Permanent safety device for preventing the accidental firing of a firearm

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6308449
  • Patent Number
    6,308,449
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, February 9, 1999
    26 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, October 30, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Original Assignees
  • Examiners
    • Carone; Michael J.
    • Mun; Kyongtaek K.
    Agents
    • Sofer & Haroun, LLP
Abstract
Permanent safety device for preventing the accidental firing of a weapon whose firing mechanism comprises a trigger, a hammer, a loaded spring which exerts a force along a given line of action on said hammer, retention means which hold the hammer in opposition to said spring and, inserted between the trigger and said hammer retention means, a lever which disengages these latter at the time of firing as a result of the trigger being pulled. The abovementioned firing mechanism includes a stop piece which can be moved between an interference position in which it interferes with the action of said spring on the hammer and a position in which it does not interfere with said action, and vice versa, and a mechanism, connected to the trigger, which is designed to move said stop piece out of said interference position only if the trigger is pulled.
Description




FIELD OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to a permanent safety device for preventing the accidental firing of a weapon whose firing mechanism comprises a trigger, a hammer, a loaded spring which exerts a force along a given line of action on said hammer, retention means which hold the hammer in opposition to said spring and, inserted between the trigger and said hammer retention means, a lever which disengages these latter at the time of firing as a result of the trigger being pulled.




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




Firing mechanisms of the type detailed above are well known within the firearms sector, in both hunting and military guns.




The fact these mechanisms include a safety device which can be engaged and disengaged manually is also well known.




The known manual safety devices usually used in firearms consist of catch mechanisms which, once engaged, make it impossible to move those components which are designed to disengage the hammer retention means and therefore, even if pressure is exerted on the trigger, prevent the sequence of movements that result in a shot being fired from taking place, including, in particular, the movement of the hammer which, as is known, is permanently subjected to the action of a spring.




Despite immobilizing the components mentioned above, or even the trigger, by means of the conventional safety devices found in firearms, there is still the problem—and one which can sometimes have extremely serious consequences—of the gun firing accidentally as a result of the hammer retention means being disengaged inadvertently.




As mentioned earlier, the hammer is permanently subjected to the action of a spring and is held in opposition to the latter by means which are usually in the form of a hook.




If these means should, for whatever reason—for example as a result of a violent knock to the weapon or wear of the hooking surfaces—cease to function properly, the hammer is released and the force of the spring is fully discharged onto said hammer, causing the gun to fire accidentally.




The object of the present invention is to equip the firing mechanism of a firearm of the type specified above with a permanent safety device which is independent of the conventional safety catch and which, even if the hammer retention means are released or disengaged accidentally, will not allow the hammer, even though it is subjected to the force of the spring, to receive a sufficient force to cause the gun to fire.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




This object is achieved by a permanent safety device for preventing the accidental firing of a weapon whose firing mechanism comprises a trigger, a hammer, a loaded spring which exerts a force along a given line of action on said hammer, retention means which hold the hammer in opposition to said spring and, inserted between the trigger and said hammer retention means, a lever which disengages these latter at the time of firing as a result of the trigger being pulled. The permanent safety device includes a stop piece which can be moved between an interference position in which it interferes with the action of said spring and a position in which it does not interfere with said action, and vice versa, and a mechanism, connected to the trigger, which is designed to move said stop piece out of said interference position only if the trigger is pulled.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to a number of practical embodiments thereof which are given solely by way of non-limiting example and illustrated in the appended drawings, in which:





FIG. 1

shows a perspective view of the basic elements of a firing mechanism of a firearm, especially a hunting rifle or shotgun, fitted with the permanent safety device according to the invention in a first embodiment;





FIG. 2

shows a perspective view of a component of the mechanism of the permanent safety device according to the invention, from the embodiment shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

shows a diagrammatic perspective view of the permanent safety mechanism of the example shown in

FIGS. 1 and 2

, in the active position;





FIG. 4

shows the mechanism of the previous figure in the inactive position that immediately precedes an intentional shot;





FIG. 5

shows a second embodiment of the permanent safety device according to the invention, in its active position;





FIG. 6

shows the device of the embodiment shown in

FIG. 5

in the inactive position that immediately precedes an intentional shot;





FIG. 7

shows a third embodiment of the permanent safety device according to the invention, in the active position;





FIG. 8

shows the device of the embodiment shown in

FIG. 7

in the inactive position immediately prior to an intentional shot.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS




With reference to the abovementioned figures and in particular to

FIGS. 1

to


4


, the reference


1


denotes, overall, the support frame of the firing mechanism of a firearm, for example a shotgun.




The trigger


2


pivots on the pin


3


and the hammer


4


is mounted so that it can rotate about the pin


5


.




In the example described, the hammer


4


takes the form of a cranked lever having a longitudinal portion


4




a


and a transverse portion


4




b.






The latter portion terminates in a hook-shaped end


6


, the front of which engages with another hook


7


carried on the end


8


of a lever


9


which is mounted so that it can rotate about the pin


10


.




The other end


11


of the lever


9


is designed to work in conjunction with a catch element of the conventional safety system which has not been illustrated since it is not relevant to the present invention.




