1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to firearms and is more particularly related to ammunition magazines used with firearms.
2. Description of the Related Art
During training exercises, military personnel frequently use blank rounds to replicate a combat situation. Blank rounds are also used by police officers to control crowds during riots and civil disturbances, and by the entertainment industry in movies and stage productions.
In recent years, the military has begun to use non-lethal training rounds for force-on-force training. Each non-lethal training round has a non-lethal projectile that is fired at low velocity. The non-lethal projectiles may include paint or ink that leaves a visible mark on the struck object (e.g., an opposition force soldier who has been shot).
Standard magazines have been used to hold live rounds, blank rounds, and non-lethal training rounds. Unfortunately, using the same standard magazine for holding both live rounds and blank/training rounds can be hazardous if a live round is intermixed with blank/training rounds in the same magazine. Regardless of whether the live rounds are placed in the standard magazine on purpose or by accident, the live rounds may not be visible through the opaque walls of the magazine. For example, a soldier may only see blank rounds on top of the magazine and may not be aware that the standard magazine contains one or more live rounds. The magazine may then be inserted into the magazine well of a firearm, and the live round(s) will be fired in the midst of the blank/training rounds, which may result in injury or death to those in the line of fire
There have been some attempts directed to avoiding the intermixing of live rounds with blank/training rounds. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,752 to Howard discloses a blank magazine having a structure that is different than the structure of a standard magazine for overcoming the safety disadvantages inherent in the use of standard magazines for force-on-force training exercises. In Howard, the blank magazine has a back wall with an inner surface, and a front wall with an inner surface and a top. The blank magazine structure in Howard prevents a live round from being fed by a bolt of a firearm into the chamber of the firearm. If a live round is inserted into the magazine, the top of the front wall engages the projectile of the live round and a cartridge-retaining lip holds the base of a live round lower than it does for the base of a blank, thereby altering the angle of the live round in the magazine. A shorter blank round is not re-positioned at an angle relative to the axis of movement of the bolt. The different position of the blank round compared to the live round permits the bolt to feed the blank round but prevents the bolt from feeding the live round into the chamber of the firearm.
Although Howard teaches that the bolt will not feed the live round into the chamber, the structure of the Howard magazine still allows a magazine having both live and training rounds loaded therein to be fully inserted into the magazine well of a firearm. This dramatically increases the chances that the live round will be accidently directed into the chamber by the bolt.
Thus, in spite of the above advances, there remains a need for a safety magazine that prevents a magazine containing a live round from being fully inserted into a magazine well of a firearm. There also remains a need for a safety magazine that prevents the loading of live 5.56 mm rounds into an M16 style magazine well of a M16 or M4 rifle.
M16 is the official designation used by the United States military for the AR-15 rifle. In 1963, the M16 was first used by the United States Army for jungle warfare operations in South Vietnam, and in 1969, it became the U.S. military's standard service rifle for the Vietnam War. The M16 is now the primary service rifle of the U.S. military, and it has been widely adopted by militaries around the world. Since the design's introduction, about eight million M16-style weapons have been produced, making it the most popular firearm of its caliber.
The M16 is now being phased out in the United States Army. It is being replaced by the M4 carbine, which is a gas-operated, air-cooled, magazine-fed, selective fire, shoulder-fired weapon with a telescoping stock. The M4 has a shorter barrel than the M16, allowing the individual soldier to better operate in close quarters. The M4 has selective fire options including semi-automatic and three-round burst. The M4 is slated to eventually replace the M16 rifle in most combat units in the United States Army.
Both the M16 and M4 rifles are built using exacting military specifications set forth under NATO Standardization Agreements (STANAG) and United States Government Issue (U.S.G.I.) standards. Each NATO state ratifies a STANAG and implements it within its own military. STANAGs provide common operational and administrative procedures and logistics so the military of one member nation may use the stores and support of another member nation's military.
Various NATO STANAGs have been used to ensure the interoperability of ammunition and weapons between the different member states of NATO. Specifically, STANAG 4172 adopts the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge as the standard cartridge for all NATO assault rifles. Both the M16 rifle and the M4 carbine use a 5.56×45 mm cartridge, which is officially designated the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge.
