Support

Abstract

A bipod for supporting a firearm above a surface is provided, comprising a pair of opposed bipod legs which are pivotally mounted for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes. The bipod comprises a spigot for connecting the bipod to the firearm, or to an fitting mounted on the firearm, the spigot being mounted on, or integral with, a pivotable element which is arranged to pivot about an axis extending within a triangular area defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when depending from the bipod in a nominal upright condition.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the field of firearms and in particular, but not exclusively, to supporting firearms, such as rifles by support devices such as bipods.

BACKGROUND

A variety of supports, such as bipods and tripods, are known for stably supporting firearms. Early bipods were mounted permanently or semi-permanently on the firearm. In the context of the invention, “semi-permanent mounting” refers to arrangements where a bipod is fixed to a firearm such that a user tends to leave the bipod so mounted, such that it is ready for use, but is still able to remove the bipod from the firearm. An example of a bipod which is typically semi-permanently mounted on a firearm is a bipod of the Harris type (see U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,422) which takes some time to mount on or demount from a firearm. Such permanent or semi-permanent mounting of relatively heavy bipods is disadvantageous for several reasons. First, the support of the bipod is not required in all situations, for example, in driven shooting or in high seat shooting, and therefore the mounted bipod disadvantageously adds unnecessary weight to a firearm for such situations. This can affect accuracy and/or handling of the firearm. Second, in the case of high value firearms, which often feature finely crafted and highly figured wooden stocks, and engraved actions and metal parts, and where aesthetic considerations are important to a user, the presence of a permanently mounted bipod may be aesthetically unattractive to a user.

With the introduction in 2015 of the applicant's Javelin™ magnetic attachment system (EP2880352), it has been possible for a user to carry a firearm support such as bipod or a tripod, separately to a firearm and to quickly mount the bipod or tripod to the firearm so that the firearm can be stably supported by the bipod or tripod. In this way, a firearm bipod is only carried on the firearm when it is likely to required, for example when preparing for a shot stalking on open ground but need not be carried when it is not likely to be required—such as in a driven or high seat hunting situation. The bipod may be advantageously light.

Especially for upland applications, where bipod weight is a significant consideration, it may be desirable to reduce the weight of a detachable bipod, to make such a bipod more compact, or to provide that the bipod is more compact if left on the firearm, or any combination thereof of these desiderata. In some situations, it may also be desirable to mount the bipod semi-permanently to the firearm.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a bipod for supporting a firearm above a surface, the bipod comprising a pair of opposed bipod legs which are pivotally mounted for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes, the bipod further comprising a pivotally mounted spigot for connecting the bipod to the firearm, or to an fitting mounted on the firearm, the spigot being mounted on, or integral with, a pivotable element which is arranged to pivot about an axis which extends within a triangular area defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when the bipod legs depend from the bipod in and upright or nominal condition, in which the pivotable element pivots about an axis extending through or adjacent the centre of the triangular area, and in which the locking mechanism is operated by a button extending from the pivotable element.

The bipod of the invention is advantageous in that it is especially compact, particularly in a vertical direction and so can be light in weight and/or convenient to handle. The bipod may be quickly attached to or detached from a firearm, and when detached from a firearm may be carried as required by a user. The bipod may also be left mounted on the firearm and locked in position.

The spigot in this context is preferably an elongate cylindrical element.

Preferably, the pivotable element houses or supports a locking mechanism for locking the spigot to a firearm or a fitting mounted on the firearm so that the bipod can be securely mounted on the firearm.

In one embodiment, the pivotable element is mounted for pivotal movement within a body or chassis on which the opposed bipod legs are pivotally mounted. The pivotable element is preferably substantially circular in shape as this facilitates a compact arrangement in combination with the bipod body or chassis. More preferably, the pivotable element is substantially arranged within the triangular area referred to above. This permits a bipod body or chassis which is compact in a vertical and horizontal dimension which is highly advantageous especially for hunting applications both in terms of the resulting weight of the bipod and its dimensions. This compactness is further enhanced by the spigot bring fixed on or integrated with the pivotable element.

In a preferred embodiment, the locking mechanism for locking the spigot to the firearm is operable by a user, especially from a use position for the user such as a firing position i.e., where the user is arranged behind and operating the firearm.

