Magnetic tag firearm safety enhancement system with grip switch

• US 6,282,829 B1
• Filed: 12/27/1999
• Issued: 09/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: O.F. Mossberg & Sons Incorporated (Mossberg Corporation, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: O.F. Mossberg & Sons Incorporated (Mossberg Corporation, Inc.)
• Inventors: Safford, Robert, Mossberg, Jonathan E., Kluwe, George E., Kinion, Kevin F.
• Primary Examiner(s): ELDRED, JOHN W
• Application Number:
  US09/472,276
• Time in Patent Office: 617 Days
• Field of Search: 42/700.1, 42/700.4, 42/700.6, 42/700.8, 42/701.1
• US Class Current: 42/70.11
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 17/063 comprising a transponder

Abstract

A firearm safety enhancement system is provided for enabling use of a firearm only by an authorized individual. At least one electrically activated preventer is provided having a first position for preventing use of firearm and having a second position for enabling use of the firearm. An electrical activation circuit is operatively connected to the preventer to move the preventer between the first and second positions. A portable power supply is carried in said firearm and is coupled to the activation circuit for providing power. A power signal transmitter is operatively connected to the power supply for transmitting an electromagnetic power signal at a regular frequency. A passive identification tag is mounted to a personal adornment to be carried or worn by an individual and is preprogrammed with an authorized identification code preselected from a large number of available identification codes. The passive identification tag is responsive to the power signal to impose a coded return signal on the power signal. The return coded signal is representative of the preprogrammed authorized identification code so that the power signal acts as a carrier of the imposed coded return signal. A reader circuit is connected to the power signal transmitter and to the electrical activation circuit. The reader circuit is responsive only to an authorized identification code to activate the electrical activation circuit to provide power from the portable power supply to move the at least one preventer between the first preventing position and the second unblocked position for enabling use of the firearm.

Claims

1. A firearm safety enhancement system for preventing use of a firearm except by an authorized individual comprising:

a. at least one electrically activated preventer having a first position for preventing use of said firearm and having a second position for permitting use of said firearm;

b. an electrical activation circuit operatively connected to said preventer to move said preventer between said first and second positions;

c. a portable power supply coupled to said activation circuit for providing power thereto;

d. a power signal transmitter operatively connected to said power supply for transmitting an electromagnetic power signal at a regular frequency;

e. a passive identification tag mounted to a personal adornment carried or worn by an individual and preprogrammed with an identification code preselected from a large number of available identification codes, said passive identification tag being responsive to said power signal to impose a return signal on said power signal representative of said preprogrammed identification code so that said power signal acts as a carrier of said imposed code signal; and

f. a reader circuit connected to said power signal transmitter and to said electrical activation circuit, said reader circuit responsive to said identification code to activate said electrical activation circuit to provide power from said portable power supply to move said at least one preventer between said first preventing position to said second position for permitting use of said firearm.

2. A firearm safety enhancement system as in claim 1 further comprising at least one system switch mounted in said firearm and coupled to said power transmitter circuit for activation thereof when the system switch is thrown by a user of the firearm.

3. A firearm safety enhancement system as in claim 2 wherein the system switch is a grip switch located in a grip of the firearm, the grip switch being activated by a user when the user grasps the grip.

4. A firearm safety enhancement system as in claim 3 wherein the firearm further comprises a grip lever depressably attached to the grip proximate the grip switch for activating the grip switch when a user grasps the grip and depresses the lever.

5. A firearm safety enhancement system as in claim 2 wherein the system switch is a proximity switch, the proximity switch activating when a user is proximate the firearm.

6. A firearm safety enhancement system as in claim 1 wherein:

a. said power signal transmitter comprises an electromagnetic wave transmission coil and an oscillating circuit producing a power signal at a predetermined frequency; and

b. said passive tag comprises;

(i) an electromagnetic wave receiving coil tuned for receiving said electromagnetic power signal at said predetermined frequency and for producing electrical power; and

(ii) a preprogrammed code circuit connected to said receiving coil to receive said electrical power produced upon receipt of said power signal and for producing said return identification signal imposed on said power signal.

7. A safety mechanism for a firearm to enable firing of firearm only by an authorized user, comprising:

a. a firearm having a hand grip and a firing mechanism;

b. a primary power supply attached to said firearm;

c. at least one preventer in said firearm normally engaged with said firing mechanism in a preventing position to prevent firing of the firearm, said preventer activatable to an unblocked position to enable firing upon receiving power from said power supply;

d. an electromagnetic power signal generator and transmitter in said handgrip for transmitting a power signal;

e. a passive tag unit worn by an authorized user, said passive tag unit having a circuit that is activatable by said power signal when in close proximity to said handgrip to produce a preprogramed identification code signal; and

f. a reader circuit in said handgrip for receiving said identification code signal from said passive tag unit and for comparing said code to a preprogrammed code stored in said detector circuit and for connecting power to activate said preventer to said unblocked position to enable firing only upon reading an identification code that matches with said stored code.

