Semi-automatic firing compressed gas gun

• US 5,280,778 A
• Filed: 03/09/1992
• Issued: 01/25/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Thomas G. Kotsiopoulos
• Original Assignee: Thomas G. Kotsiopoulos
• Inventors: Kotsiopoulos, Thomas G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nicholson, Eric K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Knight, Anthony
• Application Number:
  US07/847,831
• Time in Patent Office: 687 Days
• Field of Search: 124/73-76, 124/71, 124/70, 124/37, 124/31
• US Class Current: 124/73
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 19/02 Burst limiters F41A19/67 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 19/24 Release-trigger mechanisms, i.e. the striker element being released during the return movement of the trigger subsequent to trigger pull
• CPC Class Codes: F41B 11/62 with pressure supplied by a gas cartridge
• CPC Class Codes: F41B 11/723 for controlling gas pressure for firing the projectile only

Abstract

A compressed gas powered gun is disclosed having a semi-automatic firing mechanism for enabling successive firing sequences. The firing mechanism includes a sear having a latch arm, with a cam at one end and an interlocking element at the other end. The cam is positioned to close a firing chamber as the latch arm is rotated. The interlocking element is positioned to concomitantly release an actuating bolt as the latch arm is rotated. A recoil spring repositions the actuating bolt for engagement with the interlocking element upon discharge of the firing chamber.

Claims

1. A compressed gas powered gun for firing a projectile disposed in an elongated barrel upon the depression of a trigger comprising:

a compressed gas source disposed to supply compressed gas;

a firing chamber coupled with said compressed gas source receiving at least a portion of compressed gas from said source, said firing chamber having at least a portion defined by an elongated receptacle;

a flow valve disposed between said compressed gas source and said firing chamber said flow valve having an open position to permit compressed gas to flow therethrough and a closed position to isolate said firing chamber from said compressed gas source to maintain a predetermined pressure in said firing chamber when said trigger is depressed;

an actuating bolt assembly movable between a fire position and a ready-to-fire position, said actuating bolt assembly having a sleeve with a dog portion, a piston received within at least a portion of said sleeve, and a spring disposed to return said actuating bolt assembly to the ready-to-fire position, said sleeve having at least a portion surrounding said elongated receptacle in both the fire position and the ready-to-fire position to direct compressed gas therethrough in the fire position, said piston having a portion received within said elongated receptacle for sealing said firing chamber when in the ready-to-fire position and exited from said elongated receptacle for permitting discharge of compressed gas from the firing chamber through said elongated receptacle when in the fire position; and

a sear having a pivoting latch arm with an interlocking member disposed on one end of said latch arm for engaging said dog portion in the ready-to-fire position, a cam section disposed on the other end of said latch arm engaged with said flow valve, and an actuating lever, disposed opposite both said interlocking member and said cam section and coupled with said trigger, for rotating said latch arm to extend said cam section to close said flow valve to isolate said firing chamber from said compressed gas source and to retract said interlocking member to disengage said interlocking member from said dog portion when said trigger is depressed to return said sear to the ready-to-fire position engaging said dog portion of said actuating bolt assembly without manual movement of said actuating bolt assembly.

2. The compressed gas powered gun of claim 1 further comprising projectile feeding means associated with said barrel for depositing projectiles into said barrel, the configuration and relative positioning of said actuating bolt assembly and said projectile feeding means being such that said actuating bolt assembly precludes receipt of said projectiles from said feeding means in the fire position and permits receipt of said projectiles in the ready-to-fire position.

3. The compressed gas powered gun of claim 2 further comprising projectile feed stop means disposed in said barrel relative to said projectile feeding means, said projectile feed stop means adapted to prevent longitudinal movement of a projectile received in said barrel until said actuating bolt assembly moves to the fire position.

4. A semiautomatic firing system having a fire position for discharging a projectile of the fragile gelatinous type upon the depression of a trigger, and thereafter returning to a ready-to-fire position upon the release of the trigger for use in a compressed gas powered gun including a barrel for loading the projectile, a firing chamber including an exhaust tube for supplying compressed gas to impart a force on the projectile, and a compressed gas supply disposed to supply said firing chamber with compressed gas, said firing system comprising:

an actuating bolt assembly movable between a fire position and ready-to-fire position, said actuating bolt assembly having a sleeve with at least a portion surrounding said exhaust tube in both the fire and ready-to-fire positions, a dog portion attached to said sleeve, and a piston received within said exhaust tube to inhibit discharge of compressed gas from said exhaust tube in the ready-to-fire position and at least partially exited from said exhaust tube in the fire position to permit discharge of compressed gas longitudinally through said exhaust tube;

a recoil spring disposed to return said actuating bolt assembly to the ready-to-fire position upon the discharge of said firing chamber;

