Drone-target hunting/shooting system

• US 10,302,397 B1
• Filed: 10/19/2017
• Issued: 05/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Duckdrone LLC
• Original Assignee: Duckdrone LLC
• Inventors: Means, Grady, Sigvaldason, Thor
• Primary Examiner(s): McClellan, James S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Carter, Kevin M
• Application Number:
  US15/787,709
• Time in Patent Office: 586 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/216 using geographical information, e.g. location of the game device or player using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/837 Shooting of targets
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/0243 Movable targets
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/0252 Shooting devices therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/00 UAVs specially adapted for particular uses or applications
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/05 for sports or gaming, e.g. drone racing
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/104 using satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/20 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 33/00 Adaptations for training adaptations of barrels for recoil reinforcement F41A21/26; Gun simulators teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26 ; shooting games A63F9/02; military simulation G09B9/003
• CPC Class Codes: F41G 3/26 Teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying shooting games A63F9/02; light- or radiation-emitting guns F41A33/02; targets therefor F41J; responders, transponders for radar, sonar, lidar G01S13/767, G01S15/74, G01S17/74
• CPC Class Codes: F41G 3/2655 in which the light beam is sent from the weapon to the target
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 2/00 Reflecting targets, e.g. radar-reflector targets; Active targets transmitting electromagnetic or acoustic waves
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 5/14 Apparatus for signalling hits or scores to the shooter, e.g. manually operated, or for communication between target and shooter; Apparatus for recording hits or scores
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 9/08 Airborne targets, e.g. drones, kites, balloons aircraft for towing targets B64D3/02
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/53 Determining attitude

Abstract

In a target-shooting simulation system, a master control unit issues flight control instructions to a flight-capable drone to cause the drone to fly along a predetermined flight path and receives GPS coordinates transmitted by a control unit of the drone as the drone flies along the predetermined flight path. The master control unit additionally obtains GPS coordinates, orientation and motion information with respect to a replica firearm, detects actuation of a trigger of the replica firearm and, in response to detecting actuation of the trigger, determines, based on the GPS coordinates of the drone and the GPS coordinates, orientation and motion information with respect to the replica firearm, whether a trajectory of a theoretical shot fired by the replica firearm at time of the trigger actuation will intercept the drone as it flies along the predetermined flight path.

Claims

1. A simulation system comprising:

an imitation firearm having a firing trigger, one or more sensors that indicate an orientation of the imitation firearm while borne by a user, a user-interface mechanism, a safety interlock, and a safety-interlock circuit to indicate whether the safety interlock is engaged to render the imitation firearm into a disarmed state or disengaged to render the imitation firearm into an armed state; and

a control unit to (i) determine, at respective instances in time, whether the orientation of the imitation firearm indicated by the one or more sensors falls within a range of unsafe dispositions concurrently with indication by the safety-interlock circuit that the safety interlock is disengaged (ii) alert the user via the user-interface mechanism of each affirmative determination regardless of whether the user attempts to pull the firing trigger, (iii) tally each affirmative determination as a respective safety violation, (iv) and generate a quantitative firearm-safety score for the user based at least in part on the tally of safety violations.

2. The simulation system of claim 1 wherein the range of unsafe dispositions comprise a predetermined angular range.

3. The simulation system of claim 1 wherein the user-interface mechanism comprises at least one of an audio mechanism to generate an audible output, a light-emitting mechanism to generate a visible output or a haptic mechanism to generate a haptic output.

4. The simulation system of claim 2 wherein the control unit to determine whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions comprises logic to ascertain whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the predetermined angular range concurrently with indication from the safety-interlock circuit that the safety interlock is disengaged.

5. The simulation system of claim 1 wherein the imitation firearm comprises a sensor circuit that signals actuation of the firing trigger to the control unit.

6. The simulation system of claim 5 wherein the control unit is further to determine whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions concurrently with a signal from the sensor circuit indicating actuation of the firing trigger.