The back


12


of the hammer is, in the conventional manner, designed to strike the firing pin (not illustrated in the drawings) at the time of firing as a result of its rotation about the pin


5


.




The side


13


, opposite the back


12


of the hammer, carries a projection


14


which is permanently in contact with the end


15


of a cap


15




a


which at least partially encloses a compressed spring, shown diagrammatically as


16


. The other end


17


of the spring


16


reacts, in the conventional manner, against the frame


1


which has not been illustrated in

FIGS. 3 and 4

for the sake of simplicity and clarity.




The lever


9


, its tooth


7


and the tooth


6


of the hammer


4


that engages with the tooth


7


, constitute the retention means which hold the hammer in opposition to the thrust force exerted along the line of action X—X by the spring


16


which is in permanent contact with the projection


14


via the cap


15




a.






Inserted between the lever


9


and the trigger


2


is a lever


18


which, via its end


18




a


, is hinged to the end


2




a


of the trigger by means of a pin


19


.




The tip of the other end


18




b


presses against the lever


9


, at a point between the pivot pin


10


and the end


8


.




This same end


18




b


of the lever


18


has a projection


20


, positioned at an angle with respect to the axial extension of the lever, which engages slidably within the window


21


formed in the end


22




a


of a lever


22


.




This lever


22


pivots like a rocker arm by means of the hole


10




a


around the pin


10


—on which the lever


9


is also pivotably mounted—and carries a transverse piece, denoted


23


, on its other end


22




b.






The projection


20


and the window


21


form a connection means between the lever


18


and the lever


22


.




The piece


23


on the lever


22


is usually positioned such that it interferes with a zone


15




b


affected by the movement of the cap


15




a


containing the spring


16


, generally to the side of the line of action X—X of the force of the spring


16


, as illustrated in FIG.


3


.




In addition, the piece


23


is positioned, in the direction of the line X—X, a preset distance away from the end


15


of the cap


15




a.






This positioning means that, in the event of the teeth


6


and


7


disengaging for whatever reason—for example as a result of wear of the contact surfaces of the hooked connection or an accidental knock, but not because the trigger


2


has been pulled—the thrust force of the spring


16


, whose cap


15




a


is permanently pressed against the projection


14


on the hammer, cannot be fully discharged because, beyond the preset distance, at least part of the end


15


of the cap


15




a


hits the piece


23


on the lever


22


, which acts as a stop.




The spring


16


can therefore only transmit a limited thrust via the cap


15




a


to the hammer


4


and this thrust is not enough to release the hammer so that it can strike the firing pin (not illustrated) with sufficient energy to fire a shot.




Only when the shot is intentional, i.e. caused by the trigger


2


being pulled, is the piece


23


on the lever


22


first moved out of the zone of displacement of the spring


16


.




The axial movement of the lever


18


and the resultant pressure exerted by the end of the latter on the lever


9


, then cause the teeth


6


and


7


to disengage.




When this happens, the hammer can then receive the full force of the spring


16


and so strike the firing pin with sufficient energy to fire the gun.




Displacement of the transverse piece


23


, which acts as a stop for the cap


15




a


containing the spring


16


and limits the force of the energy discharged by the latter on the hammer, is achieved by virtue of the connection between the lever


18


and the rocker lever


22


.




This is because the axial movement of the lever


18


, which gradually causes the tooth


7


to disengage from the tooth


6


on the hammer


4


, also causes the angular movement of the lever


22


and, because of the different lengths of the arms relative to the pivot pin


10


, moves the piece


23


out of the zone


15




b


of displacement of the cap


15




a


, slightly before disengagement of the teeth


6


and


7


takes place.




The device of the invention therefore constitutes a permanent safety mechanism which does not need to be engaged and disengaged manually.




It is only when the gun is to be fired intentionally that, in an action consequent upon the moving of the trigger, this safety mechanism renders the spring


16


fully active and allows all its energy to be discharged onto the hammer


4


in order to fire a shot.




In all other cases, unless the trigger


2


is moved, the safety device continues to remain active, even when the teeth


6


and


7


accidentally disengage, thereby releasing the hammer.




More specifically, with reference to the embodiment of

FIGS. 3 and 4

, if the teeth


6


and


7


do disengage accidentally, the pressure exerted by the spring


16


, via the cap


15




a


, on the stop piece


23


tends to cause the lever


22


to rotate clockwise about the pin


10


, thereby holding the piece


23


even more firmly in its operational stop position, therefore making the safety device even more effective.




With reference to the example illustrated in

FIGS. 5 and 6

, in which elements corresponding to those in the embodiment o f

FIGS. 1

to


4


have been given the same reference numerals, it will be noted that a stop piece


123


is carried by the end


122




b


of a rod


122


which is mounted on the frame of the weapon such that it can be moved axially in both directions.




The end


122




a


of this rod


122


hooks onto the end


118




b


of the lever


118


which, similarly to the example shown in

FIGS. 1

to


4


, is actuated by the trigger


2


.




