1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to holsters, and more particularly relates to holsters configured for use with a handgun having an attachment device such as a flashlight attached to it.
2. Background Information
A typical semi-automatic handgun, as it is used in many forms of law enforcement, utilizes a magazine to hold cartridges and an ejection port to eject the spent casings after the device is fired. These guns have also been outfitted with a variety of devices that typically fit beneath the barrel. Examples of such devices include flashlights, laser sighting devices, and other instruments that assist a police officer to more effectively utilize their weapon. One of the problems that is encountered in the prior art is that individuals who utilize these attachments many times cannot properly utilize a typical holster once an attachment device has been connected to the gun. One of the solutions to this problem has been to simply utilize a holster that has a larger internal capacity. This however, also causes problems in that such a device is not properly configured to receive and hold such a device and the handgun is prone to rotation within the larger holster. This can cause various problems, including having the handgun fall out of the holster, having the handgun move around into various undesired orientations within the holster, and making the handgun more easily removed in a physical altercation.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
The present invention is a holster configured to engage and hold such a handgun having attachments such as laser sights, flashlights and other attachments connected to them. The present invention is substantially related to a security holsters having many of the same features as is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/816,764, filed by the present inventor and Mr. Tony Senn on Mar. 23, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention includes a security holster with a locking tab and release tab that are configured to selectively release and engage various portions of the handgun itself. This configuration allows a portion of the handgun, typically the ejection port, to be held in a releasable configuration and prevents that unwanted release of the handgun from the holster. This present invention includes all of these previous features and further includes a stabilizing block that is configured to interact with a portion of the trigger guard to hold the handgun in a desired orientation and position within the holster. This embodiment is particularly useful in those embodiments where attachments such as flashlights, laser sights or other features have been attached to the device itself. These attachments are referred to as utility devices.
The stabilizing block is positioned within the holster in an orientation so as to engage a feature of the handgun, such as the trigger guard. The stabilizing block contains a block with a groove that is adapted to and shaped to receive a portion of the trigger guard therein when the device is in a fully closed position. This stabilizing block is also held in place by a set of springs that are located between the stabilizing block and the body of the holster. These springs allow the stabilizing block to be alternatively compressed and released so as to allow the stabilizing block to be brought into and out of engagement with the trigger guard or other feature of the device that is configured for insertion within the groove of the block. A number of configurations are possible on the springs. The preferred design now uses a leaf spring, and that is what is shown in the drawings. However, other spring types could be used, all falling within the invention defined by the claims.
This feature allows a device such as a handgun, with an attached flashlight, laser sight or other attachment to be inserted within the holster. As is shown in
Additionally, the handgun is held in a locked position within the device by a release tab and locking mechanism, which is configured to snap and provide an audible recognition to a user when the handgun is locked in its proper position. The present invention also allows the locking tab to be positioned in an orientation so that the officer will know by use of his tactile senses that the handgun has been properly inserted within the holster.
The purpose of the foregoing Abstract is to enable the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientists, engineers, and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection, the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The Abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way.
Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following detailed description wherein I have shown and described only the preferred embodiment of the invention, simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated by carrying out my invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of modification in various obvious respects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description of the preferred embodiment are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive in nature.
While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof have been shown in the drawings and will be described below in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims.
A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in
The security holster 10 is preferably made of a high-impact plastic such as Kydex (Mfg. By Kleerdex Company). A thickness of ⅛ inch of this material has been found to be suitable for making the security holster. Other materials or thicknesses of materials that have similar characteristics of rigidity, strength, and weight would also be suitable. This might include metal such as aluminum, steel, other types of plastics, or leather. The security holster 10 is not limited strictly to handguns. In additional embodiments, the security holster 10 may be adapted to holster additional devices such as stun guns, tools or other instruments that could benefit from the features of the present invention. Other types of plastic can be used, as well as other materials such as leather or metal.
Although the selectively movable block 122 is shown having a leaf type spring 28, other spring arrangements are also possible. For instance the selectively movable block 122 could be attached to the portion of the utility holster directly below it in the orientation in
While there is shown and described the present preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be distinctly understood that this invention is not limited thereto but may be variously embodied to practice within the scope of the following claims. From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.
This application claims the priority date of the provisional application entitled Security Holster for Pistols with Flashlight Attachments filed by Mike Lowe on Feb. 11, 2004 with application Ser. No. 60/544,006.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60544006 | Feb 2004 | US |