In a preferred embodiment, the button protrudes through an elongate recess defined by the chassis. The button may move along the recess defined by the chassis as the pivotable element pivots, whereby contact of the button with an end of the recess limits pivoting of the pivotable element. Preferably, the recess is arc shaped to match the arc travelled by the pivoting button. This is advantageous in that a separate stop or stops for limiting pivoting of the pivotable element, i.e., leading to canting or tilting of the firearm is/are not required. Preferably, the user operated button is located on a user facing (when in normal use) surface of the chassis.

The locking mechanism may include a lug that can be retracted by a user by operation of a user-facing control button. Preferably, the lug engages with an annular groove extending around a recess corresponding to the spigot and being defined by the fixture or the firearm.

In a preferred embodiment, the legs can be pivoted into forward and rearward extending conditions from a nominal, downwardly extending condition. In the forward or rearward extending condition, a bipod in accordance with the invention can be kept in a compact form connected to a firearm. Preferably, the legs can be locked in any such condition.

At least one of the spigot and the fixture or firearm may include a magnet which attracts the other of the spigot and fixture or firearm. The attraction between the magnet and the other of the spigot and fixture or firearm encourages inter-engagement between the bipod and the fixture or the firearm. The use of a magnet is optional.

The nature of the spigot and its connection to the firearm or to a fixture mounted thereon permits panning of a supported firearm, by 30 degrees of rotation or more, preferably by 60 degrees of rotation or more, more preferably by 120 degrees or more.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a combination of a bipod according to the first aspect of the invention and a firearm. Preferably, the bipod and the firearm are connected in the combination, for example by means of a fixture mounted on the firearm and which receives the spigot of the bipod. The fixture may be mounted on or integral with the firearm. The combination is advantageous in that the combination of the bipod and firearm can be relatively light and compact.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a bipod for supporting a firearm above a surface, the bipod comprising a pair of opposed bipod legs which are pivotally mounted for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes, the bipod further comprising a pivotally mounted spigot for connecting the bipod to the firearm, or to an fitting mounted on the firearm, the spigot being mounted on, or integral with, a pivotable element which is arranged to pivot about an axis which extends within a triangular area defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when the bipod legs depend from the bipod in and upright or nominal condition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Bipods and a combination of such bipods and firearms in accordance with the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, FIGS. 1 to 11, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the rear of a bipod in accordance with the invention with the legs of the bipod in a deployed or nominal condition;

FIG. 2 is an elevation of the front of the bipod of FIG. 1 connected to a firearm (indicated by a dashed line);

FIG. 3 is a side view of the bipod of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross section of the upper portion of the bipod of FIG. 1 on axis A-A of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the bipod of FIG. 1 connected to a fixture for connecting the bipod to a firearm;

FIG. 6 is a cross section of the bipod and the fixture as shown in FIG. 5 on axis B-B of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the bipod and fixture of FIG. 5 with the legs of the bipod in a rearward pointing condition;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the bipod and fixture of FIG. 5 with the legs of the bipod in a forward pointing condition;

FIG. 9 is an elevation of another bipod in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 10 is a view from below of the bipod of FIG. 9; and

FIG. 11 is a cross-section through the bipod of FIG. 9.

DESCRIPTION

A Bipod

A bipod 10 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGS. 1 to 8. The bipod 10 comprises a body or chassis 12 and a pair of opposed and splayed support legs 14, 16. The legs are pivotally mounted on the chassis 12 by bosses 18, 20 respectively so that they can be pivoted between a nominal or deployed condition as shown in FIG. 1, in which the legs 14, 16 depend in an upright manner below the body 12 so that the bipod can stably support a firearm on a level surface, and folded rearward or forward conditions as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 respectively suitable for carrying the firearm being more compact when mounted in these conditions on the firearm. The legs 14, and 16 pivot about transverse pivot axes TPA1 and TPA2. A locking mechanism (not shown) incorporated in the head of each leg 14, 16 holds that leg in a particular condition unless overcome by a user to manipulate the leg into a differently oriented condition before being locked in the new orientation.

The bipod chassis 12 carries a generally circular pivotable element 22 comprising an upstanding cylindrical portion, or spigot 24 substantially within its perimeter. The pivotable element is generally circular in that It is circular save for a flat upper section from which the spigot 24 extends. In the embodiment shown, the spigot 24 is integral with the pivotable element 22 (forming an upside-down lollipop shape). The pivotable element 22 is able to pivot about a pivot axis PA to permit tilting or canting of a firearm mounted on the bipod 10. The pivot axis PA extends through a triangular area T defined by or bordered by the inclined intersecting axes TPA1 and TPA2 about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane P defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs 14/16 when depending from the bipod in a nominal or upright condition. As can be seen particularly in FIG. 4, the pivotable element 22 is also arranged within this triangular area T. This arrangement of the pivotable element 22 at the centre of the chassis permits the bipod chassis 12 and pivotable element to be compact in a vertical dimension, which is advantageous in terms of stability, and may also permit the bipod chassis 12 and attached components, such as the pivotable element to be relatively light.

