a female connector, which may be adapted to mate with a male connector or extension on the archery accessory. The recess 1142a may be a slot or groove running in a direction from a front to a back of the riser, such as along the centerline plane 1128. A cross-sectional shape of the recess 1142a may be rectangular, trapezoidal, polygonal, or may include a rounded or arcuate cross-section. In one aspect, the recess 1142a may comprise a dovetail slot, or may be a slot for receiving a picatinny rail or a weaver rail.
The recess 1142a associated with the second vertical wall 1140 may take a similar form to those described above with respect to
With further reference to
The extension 1142b associated with the second vertical wall 1140 may take a similar form to those described above with respect to
In one aspect, the threaded aperture 1142c in the second vertical wall 1140 may comprise a plurality of threaded apertures, such as those of
While not illustrated, the mount 1142 associated with the second vertical sidewall 1140 may be used in conjunction with a mount 1031 in the lower wall, such as is illustrated in
A riser with a mount for an archery accessory provided within the centerline plane of the riser as described herein may offer advantages over a mount on a side vertical wall of the sight window of the riser. For example, locating and mounting an archery accessory along the centerline plane would prevent unwanted weight positioned off-center with respect to the bow, such as would be the case with mounting of the same accessory along the vertical sidewall of the sight window. Such off-centered weight can interfere with a user's ability to shoot an arrow along a desired path. In addition, the use of a mount aligned with a centerline plane of the riser prevents the need for adding an additional counterbalance weight stabilizer, thereby lowering the overall weight of the bow. In addition, providing a mount aligning with the centerline plane either in association with the upper wall of the sight window or in association with a vertical wall outside the sight window allows for placement of one or more archery accessories near or within the sight window without interfering with the flight of an arrow, which normally passes at or near the lower wall or arrow shelf. In the embodiment of a mount in both the upper wall (or in association with a second vertical wall above the sight window) and the lower wall, such a riser allows for coordinated location of an upper mount and a lower mount along the centerline plane of the riser. Accordingly, both an arrow rest and an additional archery accessory (e.g. a sight, a light, a camera, etc.) may be aligned with the centerline plane, thereby coordinating the function of two different accessories, while maintaining a balanced center of gravity of the overall bow.
While the invention has been described with reference to specific examples, it will be understood that numerous variations, modifications and additional embodiments are possible, and all such variations, modifications, and embodiments are to be regarded as being within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, any of the embodiments of mounts described herein may be combined with any of the illustrated or described riser configurations (e.g. risers with two vertical side walls, risers with a horizontal upper wall of the sight window, risers with an angled upper wall of the sight window, etc.). Also, the drawings, while illustrating the inventive concepts, are not to scale, and should not be limited to any particular sizes or dimensions. Accordingly, it is intended that the present disclosure not be limited to the described embodiments, but that it has the full scope defined by the language of the following claims, and equivalents thereof.
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/224,976, filed on Dec. 19, 2018, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/015,272, filed on Jun. 22, 2018, which claims priority to U.S. PROVISIONAL Application Ser. No. 62/526,064, filed on Jun. 28, 2017, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62526064 | Jun 2017 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16224976 | Dec 2018 | US |
Child | 16816451 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16015272 | Jun 2018 | US |
Child | 16224976 | US |