Patent Application
20100251586
Various types of guns and firearms such as rifles and pistols exist for discharging or shooting projectiles. It is desirable to count and maintain track of the number of shots that a particular firearm has discharged. Such information is important for several purposes including estimating the time for service or remanufacture, assessing warranty validity, determining the value of the firearm, or for investigation of forensic evidence. Certain prior art references describe devices for counting and tracking the number of shots discharged from a weapon including shot-counting devices having electronic or digital readouts. By way of example, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0155420 titled “Device for Collecting Statistical Data for Maintenance of Small-Arms” by Johnson and Kulesza, published on Jul. 21, 2005, and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0114084 also titled “Device for Collecting Statistical Data For Maintenance of Small-Arms” by Johnson, Kulesza, and VanEvery, published on May 26, 2005, purport to disclose electronic shot counting devices, both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. These publications generally describe a microprocessor, an interface, and a sensor such as a temperature, acceleration, or an acoustic sensor.
It is important that electronic shot-counting devices do not impair or interfere with the operation of the firearm, but still be simple and rugged enough to withstand discharge and operation of the firearm. It is also important that the shot-counting device be reliable and accurately track the number of actual shots fired or discharged. Moreover, it is desirable that the shot-counting device be lightweight, not require a bulky external power source, and be easily integrated into the design and manufacture of the firearm.
A shot-counting device and method are provided. In a preferred embodiment, a permanent magnet is mounted to a moving portion of the firearm, and at least a portion of a coil or loop of conductive wire is mounted to a non-moving portion of the firearm. The magnet and coil are positioned such that the coil is magnetically coupled to the magnet and the magnet flux through the coil can change as the magnet moves. This relative motion between the magnet and coil induces or generates an electromotive force (EMF) that can be used for the purposes of providing power to a processor or shot-count circuit and for indicating that a shot has been fired. The change in magnetic flux due to relative motion between the magnet and coil, the number of windings in the coil, and the proximity between the magnet and coil are configured so that sufficient power is provided for the processor and to increment the shot-count indicator.
Furthermore, in another aspect, the strength of the EMF generated or induced in the coil is related to the speed with which the moving portion of the firearm and the magnet mounted thereto move relative to the coil. The shot-counting device can thus include a verification circuit that gathers further information about the shot fired or discharged. Such information can relate to dry firing, hand actuation of the moving portion, firing with a light load or firing with a heavy load. In another aspect, during the event of rapid firing of the firearm, the EMF generated in the coil may be sufficient to enable the processor or shot-count circuit to gather data on the firing rate, which may be useful in assessing barrel temperature and other details.
In a further aspect, the verification circuit that determines the strength, potential, or amount of the EMF available, together with algorithms in the processor, can decode or manipulate the information gathered about the shots discharged and store that information into a memory, preferably a non-volatile memory. The device can also include a readout unit by way of which the stored information can be transmitted to an external device such as a computer. Examples of such readout units include inductive radio frequency identification (RFID), electrical connectors (such as USB ports, UART ports, etc.), infrared (IR) transmission, or electromagnetic radiation transmissions.
An advantage of the shot-counting device is that it coverts the mechanical energy inherent in the discharge of a firearm to electrical energy. A related advantage is that the generated electrical energy can be used to count and track the number of shots discharged by the firearm. Another related advantage is that the generated electrical energy can be used to verify whether a shot actually occurred. These and other advantages and features of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following drawings and detailed description of the embodiments.
Now referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numbers refer to like elements, there is illustrated in
The semiautomatic clip-loaded pistol 102 has a movable portion such as a movable slide 104 that can move linearly rearward and forward with respect to a respectively non-moving or stationary portion such as the handle or handgrip 106 of the pistol which can receive the clip. When the trigger 108 is pulled discharging the pistol 102, the movable slide 104 is forced linearly rearward by the recoil of the shot, and then moves forwards by spring action to insert another round into the firing chamber 110 while simultaneously ejecting the shell and residue of the spent round via the ejector mechanism proximate the firing chamber.