The bipod chassis 12 supports a spring-loaded locking lug 26 (shown in FIG. 6), which is normally biased into an extended condition as shown in the illustration. By a retraction mechanism, which is mostly housed in the pivotable body 22, the locking lug 26 can be withdrawn fully into the spigot 24 i.e., into a retracted condition, by manual operation of a button 28. In this preferred embodiment 28, the button 28 is arranged on the rear face of the bipod body. In this position, the button is conveniently facing a user using a connected firearm in a usual manner and is less likely to be accidentally depressed e.g., with contact with vegetation or a rock in a practical hunting situation.

It can be seen that the button 28 extends through an arc-shaped aperture 30 formed in the bipod chassis 12 which matches the arc travelled by the button 28.

A locking lever 32 can be operated to hold the spigot 24 in a particular orientation. For example, the spigot 24 can be locked in an upright orientation. In this orientation, a connected firearm cannot be tilted or canted when supported by the bipod 10. This may be advantageous in bench shooting applications.

In the embodiment shown, the spigot 24 is topped by a neodymium magnet 34 fixed to the spigot.

In use, the bipod 10 can be carried by a user until it is needed, for example on a belt-mounted holster and quickly mounted on a firearm. Alternatively, it can be left attached to the firearm. Typically, the bipod 10 is mounted to the lower surface of the forestock 36 of the firearm (as shown in FIG. 3). In some embodiments, a fixture, or adapter, 38 is fixed into the forestock 36 with glue or by a screw into the material of the forestock. In other embodiments, the fixture 38 can be integral with the forestock 36 (e.g., formed of the same material). In yet further, embodiments the fixture or adapter can be fixed to an accessory rail such as a Picatinny or Weaver standard rail mounted on the firearm. The fixture 38 is typically formed from a non-ferrous material such as aluminium, or brass, or a plastics material. The fixture 38 defines a cylindrical cavity which corresponds with the cylindrical shape of the spigot 24, and an annular, track, recess, or groove 42, which extends around the wall of the cavity. A ferrous disc 44 (not shown) is embedded at the end of the cylindrical cavity 40.

A user can insert the spigot 24 into the cylindrical cavity 40, aided by the attraction between the magnet 34 and the ferrous disc 44. As the spigot 24 is inserted, the spring-loaded lug 26 may be deflected by the wall of the cavity 40 against the spring bias (i.e., it is kept in a retracted condition) until it engages with the annular track, or groove 42. The depth of the annular 42 track in the wall of the cylindrical cavity 40 then allows the spring-loaded lug 26 to extend into its extended condition. In its extended condition, the lug 26 prevents removal of the spigot 24 from the cavity 40, i.e. the bipod 10 is kept connected semi-permanently mounted to the firearm. The spigot 24 can be readily removed from the fixture 38 in order to disconnect the bipod 10 from the firearm, by depressing the button 28 which causes or allows the spring-loaded lug 26 to move into its retracted condition.

A Combination of a Bipod and a Firearm

In a combination of a bipod in accordance with the invention as described above and a firearm, when the two are connected, permits the firearm to pan in a substantially planar manner through an arc of fire angle. This arc may be restricted by the design of the bipod, specifically the spigot and corresponding fixture so that the firearm is not moved into positions in which it is not stably supported by the bipod. For example, the arc may be about 160 degrees of rotation. Other arcs of fire are possible with different designs of spigot and track e.g., by making the track non-continuous.

The firearm may be tilted, or canted, through the pivoting of the pivotable body, so that the firearm is generally upright when the bipod is placed on sloping ground. The tilting is limited by the contact of the button 28 with either end of the arc-shaped aperture 30. This contact inhibits over-tilting of the firearm which could lead to the firearm and bipod toppling over.

The legs of the bipod can be pivoted or folded into the forward or rearward condition shown in FIGS. 8 and 7 respectively. This makes the mounted bipod more compact on the firearm. This is advantageous when the firearm is to be carried as it will significantly reduce the risk of the bipod catching on e.g., vegetation, clothing etc as the firearm is handled by a user.

