Paint ball land mine

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6289819
  • Patent Number
    6,289,819
  • Date Filed
    Monday, February 8, 1999
    26 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, September 18, 2001
    23 years ago
Abstract
A paint ball land mine capable of propelling standard caliber paint balls during simulated war games is disclosed. The present paint ball land mine is designed to simulate the function of a U.S. military Claymore anti-personnel mine for purpose of marking participants as out of the competition in the simulated war game. The paintball land mine includes a cylindrical discharge tube configured to receive a pyrotechnic charge in the form of a 12 gauge shotgun blank round and/or a .38 caliber blank round. In a preferred embodiment a firing pin is pivotally attached in operative relation to the pyrotechnic charge and spring-biased into contact therewith. A trigger mechanism including a trip pin fixedly attached to a trip wire is interposed between the pyrotechnic charge and the firing pin. When a participant comes into contact with the trigger mechanism the paintballs are propelled at a velocity up to 200 feet per second.
Description




BACKGROUND OF INVENTION




1. Field of Invention




This invention relates generally to anti-personnel land mines and, more particularly, to a reusable land mine which propels small diameter paint balls.




The sport of paint ball in which individuals or teams of players participate in simulated war games has become increasingly popular in recent years. In paint ball the participants utilize various paint ball weapons which discharge small diameter paint balls to mark the players that have been hit without causing bodily injury.




Paint ball weapons have evolved from single shot pistols and rifles to include automatic weapons and other types of ordinance. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,886 discloses a reusable, mechanically powered paint ball grenade utilizing small diameter paint balls. Once thrown downrange the actuator will function upon impact allowing the grenade halves to collapse crushing the paint balls and causing the paint to be hydromechanically dispersed about the exterior of the device to mark nearby players.




The present invention has been developed to provide a paint ball land mine which is actuated by a trip wire mechanism to enhance the realism of such a simulated war game.




2. Description of Related Prior Art




U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,886 to Craig L. Lush discloses a reusable Paint Ball Grenade which is reloadable with standard caliber paint balls. This device is designed to be grasped in such a way as to engage one or more safety interlocks during the removal of the safety pin. Once thrown down range the actuator will upon impact allowing the grenade halves to be collapsed crushing the paint balls against cutters and causing the paint to be dispersed about the exterior of the device.




U.S. Pat. No. 4,690,061 to Leon N. Armer, Jr. et al. discloses a land mine for use in a simulated war game. The land mine device includes a housing having a first chamber adapted to contain a slurry of a marking agent and dispersing agent. A second chamber communicating with the first chamber is adapted to contain a propelling agent such as a cylinder of compressed gas. When a trigger mechanism is actuated the propellant is released into first chamber to drive the slurry from such chamber which in turn directs the slurry in a desired pattern exterior of the housing.




U.S. Pat. No. 4,833,961 to Ari Adini discloses a device for the dispersing of rioters which discharges a plurality of pieces of ice which preferably have a spherical shape and are fired at rioters by firing equipment which includes a barrel, a retaining element, and a loading part. The firing equipment further includes a source of pressure medium which is connected by a hose with the loading part of the firing device. The pressure medium source can be performed as an air compressor with an adjustable air pressure.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,579 to Carl J. Campagnuolo discloses a military anti-personnel mine training device which simulates battlefield explosive devices with bright flashes of light and buzzer type sounds which works in conjunction with systems that receive these sounds and in turn provide an indication of the damage which would have been inflicted on targeted personnel and equipment.




U.S. Pat. No. 2,972,949 to Norman A. Mac Leod discloses an antipersonnel fragmentation weapon used in close proximity to the defending users of the weapon and with which the only hazard will be from posterior or lateral blasts. The fragmentation beam is in the form of a solid angle, preferably having a horizontal aspect of from 45° to 90° and a vertical aspect of from 10° to 30°.




