ERGONOMIC HANDLE FOR ARCHERY RELEASE

Abstract

A handle for an archery release includes a pair of sections which are joined to form a handle body having front, rear, top and bottom portions with side surfaces arranged therebetween. The top portion contains at least one concave recess defining a finger bed for supporting a finger of an archer when the handle is gripped. The side surfaces of the body contain tapered recesses extending from the concave recess toward the handle body bottom portion to define an ergonomic configuration for the handle which facilitates accurate grasping of the handle and improves the accuracy of a shot.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an archery release, and more particularly to an ergonomic handle for an archery release.

Release devices are used in archery to assist the archer in pulling a bowstring to a fully drawn position and then releasing the bowstring to fire an arrow. Some release devices use grippers for engaging a bowstring or a nock mounted on the bowstring. Other release devices use a rope looped around the bowstring. Handheld releases are generally of two types, using either a trigger or back tension to fire the shot.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Back-tension or hinge type release devices are well-known in the prior art as evidenced by U.S. Pat. No. 11,353,281 which discloses a handheld back tension archery release which affords adjustment of the release head length. Also known in the art is a handheld archery release which is convertible between hinge and trigger operation as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,982,961.

Virtually all handheld archery releases include a handle which is configured for gripping by the archer. Usually, the handle is gripped by the index and middle fingers of the archer, with the fingers being supported by contoured finger beds in an upper surface of the handle. However, the side portions of the handle are generally flat. The flat side walls inhibit repeatable finger bed placement by the archer which limits accuracy of a shot. The present invention was developed in order to overcome the drawbacks of existing handheld releases by providing an ergonomic handle which affords improved and repeatable gripping of the release by the archer while reducing torque in comparison with flat handle designs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the invention to provide an improved handle for an archery release. The handle includes a body having a longitudinal axis and front, rear, top and bottom portions with side surfaces extending therebetween. The top portion contains at least one concave surface which acts as a finger bed to support a finger of an archer. The side surfaces each contain a tapered recess extending from the concave surface in the top portion of the handle body toward the body bottom portion.

The depth of each tapered recess decreases toward the body bottom portion. Similarly, the length of each tapered recess further decreases toward the body bottom portion. The upper portion of the tapered recess extends a length equal to the longitudinal length of the concave surface.

According to a preferred embodiment, the handle includes a pair of longitudinally spaced concave surfaces and a neck portion extending from the top portion of the body between spaced concave surfaces. The neck portion is configured to receive a head assembly of the archery release which is operable to hold and release a bowstring.

The handle body is preferably formed of a pair of concave mating handle sections which define an internal cavity in which a sear assembly of the release is arranged.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a study of the following specification when viewed in the light of the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a handheld archery release including the improved handle according to the invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are front and rear perspective views, respectively, of the handle body according to the invention;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the handle body of FIGS. 2 and 3;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are front and rear perspective views, respectively, of a front section of the handle body of FIGS. 2 and 3; and

FIGS. 7 and 8 are front and rear perspective views, respectively, of a rear section of the handle body of FIGS. 2 and 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A handheld archery release of the thumb trigger type including a handle according to the invention is shown in FIG. 1. While the invention will be described in connection with a thumb trigger release, it will be appreciated that the inventive handle body can be used with different types of handheld releases.

The release 2 includes a handle 4 including a body having a longitudinal axis A. The handle body portion is formed from two mating generally concave sections 6, 8 which when joined define a chamber. As illustrated, the section 6 will be referred to as the front handle section and the section 8 will be referred to as the rear handle section. The front handle section is shown in more detail in FIGS. 5 and 6 and the rear handle section is shown in more detail in FIGS. 7 and 8.

The handle body includes top 10, bottom 12, front 14, and rear 16 portions and side surfaces extending between these portions. At least one concave surface 18 is provided in the top portion and serves as a finger bed for receiving a finger of an archer. Preferably, two longitudinally spaced concave recesses are provided. A first concave surface 18 is configured to receive the index finger of the archer and a second concave surface 20 is configured to receive the middle finger. An optional finger support 22 containing a concave recess 24 may be provided to receive the ring finger. The finger support is preferably adjustably connected with the handle in a known manner.

Between the first 18 and second 20 concave surfaces, the handle body includes a contoured projection 26 on which a head assembly 28 is arranged. The head assembly includes a head 30 and a bail 32 rotatably connected with the head. The bail is configured to receive a bow loop or a bowstring. A thumb trigger 34 is connected with the handle body and is operable to activate a sear (not shown) arranged in the handle body cavity which in turn operates the head assembly to release the bow loop or bowstring to fire a shot.

As shown in FIG. 5, the front handle section 6 contains a plurality of through openings 6a and as shown in FIG. 7, the rear handle section 8 contains a plurality of through openings 8a which are aligned with the front handle section through openings when the handles are mated together. Screws or other fasteners (not shown) are arranged in the aligned through openings to fasten the handle sections together. In addition, the front handle section 6 contains a plurality of secondary openings 6b aligned with secondary openings or recesses 8b in the rear handle section to receive the ends of dowel pins (not shown) when the handles are connected to help maintain the structural integrity of the handle during use of the release. Each section further includes a recessed portion or cavity 6c, 8c which defines the handle body cavity in which a sear is arranged.

A characterizing feature of the inventive archery release handle is the provision of a tapered recess 36 arranged adjacent to each concave surface. As shown in the drawing, the tapered recesses extend from the concave surfaces in the top portion of the handle body toward the bottom portion of the body. Preferably, the tapered recess terminates short of the bottom portion. The depth of each tapered recess decreases from the top portion to the bottom portion and the longitudinal length of each tapered recess also decreases in the direction of the bottom portion. Preferably, the length of the upper portion of each tapered recess extends a longitudinal length equal to the longitudinal length of the associated concave recess 18, 20. The tapered recesses thus have a scalloped configuration.

The tapered recesses on opposite sides of the handle body allow the archer to grasp their fingers around the handle with better ergonomics and with a more repeatable finger bed placement location that is felt by the archer's fingers in the hand, which improves accuracy over a flat sided handle release.

While the preferred forms and embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without deviating from the inventive concepts set forth above.

Claims

1. A handle for an archery release, comprising (a) a body having a longitudinal axis and front, rear, top and bottom portions and side surfaces extending between front, rear, top and bottom portions;(b) said top portion of said body containing at least one concave surface configured to support a finger of an archer; and(c) said side surfaces each containing a tapered recess extending from said at least one concave surface toward said bottom portion.

2. A handle as defined in claim 1, wherein said tapered recess has a depth which decreases toward said bottom portion.

3. A handle as defined in claim 2, wherein said tapered recess has a length in a direction of said longitudinal axis which decreases toward said bottom portion.

4. A handle as defined in claim 3, wherein an upper portion of said tapered recess extends a length equal to a longitudinal length of said at least one concave surface.

5. A handle as defined in claim 4, wherein said tapered recess terminates short of said bottom portion.

6. A handle as defined in claim 3, and further comprising a pair of longitudinally spaced concave surfaces.

7. A handle as defined in claim 6, and further comprising a neck portion extending from said top portion between said pair of longitudinally spaced concave surfaces, said neck portion being configured to receive a head assembly of the archery release which is operable to hold and release a bowstring.

8. A handle as defined in claim 1, wherein said body is formed of a pair of concave mating handle sections which define an internal cavity which contains a sear assembly of the archery release.