When shooting an arrow with a bow, the shooting force can cause vibrations in the bow. The vibrations can interfere with shooting performance. An archery bow stabilizer is a known accessory used to absorb or dampen the vibrations. The bow stabilizer typically has a cylindrical body with a weighted end. The bow stabilizer attaches to the front of the bow (facing the target) and extends horizontally from the front of the bow. The weighted end can also act as a counterbalance, helping to keep the bow steady and stable during shooting. In addition, the bow stabilizer includes a dampening device mounted at the weighted end of the bow stabilizer.
Typically, the bow stabilizer bow side surfacebow front surfaceforms a 90 degree angle with an axis extending vertically through the bow riser. However, successful operation of a bow is highly specific to each individual archer and is dependent on the feel and balance of the bow in the archer's hands. For a particular archer, particular style of bow and particular style of bow stabilizer, there is an ideal angle at which the bow stabilizer extends from the bow. Attempts have been made to allow for angle adjustment, but such attempts involve mechanisms that are difficult to operate, unreliable, complex and require a relatively high manufacturing cost. As a result, the archer is unable to readily or conveniently adjust the stabilizer's angle to the archer's preference. This, negatively influences the feel of the bow for archers and generally hinders shooting performance.
The foregoing background describes some, but not necessarily all, of the problems, disadvantages and shortcomings related to bow stabilizers.
An adapter for positioning an archery bow stabilizer at a customizable angle is described herein. The adapter can take one of several forms, such as a plurality of bushings, an insert configured to mate with a cavity in the bow riser, or a geared attachment.
In an embodiment, a positioning system for an archery bow stabilizer is described. The positioning system includes an insert configured to be inserted into a cavity defined by an inner surface of a bow riser. The bow riser extends along a riser axis and the cavity includes a space and a recess. The insert has an insert body defining an opening positioned on a first insert axis. The opening is configured to receive a stabilizer portion of the archery bow stabilizer and the insert body is configured to be inserted into the space. A protrusion extends from the insert body along a second insert axis, the protrusion configured to be inserted into the recess. The first and second insert axes define an angle relative to the riser axis. When the positioning system couples the archery bow stabilizer to the bow riser, at least part of the archery bow stabilizer is positioned relative to the bow riser based on the angle.
In another embodiment, a positioning system for an archery bow stabilizer is described. The positioning system includes an insert configured to be received in an opening of a bow riser. The insert includes a shaped protrusion configured to mate with a corresponding recess in a perimeter of the opening and an aperture configured to receive a fastener of the archery bow stabilizer. The shaped protrusion is positioned relative to the aperture to orient the archery bow stabilizer at an angle relative to an end of the bow riser.
In yet another embodiment, a positioning system for an archery bow stabilizer is described. The positioning system includes a coupler configured to be coupled to a bow riser, the bow riser extending along an axis. The bow riser includes a bow front surface positionable to face toward a target, a bow back surface opposite of the bow front surface, and a plurality of bow side surfaces. The coupler includes a bow couple end including at least one mount. The at least one mount is configured to be rotatably coupled to at least one of the bow side surfaces. The mount defines a fastener opening configured to receive a fastener. The coupler also includes a stabilizer coupler end configured to couple the coupler to the archery bow stabilizer. The at least one mount is rotatably about a portion of the fastener when the fastener attaches the at least one mount to the at least one bow side surface during adjustment. The fastener is adjustable to maintain the at least one mount at a selectable angle after the adjustment.
Additional features and advantages of the present disclosure are described in, and will be apparent from, the following Brief Description of the Drawings and Detailed Description.
In an embodiment, the stabilizer 22 includes: (a) a tubular, elongated body or arm 5 extending along a stabilizer axis 6 from a bow-interface end 7 to a free end or distal end 8; (b) a vibration dampening device 9 attached or coupled to the distal end 8; and (c) one or more elements attached to or housed within the arm 5 or distal end 8 for purposes of adding weight or absorbing vibrations and shot, including, without limitation, weight members, rubber, gel or sand. The dampening device 9 acts to dampen and/or eliminate noise and bow vibration. In an embodiment, the dampening device 9 is located and configured to separate the arm 5 from the weighted, distal end 8 so that, when the bow is shot, vibration is cancelled out when it meets the dampening device 9 because the weighted distal end 8 is allowed to oscillate at a different frequency than the rest of the stabilizer 22 and bow, turning the vibration into motion that does not affect the rest of the bow.
In the embodiment of
In another embodiment, illustrated by
As illustrated in
The bow mating member 52 is configured to couple to the stabilizer 22 to the curve-shaped or convex, bow front surface 11 via any suitable means, such as a press or snap fit or a threaded fit. The bow mating member 52 serves as a adapter between the relatively flat end 53 of the bow mating member 52 and the non-flat, non-uniform and convex shaped bow front surface 11. In an embodiment, the bow mating member 52 has a bow-facing surface 57 having a concave shape configured to mate with the convex bow front surface 11, and the bow mating member 52 has a substantially flat stabilizer-facing surface 59 configured to engage the substantially flat end 53 of the bow mating member 52. It should be understood that the bow-facing surface 57, which contacts the bow front surface 11 of the bow riser 10 when the system is assembled, has a shape that configures to the shape of the bow front surface 11 of the bow riser 10 to further stabilize the position of the stabilizer 22. As described below, the different faces 57 and 59 of the bow mating member 52 facilitate the screw-on attachment of the stabilizer 22 to the bow riser 10.