U.S. Pat. No. 2,475,008 to William S. Catherwood, Jr. discloses a land mine housing in which the base is constructed from sheet metal by stamping and welding operations such that the mine is considerably lighter in weight than the conventional cast iron mine base and is suitable for mass production at a comparatively reduced cost.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,290 discloses a portable, lightweight confetti cannon for projecting confetti to heights of 30 to 40 feet in the air to create a spectacular display for rock concerts or stage shows. The cannon consists of a hollow barrel having a length of at least 8 inches and a length/diameter ratio of at least 14 having a CO


2


cartridge radially mounted in the base. A valve is mounted between the cartridge and the barrel and has a cartridge puncturing mechanism which enables discharge of CO


2


cartridge contents in less than 3 seconds.




Finally, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 366,283 discloses the ornamental design for a paint ball mine as shown and described therein.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present invention is a paint ball version of a so-called Claymore Mine as utilized by American troops during WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. The paint ball land mine will discharge paint balls or other marking agent at a velocity which will not inflict bodily injuly.




The paint ball land mine of the present invention utilizes a simple trip wire mechanism which triggers a propellant charge providing realism to the simulated war game. The present land mine is designed to be reloaded for repeated use.




Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a paint ball land mine which simulates the function of a so-called Claymore mine as known to U.S. military personnel.




Another object of the present invention is to provide a paint ball land mine which utilizes a simple trip wire mechanism and a propellant charge to enhance the realism of the simulated war games.




Another object of the present invention is to provide a paint ball land mine which is capable of delivering paint balls or other marking agent at high velocity without causing bodily injury.




Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and obvious from a study of the following description and the accompanying drawings which are merely illustrative of such invention.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

illustrates a paint ball


1


and mine indicated generally at


10


, and





FIG. 2

shows the acutation and delivery system for the paint balls.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT




Referring to the drawings,

FIG. 1

illustrates a paint ball land mine in accordance with the present invention, indicated generally at


10


. The land mine


10


includes a base portion


12


having a cylindrical opening (not shown) formed therein in perpendicular relation thereto. In the embodiment shown a bushing


14


of predetermined internal diameter is installed in the opening in the base


12


to an interference fit.




The bushing


14


is threadably coupled to a collar


16


which is in turn threadably connected to the discharge tube


18


of the mine


10


to form a continuous internal bore


20


extending the entire length of the device.




In the preferred embodiment the bushing


14


, coupling


16


, and the discharge tube


18


are fabricated from a plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or other durable material.




In an alternative embodiment the discharge tube


18


together with the bushing


14


and the collar


16


may be of a unitary construction being integrally molded for this purpose.




The bushing


14


is adapted to receive a pyrotechnic charge to propel a plurality of paint balls


22


from the discharge tube


18


in operation. In the preferred embodiment, the pyrotechnic charge is in the form of a


12


gauge shotgun blank round


24


or other similar pyrotechnic charge. Such a charge


24


has been demonstrated to deliver paint balls


22


in a dispersed pattern at a velocity of 200 FPS without inflicting bodily injury.




In an alternative embodiment a .38 caliber blank round with an adapter bushing (not shown) can be utilized to propel the paint balls


22


.




The mine


10


is provided with a firing pin assembly, indicated generally at


26


including a firing pin


27


which is installed in the pivoting member


28


of hinge


30


that is secured to the base


12


by screws


29


or other suitable attaching hardware.




Referring now to

FIG. 2

, it can be seen that a simple trip wire


32


provides the trigger mechanism for the mine


10


. The trip wire


32


is connected to a trip pin


34


which is held between the pivoting member


28


and the base


12


by the resistance of an elastic band or spring


37


that is anchored at one end thereof to the base


12


as at


39


. An opposite end of the band


37


extends over the pivoting member


28


to effectively load the firing pin assembly


26


.




In practical use the paint ball land mine


10


is initially loaded with a charge


24


together with the paint balls


22


or other bulk water-based paint cartridge (not shown) as shown in FIG.


1


.




Next, the offset cartridge retainer


35


being pivotally attached by the screw


29


is swung into position to retain the charge


24


. It will be appreciated that the retainer


35


includes an aperture


36


which is formed therein and is disposed in alignment with a detonator


25


of the charge


24


.




Next, the elastic band


37


is positioned as shown in FIG.


2


and the pivoting member


28


of the hinge is drawn outwardly against the tension thereof. The trip pin


34


being attached to the trip wire


32


is inserted between the base


12


and the pivoting member


28


to place the mine in firing condition.




