BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of firearms, and more specifically to trigger assembly groups for firearms such as AR-15 style rifles.
2. Description of Related Art
AR-15 style rifles and their variants are widely available and in use. These firearms, like other types of firearms, have the potential to unintentionally discharge—creating a hazard to the operator of the firearm as well as to others.
Rearward movement (i.e., unintentional pulling) of a trigger is a common cause of inadvertent discharge of a firearm. Many design strategies have been employed to mitigate this issue, such as trigger guards, safety devices that require the grip of the firearm to be engaged before the trigger can be pulled, and triggers that incorporate a secondary trigger arranged and configured to block rearward pivot of a primary trigger. Design problems with current systems and methods for preventing accidental discharge of a firearm, however, present several disadvantages that are overcome by the present invention.
A need exists in the art for a trigger assembly group which prevents accidental discharge of a firearm, such as AR-15 style rifles. It is a purpose of this invention to fulfill this and other needs in the art which will become more apparent to the skilled artisan once given the following disclosure.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the drawbacks associated with current trigger assembly groups and methods of use. To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described, the present disclosure describes a trigger assembly group capable of being incorporated into a lower receiver, such as a lower receiver dimensionally common to AR-15 style rifles. The disclosed trigger assembly group includes a primary trigger with an integral secondary trigger that is arranged and configured to reduce the incidence of accidental discharge caused by inadvertently actuating the primary trigger by moving the primary trigger rearwardly. Additionally, the disclosed trigger assembly group is arranged and configured to eliminate “trigger slap” from the secondary trigger.
These, together with other objects of the invention, along with various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed hereto and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages, and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is described illustrative embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of the specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. It is to be expressly understood that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a front side perspective view of a secondary trigger arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 2 is a top side perspective view of a safety selector arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 3 is a top side perspective view of a hammer arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 7 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 9 is a front side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 10 is front side perspective view of a primary trigger arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 11 is a front side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 12 is a bottom side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 13 is a rear side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 15 is a bottom side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 16 is a front elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 17 is a side perspective view of a trigger assembly group, arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, installed into a prior art lower receiver.
FIG. 18 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 19 is a rear side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 20 is a top side perspective view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 21 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 22 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 23 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 24 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 25 is a partial side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 26 is a partial side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 27 is a partial side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 28 is a partial side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 29 is a partial side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 30 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
FIG. 31 is a side elevation view of a trigger assembly group arranged and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS
Exemplary embodiments of a trigger assembly group and methods of use in accordance with the present disclosure are discussed below. Many other uses of the present invention will become obvious to one skilled in the art upon acquiring a thorough understanding of the present invention. Once given the below disclosures, many other features, modifications, and variations will become apparent to the skilled artisan in view of the teachings set forth herein. Such other features, modifications and variations are, therefore, considered to be a part of this invention.
A trigger assembly group 40 according to the present disclosure comprises a housing 46, a primary trigger 44 connected to the housing, a trigger shoe 45 connected to the primary trigger, a secondary trigger 41 connected to said housing and to said primary trigger, and a hammer 43 connected to said housing. The disclosed trigger assembly group 40 is configured for installation into a lower receiver 47 of a firearm, such as a semi-automatic firearm with a hammer-fired mechanism (e.g., an AR-15 rifle).
Starting with FIG. 1, an exemplary secondary trigger 41 is depicted. The depicted secondary trigger 41 includes a disconnector head 55, the disconnector head 55 being arranged and configured for temporarily engaging and then disengaging a front hammer hook member 60 when the firearm cycles. The depicted secondary trigger 41 further includes a secondary trigger connecting member 54 which may include an aperture for receiving a retaining pin that connects the secondary trigger 41 to a primary trigger 44 and housing 46. The secondary trigger 41 further includes a front face 52 of the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41, which front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger is arranged and configured for engagement and pulling of the secondary trigger 41 by a user's finger. The depicted secondary trigger 41 includes locking wing members 53 which are arranged and configured for moving from engagement with upper locking housing grooves 71 to engagement with lower housing grooves 65 underneath the shoulders 72 of the housing 46. Furthermore, the secondary trigger 41 includes an unlocking protrusion 69 that interacts with a forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 to move the locking wing members 53 from engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71 to engagement with the lower housing grooves 65. A secondary trigger resilient member 51 (e.g., a compression spring) may further be included. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the parts of the secondary trigger may be formed as a single integral unit or as separate connected elements. Specifically, the disconnector head may be a separate element that connects to the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger.