NATO and the U.S. military have developed exacting specifications regarding the structure and dimensions of magazines for 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges that are used with the M16 rifle and the M4 carbine. STANAG 4179 adopts the M16 style magazine well as the standard 5.56×45 NATO magazine interface. All magazines and drums, regardless of design, must be compatible with the standard M16 style magazine well in order to be compliant. Both the M16 and M4 are built in compliance with STANAGs 4172 and 4179.
The present application uses the terminology standard magazine and safety magazine. As used herein, the term standard magazine means a magazine that complies with STANAGs 4172 and 4179, and U.S.G.I. standards, that is loaded with live, lethal cartridges, and that may be inserted into a M16 style magazine well for use with a NATO assault rifle. As used herein, the terms “live round” or “5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge” means a lethal round having a propellant and a projectile that complies with STANAG 4172, and that is loaded into a standard magazine.
As used herein, the term “safety magazine” means a magazine that may also be inserted into a NATO compatible M16 style magazine well for use with a standard NATO assault rifle, but that may only receive non-lethal training rounds. The exact outer dimensions or outer configuration of the safety magazine disclosed herein may differ from the standard magazine dimensions set forth in STANAG 4179, however, it is contemplated that the safety magazine may still be fully inserted and properly secured into a M16 style magazine well, which meets the standards set forth under STANAG 4179.
One embodiment of the present invention discloses a safety magazine that is insertable into a standard M16 style magazine well. The safety magazine is preferably adapted for enabling non-lethal training cartridges to be fired using a firearm, such as a M16 or M4 rifle, while preventing the loading and firing of a live cartridge, such as a standard 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge.
In one embodiment, the safety magazine preferably includes a front wall having an outer surface and an inner surface, and an opposing rear wall having an outer surface and an inner surface. In one embodiment, the distance between the front and rear walls is less than the length of a standard 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge, which is about 2.260 inches in length. The safety magazine desirably includes first and second sidewalls that extend between the front and rear walls. The front wall, rear wall, and first and second sidewalls have upper ends that surround a magazine opening through which cartridges may be loaded into the magazine.
In one embodiment, the safety magazine preferably includes an alignment rib projecting from the rear wall of the magazine. The alignment rib is desirably longer than an alignment rib on a standard M16 magazine. The alignment rib preferably has a rear face that is parallel to the rear wall of the safety magazine.
In one embodiment, the safety magazine desirably has a spacer projecting laterally from the sides of the alignment rib. The spacer is preferably located between the rear wall of the safety magazine and the rear face of the alignment rib. The spacer desirably has a proximal surface that is parallel to both the rear wall of the safety magazine and the rear face of the alignment rib. In one embodiment, the alignment rib is adapted for insertion into an alignment groove formed in a rear end wall of a standard M16 style magazine well, and the proximal surface of the spacer is adapted to engage the rear end wall of the standard M16 style magazine well for spacing the rear wall of the safety magazine away from the rear end wall of the standard M16 style magazine well.
In one embodiment, the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib of the safety magazine and an inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is at least 50% greater than a comparable distance measured between a rear face of an alignment rib and an inner surface of a rear wall on a standard M16 magazine that complies with NATO Standardization Agreement 4179. In one embodiment, the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is at least 60% greater than the comparable distance on the standard M16 magazine, and more preferably about 70% greater than the comparable distance on the standard M16 magazine. In one embodiment, the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib of the safety magazine and an inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is about 0.321 inches and the comparable distance on the standard M16 magazine is about 0.188 inches.
In one embodiment, the distance between the proximal face of the spacer and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is about 0.171 inches. The distance between opposing inner surfaces of the front and rear walls is preferably about 2.148 inches and the length of the non-lethal training round is desirably about 2.079 inches.
In one embodiment, the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib and an inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is about 0.321 inches and the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib and the proximal face of the spacer is about 0.150 inches.
In one embodiment, the safety magazine is preferably adapted for being inserted into a standard M16 style magazine well that complies with dimension specifications set forth under NATO Standardization Agreement 4179. A standard M16 style magazine well has a length of about 2.545 inches, and the length of the safety magazine measured between the outer surface of the front wall and the rear face of the alignment rib is preferably less than 2.545 inches. In one embodiment, the safety magazine has a length of about 2.543 inches.
