EP4194796B1 - Firearm with a closure catch device - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates in particular to a semi- and / or fully automatic rifle with a breech catch device, hereinafter usually referred to as the breech catch, according to the introductory part of claim 1 and the US 7,219,462 B2 .

Bolt catches are generally moved by engagement with the feeder of an ammunition magazine from a rest position in which the breech is released to a working position in which the breech catch locks the breech in the open position in order to speed up and facilitate magazine changes.

The shutter catch in the mentioned US 7,219,462 B2 is disclosed, interacts with the magazine holder. The latter can be moved towards release on both sides. The slide catcher, which is activated by the feeder of the magazine after the last cartridge has been fired against the force of a spring and catches the slide in the rearmost or near the rearmost position, can also be released from both the left and the right after the user has a new, filled magazine inserted. The slide catch device itself consists of a pin arranged in the middle plane of the weapon and running approximately vertically when the weapon is in a normal, essentially horizontal position. Storage depends on the magazine catch device. All that is said about the spring that pushes this shutter safety device into the open position is that it can be provided. Assembly and disassembly are not easy to accomplish due to the connection with the magazine holder.

In principle, bolt safety devices have been around for a long time and in a wide variety of designs, also depending on the structure and nature of the weapon and the magazine used and thus its feeder. The feeder is the part of the magazine that moves upwards relative to the magazine body under the force of a spring and thus feeds the cartridges inserted into the magazine to the weapon. This feeder has an actuator at an appropriate location, be it a projection, an edge, or something similar, which, when the last cartridge has been inserted into the weapon, is pushed through a projection on the The upper edge of the magazine is prevented from moving further upwards, the slide catching device presses upwards against the force of its spring, and thus into the movement path of the slide, thus the active position, so that the slide is fixed in the open position.

The requirements placed on such a shutter catch are robustness and reliability, it should consist of as few parts as possible and are easy to put together, it should take up little space and its components should also be robust and easy to handle, and it should be operable from both sides be.

If you examine the described slide safety device in more detail in this regard, you will notice that it can be operated from both sides, but also that it is problematic in terms of storage in the weapon and in assembly and disassembly.

Other shutter catch devices are, for example, from the US 8,015,742 B2 (according to the EP 2 045 562 B1 ).

From the EP 985 896 B1 A slide catch device is known which has a biasing spring that is extended into the trigger guard and is therefore neither simple in its construction nor easy to assemble and disassemble.

From the EP 1 692 451 B1 An even more complex device, called a locking device, is known in which various elements can be rotated about axes of rotation, which makes the creation of bearings necessary, making the device even more complex.

The same applies to a slide safety device as shown in the PL 224 544 B1 is known, which also uses a lever mounted in a special bearing. Such levers are used in numerous other variants.

The content of the cited publications: US 7,219,462 B2 , US 8,015,742 B2 , EP 985 896 B1 , EP 1 692 451 B1 and PL 224 544 B1 and the content of those mentioned below WO2021/121708 A1 , WO2021/121710 A1 and WO2021/121709 A1 is incorporated by reference into the content of the present description and application for those jurisdictions in which this is possible.

There is therefore a need for a shutter catching device that does not have the disadvantages mentioned and that is particularly simple in its structure, consists of few components, can be easily and reliably assembled or dismantled and is robust and resistant. In particular, it should also be possible to be able to install or remove them without tools, at least in one embodiment.

According to the invention, these goals are achieved by a closure catch device, as defined in the characterizing part of claim 1.

In general terms, when the rifle is held horizontally, the bolt stop can be mounted essentially vertically between the magazine well and the trigger device. It should be noted at this point that in many rifles, the trigger device is designed first by the shooter and only then the magazine well, with the present invention being explained using such an example.

In other words: The slide stop performs a pure up-and-down movement in the weapon's housing, if present, in its lower housing (also called lower), from which it is also guided. It preferably only consists of three parts.

Using the position in the installed state and with the weapon held normally with a vertical weapon center plane, also called the plane of symmetry, and a horizontal barrel core axis, the following can be carried out: The practical implementation of this concept provides, as a first part, a foot with an elongated leg, preferably made of plastic. Although in principle a one-sided variant is also conceivable, the following description extends to a preferred one Embodiment variant, according to which this first part is designed symmetrically to a plane of symmetry in order to enable operation from both sides. When installed and with the weapon held normally, the plane of symmetry coincides with that of the weapon or the central plane of the weapon or is at least parallel to it. The leg then runs vertically and is inserted into the weapon from below. At the lower end, the foot protrudes over the leg and the edge of the shaft on both sides and forms an end stop when inserted into the weapon housing. The leg has a groove-like joint socket formed in its rear wall in its middle height region, normal to the plane of symmetry and over at least part of its entire width. From the joint socket up to the upper end, the leg has a vertical longitudinal slot on its rear side, which is groove-shaped.

