The field of the invention relates to firearms, particularly methods and devices for simulating malfunctions for a firearm.
Many modern firearms (including handguns, rifles, carbines, shotguns, etc.) include a magazine for storing and/or feeding ammunition. Magazines may be integral/fixed to the firearm or may be detachable. Different magazine arrangements include tube, box, rotary, drum, casket, pan, helical, saddle-drum, or various other arrangements.
Due to industry standardization, improved manufacturing techniques, improved manufacturing tolerances, material properties, and other various factors, modern firearms are very reliable and often fire thousands or tens of thousands of rounds without a malfunction (even with minimal cleaning). However, malfunctions may still occur. Military, law enforcement, or other organizations may want to train firearm operators to react and address firearm malfunctions. Accordingly, it may be desirable to include a conspicuous or inconspicuous device within a magazine of a firearm to intentionally cause a malfunction to aid in training.
The terms “invention,” “the invention,” “this invention” and “the present invention” used in this patent are intended to refer broadly to all of the subject matter of this patent and the patent claims below. Statements containing these terms should be understood not to limit the subject matter described herein or to limit the meaning or scope of the patent claims below. Embodiments of the invention covered by this patent are defined by the claims below, not this summary. This summary is a high-level overview of various aspects of the invention and introduces some of the concepts that are further described in the Detailed Description section below. This summary is not intended to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used in isolation to determine the scope of the claimed subject matter. The subject matter should be understood by reference to appropriate portions of the entire specification of this patent, any or all drawings and each claim.
According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a malfunction insert for a firearm that comprises a magazine, the malfunction insert comprises: a body comprising a concave surface and a narrow end extending to an opposite side of the body from the concave surface, wherein: the body is configured to be inserted into the magazine; and in use, the narrow end is configured to engage a feed lip of the magazine while the concave surface engages an upper surface of a cartridge.
According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a malfunction insert for a firearm that comprises a magazine, the malfunction insert comprises: a narrow end comprising a narrow edge; a concave surface disposed at an opposite end of the malfunction insert from the narrow end; a central member that connects the concave surface and the narrow end, wherein: the malfunction insert is configured to be inserted into the magazine.
According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a method of creating a malfunction in a firearm that includes a magazine, the method comprises: inserting at least one initial cartridge into the magazine of the firearm to push a magazine follower downward; inserting a malfunction insert into the magazine, wherein the malfunction insert comprises a body with a concave surface and a narrow end extending to an opposite side of the body from the concave surface; and inserting a plurality of later cartridges into the magazine after the malfunction insert.
The subject matter of embodiments of the present invention is described here with specificity to meet statutory requirements, but this description is not necessarily intended to limit the scope of the claims. The claimed subject matter may be embodied in other ways, may include different elements or steps, and may be used in conjunction with other existing or future technologies. This description should not be interpreted as implying any particular order or arrangement among or between various steps or elements except when the order of individual steps or arrangement of elements is explicitly described.
Although the illustrated embodiments shown in
According to certain embodiments of the present invention, as shown in
In some embodiments, one or more malfunction insert(s) 101 may be inserted into a magazine 10 to create intentional, predictable, and expected malfunction(s). Some magazines 10 are designed for a double stack configuration where two columns of cartridges are arranged side-by-side in the magazine. As one example, the configuration shown for magazine 10 in
For typical firearm operation (when a malfunction insert 101 is not present), a bolt carrier group 30 moves rearward due to manual operation/movement (e.g., operating a charging handle and/or bolt release) or may be caused by cycling of the firearm after firing a projectile. Subsequently, the bolt carrier group 30 moves forward and passes over the top of the magazine 10 such that the leading edge 31 of the bolt carrier group 30 pushes the uppermost cartridge (e.g., cartridge 20.1) out of the magazine and toward the chamber of the firearm (not shown). In other words, under normal operation, if the malfunction insert 101 were not present for the configuration shown in
The malfunction insert 101 may be inserted into the magazine 10 when cartridges 20 are loaded into the magazine (i.e., when cartridges 20 are loaded into the top of the magazine 10 pushing the follower down and compressing the magazine spring). Although the malfunction insert 101 is shown interfacing with cartridge 20.3 in the left side column, the malfunction insert 101 can be inserted into the right side column also. As shown in
In some embodiments, the malfunction insert 101 exits the magazine 10 concurrent with or after cartridges 20.1 and 20.2 exit the magazine 10. The malfunction (i.e., the double feed) will cause the firearm to malfunction because both cartridges 20.1 and 20.2 will simultaneously try to enter the chamber of the firearm which prevents the bolt carrier group 30 from moving to the forward position (i.e., the firearm will be out-of-battery because the bolt does not move to the forward or firing position). To address the malfunction, the firearm operator will move the bolt carrier group 30 to the rear or open position (and, in some cases, lock the bolt carrier group 30 in the open position). In some cases, the operator may also remove the magazine 10 from the firearm, if applicable. After cartridges 20.1 and 20.2 along with malfunction insert 101 are removed from the firearm, the firearm will operate normally. For example, subsequent movement of the bolt carrier group 30 will cause the leading edge 31 of the bolt carrier group 30 to push the uppermost cartridge (e.g., cartridge 20.3) out of the magazine and toward the chamber of the firearm. As described in more detail below, the malfunction insert 101 may be made from a non-metallic material to reduce the likelihood of damage to the interior of the magazine 10 or the firearm. The malfunction insert 101 may exit the magazine and enter the upper receiver of the firearm. In some embodiments, the malfunction insert 101 is constructed from brightly colored or high visibility material to ensure that the malfunction insert 101 is conspicuous after exiting the magazine (either into the upper receiver or outside of the firearm). The malfunction insert 101 may be orange or another high visibility color/pattern.
The components of any of the firearms described herein, including the malfunction insert 101, may be formed of materials including, but not limited to, thermoplastic, carbon composite, plastic, nylon, steel, aluminum, stainless steel, high strength aluminum alloy, other plastic or polymer materials, other metallic materials, other composite materials, or other similar materials. In particular, the malfunction insert 101 may be made from Polyamides (PA), Polycarbonate (PC), Polyester (PES), Polyethylene (PE), High-density polyethylene (HDPE), Low-density polyethylene (LDPE), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polypropylene (PP), Polystyrene (PS), High impact polystyrene (HIPS), Polyurethanes (PU), Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), or any other appropriate non-metallic material. Moreover, the components of the firearms may be attached to one another via suitable fasteners, which include, but are not limited to, screws, bolts, rivets, welds, co-molding, injection molding, or other mechanical or chemical fasteners.
Different arrangements of the components depicted in the drawings or described above, as well as components and steps not shown or described are possible. Similarly, some features and sub-combinations are useful and may be employed without reference to other features and sub-combinations. Embodiments of the invention have been described for illustrative and not restrictive purposes, and alternative embodiments will become apparent to readers of this patent. Accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above or depicted in the drawings, and various embodiments and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claims below.
This application is related to and claims priority benefit from U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/872,587 (“the '587 application”), filed on Jul. 10, 2019 and entitled “MALFUNCTION SIMULATION INSERT.” The '587 application is hereby incorporated in its entirety by this reference.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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9423221 | Bonner | Aug 2016 | B2 |
11002523 | Billings | May 2021 | B2 |
20160245610 | Schulz | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20170363398 | McCloy | Dec 2017 | A1 |
20180195843 | Gerfin | Jul 2018 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20210010776 A1 | Jan 2021 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62872587 | Jul 2019 | US |