Unless the trigger


2


is moved, the stop piece


123


interferes with the action of the spring


16


and so prevents, should the teeth


6


and


7


disengage accidentally, the full elastic force of the spring from being discharged onto the hammer


4


and causing the gun to fire accidentally.




In contrast, when the trigger


2


is pulled, the lever


118


axially pushes the rod


122


while its tip acts simultaneously on the lever


9


.




Before the teeth


6


and


7


are disengaged, the rod


112


moves the stop piece


123


out of the way, thereby releasing the spring


16


.




With reference to the example illustrated in

FIGS. 7 and 8

, it will be noted that the permanent safety device according to the invention can also be used in a shotgun in which the barrels are on top of each other and which has a known, conventional firing mechanism.




It should be noted in this example that the spring


216


is mounted coaxial on a rod


217


whose end


217




a


bears against the hammer


204


which can rotate about the pin


205


, while a portion


217




b


of its opposite end passes through a wall


218


of the frame and terminates in an enlargement


219


formed, for example, by a nut screwed onto the threaded end of the rod.




When the hammer is in the cocked position, as shown in

FIG. 7

, in which the teeth


206


and


207


are mutually engaged, the spring


216


is compressed between the wall


218


and the flange


220


of the end


217




a.






The end


221


of a rocker lever


222


, which is mounted so that it can rotate around the pin


223


, is inserted along the portion


217




b


and presses against the enlargement


219


.




The other end


224


of this lever


222


is forked, its times


225


enclosing the portion


226


of an extension piece integral with the trigger


2


.




When the components are in the position described, it is clear that, if the elements retaining the hammer


204


in position—i.e. the teeth


206


and


207


—are released, the force of the spring


216


cannot be discharged onto the hammer


204


because the rod


217


is axially immobilized by the end


221


of the lever


222


.




With reference to

FIG. 8

which relates to the same embodiment, it will be noted that, when the gun is fired intentionally, the action of moving the trigger


2


causes the end


221


of the lever


222


to be moved out of the way even before the teeth


206


and


207


are disengaged, releasing the rod


217


which, as soon as the teeth


206


and


207


are disengaged, discharges the full force of the spring


216


onto the hammer


204


, thereby firing the gun.




It will be obvious that the invention described with reference to the specific embodiments detailed above can undergo various modifications, especially with regard to the shape of the mechanical parts and their physical layout within the framework of a firing mechanism, depending on the type of weapon, without thereby departing from the scope of the following claims.



Claims
  • 1. A permanent safety device for preventing the accidental firing of a weapon whose firing mechanism comprises:a trigger; a trigger lever connected to said trigger; a hammer coupled to said trigger lever at a first end of said hammer; a loaded spring which exerts a force along a given line of action on a second end of said hammer; a hammer retention means which holds said hammer in opposition to said loaded spring, said hammer retention means being disengaged by said trigger lever when said trigger is activated; and a rocker lever, coupled to said trigger lever and said hammer retention means, said rocker lever further comprising a stop piece movable between a first interference position in which said stop piece interferes with said loaded spring thereby preventing said loaded spring from being fully activated against said second end of said hammer and a second position in which said stop piece does not interfere with said loaded spring when said trigger is activated.
  • 2. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said stop piece is positioned between said loaded spring and the second end of said hammer.
  • 3. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said stop piece is positioned directly between said second end of said hammer and said line of action of said loaded spring, so that said stop piece interferes directly with the action of said loaded spring when said stop piece is in said first interference position.
  • 4. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rocker lever is provided with first and second ends, said stop piece being integral with said first end of said rocker lever, said second end of said rocker coupled to said hammer retention means so that when said hammer retention means is disengaged by said trigger, said stop piece is moved into said second position.
  • 5. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first end of said rocker lever is an axially sliding rod, said axially sliding rod being actuated by said trigger lever in order to disengage said hammer retention means when said trigger is activated.
  • 6. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said loaded spring further comprises a cap mounted on said loaded spring, said cap having a zone of displacement, wherein said stop piece interferes with said cap in said zone of displacement when said rocker lever is in said first interference position.
  • 7. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said cap is disposed on said loaded spring and configured, at least in part, to enclose said loaded spring acting on said second end of said hammer.
  • 8. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said stop piece can be moved between a first interference position in which it interferes with said zone covered by the displacement of said cap and a second position in which it does not interfere with said zone.
  • 9. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said stop piece is positioned in the direction of said line of action of said loaded spring, a preset distance away from the end said cap of said loaded spring which acts on said second end of said hammer.
  • 10. The permanent safety device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said rocker lever is pivotable about an axis, said rocker lever having first and second arms, said arms being of unequal lengths, so that when said rocker lever is moved by said trigger, said stop piece is moved out of said zone of displacement before said hammer retention means are disengaged.
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Number Name Date Kind
4282795 Beretta Aug 1981
4680884 Smith Jul 1987
5068990 Marzocco Dec 1991
5216195 Tuma Jun 1993
5417001 Rousseau May 1995
5548914 Anderson Aug 1996
6119387 Butters et al. Sep 2000
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number Date Country
903440A Jul 1998 BE
0540778 May 1993 EP
505526 Oct 1919 FR