On its front side, which when installed faces the magazine or the magazine shaft, the leg has a vertically extending groove extending from the upper edge, the lower end of which ends inside the leg. Preferably, the groove, which can also be a T-shaped undercut or similarly designed recess, ends at a distance from the lower edge of the foot, but below the joint socket.

As a second part of the device, a helical spring is inserted into this channel, which preferably does not protrude beyond the side cheeks of the channel. In principle, other types of springs, such as leg springs, leaf springs or the like, can also be provided to bias the shutter catch downwards.

In a preferred embodiment it is provided that a further groove-like holding socket, hereinafter referred to as a catch, is provided parallel to the joint socket and above it.

The third part of the device according to the invention, preferably made of metal, called a slide, has a substantially hook-shaped shape, forming the legs and head. The lower end of the leg has bearing pins that project normally to the plane of symmetry, which are preferably flattened on their circumference and in one can be inserted into the groove-like joint socket of the leg in the appropriate angular position. When the slide is then pivoted into the position of use in which removal from the joint socket is not possible, the leg runs essentially parallel to the longitudinal extent of the leg and lies between the two cheeks of the longitudinal slot. The head of the slider protrudes beyond the upper face of the leg. The head forms the second part of the "hook", it has a projection that runs approximately normal to the leg, hereinafter referred to as the catching nose, which extends approximately parallel to the barrel axis to the front and towards the magazine, over the front wall of the leg and into the magazine shaft protrudes in order to be able to interact with the feeder of the magazine. The head can also be referred to as a breech catch section, as the longitudinal displacement of the breech catch causes it to move from the rest position to the working position and thus into the movement path of the breech of the handgun, whereby the breech is caught.

In a preferred embodiment, the leg between the bearing bolts and the head also has retaining bolts designed similarly to the bearing bolts, which, when the slide is rotated about the axis of rotation of the joint socket, enter it with elastic deformation of the retaining socket and are held elastically by it, thereby reducing the risk unwanted twisting and separation is also reduced outside of the guide in the weapon.

With knowledge of the following description, the present invention can also be used for rifles with minor adjustments in which, starting from the shooter, a magazine well is provided first and only then, in the direction of the barrel, is the handle and/or the trigger device provided, as is the case with "Bullpup" rifles. rifles is the case. For such rifles, too, the vertical bolt stop can interact with a bolt, the bolt carrier or appropriately designed translation elements in order to be deflected upwards into the working position by the empty magazine and only brought back into the rest position when the shooter activates it.

• die Figs. 1a, 1b ein Waffengehäuse mit den drei Bestandteilen der erfindungsgemäßen Verschlussfangvorrichtung in perspektivischer Explosionsdarstellung und ein Detail,
• die Fig. 2 einen Schnitt entlang der Waffenmittelebene und eine Draufsicht,
• die Fig. 3 eine Ansicht ähnlich der Fig. 2 mit teilweise verschwenktem Schieber,
• die Fig. 4 eine Ansicht ähnlich der Fig. 2 mit voll montiertem Schieber,
• die Fig. 5a und 5b verschiedene Ansichten von Fuß und Schieber und
• die Figs. 6a, 6b und 7a, 7b Ansichten von Varianten, ähnlich der Figs. 5a, 5b.

The invention is described below with reference to the drawing and an exemplary embodiment. This shows or shows

• the Figs. 1a, 1b a weapon housing with the three components of the slide safety device according to the invention in a perspective exploded view and a detail,
• the Fig. 2 a section along the weapon center plane and a top view,
• the Fig. 3 a view similar to that Fig. 2 with partially pivoted slide,
• the Fig. 4 a view similar to that Fig. 2 with fully assembled slider,
• the 5a and 5b different views of foot and slider and
• the Figs. 6a, 6b and 7a, 7b Views of variants, similar to this Figs. 5a, 5b .

In Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a weapon housing 1 (reference will only be made to a specially provided lower if it is important for the invention). The handle 5 can be part of the weapon housing 1 or the lower, as shown, or, depending on the design of the weapon, it can also be a separate component. No blade is shown in the trigger guard 6, since this is part of a trigger mechanism (not shown), which is preferably accommodated in a trigger housing 23 shown above the weapon housing 1 and, as can be seen from the exemplary embodiment shown, is elastically inserted into holding recesses 7 ( Fig. 2 ) is stored. Examples of the design of such a trigger housing, as well as examples of a trigger mechanism, are from the WO2021121708A1 , WO2021121710A1 and the WO2021121709A1 known.