Turning to FIGS. 11-16 and 18-20, a housing 46 of the trigger assembly group 40 is depicted. The housing 46 may comprise retaining pin apertures 64 for receiving retaining pins 63, wherein the depicted retaining pin apertures 64 are configured to allow for linear movement of retaining pins 63 in the retaining pin apertures 64, which therefore allows for linear movement of the primary trigger and the secondary trigger in the housing 46. The housing 46 may further include upper locking housing grooves 71 for engagement with the locking the wing members 53 of the secondary trigger, shoulders 72 for engagement of the locking the wing members 53 against the shoulders 72, and lower housing grooves 65 underneath the shoulders 72 of the housing 46. The housing may also include trigger pack retaining bolt holes 68 for receiving retaining bolts to install the trigger assembly group into a lower receiver 47.
FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary primary trigger 44 in accordance with the present disclosure including a primary trigger sear 61, wherein the trigger sear 61 includes a sloped front surface 70. The primary trigger sear 61 engages, catches, and holds a cocked hammer 43 (see FIGS. 4, 9, 11, 14, 18-23, and 30) until the primary trigger 44 and the secondary trigger 41 are pulled by a user to fire the firearm. The primary trigger 44 may further comprise a rear channel 74 in the primary trigger 44 for receiving the connecting member 54 of the secondary trigger 41. The primary trigger 44 may further comprise a forward channel 76 in the primary trigger 44 for receiving the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41. The depicted primary trigger 44 further includes a lower portion 62 and retaining pin apertures 73 for receiving retaining pins 63. A primary trigger resilient member 50 (e.g., a compression spring) may be used to move the primary trigger 44 in respect to the housing 46.
FIGS. 9, 11-24, and 30-31 depict a trigger shoe 45 connected to the primary trigger 44. Please note, in other exemplary embodiments anticipated by the present disclosure, the trigger shoe 45 may be formed integrally with the primary trigger 44. The front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45 is configured for engagement and pulling of the trigger shoe by a user's finger. The depicted trigger shoe 45 further comprises a channel 49 formed in the trigger shoe 45, which channel 49 is configured as a recess that allows the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 to move from (1) extending outwardly in front of the front face 48 the trigger shoe 45, allowing for engagement of a user's finger with the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger (see, e.g., FIGS. 4, 9, 11, and 14), to (2) withdrawing rearwardly in the channel 49 until the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger is fully recessed within the channel 49 formed in the trigger shoe 45 (see, e.g., FIGS. 7, 24 and 31).
FIG. 3 depicts a hammer 43 that comprises a rear hammer catch 59 for engaging the primary trigger sear 61. The hammer 43 may further include a front hammer hook member 60 for transitory engagement with the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41 while the firearm cycles. The hammer 43 may further include a forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 for engaging with the secondary trigger unlocking protrusion 69 to force the locking wings members 53 of the secondary trigger 41 out of engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71 and into engagement with the lower housing grooves 65 under the shoulders 72 of the housing 46. As shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 9, the hammer 43 may further include an aperture 58 for receiving a hammer pivot sleeve 77 and for further receiving a trigger pack retaining bolt 68 inserted through the hammer pivot sleeve 77. Finally, a hammer spring 67 or resilient member (e.g., a torsion spring) is depicted which biases the hammer 43 forward to strike the firing pin when the triggers are pulled to release the hammer 43 from engagement with the primary trigger sear 61.
FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary safety selector 42 comprising a solid safety side 56 that prevents movement of the trigger assembly group 40 and a cut out or cavity 57 on the opposing side that allows for actuation of the triggers and rearward movement of the trigger assembly group 40. The safety selector 42 is used to adjust a firearm from a safe position, in which the triggers cannot be pulled and the weapon cannot be fired (see FIG. 21), to a fire position, in which a user is able to pull the triggers to fire the weapon (see FIG. 23). It should be appreciated that many alternative safety selectors 42 are possible, as will be known to those skilled in the art.