Another Bipod

Another bipod 50 for supporting a firearm above a surface, and which has an alternative means for attaching the bipod to the firearm is shown in in FIGS. 9 to 11. The bipod 50 comprises a pair of opposed bipod legs 52, 54 which are pivotally mounted on a bipod chassis 55 for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes, the bipod further comprises a pivotally mounted spigot 56 extending from a pivotable element 58, which is pivotally mounted mostly within the bipod chassis 55 for connecting the bipod to the firearm (not shown). In contrast to the previous embodiment, the spigot is fast with a clamp 60 which is designed to clamp securely an accessory rail on a lower surface of a firearm (not shown) to support the firearm above a surface. The accessory rail may be for example a Weaver rail, Picatinny rail, NATO Accessory Rail, or M-LOK rail. The pivotable element 58 is again arranged to pivot about an axis PA50 which extends within a triangular area T50 defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when the bipod legs depend from the bipod in and upright or nominal condition (for example as shown in FIG. 9).

Claims

1. A bipod for supporting a firearm above a surface, the bipod comprising a pair of opposed bipod legs which are pivotally mounted for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes, the bipod further comprising a spigot for connecting the bipod to the firearm, or to an fitting mounted on the firearm, the spigot being mounted on, or integral with, a pivotable element which is arranged to pivot about an axis extending within a triangular area defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when depending from the bipod in a nominal upright condition, in which the pivotable element pivots about an axis extending through or adjacent the centre of the triangular area, and in which the locking mechanism is operated by a button extending from the pivotable element.

2. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the pivotable element houses or supports a locking mechanism for locking the spigot to a firearm or a fitting mounted on the firearm.

3. A bipod according to claim 2, in which the pivotable element is mounted for pivotal movement substantially within a chassis on which the opposed bipod legs are pivotally mounted.

4. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the pivotable element is substantially circular.

5. A bipod according to claim 2, in which the locking mechanism for locking the spigot to the firearm is operable by a user.

6. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the button extends from the pivotable element through an elongate aperture defined by the chassis.

7. A bipod according to claim 6, in which the button moves along the elongate aperture defined by the chassis as the pivotable element pivots, whereby contact of the button with an end of the aperture limits pivoting of the pivotable element.

8. A bipod according to claim 2, in which the locking mechanism includes a lug that can be retracted by a user by operation of the button.

9. A bipod according to claim 8, in which the lug engages with an annular recess or groove extending around a cavity corresponding to the spigot which is defined by the fixture or the firearm.

10. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the legs can be pivoted into forward and rearward extending conditions from the nominal, downwardly extending condition.

11. A bipod according to claim 10, in which the legs can be locked in any such condition.

12. A bipod according to claim 1, and in which the bipod connects with a fixture mounted on or integral with the firearm, wherein at least one of the spigot and fixture includes a magnet which attracts the other of the spigot and fixture.

13. A bipod according to claim 12, in which attraction between the magnet and the other of the spigot and fixture encourages inter-engagement between the bipod and the fixture.

14. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the spigot is connected to or integral with a clamp which can engage with an accessory rail mounted on or integral with the firearm to mount the bipod to the firearm.

15. A bipod according to claim 1, which permits panning of a supported firearm, by 30 degrees of rotation or more, preferably by 60 degrees of rotation, more preferably by 120 degrees or more.

16. A bipod according to claim 1, in which the user operated button is located on a user-facing (in normal use) surface of the chassis.

17. A combination of a bipod according to claim 1, and a firearm, optionally with a fixture or accessory rail for connecting the bipod spigot to the firearm.

18. A combination according to claim 17 and where the combination includes a fixture or accessory rail for connecting the bipod spigot to the firearm wherein the fixture or accessory rail is mounted on or integral with the firearm.

19. A bipod for supporting a firearm above a surface, the bipod comprising a pair of opposed bipod legs which are pivotally mounted for rotation about respective inclined intersecting axes, the bipod further comprising a spigot for connecting the bipod to the firearm, or to an fitting mounted on the firearm, the spigot being mounted on, or integral with, a pivotable element which is arranged to pivot about an axis extending within a triangular area defined by the inclined intersecting axes about which the bipod legs pivot and a plane defined by corresponding upper surfaces of the opposed legs when depending from the bipod in a nominal upright condition.