The shot-counting device 100 includes a permanent magnet 120, such as prepared from a mixture of neodymium, iron and boron, which is a mounted to the movable slide 104 or perhaps another movable portion such as a firing pin. The permanent magnet 120 will therefore move back and forth with each shot discharged. The shot counting device 100 also includes a loop or coil 122 of conductive wire, or at least a portion thereof, which is mounted to the non-moving portion 106 of the pistol in such proximity with the magnet 120 as to be electromagnetically coupled therewith. Any suitable configuration of the positioning or location of the magnet 120 and coil 122 on the respective portions of the firearm can be used. For example, referring particularly to
Because of the magnetic coupling of the magnet 120 and coil 122, when the pistol 102 is discharged causing motion of the slide 104 and the magnet mounted thereto with respect to the handgrip 106, the coil will experience a change in magnetic flux due to the relative movement of the magnet. The magnetic flux (φ) through a loop of the coil can be determined by the following equation:
φ=B*A* cos θ (Equation 1.1)
Wherein B is the magnetic induction, A is the area of a loop of the coil, and θ is the angle between the induction field and a line perpendicular to the plane of the coil loop. By Faraday's law, the change over time of magnetic flux through a loop of the coil gives rise to an induced electromotive force (EMF) in the coil by the equation:
E=−(∂φ/∂t) (Equation 2.1)
Wherein the electromotive force E is given in units of volts, and this force can drive a current through a circuit. Further, the amount or potential of the EMF produced can be increased by providing the coil with a number N of loops of winding by the equation:
E=−N(∂φ/∂t) (Equation 3.1)
As will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, to maximize the amount of EMF induced by the relative motion between the slide 104 and magnet 120 mounted thereto and the coil 122, the following properties of the coil can be adjusted or optimized: (1) a large area A; (2) a large number of windings; (3) close proximity to the magnet; and (4) perpendicular orientation to the magnet field. Such a coil could be produced by embedding a squat solenoid coil in the handgrip or non-moving portion of the firearm. In some embodiments, the permanent magnet and the coil 122 can be mounted integrally with their respective portions of the firearm at the time of manufacturing the firearm, while in other embodiments, existing firearms can be retrofitted with the magnet and coil.
Referring back to
The illustrated shot-count circuit 150 can also include a primary capacitor 156, capable of storing a charge, in electrical communication with and connected in series to the rectifier 152. Hence, the capacitor 156 can receive a charge in response to the induced EMF resulting from discharge of the firearm. One function of the primary capacitor 156 can be to protect the other shot-count circuit components against spikes in the induced EMF and resulting current which may occur due to the violent discharge of the firearm. However, in some embodiments, the other shot-count circuit components may be sufficiently rugged to withstand such spikes and the primary capacitor may not be necessary.
The shot-count circuit 150 can also include a processor 158 that can also be in electrical communication with the coil 122. As illustrated, processor 158 is connected in series with the primary capacitor 156. The processor 158 can be any suitable type of logic circuit including, for example, an application specific programmable integrated circuit (ASIC), a microprocessor, or a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). The processor 158 can include at least one shot-count indicator 160, which may be a register, and which can represent the number of shots fired. During discharge of the firearm, the induced EMF can first be converted by the rectifier 152, then charge the primary capacitor 156, which is then discharged to activate or boot-up and power the processor 158. In other embodiments, a small battery or charge store may be included to partially power the processor and/or other electric components. To account for short pulse resulting from the brief firearm discharge time, the first operation of the processor is to increment the shot-count indicator 160. The information concerning the shot-count can then be transmitted to a memory circuit 162 which is preferably non-volatile and in communication with the processor 158. Furthermore, the primary capacitor 156 can be completely discharged during or after the shot-counting process to ready it for a subsequent shot. This is a basic method by which shot-counting can be accomplished and for some embodiments no further signal processing may be required.