Turning to FIG. 4, the trigger assembly group 40 is shown in its forwardmost position in the housing 46, as can be seen by the position of the retaining pins 63. The hammer 43 is cocked as the primary trigger sear 61 engages the rear hammer catch 59, and the primary and secondary triggers are ready to be pulled in a rearward linear direction to discharge the firearm. The front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 extends outwardly beyond the front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45. This is the arrangement and configuration of the trigger assembly group 40 and housing 46 when the hammer 43 is cocked, and the triggers are ready to be pulled to discharge the firearm.
In FIG. 5, the secondary trigger, trigger shoe, and primary trigger have been pulled rearwardly and the hammer 43 is in a released position. To pull the triggers, the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 is first pulled rearwardly until the secondary trigger 41 recedes into the channel 49 formed in the trigger shoe 45 such that the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 is flush with the front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45. With continued rearward pulling of the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 and of the front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45, the locking wing members 53 of the secondary trigger 41 move out of engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71, and the locking wing members 53 move below the shoulders 72 of the housing and into engagement with lower housing grooves 65 located beneath the shoulders 72 of the housing. This forces the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 to retract further into the trigger shoe channel 49, causing the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 to be receded within and no longer flush with the front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45. As a result, the secondary trigger 41 is no longer in contact with the user's finger.
Moving to FIG. 6, when the firearm's bolt carrier group is cycled and starts to force the hammer 43 in a downward direction and back into a cocked position in engagement with the primary trigger sear 61, the front hammer hook member 60 starts to engage the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41. As can be seen by the location of the retaining pins 63 in the linear retaining pin apertures 64, the trigger assembly group 40 is now positioned in a rearmost position in the housing 46 as the trigger shoe 45 continues to be pulled rearwardly by the user's finger and the primary trigger resilient member 50 is being compressed.
In FIG. 7, the hammer 43 is forced further down by the continued rearward travel of the bolt carrier group (not depicted). The front hammer hook member 60 is almost positioned low enough to engage the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41. The secondary trigger resilient member 51 is being compressed as the trigger shoe continues to be pulled rearwardly by the user's finger.
Next, as depicted in FIG. 8, the front hammer hook member 60 moves past and below the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41, allowing the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41 to temporarily hold the hammer 43 in place.
Finally, returning to FIG. 4, the user has released his/her finger from the front face 52 of the secondary trigger 41 and from the trigger shoe 45, and the hammer 43 has reset in a cocked position. When the user releases his/her finger, this causes the primary trigger resilient member 50 (e.g., the compression spring) to force the trigger assembly group 40 forward in the housing 46, the front hammer hook member 60 to disengage from the disconnector head 55 of the secondary trigger 41, and as the hammer 43 is forced upwardly by the hammer spring 67, the hammer 43 engages and is held in place by the primary trigger sear 61. The locking wings 53 of the secondary trigger 41 are forced back up into the upper locking housing grooves 71 by the secondary trigger resilient member 51.
Now, turning to FIGS. 21-24, FIG. 21 depicts the trigger assembly group 40 including a safety selector 42 wherein the safety selector 42 is positioned to hold the firearm in a safe position, and wherein the trigger assembly group 40 is locked by the safety selector in a forwardmost position in the housing 46 (see the retaining pins 63) and the firearm is unable to be discharged in this position as the primary and secondary triggers cannot be pulled rearwardly to release the hammer to discharge the firearm. FIG. 22 depicts the safety selector 42 being turned to unlock the trigger assembly group from the safe position. FIG. 23 depicts the safety selector 42 positioned to unlock the trigger assembly group and to allow the trigger assembly group 40 to move rearwardly upon pulling of the triggers. In this drawing, the primary trigger resilient member 50 is holding the trigger assembly group 40 in the forwardmost position; however, this resilient force can be overcome by a user pulling the triggers rearwardly to discharge the firearm. Finally, FIG. 24 depicts the trigger assembly group after the primary and secondary triggers are pulled rearwardly, in a linear direction—the trigger assembly group 40 moves rearwardly (see the position of the retaining pins 63 in the retaining pin apertures 64) and the hammer 43 is released when the rear hammer catch 59 moves out of engagement with the primary trigger sear 61. The lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 recedes further into the channel 49 of the trigger shoe 45 when the primary and secondary triggers continue to be pulled rearwardly. As the primary and secondary triggers are pulled rearwardly, the locking wing members 53 are forced out of engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71 and out of engagement with the shoulders 72 of the housing 46 and the locking wing members move into engagement with the lower housing grooves. When the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 recedes further into the channel 49 of the trigger shoe 45 as the locking wing members engage the lower housing grooves, this configuration eliminates “trigger slap” from the secondary trigger when the bolt carrier group forces the hammer 43 back down into a cocked position.