a flow valve disposed between said gas supply and said firing chamber permitting gas to flow to said firing chamber in the ready-to-fire position, said flow valve isolating said firing chamber rom said gas supply to maintain a predetermined pressure in said firing chamber in the fire position;

pressure regulating means coupled with said compressed gas source and said firing chamber for receiving compressed gas from said source and for supplying a preselected amount of compressed gas to said firing chamber when said flow valve is in said ready-to-fire position;

a sear having a pivoting latch arm with an interlocking member disposed on one end of said latch arm and adapted to engage said dog portion in the ready-to-fire position, a cam section disposed on the other end of said latch arm engaged with said flow valve, and an actuating lever disposed opposite both said interlocking member and said cam section and coupled with said trigger;

said actuating lever rotating said latch arm to extend said cam section to close said flow valve and to retract said interlocking member to disengage said interlocking member from said dog portion, thereby releasing said actuating bolt assembly from the ready-to-fire position to the fire position when said trigger is depressed; and

said flow valve being operable to automatically return said firing system to the ready-to-fire position by moving said cam section to counterrotate said latch arm for engaging said interlocking member with said dog portion, thereby restraining said actuating bolt assembly in the ready-to-fire position when said firing chamber has discharged and when said trigger is released.

5. A semiautomatic compressed gas powered gun for discharging a projectile disposed in an elongated barrel upon the depression of a trigger and thereafter self-loading for discharging a next succeeding projectile comprising:

a compressed gas source;

a firing chamber in fluid communication with said compressed gas source for receiving at least a portion of compressed gas supplied from said source and for supplying compressed gas to expel the projectile through said barrel;

a flow valve disposed between said compressed gas source and said firing chamber having an open position for permitting compressed gas to flow therethrough and a closed position for isolating said firing chamber from said source to maintain a predetermined pressure in said firing chamber when said trigger is depressed;

an actuating bolt member operable to seal said firing chamber in a ready-to-fire position and to direct compressed gas discharged from said firing chamber toward the projectile in a fire position, said bolt member including a dog portion, and means for returning said actuating bolt member to the ready-to-fire position after compressed gas in said firing chamber is discharged;

a sear having a pivoting latch arm with an interlocking member disposed on one end of said latch arm adapted to engage said dog portion in the ready-to-fire position to restrain said actuating bolt member, a cam section disposed on the other end of said latch arm engaged with said flow valve, and an actuating lever disposed opposite both said interlocking member and said cam section and coupled with said trigger;

said actuating lever rotating said latch arm to extend said cam section to close said flow valve and to retract said interlocking member to disengage said interlocking member from said dog portion thereby releasing said actuating bolt member when said trigger is depressed; and

said flow valve operable to automatically return said sear to the ready to fire position by moving said cam section to counterrotate said latch arm for engaging said interlocking member with said dog portion thereby restraining said actuating bolt member in the ready-to-fire position when said firing chamber has disengaged and when said trigger is released.

6. The compressed gas gun of claim 5 wherein said firing chamber includes discharge tube means, said actuating bolt member further comprising:

a sleeve with at least a portion surrounding said discharge tube means in both the ready-to-fire position and the fire position, said dog portion attached to said sleeve; and

a piston integrally associated with said sleeve, said piston received within said discharge tube means in the ready-to-fire position to prevent discharge of compressed gas in said firing chamber and exited from said discharge tube means in the fire position to permit discharge of compressed gas longitudinally within said sleeve.

7. The compressed gas gun of claim 6 further comprising projectile feeding means associated with said barrel for depositing projectiles into said barrel, the configuration and relative positioning of said actuating bolt sleeve and said projectile feeding means being such that said actuating bolt sleeve precludes receipt of said projectiles within said barrel in the fire position and permits receipt of said projectiles in the ready-to-fire position.

8. The compressed gas gun of claim 7 further comprising projectile feed stop means disposed in said barrel relative to said projectile feeding means, said projectile feed stop means adapted to prevent movement of a projectile received in said barrel until said actuating bolt member moves to the fire position.