However, incrementing a shot-count indicator in response to each movement of the magnet relative to the coil potentially may over represent the actual number of shots fired. This is because of, for example, hand actuation of the slide when cocking the firearm that may cause the shot-count indicator to increment. To verify whether an actual shot has occurred, the shot-count circuit 150 can include a verification circuit 168 that gathers further information about the shot fired or discharged to determine the intensity of the shot. More specifically, referring to
The intensity of the shot can be measured in various ways. Referring to
Another way of determining shot intensity is to measure the rate of decay of the charge produced by EMF induced in the coil. For example, referring to
Another embodiment of the verification circuit 168 which operates by measuring the decay of the charge resulting from the induced EMF is illustrated in
V(t)=V(0)e-t/RC (Equation 4.1)
The decay of the charge follows from Equation 4.1, and by knowing the resistance R of the resistor 172 and the capacitance C of the primary capacitor 156, the maximum voltage at time t=0 can be derived. Next, also by knowing the capacitance C of the primary capacitor 156, the maximum charge (Q at time t=0) can be determined by the following:
Q(0)=CV(0) (Equation 5.1)
From knowing the maximum charge Q of the capacitor 156 at time t=0, the intensity of the shot can be derived or inferred. Once the readings have been taken, it may be advantageous to drain away any remaining charge on the primary capacitor to ready it for subsequent discharge of the firearm.
Another embodiment of the verification circuit 168 that determines shot intensity by decay of charge representing the induced EMF is illustrated by the flow chart in
One further embodiment of a verification circuit 168 for determining shot intensity is presented in
Referring back to
In various embodiments of the shot-count circuit, to avoid excessive charge buildup on the primary capacitor during rapid repeated firing, it may be desirable to include an overload protection circuit. An example of such an overload protection circuit 190 is illustrated in
To analyze the information obtained by the shot-counting device, the information can be downloaded to an external device such as a computer or similar system. For example, referring to
Referring to
For example, referring to
Illustrated in
In further embodiments, the external unit 204 can be adapted to issue commands back to the shot-count circuit 150 on the firearm 102. Referring back to
The various aspects of the shot-count device can provide a number of benefits and advantages. For example, the magnet and coil design utilizes the mechanical energy inherent in the discharge of a firearm and converts that mechanical energy to electrical energy. Hence, the need for an external power source and/or a battery is reduced or eliminated. Eliminating the need for a battery or reducing the size of the battery that must be included avoids adding additional mass to the firearm and the inconvenience of having to replace batteries. A further advantage is realized in the embodiments wherein the shot-count device is configured to utilize the coil as part of the readout device to transmit information to an external device. These embodiments further reduce weight and eliminate the need for ports that can become clogged and damaged and cables that become lost or broken.
Minimizing the weight of the shot-count device minimizes the weight of the firearm making the firearm easier to handle and to transport. Additionally, the shot-count device adds no additional moving parts to the firearm, lessening concern for wear-out and fatigue and increasing the reliability of the shot-count device. Furthermore, because of the design of the shot-count device, the shot-count circuit and the electronics associated therewith can be located a safe distance from the firing chamber so that damage from heat, shock, pressure, and electromagnetic interference are reduced. This improves the overall ruggedness and reliability of the shot-count device.
Other variations of the description above are possible and contemplated herein. These include but are not limited to: alternate magnetic materials and magnetization configurations; other configurations of the coil, including partial loops; orientation or location of the magnet within the moveable part; location and orientation of the coil; means of connecting the coil to the remainder of the shot-count device, portions or all of which may be mounted on a circuit board or ceramic substrate or consist of a system-on-chip design; alternate shot-count circuit and/or verification circuit designs which accomplish substantially the same function as those described above; the addition of other functions and features; other methods of overload protection known to those skilled in the art; other methods of providing processing capabilities; other forms of non-volatile memory, including erasable memory (EPROM), flash memory, et cetera; other methods by which the read-out function can be communicated to the shot-count circuit via the coil; other methods by which the coil can be used to transmit readout data; any form of readout unit connector technology now known or subsequently developed; partitioning of the various features between different portions of the firearm; and application of these concepts to other firearms besides a pistol, and application of these concepts to other similar devices such as pneumatic guns, vacuum guns, Gauss guns, mass drivers, and so forth.
All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/836,977, filed Jun. 30, 2006, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60836977 | Aug 2006 | US |