Turning to FIGS. 25-30, FIG. 25 depicts the first step of resetting the primary and secondary triggers after the firearm has been discharged. FIG. 25 shows the trigger assembly group 40 after the firearm has been fired and the hammer 43 is in a released position. The triggers have been released by the user's finger, and the primary trigger resilient member 50 forces the trigger assembly group 40 forward. The trigger assembly group 40 is at its forwardmost linear position in the housing 46, as can be seen by the position of the retaining pins 63 in the linear retaining pin apertures 64. The forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 is disposed above and is disengaged from the secondary trigger unlocking protrusion 69. The locking wing members 53 of the secondary trigger 41 are engaged with the upper locking housing grooves 71 and positioned against the shoulders 72 of the housing 46. The front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41, arranged and configured for engagement and pulling of the secondary trigger 41 by a user's finger, extends outwardly from the front face 48 of the trigger shoe 45 (not fully illustrated).
Next, in FIG. 26, the hammer 43 is being forced downwardly by a bolt carrier group (not depicted) of the firearm during manual cycling. The forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 and the secondary trigger unlocking protrusion 69 are starting to interact; as the hammer is forced further downwardly, the forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 forces the secondary trigger unlocking protrusion 69 downward, which forces the locking wing members 53 out of engagement with both the upper locking housing grooves 71 and the shoulders 72 of the housing 46.
FIG. 27 depicts the rear hammer catch 59 engaging the sloped front surface 70 of the primary trigger sear 61. While not fully depicted, the lower portion 75 of the secondary trigger 41 is being forced further into the channel 49 of the trigger shoe 45 due to the interaction between the forward hammer unlocking protrusion 66 and the secondary trigger unlocking protrusion 69, which interaction forces the locking wing members 53 further out of engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71 and forces the locking wing members towards engagement with the lower housing grooves 65.
FIG. 28 shows the trigger assembly group 40 in a rearmost position, as seen by the position of the retaining pins 63 in the linear retaining pin apertures 64. The interaction of the rear hammer catch 59 and the primary trigger sear 61 forces the trigger assembly group 40 to move linearly into a rearmost position. As depicted in FIG. 28, the locking wing members 53 are forced underneath the shoulders 72 of the housing 46 into the lower housing grooves 65. While not illustrated, in this step, the front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 is fully retracted inside the channel 49 formed in the trigger shoe 45.
Next, in FIG. 29, as the rear hammer catch 59 begins to engage the primary trigger sear 61, the primary trigger resilient member 50 begins forcing the trigger assembly group 40 forward (see the retaining pins 63 in the linear retaining pin apertures 64). As this occurs, the locking wings move out of engagement with the lower housing grooves 65 and engage the shoulders 72 of the housing 46.
Finally, in FIG. 30, the rear hammer catch 59 moves fully into engagement with the primary trigger sear 61 and the primary trigger resilient member 50 forces the trigger assembly group 40 back into its forwardmost position in the housing 46. The primary trigger sear 61 is arranged and configured to catch and retain the hammer 43 via the hammer's rear hammer catch 59. The secondary trigger resilient member 51 has forced the locking wing members 53 of the secondary trigger 41 back into engagement with the upper locking housing grooves 71 and into position against the shoulders 72 of the housing 46. The front face 52 of the lower portion of the secondary trigger 41 extends beyond the front face 48 of the shoe member. The hammer is cocked, the triggers are reset, and the firearm is ready to fire.
It is important to note that the construction and arrangement of the elements of the device provided herein are illustrative only. Although only a few exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail in this disclosure, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in these embodiments (such as variations in orientation of the components of the system, sizes, structures, shapes, and proportions of the various components, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the invention.
Many other uses of the present invention will become obvious to one skilled in the art upon acquiring a thorough understanding of the present invention. Once given the above disclosures, many other features, modifications, and variations will become apparent to the skilled artisan in view of the teachings set forth herein. Such other features, modifications and variations are, therefore, considered to be a part of this invention, the scope of which is to be determined by the following claims.