In one embodiment, a safety magazine for a standard M16 style magazine well that enables non-lethal training rounds to be fired while preventing the loading and firing of 5.56 mm live rounds preferably includes a front wall and a rear wall spaced from the front wall, whereby the distance between opposing inner surfaces of the front and rear walls is less than the length of a standard 5.56 mm live round. The safety magazine desirably includes an elongated alignment rib projecting rearwardly from the rear wall of the safety magazine, the elongated alignment rib having a rear face that is parallel to the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine, whereby the distance between the rear face of the alignment rib and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is about 0.321 inches. The safety magazine may include a spacer projecting laterally from opposite sides of the alignment rib and being located between the rear wall of the safety magazine and the rear face of the elongated alignment rib, the spacer having a proximal surface that is parallel to the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine and the rear face of the alignment rib. In one embodiment, the distance between the proximal surface of the spacer and the rear face of the elongated alignment rib is about 0.150 inches.
In one embodiment, the spacer includes a spacer wall adapted for spacing the rear wall of the safety magazine away from a rear end wall of a standard M16 style magazine well when the safety magazine is inserted into the standard M16 style magazine well. In one embodiment, the distance between the inner surface of the front wall and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is preferably about 2.148 inches and a non-lethal training round adapted for being loaded into the safety magazine has a length of less than 2.148 inches, and more preferably about 2.079 inches.
In one embodiment, the safety magazine is preferably adapted for being inserted into a standard M16 style magazine well that complies with the magazine well dimension requirements set forth under NATO Standardization Agreement 4179 and under United States Government Issue standards. The standard M16 style magazine well has a length of about 2.545 inches, and the length of the safety magazine measured from the outer surface of the front wall to the rear face of the elongated alignment rib is desirably less than 2.545 inches, and more preferably about 2.543 inches.
In one embodiment, a safety magazine is adapted for insertion into a standard M16 style magazine well provided on a fireman having a lower receiver that complies with NATO Standardization Agreement 4179. The safety magazine desirably enables non-lethal training rounds to be fired with the firearm while preventing the loading and firing of 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges. The safety magazine desirably includes a front wall and a rear wall, whereby the distance between opposing inner surfaces of the front and rear walls is less than the length of a 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge. The safety magazine desirably includes an elongated alignment rib projecting rearwardly from the rear wall, the elongated alignment rib having a rear face that is parallel to the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine, whereby the distance between the rear face of the elongated alignment rib and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine is about 0.321 inches, and a spacer projecting laterally from the sides of the alignment rib and being located between the rear face of the elongated alignment rib and the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine, the spacer having a proximal surface that is parallel to the inner surface of the rear wall and the rear face of the elongated alignment rib, whereby the distance between the proximal surface of the spacer and the rear face of the elongated alignment rib is about 0.150 inches.
In one embodiment, the length of one of the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges is preferably greater that the distance between the inner surface of the rear wall of the safety magazine and the outer surface of the front wall of the safety magazine. In one embodiment, the length of one of the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges is about 2.260 inches, and the distance between the inner surface of the rear wall and the outer surface of the front wall is about 2.233 inches. When one of the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges is loaded into the safety magazine, the leading tip of the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridges desirably extends beyond the outer surface of the front wall of the safety magazine, which prevents the safety cartridge from being inserted into the magazine well. In particular, the tip of the 5.56×45 mm NATO cartridge will strike a ledge at an upper end of the magazine well, which prevents further insertion of the 5.56 mm cartridge and the magazine holding the cartridge.
In one embodiment, the opening at the upper end of the safety magazine used for loading rounds into the safety magazine is shorter than the magazine opening on a standard magazine. The shorter magazine opening will accept the shorter, training rounds, but will not enable the longer, liver rounds to be properly loaded into the safety magazine. If an operator does accidently load a live round as the top round in the safety magazine, the shorter length of the magazine opening for the safety round ensures that at least the tip of the projectile will extend beyond the front wall of the safety magazine. When an operator attempts to insert the safety magazine with the live round on top into the magazine well, the tip of the live round will strike a ledge at the leading end of the magazine well that will prevent further advancement of the live round and the magazine into the magazine well. Thus, the presence of the live round at the top of the magazine will absolutely prevent full insertion of the safety magazine into the magazine well, which means that the live round can never be properly chambered in the firearm.
These and other preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below.
The rear wall 30 of the standard M16 magazine 20 preferably includes an alignment rib 32 that is adapted for insertion into an alignment groove formed at the rear end of a M16 style magazine well, as will be described in more detail herein. The standard M16 magazine 20 has one or more alignment flanges 34 for engaging the interior walls of the magazine well for aligning and stabilizing the magazine 20 within the magazine well. The standard M16 magazine 20 also has a magazine locking slot 35 that receives a catch on a lower receiver for locking the magazine to the magazine well.