8. A safety mechanism as in claim 7 wherein said at least one preventer comprises:

a. a first solenoid having a first actuation response speed normally interposed to prevent activation of said firing mechanism and actuatable to unblock said firing mechanism upon receiving power from said power supply; and

b. a second solenoid having a second actuation response speed equal to or faster than said first solenoid, said second solenoid normally interposed at an angle to said first solenoid to block said first solenoid against accidentally becoming unblocked due to inertia and actuatable to unblock said first solenoid to allow unblocking of said firing mechanism upon receiving power from said power supply.

9. A safety mechanism as in claim 7 further comprising;

a. a secondary power supply circuit connectable to said power signal generator; and

b. a backup circuit operatively coupled to said primary power supply, said secondary power supply and said power signal generator, said backup circuit constructed to compare an output voltage of said primary power supply to an output voltage of said secondary power supply and to connect said secondary power supply to said power signal generator when the output voltage of said primary power supply is below a predetermined minimum voltage.

10. A safety mechanism as in claim 9 where in said primary and said secondary power supplies comprise DC electrical energy storage batteries.

11. A safety mechanism as in claim 10 wherein said primary power supply comprises two batteries and said secondary power supply comprises one battery thereby providing significantly greater energy storage capability in said primary power supply than in said secondary power supply.

12. A safety mechanism as in claim 9 wherein said backup battery circuit further comprises an alarm circuit for producing a human detectable signal when said secondary power supply is connected to said power signal generator.

13. A safety mechanism as in claim 10 wherein said alarm circuit further comprises an audible sound generating device and timer to produce said human detectable alarm signal as a repeated sound generated at regular timed intervals.

14. A safety mechanism as in claim 13 wherein said power supply comprises a lithium manganese dioxide battery.

15. A safety mechanism as in claim 13 further comprising a power save circuit operatively coupled between said power supply circuit and said preventer to reduce the electrical power to said preventer from a first amount of power for initial activation of said preventer to a second amount of power lower than said first amount of power, said second amount of power sufficient to maintain said preventer in said unblocked position after a predetermined short period of time following initial activation of said preventer to an unblocked position, thereby reducing the total amount of power consumption during continued operation.

16. A safety mechanism as in claim 13 wherein said firearm comprises a shoulder mount firearm.

17. A safety mechanism-equipped firearm fireable only by an authoried user, comprising:

a. a firearm having a power supply disposed therein;

b. at least one preventer in said firearm normally preventing the firearm from being fired, wherein said preventer is actuable to enable the firearm to be fired;

c. a power signal transmitter in said firearm operatively connected to the power supply and configured to transmit a power signal;

d. a passive tag unit worn by an authorized user, said passive tag unit having a circuit that is activated by said power signal when proximate said transmitter to superimpose a preprogramed identification code on the power signal; and

e. a reader circuit in said fire configured to receive said identification code superimposed on the power signal, to compare said identification code to a preprogrammed authorization code stored in said reader circuit, and to actuate said preventer to enable the firearm to be fired when the identification code matches the authorization code.

18. A safety mechanism-equipped firearm fireable only by an authorized user, comprising:

a. a firearm having a power supply disposed therein;

b. a preventer mechanism disposed in the firearm wherein the preventer mechanism normally prevents the firearm from being fired and is actuable to allow the firearm to be fired;

c. a power signal transmitter disposed in said firearm and operatively connected to the power supply and configured to transmit a power signal;

d. a passive tag unit worn by an authorized user and comprising;

i. a power signal receiver configured to receive the power signal via the power signal transmitter and power signal receiver forming a transfomer-like coupling when proximate one another; and

ii. a passive tag circuit operatively coupled to the power signal receiver, wherein the passive tag circuit is powered by the power signal and is configured to modulate the power signal according to a preprogramed identification code stored in the passive tag circuit, with the modulated power signal being received back in the power signal transmitter via the transformer-like coupling; and

e. a reader circuit disposed in the firearm and operatively coupled to the power signal transmitter and to the preventer mechanism, wherein the reader circuit is configured to determine the identification code from the modulated power signal, to compare said identification code to a preprogrammed authorization code stored in the reader circuit; and

to actuate the preventer mechanism to allow the firearm to be fired when the identification code and the authorization code match.