Patent Application
20200025515
Short range projectile weapons, for example pistols, shotguns and crossbows, typically have a lower barrel velocity than a rifle, resulting in significant variation in bullet drop, dependent on range, even at a relatively short range, for example 50 yards. The reflex sights typically used to aid a shooter in aiming such a firearm, however, only permit a single indicator of where a bullet will hit, thereby requiring a shooter to form a mental estimate of the hitting point for a range different from that for which the reticle position has been set.
Also, there is a fair amount of uncertainty in the angle at which a projectile will leave the weapon, or for a shotgun, the area over which pellets will hit. There are currently limited options for assisting a shooter in forming an estimate of an area over which a projectile is likely to hit, or shotgun pellets will hit. Conversely, there are limited options for determining where a bullet will quite certainly not hit, so that it may be difficult at times to estimate potential collateral damage.
The following embodiments and aspects thereof are described and illustrated in conjunction with systems, tools and methods which are meant to be exemplary and illustrative, not limiting in scope. In various embodiments, one or more of the above-described problems have been reduced or eliminated, while other embodiments are directed to other improvements.
In a first separate aspect, the present invention may take the form of a reflex sight, having a mounting base that has an engagement element for attachment to a firearm. Also, a collimating front lens is mounted on the mounting base. A first reticle projection system projects a first reticle onto the front lens, at a first position, the first position being user adjustable, relative to the mounting base, by a first actuation assembly. In addition, a second reticle projection system, projecting a second reticle onto the front lens at a second position, the second position being user adjustable, relative to the first position by a second actuation assembly.
In a second separate aspect, the present invention may take the form of a reflex sight having two reticles of differing sizes, each reticle being separately activated.
In addition to the exemplary aspects and embodiments described above, further aspects and embodiments will become apparent by reference to the drawings and by study of the following detailed descriptions.
Exemplary embodiments are illustrated in referenced drawings. It is intended that the embodiments and figures disclosed herein are to be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.
“Ordinance Spread” in the context of a single projectile weapon, such as a handgun or a crossbow, is the angular area over which a projectile may hit, due to uncertainty as to the projectile launch. In the context of a multi-projectile weapon, such as a shotgun, it is the area of which projectiles (shot) are likely to hit.
Referring to
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In such an embodiment, first reticle 16 does not require its actuators 30 and 34, but in one embodiment is fixed relative to and moved with upper frame 14, with second reticle 18 having an adjustment mechanism so that it can be moved relative to reticle 16. In one such embodiment, there is no actuator 36 for adjusting the windage of reticle 18 relative to that of reticle 16. Windage would typically be adjusted to compensate for any mounting errors of scope 10 and firearm 12, and so both reticles would typically require the same windage adjustment. Accordingly, in one embodiment, actuators 34 and 36 are replaced with a single windage actuator, which branches to move both LED carriages 42 laterally, simultaneously.
In an embodiment, the space between mirror 60 and lens 20 is covered by a portion of housing. Rather than being mounted on a handgun 12, a reflex sight 10, or a related sight permitting relative reticle position adjustment, can be mounted on a rifle, shotgun or crossbow. The embodiment that is covered is generally mounted to a rifle.
In use, a shooter will know the ordinance he is using, and be able to adjust the reticle position so that it matches the bullet drop which is expected for that ordinance at an anticipated target range. Also, there are many situations in which a shooter has some prior knowledge of a range or ranges at which targets are likely to be placed, and with the system described above, he may preadjust his reticles to anticipate bullet drop at these ranges. For example, in the increasingly popular shooting sport of three-gun competition, in which a contestant armed with a rifle, a shotgun and a handgun runs through a course, shooting at various sets of targets, the course is known ahead of time to the contestants. Accordingly, for each gun, the contestant may adjust his reticles at two optimum positions, for the most frequently encountered bullet drops, or to frame the anticipated range of bullet drops, for speedy interpolation as he negotiates the course. With only a set of two or three reticles, the shooter is relieved of the task of choosing one out of an extensive set of markings visible through the sight, a task he is confronted with if using some existing sighting systems. In a competition where every second counts, this can make a significant difference.
In one style of hunting, the hunter lays in wait for quarry to appear. In preparation for quickly shooting an animal that wanders into his field of view, a hunter will typically “sight in” a physical feature in his field of view, using a range finder to measure range to that feature, so that he can quickly judge the range of an animal that approaches the feature or wanders in between the hunter and the feature. With the sight described above, the hunter may adjust one of the reticle positions so that it matches anticipated bullet (or pellet) drop at the range to the feature that has been sighted in.
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Reticles 56 and 58 may be separately controlled, by mechanisms such as those shown in
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For a shotgun, the pellets begin to spread out after leaving the gun barrel, covering a larger area as they progress forward. Again, the area covered by the cloud of pellets is of interest to a shooter and a reticle set 70 indicating this area, is useful. A shotgun will typically include a choke, which can be used to change the rate at which the pellets spread, as they progress. In one embodiment, the reticle set 70 may be changed in arrangement to reflect a different choke setting. In a further embodiment, a communicative link is established between the shotgun and the sight, either wirelessly, by an electrically conductive pathway or a fiber optic link, to permit the choke position to be automatically relayed to the sight, and to automatically cause an adjustment to the arrangement of the reticle set 70, so that the arrangement of the reticle set 70 reflects the spread of the shotgun pellets. Applicant notes that a set of LEDs may be spread apart or brought into closer configuration without the complexity of the arrangement shown in
While a number of exemplary aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, those possessed of skill in the art will recognize certain modifications, permutations, additions and sub-combinations thereof. It is therefore intended that the following appended claims and claims hereafter introduced are interpreted to include all such modifications, permutations, additions and sub-combinations as are within their true spirit and scope.
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 15/906,329, filed on Feb. 27, 2018, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 15906329 | Feb 2018 | US |
| Child | 16288574 | US |