The leg 9 of the foot 2, which can also be referred to as the “base”, is inserted from below into a shaft 8 that serves as a guide, as indicated by the movement arrow. The width of the lower end of the foot with handles 10, which abut parts of the weapon or its housing, creates a stop over which the foot 2 cannot be pushed into the shaft 8. The handles 10 attached to the lower edge of the foot 2 on the left and right protrude beyond the housing 1 so that they can be grasped and used even after installation.

When installed, the spring 4 lies in the channel 11 ( Fig. 5 ) and is prevented from falling out by the lower end of the channel. By installing it together with the foot or base 2 facing upwards, it abuts against an abutment 12 ( Fig. 2 ), which is at the Weapon or its housing 1 is provided. This largely eliminates the risk of losing. Towards the end of inserting the foot 2, the spring 4 is compressed and thus prestressed and subsequently presses the foot 2 downwards. The cross-sectional shape of the channel 11 can be U-shaped or slightly undercut, thereby forming a channel that is partially open to the front. In the latter case, the spring 4 can only be inserted into the channel 11 from above, which reduces the risk of being lost or bent or even damaged during insertion. When forming an undercut cross section of the channel 11, it is advantageous that the spring 4 is a helical spring whose outer diameter is larger than the constriction of the undercut, which is designed towards the front only to cooperate with the abutment 12.

The slider 3 is in Fig. 1 shown above the housing 1, it can only be inserted and mounted from there, which is based on the 3a and 3b is explained, whereby Fig. 3a a cut III - III 'the Fig. 3b is: When the spring 4 is compressed by the user during assembly (this ultimately limits the upward movement of the base 2 or the leg 9), the channel-like joint socket 13 comes into an area of the shaft 8 in the housing 1 of the weapon, where this no longer has a back wall on the side of the joint socket 13, the joint socket 13 is exposed. In this (dis)assembly position, the third part of the shutter catch, the slide 3, can be in a pivoted position, as in Fig. 3a shown, inserted into the housing from above and pushed forward in the direction of the barrel axis 17 into the joint socket 13.

After the bearing pins 15 have been inserted into the joint socket 13, the slide 3 can be pivoted into the working position without any problems.

In a preferred embodiment, the back of the slide 3 has a conical shape in the lower region in order to facilitate insertion into the shaft 8 after the bearing pins 15 have been inserted into the joint socket 13. The slide 3 is thus pulled into the rest position by the force of the spring 4.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the bearing pins 15 have a flattening 14, which fits particularly well Figures 5a , 6a, and 7a is visible. This flattening of the circular cross section of the bearing pin 14, also often in combination with the previously described downwardly tapering, conical shape of the lower section of the slide 3 in the area of the bearing pins 15, can facilitate the insertion of the bearing pins 15 into the joint socket 13, as shown in Review with Fig. 3 can be easily recognized.

The Fig. 2a represents a section II-II ' through the weapon center plane 18, which corresponds at least cum sali granis to the plane of symmetry of the weapon and in Fig. 2b When the user releases the foot 2, the spring 4 pushes it downwards a little until the catch 16 of the slide 3 with its underside acts as a contact surface 21 in Figures 5a , 6a and 7a clearly visible, abuts against the edge of the shaft 8 or another part of the housing 1 intended for this purpose. Alternatively, a separate support element can also be inserted or mounted on the rear of the housing 1 in order to enable vertical guidance and support of the assembled shutter catch to the rear. Since at this altitude the joint socket 13 is slightly lower than the recess on the rear wall of the shaft 8, a certain degree of loss protection is already provided with this variant.

There are several options for keeping the slider 3 in the correct angular position relative to the foot 2:
A very simple option for today's modular weapons, which is shown in the drawing, is that the assembly or disassembly of the entire slide safety device can only take place if there is a trigger housing 23, in which the entire trigger device is located, and in the weapon behind the magazine and above the trigger guard 6 in the housing 1, was first removed from the housing 1 (or the lower). The trigger housing can be held in the housing 1 by fastening means, such as screws, or as in particular in the WO2021/121709 A1 described, are held elastically in the lower and are supported or clamped by lateral extensions of the trigger housing in the recesses 7. After the slide safety device has been inserted, As described above, by inserting the trigger housing 23, or alternatively another separate support element, the shaft 8, in which the shutter catch device is located, is also closed at its rear end and the slide 3 cannot be tilted or pivoted relative to the foot 2 more take place. This connection can be clearly seen from the Fig.2a can be removed, in which the supporting effect of the trigger housing 23 with its front to form a kind of rear wall for the shaft 8 can be clearly seen. The previously described design of the head of the slide 3 prevents the entire slide safety device from falling downwards (outwards), be it under the effect of gravity or the spring force of the spring 4.

