Gun sight reticle having open sighting areas for bullet drop compensation

• US 7,171,775 B1
• Filed: 01/25/2006
• Issued: 02/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Asia Optical Company Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Nikon Incorporated (Nikon Corporation)
• Inventors: Lacorte, Jon B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Poon; Peter M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOLMAN, JOHN D
• Application Number:
  US11/338,722
• Time in Patent Office: 377 Days
• Field of Search: 421/22, 421/30, 421/26, 421/25, 421/11, 421/19, 421/20
• 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

Abstract

A gun sight reticle that has orthogonally intersecting center horizontal and center vertical straight hairlines is designed such that at least a portion of the vertical hairline located on a first side of the horizontal hairline is discontinuous such that discontinuities are disposed between straight segments of the vertical hairline. Sighting areas are disposed in at least some of the vertical hairline discontinuities, and the sighting areas are circumscribed by indicia that encloses the sighting area. In one example, the sighting areas are circular, and the indicia for each of the circumscribed sighting areas forms a circle.

Claims

1. A gun sight reticle comprising:

orthogonally intersecting center horizontal and center vertical straight hairlines;

at least a portion of the vertical hairline located on a first side of the horizontal hairline is discontinuous such that discontinuities are disposed between straight segments of the vertical hairline;

sighting areas disposed in the vertical hairline discontinuities, the sighting areas being circumscribed by indicia that encloses the sighting area;

each sighting area having a dimension of 1.4 inches of subtention at 100 yards;

a distance between centers of two adjacent sighting areas located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than a distance between centers of two adjacent sighting areas located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

2. The gun sight reticle of claim 1, wherein the sighting areas are circular, and the indicia for each of the circumscribed sighting areas forms a circle.

3. The gun sight reticle of claim 2, wherein at least some of the circumscribed sighting areas include horizontal windage-compensation lines extending from opposite sides of the circumscribed area.

4. The gun sight reticle of claim 3, wherein all of the circumscribed areas include the horizontal windage-compensation lines.

5. The gun sight reticle of claim 4, wherein all of the windage-compensation lines have equal lengths.

6. The gun sight reticle of claim 5, wherein the windage-compensation lines have spaced-apart rulings along their lengths.

7. The gun sight reticle of claim 6, wherein the spacing between adjacent rulings is the same for all of the windage-compensation lines.

8. The gun sight reticle of claim 6, wherein the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

9. The gun sight reticle of claim 4, wherein a length of the windage-compensation lines increases as the windage-compensation are located farther from the center horizontal hairline.

10. The gun sight reticle of claim 9, wherein the windage-compensation lines have spaced-apart rulings along their lengths.

11. The gun sight reticle of claim 10, wherein the spacing between adjacent rulings is the same for all of the windage-compensation lines.

12. The gun sight reticle of claim 10, wherein the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

13. The gun sight reticle of claim 1, wherein at least some of the circumscribed sighting areas include horizontal windage-compensation lines extending from opposite sides of the circumscribed area.

14. The gun sight reticle of claim 13, wherein all of the circumscribed areas include the horizontal windage-compensation lines.

15. The gun sight reticle of claim 14, wherein all of the windage-compensation lines have equal lengths.

16. The gun sight reticle of claim 15, wherein the windage-compensation lines have spaced-apart rulings along their lengths.

17. The gun sight reticle of claim 16, wherein the spacing between adjacent rulings is the same for all of the windage-compensation lines.

18. The gun sight reticle of claim 16, wherein the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

19. The gun sight reticle of claim 14, wherein a length of the windage-compensation lines increases as the windage-compensation are located farther from the center horizontal hairline.

20. The gun sight reticle of claim 19, wherein the windage-compensation lines have spaced-apart rulings along their lengths.

21. The gun sight reticle of claim 20, wherein the spacing between adjacent rulings is the same for all of the windage-compensation lines.

22. The gun sight reticle of claim 20, wherein the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

23. A telescopic gun sight comprising:

a housing;

an objective lens disposed near a first end of the housing;

an ocular lens disposed near a second end of the housing; and

the gun sight reticle of claim 1 located within the housing between the objective lens and the ocular lens.

24. A gun sight reticle comprising:

orthogonally intersecting center horizontal and center vertical straight hairlines;

at least a portion of the vertical hairline located on a first side of the horizontal hairline is discontinuous such that discontinuities are disposed between straight segments of the vertical hairline;

sighting areas disposed in the vertical hairline discontinuities, the sighting areas being circumscribed by indicia in the shape of a circle that encloses the sighting area;

each sighting area having an inner diameter of 1.4 inches of subtention at 100 yards and an outer diameter of 2 inches of subtention at 100 yards;

a distance between centers of two adjacent sighting areas located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than a distance between centers of two adjacent sighting areas located farthest from the center horizontal hairline;

each of the sighting areas does not contain any hairline or other indicia.

25. The gun sight reticle of claim 24, wherein each of the circumscribed sighting areas includes horizontal windage-compensation lines extending from opposite sides of the circumscribed area.

26. The gun sight reticle of claim 25, wherein the windage-compensation lines have spaced-apart rulings along their lengths.

27. The gun sight reticle of claim 26, wherein the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located closest to the center horizontal hairline is smaller than the spacing between two adjacent rulings on the windage-compensation line located farthest from the center horizontal hairline.

28. The gun sight reticle of claim 25, wherein a length of the windage-compensation lines increases as the windage-compensation are located farther from the center horizontal hairline.

29. A telescopic gun sight comprising:

a housing;

an objective lens disposed near a first end of the housing;

an ocular lens disposed near a second end of the housing; and

the gun sight reticle of claim 24 located within the housing between the objective lens and the ocular lens.