GB2148137A

GB2148137A - Toy pneumatic projector

Info

Publication number: GB2148137A
Application number: GB8328207A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ki Kwan Chu
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1983-10-21
Filing date: 1983-10-21
Publication date: 1985-05-30
Also published as: GB8328207D0

Abstract

A pneumatic projector made from plastics material comprises a hand grip section extended by two arm sections having the form of a bow, and a firing section 16 having two chambers separated by a nozzle. The first chamber (26) having a pair of diametrically opposed ribs for preventing spin when suction cup "arrow" 24 is fired. The second chamber has a rod-shaped plunger provided with a flexible cup-shaped member for compressing air, and a spring (50) surrounding the rod. A knob (52) enables the plunger to be retracted in a rearward direction against the force of the spring (50), subsequent release then urging compressed air through the nozzle into portion 26 to project "arrow" 24. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Soft dart bow The present invention relates to a soft dart bow and soft darts propelled thereby, which bow is designed as a toy for children.

In a conventional bow and arrow, the arrow is propelled by energy stored in the bow, which energy is released when one lets go of the string. In a rifle, the bullet is propelled up the barrel of the gun by the explosive force of gunpowder in the shell which houses the bullet at one end.

The present soft dart bow is designed to look like a bow and arrow type implement but in fact operates more like a rifle in that it is compressed air which propels the dart.

According to the present invention there is provided a soft dart bow including a hand-grip portion; an aperture in the front thereof; a first chamber for holding a soft dart to be propelled, the dart being placed in the chamber through said aperture; a second chamber in which air can be compressed; nozzle means communicating between said chambers designed to produce a jet of air into the first chamber when air is compressed in the second chamber; and means for compressing air within said second chamber to propel a soft dart when placed in said first chamber.

The air compressing means may comprise a cupshaped member mounted on the end of a rod; and a compression spring for urging said rod forwards to compress air when released from a compressed position.

The darts are preferably made from a soft plastics material and carry a suction pad attheirfront end to tenable them to adhere to a target. Preferably means are provided to prevent the darts from spinning when ejected from the first chamber.

The present invention will now be described in greater detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1A is a front elevation view of one preferred form of soft dart bow for firing a soft dart made of plastics material; Figure 1 B is a side elevation view of the bow shown in Figure 1A; Figure 1C is a rear elevation view of the bow shown in Figure 1A; Figure 1D is a part sectionai side elevation view of the bow shown in Figure 1A; Figure 2 is a detailed cross-sectional view on a larger scale of the air chambers which house the soft dart and plunger for firing it; Figure 3 is a side elevation view of the plunger; and Figures 4A and 4B are side elevation and rear elevation views of the soft dart.

Referring to the drawings, the soft dart bow which is designed as a toy for children to play with is made in sections from extruded plastics material which is then glued together to form the bow.

The bow itself comprises a hand grip central section 10, two arm sections 12 and 14, a horizontal firing chamber 16 which extends rearwards from the hand grip section 10 and an elastic cord 18 looped over the hook-shaped ends 19 of the two arm sections in order to simulate the bow of a conventional bow and arrow.

As can be seen more clearly from Figure 1D the ends 20 of the two arm sections 12 and 14 are forkshaped and are fitted and glued within the hollowed out part of the central section 10. The horizontal firing chamber 16 carries a magazine 21 having barrel shaped apertures into which spare soft darts 24 can be stored.

The detail of the hand grip section 10 and the horizontal firing chamber 16 are shown in greater detail in Figures 2 and 3.

The hand grip section 10 and the magazine section 21 are integrally moulded from plastics material. The firing chamber 16 comprises a twosection hollow tube. Afront portion 26 is designed to hold a dart in the firing position. The dart 24 can be inserted into the tubular portion 26 through an aperture 28 provided in the front end of the hand grip portion 10. Inside the tubular portion 26 are provided a pair of diametrically opposed longitudinally extending ridges 30 for the purpose of ensuring that no spin is imparted to the dart 24 when propelled, and also for the purpose of ensuring that no other objects such as a pencil may be inserted into the tubular portion 26 which may be mistakenly fired thus ensuring additional safety.A pair of ribs 32 on the rear portion of the firing section 16 enable a projection 34 on the magazine portion 21 to be slotted therein and prevents longitudinal movement between the firing section 16 and the magazine section 21.