Another option that can also be combined with the option mentioned and as a design in the drawings, in particular Figures 7b is also shown, is that in the leg 9 above the channel-like joint socket 13 at least one further, also transversely extending receptacle, the so-called catch 19, is provided, which interacts with locking bolts 20 of the slide 3 in such a way that they deform the catch through elastic deformation 19 which preferably holds circular locking bolts 19. The cross section of the catch 19 can therefore be designed to be slightly undercut.

In a preferred embodiment, the diameter of the catch 19 is smaller than the diameter of the bearing bolts 15 in order to reliably avoid an offset and thus accidentally incorrect insertion of the slide 3 into the foot 2.

This further development also makes it possible for the shaft 8 for the lock catch device to be open to the rear above the position of the joint socket 13, and yet the storage and guidance of the lock catch device in the area between the joint socket 13 and the handle 10 is completely sufficient.

Fig. 4a shows the situation in time to the situation during assembly Fig. 3 then in a section IV-IV ' of Fig. 4b parallel to the weapon center plane: The slide 3 is in its working position with respect to the foot 2, the spring 4, which is not visible (note the section plane in Fig. 4b ), presses the entire device downwards , the contact surface 21 of the slide 3 lies on the edge of the Shaft 8, or on top of the abutment 12, of the housing 1, which prevents any further downward movement. The joint socket 13 lies in an area of the shaft 8 in which its rear wall (real) exists, so that tilting between the foot 2 and the slide 3 is reliably avoided. The trigger housing 23 (not shown in this figure) can now be used, as can be seen from the overview Fig.1 and Fig.2 becomes clear.

The Fig. 5a shows the slider 3 in perspective, from the side and from the front. The position of the bearing bolts 15, as well as the locking bolts 20 provided here in a preferred embodiment, including the flat 14 and the catching nose 16, can be clearly seen. From the middle representation of the Fig. 5a The bevel in the lower part of the slide is also clearly visible. This bevel makes it easier to insert it into the shaft 8 after the in Fig. 3a situation presented. The underside of the catching nose 16 forms a system 21 which rests on the holding projection 12 of the housing 1 in the idle state ( Fig. 2 ). This contact surface 21 or the catching nose 16 comes into contact with the feeder of the magazine (not shown) when the last cartridge of the magazine is inserted into the chamber and is pushed upwards by the magazine spring, which is stronger than the spring 4 .

Through this movement, easy to imagine in conjunction with Fig. 4 , the shutter catching section 22 on the back of the catching nose 16 or the head of the slide 3 enters the movement path of the shutter (not shown) or a holding surface of a shutter carrier. The sloping design of the top of the catch lug 16 allows the breech, if it is not already behind the breech catch section 22, to press the entire device downwards against the force of the magazine spring and to eject the last case. During the subsequent forward movement it gets caught on the shutter catch section 22.

The Fig. 5b similarly represents the foot 2, the handle(s) 10, the joint socket 13, the catch 19 and the groove 11 for the spring 4 can be clearly seen. The shape and dimensions of the top of the handle 10 are preferably adapted to the shape and dimensions of the housing 1 in order to be able to cooperate with as little gap as possible, which prevents the penetration of foreign bodies or at least more difficult. The outside of the handle 10 is characterized by the need to be able to operate it easily and without special thought, as shown here Fig. 1 as an example in her supporting character the adaptation to the trigger guard.

The Figs. 6a, 6b also show a variant without a detent 19 or without additional detent bolts 20; a more detailed explanation does not appear necessary in the light of the above statements.

The Figs. 7a, 7b show a further, preferred variant with catches 19 or locking bolts 20 offset from one another in the height position on the leg 9. Such a design can be advantageous for mechanical reasons with regard to the strength of the foot 2 made of plastic. In addition, it can be achieved in this way that the assembly of the locking catch device, i.e. when assembling the slide 3 in the foot 2 or leg 9, can only take place when the bearing bolts 15 are in the correct position in the joint sockets 13 provided for this purpose.

Analogous to this, although not shown separately, the optional catches 19 and their corresponding locking bolts 20 can have a smaller diameter, or dimension in the longitudinal direction of the leg 9, than the pairing of bearing bolts 15 and joint socket 13. This can also be avoided contribute to incorrect assembly.