Thereafter, the mine


10


is positioned on the ground surface or other desired location and may be propped up at an angle by the use of a leg attachment


38


to aim the discharge tube


18


upwardly at a potential victim.




In the preferred embodiment, the entire device is painted flat black, in color or may be provided with a camouflage paint to hide its location.




During the course of a game of paint ball, if a participant comes into contact with the trip wire


32


, the trip pin


34


will be pulled from the position shown in

FIG. 2

releasing the firing pin


27


to fire the device propelling the paint balls


22


outwardly from the discharge tube and into contact with the lower extremities of the victim placing him out of the competition.




From the above it can be seen that the paint ball land mine of the present invention provides a device which simulates the function of a so-called Claymore mine enhancing the realism of a simulated war game.




The paint ball land mine of the present invention is capable of delivering paint balls in a dispersed pattern at a high velocity without inflicting bodily injury.




The terms “upper”, “lower”, “side”, and so forth have been used herein merely for convenience to describe the present invention and its parts as oriented in the drawings. It is to be understood, however, that these terms are in no way limiting to the invention since such invention may obviously be disposed in different orientations when in use.




The present invention may, of course, be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of such invention. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.



Claims
  • 1. A paint ball land mine for propelling a paint cartridge with a detonation cartridge when contacted by a participant in a ground area, said paint ball land mine comprising: a base member for engaging the ground area; a cylindrical discharge tube on said base member defining a cylindrical bore having a discharge end and a cartridge end for receiving the detonation cartridge, the detonation cartridge having a detonation member facing outwardly of said base member; a retaining member connected to said base member adjacent said cartridge end and shiftable from a loading position permitting insertion of the detonation cartridge into said bore and a detonation position retaining the detonation cartridge in said bore; a pivot member pivotally connected to said base member and carrying a detonation pin for engaging the detonation member to initiate detonation thereof and propel the paint cartridges from said discharge tube, said pivot member having an armed position spaced from said base member and a detonation position whereat said detonation pin engages said cartridge member; a trip member extending between said base member and an outer end of said pivot member for maintaining said pivot member in said armed position; spring means operative for biasing said pivot member between said armed position and said detonation position; an a trip wire extending between said trip member and the ground area whereby contact of said trip wire by the participant will dislodge said trip member from said pivot member permitting said spring means to shift said pivot member from said armed position and said detonation position causing said detonation pin to engage said cartridge member thereby initiating detonation and propelling said pain cartridges from said tube.
  • 2. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 1 wherein said discharge tube includes a support leg slidably supported thereon for varying the angular elevation of said discharge tube with respect to the ground area.
  • 3. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 2 wherein said retaining member is pivotally connected to said base member about an axis parallel to said bore and includes an aperture aligned with cartridge member in said detonation position, and said detonation pin projects from said pivot member and registers with said aperture at said detonation position initiating said detonation.
  • 4. The pain ball land mine as recited in claim 1 wherein said spring means is an elastic band.
  • 5. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 1 wherein said paint cartridge comprises a plurality of paint balls.
  • 6. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 3 wherein said bore accommodates a shot gun blank.
  • 7. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 3 wherein said bore accommodate a rifle blank.
  • 8. The paint ball land mine as recited in claim 1 wherein said trip wire is a light gauge material.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This Application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/074,760 filed Feb. 17, 1998 by Daniel W. Dolderer for Paint Ball Land Mine.

US Referenced Citations (17)
Number Name Date Kind
D. 366283 Fernandes Jan 1996
2475008 Catherwood, Jr. Jul 1949
2972949 Mac Leod Feb 1961
4656092 Haman et al. Apr 1987
4690061 Armer, Jr. et al. Sep 1987
4833961 Adini May 1989
5149290 Reveen Sep 1992
5207579 Campagnuolo May 1993
5254379 Kotsiopoulos Oct 1993
5448951 Olsen Sep 1995
5526750 Poor et al. Jun 1996
5590886 Lush Jan 1997
5639526 Kotsiopoulos et al. Jun 1997
5698813 Ramsey et al. Dec 1997
5877448 Denton et al. Mar 1999
5936190 Buzick Aug 1999
5996503 Woodall et al. Dec 1999
Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
60/074760 Feb 1998 US