In one embodiment, the distance D1 between the outer surface of the front wall 28 and the rear surface of the alignment rib 32, is between about 2-3 inches, and more preferably about 2.535 inches. The distance D2 between the outer surface of the front wall 28 and the outer surface of the rear wall 30 is about 2.385 inches. The distance D3 between the outer surface of the front wall 28 and the inner surface of the rear wall 30 is about 2.354 inches. The distance D4 between the outer surface of the rear wall 30 and the rear surface of the alignment rib 32 is about 0.150 inches. The distance D5 between the inner surface of the rear wall 30 and the rear surface of the alignment rib 32 is about 0.188 inches. The distance D6 between the inner surface of the front wall 28 and the inner surface of the rear wall 30 is about 2.275 inches. The length L1 of the 5.56×45 NATO cartridge is about 2.260 inches, which is less than the distance D6 so that the live round 40 may be loaded into the magazine opening of the standard magazine 20.
The distance D6 between the inner surface of the front wall 28 and the inner surface of the real wall 30 is sufficient for seating the live round 40 having a base 42 seated against the inner surface of the rear wall 30, an extractor recess 44, a body 46, a shoulder 48, a neck 50, and a projectile 52. The distance D6 is preferably longer than the length L1 of the live round 40 so that the live round fits within the space between the inner surface of the front wall 28 and the inner surface of the rear wall 30.
The standard M16 magazine 20 shown in
Referring to
Referring to
In one embodiment, the safety magazine 120 also preferably includes a spacer wall 137 that projects laterally from opposite sides of the alignment rib 132. The spacer wall 137 preferably spaces the outer surface of the rear wall 130 away from the inner surface 74 of the rear wall 64 of the magazine port 60, which, in turn, shifts the rear wall 130 of the safety magazine 120 forward within the M16 style magazine well 60 (
Referring to
In one embodiment, the distance D7 between the outer surface of the front wall 128 and the rear face of the alignment rib 132 is less than about 2.545 inches, and more preferably about 2.543 inches. In one embodiment, the distance D7 is the same length as the distance D1 shown for the standard M16 magazine of
In one embodiment, the distance D8 between the outer surface of the front wall 128 and the proximal surface of the spacer wall 137 is about 2.385 inches. In one embodiment, the distance D8 is the same length as the distance D2 on the standard M16 magazine shown in
The distance D9 between the outer surface of the front wall 128 and the inner surface of the rear wall 130 is about 2.233 inches. The distance D10 between the inner surface of the front wall 128 and the inner surface of the rear wall is about 2.148 inches. In one embodiment, the distances D9 and D10 are less than the comparable distances D3 and D6 on the standard M16 magazine of
As noted above, the length D10 of the magazine opening at the upper end of the safety magazine 120 is adapted for receiving a non-lethal, training round 140 having a length L2 that is less than the length of a live 5.55 mm round, preferably less than 2.260 inches, and more preferably about 2.079 inches. In one embodiment, the safety magazine 120 is adapted to receive non-lethal training rounds sold by Ultimate Training Munitions (UTM) of Phillipsburg, N.J. having a website address of utmworldwide.com. The live round 40 (
Referring to
The spacer wall 137 has a proximal surface 139 that is adapted to abut against the rear end wall 64 (
Referring to
In
While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, which is only limited by the scope of the claims that follow. For example, the present invention contemplates that any of the features shown in any of the embodiments described herein, or incorporated by reference herein, may be incorporated with any of the features shown in any of the other embodiments described herein, or incorporated by reference herein, and still fall within the scope of the present invention.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3465463 | Grandy et al. | Sep 1969 | A |
4079535 | Elbe et al. | Mar 1978 | A |
4619062 | Johnson | Oct 1986 | A |
4654992 | Lavergne | Apr 1987 | A |
4777752 | Howard | Oct 1988 | A |
5782029 | Brooks | Jul 1998 | A |
6412207 | Crye et al. | Jul 2002 | B1 |
6715396 | Dionne | Apr 2004 | B2 |
20040211103 | Aske | Oct 2004 | A1 |
20050235547 | Ducastel | Oct 2005 | A1 |