In the description and claims, the terms "front", "rear", "top", "bottom" and so on are used in the common form and with reference to the article in its usual position of use. This means that in a rifle the muzzle of the barrel is "front", the breech or slide is moved "back" by the explosion gases, etc.

It should also be pointed out that in the description and the claims, statements such as "lower area" of a rifle or device or, more generally, an object, mean the lower half and in particular the lower quarter of the total height, "lowest area" means that lowest quarter and especially an even smaller part; while "middle area" means the middle third of the Total height (width - length) means. The same applies mutatis mutandis to the “front” and “back” areas. All of this information has its common meaning, applied to the intended position of the object under consideration.

In the description and claims, "substantially" means a deviation of up to 10% of the specified value, if physically possible, both downwards and upwards, otherwise only in the sensible direction, for degrees (angle and temperature) This means ± 10°.

In terms such as: "a solvent", the word "a" is not to be viewed as a numeral, but rather as an indefinite article or as a pronoun, unless the context indicates otherwise.

The term: "combination" or "combinations" stands, unless otherwise stated, for all types of combinations, starting from two of the components in question up to a large number or all of such components; the term: "containing" also stands for "existing out of".

Reference symbol list with common English translations:

1 (Weapon) housing (firearm receiver) 12 abutment 2 foot (foot, base) 13 socket 3 slider 14 flattening 4 spring 15 Bearing bolt 5 grip 16 catch nose (protrusion) 6 trigger guard 17 barrel axis 7 recesses 18 Firearm center plane 8th shaft 19 rest (stop) 9 leg (leg, post) 20 Stop bolt 10 handle/s 21 Rest surface 11 groove 22 Bolt catch portion 23 trigger housing

Claims (8)

1. Gun, optionally a lower, comprising a receiver (1) having a firearm center plane (18), comprising:

   - a magazine well for a magazine,

   - a trigger device which is provided along the firearm center plane (18) in front of or behind the magazine well in the receiver and can preferably be removed upward from the receiver (1) of the firearm/lower, and

   - a duct (8) which, when the gun is held horizontally, is designed to extend substantially vertically between the magazine well and the trigger device, and

   - a bolt catch device which is provided in the duct (8) and has a bolt catch portion (22) for interacting with a bolt or bolt carrier of the gun in a working position, in which working position the bolt catch device engages in the movement path of the bolt, whereby

   - the bolt catch device comprises a foot (2), a slider (3), and a spring (4), in that

   - the foot (2) has a leg (9) and at least one handle (10) which protrudes laterally beyond the contour of the duct (8), in that

   - the foot (2), on the leg (9) thereof and on the side facing the magazine well, has a groove (11) for receiving the spring (4) and,

   - on the side facing the trigger device, has a socket (13) having an axis that extends normal to the firearm center plane (18); in that

   - the slider (3) has, on the lower portion thereof when assembled, bearing bolts (15) which are designed to be inserted into and pivoted in the socket (13), in that

   - the slider (3) has, at the upper end thereof, a protrusion (16) which protrudes in the direction of the magazine well beyond the contour of the duct (8), and in that

   - the receiver (1) has an abutment (12) that protrudes into the groove (11) in order to prestress the spring (4) of the bolt catch into the rest position.
2. Gun, optionally a lower, according to claim 1, characterized in that the slider (3) has a downwardly tapering, conical shape on its rear side.
3. Gun, optionally a lower, according to either claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that the bearing bolts (15) of the slider (3) have a flattening of the circular cross-section.
4. Gun, optionally a lower, according to any of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that

   - the foot (2) has, on the leg (9) thereof, at least one stop (19) in the form of an undercut recess which extends normal to the firearm center plane (18), and in that

   - the slider has at least one stop bolt (20) of complementary shape which comes into clamping engagement by means of elastic deformation when the bearing bolts (15) pivot in the socket (13).
5. Gun, optionally a lower, according to claim 4, characterized in that the stop(s) (19) and stop bolt(s) (20) have a larger diameter than the sockets (13) and bearing bolts (15).
6. Gun, optionally a lower, according to either claim 4 or claim 5, characterized in that two stops (19) - stop bolts (20) are provided which have a different distance from the sockets (13) - bearing bolts (15).
7. Gun, optionally a lower, according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cross-section of the groove (11) is undercut and in that the spring (4) is a helical spring of which the outer diameter is larger than the narrow point of the undercut.
8. Gun, optionally a lower, according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the trigger device is housed in a trigger housing (23) and in that, in the assembled state, the trigger housing (23) forms at least part of the rear wall of the duct (8).

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