7. The simulation system of claim 1 wherein the control unit comprises a communication unit to receive information indicative of a probable location of a human being other than the user bearing the imitation firearm, and wherein the control unit to determine whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions comprises logic to ascertain whether the imitation firearm is aimed at the probable location of the human being.

8. The simulation system of claim 7 wherein the imitation firearm constitutes a first imitation firearm and wherein the communication unit to receive information indicative of the probable location of the human being comprises a radio communication unit to receive location information from a second imitation firearm presumed to be borne by the human being.

9. The simulation system of claim 8 wherein the radio communication unit to receive location information from the second imitation firearm presumed to be borne by the human being comprises logic to receive information indicating that the second imitation firearm is in motion.

10. The simulation system of claim 1 wherein the control unit to generate the numeric fire-arm safety score comprises circuitry to generate a marksmanship score that is dependent on both the tally of safety violations and marksmanship data.

11. The simulation system of claim 10 wherein the control unit is mounted within the imitation firearm.

12. A method of firearm safety training within a shooting simulation system in which a user bears an imitation firearm having a control unit, a firing trigger, one or more sensors, a user-interface mechanism, a safety interlock and a safety-interlock circuit, the method comprising:

determining, within the control unit and at respective instances in time, whether an orientation of the imitation firearm indicated by the one or more sensors falls within a range of unsafe dispositions concurrently with indication by the safety-interlock circuit that the safety interlock is disengaged to render the imitation firearm into an armed state;

alerting the user of each affirmative determination via the user-interface mechanism regardless of whether the user attempts to pull the firing trigger;

tallying each affirmative determination as a respective safety violation; and

generating a quantitative firearm-safety score for the user based at least in part on the tally of safety violations.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein determining whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions comprises determining whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the predetermined angular range.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein alerting the user of each affirmative determination via the user-interface mechanism comprises generating at least one of an audible alert, a visible alert or a haptic alert.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the imitation firearm comprises a sensor circuit that signals actuation of the firing trigger to the control unit, the method further comprising determining whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions concurrently with a signal from the sensor circuit indicating actuation of the firing trigger.

16. The method of claim 12 further comprising receiving within the control unit information indicative of a probable location of a human being other than the user bearing the imitation firearm, and wherein determining whether the orientation of the imitation firearm falls within the range of unsafe dispositions comprises determining whether the imitation firearm is aimed at the probable location of the human being.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the imitation firearm constitutes a first imitation firearm, and wherein receiving the information indicative of the probable location of the human being comprises receiving via a radio communication unit location information from a second imitation firearm presumed to be borne by the human being.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein receiving the location information from the second imitation firearm comprises receiving information indicating that the second imitation firearm is in motion.

19. The method of claim 12 wherein generating the quantitative firearm-safety score for the user based at least in part on the tally of safety violations comprises generating a marksmanship score that is dependent on both the tally of safety violations and marksmanship data.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein generating the quantitative firearm-safety score for the user based at least in part on the tally of safety violations comprises generating a user-viewable safety report that includes, for each tallied safety violation, information descriptive of the safety violation and an adjustment to a numeric safety score due to the safety violation.

21. A simulation system comprising:

an imitation firearm having a firing trigger, one or more sensors that indicate an orientation of the imitation firearm while borne by a user, a user-interface mechanism, a safety interlock, and a safety-interlock circuit to indicate whether the safety interlock is engaged to render the imitation firearm into a disarmed state or disengaged to render the imitation firearm into an armed state; and

means for (i) determining, at respective instances in time, whether an orientation of the imitation firearm indicated by the one or more sensors falls within a range of unsafe dispositions, (ii) alerting the user via the user-interface mechanism of each affirmative determination regardless of whether the user attempts to pull the firing trigger, (iii) tallying each affirmative determination to the user as a respective safety violation, and (iv) generating a quantitative firearm-safety score for the user based at least in part on the tally of safety violations.