9. A firing mechanism for discharging a projectile in a fire position and thereafter returning to a ready-to-fire position in a compressed gas powered gun including a barrel for loading the projectile, a firing chamber for supplying compressed gas to expel the projectile through the barrel, a compressed gas supply disposed to supply compressed gas to said firing chamber, and a flow valve disposed between said supply and said firing chamber for selectively isolating said firing chamber from said supply, said firing mechanism comprising:

a trigger assembly including an elongated member and a link piece, said link piece pivotally mounted to said elongated member and cooperating with said elongated member to move said firing mechanism to the ready-to-fire position when said trigger is both fully depressed and fully released to move said firing mechanism to the fire position at a selected point therebetween;

an actuating bolt member operable to seal said firing chamber in the ready-to-fire position and to direct compressed gas from said firing chamber toward the projectile in the fire position, said bolt assembly including a dog portion, and means for returning said actuating bolt assembly to the ready-to-fire position upon the discharge of said firing chamber;

a sear having a pivoting latch arm with an interlocking member disposed on one end of said latch arm adapted to engage said dog portion in the ready-to-fire position, a cam section disposed on the other end of said latch arm operatively associated with said flow valve, and an actuating lever disposed opposite both said interlocking member and said cam section and coupled with said link piece;

said actuating lever rotating said latch arm to extend said cam section to close said flow valve and to retract said interlocking member to disengage said interlocking member from said dog portion thereby releasing said actuating bolt assembly when said trigger is moved to said selected point; and

said flow valve operable to move said cam section to counterrotate said latch arm for engaging said interlocking member with said dog portion thereby restraining said actuating bolt assembly in the ready to fire position when said firing chamber has discharged and when said trigger is either fully depressed or fully released.

10. A semi-automatic compressed gas powered gun for discharging a projectile disposed in an elongated barrel upon the depression of a trigger and thereafter self-loading for discharging a next succeeding projectile comprising:

a compressed gas source;

a firing chamber in fluid communication with said compressed gas source for receiving at least a portion of compressed gas supplied from said source and for supplying compressed gas to expel the projectile through said barrel;

a flow valve disposed between said compressed gas source and said firing chamber having an open position for permitting compressed gas to flow therethrough and a closed position for sealing said firing chamber from said source;

an actuating bolt member operable to seal said firing chamber in a ready-to-fire position and to direct compressed gas discharged from said firing chamber toward the projectile in a fire position, said bolt member including a dog portion, and means for returning said actuating bolt member to the ready-to-fire position after compressed gas in said firing chamber is discharged;

a sear having a pivoting latch arm with an interlocking member disposed on one end of said latch arm adapted to engage said dog portion in the ready-to-fire position to restrain said actuating bolt member, a cam section disposed on the other end of said latch arm engaged with said flow valve, and an actuating lever disposed opposite both said interlocking member and said cam section and coupled with said trigger;

said actuating lever rotating said latch arm to extend said cam section to close said flow valve and to retract said interlocking member to disengage said interlocking member from said dog portion thereby releasing said actuating bolt member when said trigger is depressed;

said flow valve operable to move said cam section to counterrotate said latch arm for engaging said interlocking member with said dog portion thereby restraining said actuating bolt member in the ready-to-fire position when said firing chamber has discharged and when said trigger is released; and

a pressure regulating assembly for controlling the pressure of compressed gas supplied from said source to said firing chamber, said pressure regulating assembly including a longitudinal valve chamber for receiving said compressed gas from said source, a valve disposed in said chamber and operable to move between an open position for passing compressed gas received from said source and a closed position for restricting compressed gas received from said source, and valve regulating means in communication with said valve chamber and said flow valve including sensing means for permitting said valve to move to said closed position when a predetermined pressure of compressed gas is sensed and for urging said valve to said open position when a pressure less than said predetermined pressure is sensed.

11. The compressed gas gun of claim 10, wherein said valve regulating means includes a longitudinal bore disposed downstream of said valve means and said source for passing compressed gas to said flow valve means, said sensing means comprising:

piston means disposed in said bore and coupled with said valve means, said piston means being displaced in response to the pressure of compressed gas received in said bore; and

spring biasing means coupled with said piston means and having a preselected tension to restrict movement of said piston means to prevent said valve means from moving to the closed position until said predetermined pressure is received in said longitudinal bore.

12. A system for supplying a predetermined pressure of compressed gas in a compressed gas powered gun, the gun including a barrel for loading a projectile, and a firing mechanism operable in a first mode to actuate said gun and operable in a second mode to return said gun to a ready-to-fire position, said system comprising:

a source supplying compressed gas at a first outlet;

a firing chamber for supplying compressed gas to expel the projectile through the barrel;

a pressure regulating assembly coupled with said first outlet and said firing chamber for receiving compressed gas from said first outlet and for providing said predetermined pressure of compressed gas to said firing chamber at a second outlet; and

a flow valve disposed between said second outlet and said firing chamber and coupled with said firing mechanism, said flow valve isolating said second outlet from said firing chamber when said firing mechanism is in said first mode for maintaining said predetermined pressure in said firing chamber, said flow valve urging said firing mechanism to said second mode upon discharge of said firing chamber and providing fluid communication between said second outlet and said firing chamber when said firing mechanism is in said second mode.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein said pressure regulating assembly supplies said predetermined pressure of compressed gas to said firing chamber for successive firings.