In an example, the fastener 54 extends through the bow mating member 52. For example, the fastener 54 can be coupled to the adapter 56 that couples to the stabilizer 22 and the fastener 54 extends through the bow mating member 52 to couple to the insert 32, as illustrated in
The insert 32 and bow mating member 52 form a positioning system for the stabilizer 22. In operation, the insert 32 is inserted into the cavity 34, such as via the opening 40 in the front face 11 of the bow riser 10, so that the insert body 43 is received in the cavity 34, the protrusion 44 is received in the recess 38 such that the insert 32 is held in a fixed, non-rotating position, and the opening 46 is accessible via the opening 40 in the front face 11 of the bow riser 10. The fastener 54 is inserted through the bow mating member 52 into the opening 46 of the insert 32. The fastener 54 is tightened, such as through a threaded connection, so that the contact surface 57 of the bow mating member 52 tightly contacts the bow front surface 11 of the bow riser 10 and the stabilizer 22 tightly contacts the bow mating member 52.
When the stabilizer 22 is coupled to the insert 32, the stabilizer 22 extends at the angle θ defined by the first 48 and second 50 axis of the insert 32. As discussed above, this angle θ is determined by the position of the protrusion 44 relative to the opening 46 in the insert 32.
The user may select the angle at which the stabilizer 22 extends simply by selecting an insert 32 having the desired preset angle. The insert 32 can have an angle indicator, such as a color or a label, that indicates the angle of the insert 32. Various inserts 32 may be manufactured with different, predetermined angles for a user to interchange inserts 32 for different angle options. In an example, a bow stabilizer angle adjustment kit may include several inserts 32, each having a different angle.
In another embodiment, illustrated by
A coupler 64 is configured to couple the stabilizer 22 to the bow riser 10. The coupler 64 has a bow coupler end 66 that has at least one mount 68. In an example, the coupler 64 includes two mounts 68, which extend parallel to each other in a U-shaped or fork-shaped fashion. Each mount 68 can include a through-hole 69 The mount(s) 68 is configured to be at least partially inserted into the bow side recess 60. The mount(s) 68 has a mount perimeter that is smaller than the perimeter of the bow side recess 60. A main fastener 70 couples the mount(s) 68 to the bow riser 10. The main fastener 70 can be any suitable type of fastener. For example, the main fastener 70 can be a pin or rod that extends through the cavity 62 and the through hole 69. In another example, the cavity(s) 62 can have a threaded surface and the fastener 70 can be a screw or bolt that extends through the cavity 62 and the through-holes 69 and pull the mounts 68 together to form a pinch, sandwiching hold or clamping force around the bow riser 10. In another example, the cavities 62 can be blind tap holes, and the main fastener 70 can be a shoulder bolt and a socket. In a further example, the main fastener 70 can be a pin that extends through the cavity 62 and the through holes 69 as a rotational point and the bow riser 10 can include a secondary tap hole offset from the holes 69 configured to receive a secondary fastener (e.g., a threaded set screw) to help lock the coupler 64 in place.
The perimeter of the bow side recess 60 can be larger than the perimeter of the mount 68. Because of this sizing difference, the mount 68 can be rotated within the bow side recess 60 a particular range, such as within a 10 degree range. In an example, a riser contact surface 72 can have a shape that corresponds to the shape of the front 11 of the bow riser to facilitate this rotation. The rotation stop wall 63 serves to restrict the rotational adjustability of the mount 68. For example, if a user were to rotate the mount 68 too far upward to a maximum upward position, the mount would come into physical contact with, and be stopped by, the rotation stop wall 63. In any maximum upward or maximum downward position, the rotation stop wall 63 also provides support to the stabilizer 22.
The position of the mount 68 is adjustable within the adjustment range defined by the rotational stop wall 62. Within this range, the mount 68 can be locked as discussed above using one or more fasteners, such as fastener 70. Referring to
The collar 76, described above, can be coupled to the stabilizer 22. The collar 76 can be integral with the stabilizer 22, or the collar 76 can be removably coupled to the stabilizer 22. The collar 76 can include a fastener 78. Alternatively, the fastener 78 can be integral with the stabilizer 22 and inserted through the collar 76. The fastener 78 is configured to be received in a cavity 80 in the stabilizer contact surface 82 of the coupler. When the stabilizer 22 is coupled to the bow riser 10 via the coupler 64, the stabilizer 22 extends at an angle θ defined by the position of the mount(s) 68 in the bow side recess(s) 60.
In another embodiment, the bow side surface(s) (not shown) of the bow riser 10 does not include a recess. In this embodiment, the coupler includes at least one mount having a through hole. A fastener can extend through the through hole to couple the at least one mount to such a non-recessed side surface. The at least one mount can rotate about the fastener in order to extend the coupler and the attached stabilizer at a selected angle. When the coupler and the stabilizer are positioned at the selected angle, the fastener can be positioned to maintain the at least one mount at the selected angle, such that the stabilizer extends at the desired angle.
In another embodiment,
Additional embodiments include any one of the embodiments described above, where one or more of its components, functionalities or structures is interchanged with, replaced by or augmented by one or more of the components, functionalities or structures of a different embodiment described above.
It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims.
Although several embodiments of the disclosure have been disclosed in the foregoing specification, it is understood by those skilled in the art that many modifications and other embodiments of the disclosure will come to mind to which the disclosure pertains, having the benefit of the teaching presented in the foregoing description and associated drawings. It is thus understood that the disclosure is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed herein above, and that many modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although specific terms are employed herein, as well as in the claims which follow, they are used only in a generic and descriptive sense, and not for the purposes of limiting the present disclosure, nor the claims which follow.
This application is a non-provisional of, and claims the benefit and priority of, U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/042,431, filed on Aug. 27, 2014. The entire contents of such application are hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62042431 | Aug 2014 | US |