Rifle scope adjustment mechanism

• US 6,279,259 B1
• Filed: 10/21/1998
• Issued: 08/28/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Leupold & Stevens Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Leupold & Stevens Incorporated
• Inventors: Otteman, Rodney H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jordan, Charles T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Buckley, Denise J
• Application Number:
  US09/176,691
• Time in Patent Office: 1,042 Days
• Field of Search: 332/45, 332/46, 350/10, 350/247
• US Class Current: 42/122
• CPC Class Codes: F41G 1/38 Telescopic sights specially adapted for smallarms or ordnance telescopic sights in general G02B; Supports or mountings therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/14 Viewfinders for photographic apparatus G03B13/02
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/36 adjustable

Abstract

The invention comprises a rifle scope having an adjustment sighting mechanism, the mechanism itself, and methods of making and using the rifle scope and adjustment mechanism. The rifle scope includes an inner and an outer tube, the outer tube mounted on the rifle and the inner tube being sealed within the outer tube. The inner tube is fixed in a ball-type joint at one end, with the other end free and having positioned therein an erector lens or a reticle. An adjustment mechanism adjusts the sight of the rifle scope by displacing the second end of the inner tube. The adjustment mechanism includes a threaded adjustment plunger that is rotationally fixed with respect to the body of the scope. The adjustment plunger threads to a rotating member having a threaded portion. As the rotating member rotates, the adjustment plunger, being prevented from rotating, moves in a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the rotating member. As the threaded adjustment plunger moves inward or outward with respect to the outer tube, it adjusts the position of the inner tube, which is biased against the adjustment plunger by a spring. The rotating member is rotated by a dial, having an engaged position in which rotating the dial moves the adjustment plunger and a disengaged position in which rotating the dial does not move the adjustment plunger. The disengaged position is used to reset the zero on the dial after the rifle is sighted in at a particular distance.

Claims

1. A sight adjustment mechanism for a rifle scope, the rifle scope having an inner tube and an outer tube, the outer tube having an interior, the inner tube having first and second ends and positioned within the interior of the outer tube, the outer tube being fixed with respect to the rifle barrel, and the inner tube being adjustable within the outer tube, the adjustment mechanism comprising:

a rotating member having an axis of rotation and a threaded portion centered on the axis of rotation, the rotating member adapted for mounting to the outer tube such that, when rotated, the rotating member remains stationary along its axis of rotation relative to the outer tube;

a nonrotating threaded adjustment plunger threaded onto the threaded portion of the rotating member and extending within the outer tube toward the inner tube, rotation of the rotating member causing the adjustment plunger to move along the axis of rotation of the rotating member and to displace the inner tube; and

a dial movable between an engaged position and a disengaged position such that rotation of the dial when in the engaged position causes the rotating member to rotate and such that, when in the disengaged position, the dial is rotatable relative to the rotating member.

2. The mechanism of claim 1 in which the outer tube includes an opening through which the adjustment mechanism extends and further comprising:

a gas impermeable seal surrounding the opening of the outer tube and positioned between the outer tube and one of the rotating member and the adjustment plunger to seal the interior of the outer tube.

3. The mechanism of claim 1 in which:

the rotating member includes first surface contours; and

the dial includes second surface contours positioned adjacent the first surface contours for releasable engagement with the first surface contours when the dial is in the engaged position so that rotation of the dial causes rotational force to be transferred to the rotating member.

4. The mechanism of claim 3 in which the rotating member comprises two parts, a first part that includes the threaded portion and a second part that includes the first surface contours, the second part mounted on the first part so that the second part may be removed from the rifle scope independently of the first part.

5. The mechanism of claim 1 in which the rotating member includes a hub and the dial includes spring elements surrounding the hub to maintain the dial on the hub.

6. The mechanism of claim 5 in which the hub includes diameter variations across which the spring elements traverse when the dial is moved between the engaged and disengaged positions to prevent inadvertent disengagement of the dial.

7. The mechanism of claim 1 further comprising a tactile indicator allowing a shooter to tactilely determine the extent of an adjustment without averting his eye from a target viewed through the rifle scope.

8. The mechanism of claim 7 in which the tactile indicator comprises:

a surface having regularly spaced features;

a click plunger engaging with the regularly spaced features, one of the surface and the click plunger being fixed in relation to the rifle scope and the other of the surface and the click plunger being rotatable along with the rotating member; and

a means for biasing the click plunger against the regularly spaced features.

9. The mechanism of claim 8 in which the regularly spaced features are corrugations, and the biasing means is a spring.

10. The mechanism of claim 1 in which the inner tube is pivotally mounted at its first end to the outer tube so that the second end of the inner tube is pivotally displaceable by the adjustment mechanism.

11. The mechanism of claim 10, further comprising a spring positioned within the outer tube to bias the second end of the inner tube toward the adjustment plunger.

12. The mechanism of claim 10 in which a reticle is placed near the second end.

13. The mechanism of claim 10 in which an erector lens is placed near the first end.

14. A rifle scope, comprising:

an outer tube adapted to be mounted onto the rifle;

an inner tube positioned within the outer tube and having a first end and a second end, the first end pivotally mounted within the outer tube and the second end being displaceable; and

an adjustment mechanism including;

an flange fixed to the outer tube;

a rotatable member having an axis of rotation and a threaded portion centered on the axis of rotation, the rotatable member being rotatable in relation to the flange such that, when rotated, the rotating member remains stationary along its axis of rotation relative to the outer tube;

a nonrotating threaded adjustment plunger threaded onto the threaded portion of the rotating member and extending within the outer tube toward the inner tube, rotation of the rotating member causing the adjustment plunger to move along the axis of rotation of the rotating member and to displace the inner tube; and

a dial releasably coupled to the rotating member and movable between an engaged position and a disengaged position such that rotation of the dial when in the engaged position causes the rotating member to rotate and such that, when in the disengaged position, the dial is rotatable relative to the rotating member.

15. The rifle scope of claim 14 in which the outer tube includes an opening through which the adjustment mechanism extends and further comprising:

a gas impermeable seal surrounding the opening of the outer tube and positioned between the outer tube and one of the rotating member and the adjustment plunger to seal the interior of the outer tube.

16. The rifle scope of claim 14 further comprising a tactile positioner and rotation indicator having two parts, a first part mounted on the rotating member and a second part fixed in relation to the rifle scope, one of the first and second parts biased against the other of the first and second parts to provide a tactilely sensible feedback as the adjustment mechanism is adjusted and to prevent inadvertent adjustment of the adjustment mechanism.

17. The rifle scope of claim 14 in which:

the dial includes at least one spring element; and

the rotatable member includes a hub having an outer surface of varying outer diameter positioned to engage the spring element of the dial.

18. The rifle scope of claim 16 in which the varying outer diameter of the hub defines first and second positions of engagement of the spring element of the dial so that the dial is coupled to the rotating member when the spring element is engaged in the first position and the dial is uncoupled from the rotating plate when the spring element is engaged in the second position.

19. The mechanism of claim 14 in which:

the rotating member includes one or more surface features; and

the dial includes one or more surface features adjacent the surface features of the rotating member for releasable engagement with at least one the surface features of the rotating member when the dial is in the engaged position so that rotation of the dial causes rotational force to be transferred to the rotating member.

20. The mechanism of claim 19 in which the rotating member comprises two parts, a first part that includes the threaded portion and a second part that includes the first surface features, the second part mounted on the first part so that the second part may be replaced without unsealing the outer tube.