Separating the central section of the firing chamber 16 from the front tubular portion 26 is a rigid plate 31 provided with a centrally located nozzle 33 designed to emit a jet of air into the front portion 26 when air is compressed in the firing chamber 16. A rear section 36 of the firing chamber has a smaller bore than the rest of the chamber 16, a shoulder 38 acting as a stop for a plunger member 40 shown in Figure 3.

The plunger 40 is in the form of a longitudinal rod 42 having a cross-section in the shape of a cross. At the front end of the rod 42 there is provided a flexible cup-shaped member 44, the rim of the cup being designed to make air-tight contact with the inner walls of the central section of the firing chamber 16 in order to compress air therein. A stop member 46 is provided at the rear end of the rod 42, this member 46 projecting externally from a cross shaped aperture 48 provided in the rear section 36 of the firing chamber 16. A spring 50 surrounds the body of the rod 42, the rear end engaging with the stop 46, and the front end preventing further compression of the spring 50 by engaging against the shoulder 38 of the firing chamber 16.The stop 46 is provided with a knob 52 by which the whole plunger 40 can be retracted in a rearwards direction within the firing chamber 16 against the force of the spring 50 which is compressed. The cord 18 passes through an aperture 54 in the knob 52.

Referring to Figures 4A and 4B, the dart 24 is made of soft plastics material, and comprises a rod shaped member 56 having the cross-section of a cross. At its front end it carries a suction pad 58 and at its rear end it carries a member 60 against which the jet of air passing through the nozzle 33 impinges on. The shape of the member 60 is shown in Figure 48, V-shaped notches 62 being designed to engage with the ridges 30 in the front portion 26 of the firing chamber 16. The member 60 is thus shaped to almost exactly fit the internal cross-section of the front portion 26 so that a maximum transfer of energy is imparted to the dart from the jet of compressed air issuing from the nozzle 33.

As mentioned above, the parts are made from plastics material and the moulded sections glued together in air-tight manner to provide the soft dart bow which can be used as a toy for children to play with.

In operation a soft dart 24 is removed from the barrel-shaped aperture 22 in the magazine 21 and inserted into the front portion 26 of the firing chamber 16 through the aperture 28 in the hand grip section 10. It is pushed right home so that the rear member 60 abuts the plate 31, and only the suction pad 58 is left outside in the mouth of the aperture 28.

Next the one hand of the operator is placed on the lower part of the hand grip 10, the fingers gripping around the undulated portions 11. The other hand of the operator grips the knob 52 of the plunger 40, and pulls the plunger rearwards until the spring 50 is compressed to its maximum by abutting against the shoulder 38.

The knob 52 is then released and the plunger 40 shoots forwards in the firing chamber 16 due to the action of the spring 50, the cup-shaped member 44 compressing the air therein and causing a jet of air to issue through the nozzle 33. The jet of air impinges on the end 60 of the dart 24 and propels it out of the front portion 26 at high velocity. The ridges 30 ensure that the dart 24 is kept on a straight course and does not spin which might cause it to deviate from a straight line flight path. On striking a target having a suitable smooth surface the suction pad 58 adheres thereto. Another dart can then be removed from the magazine 21 and loaded into front portion 26 of the firing chamber 16.

It should be noted that the elastic cord 18 is purely ornamental and does not partake in urging the plunger 40 forwards in order to compress air.

The soft dart bow is cheap and easy to manufacture being made entirely out of plastics material except for the spring 50. The darts are very soft and light so that even when fired they do not cause any injury if a person happens by accident to be in their trajectory when fired from the bow. It is thus an idealing safe toy for children to play with.

Claims

1. soft dart bow including a hand-grip portion; an aperture in the front thereof; a first chamber for holding a soft dart to be propelled, the dart being placed in the chamber through said aperture; a second chamber in which air can be compressed; nozzle means communicating between said chambers designed to produce a jet of air into the first chamber when air is compressed in the second chamber; and means for compressing air within said second chamber to propel a soft dart when placed in said first chamber.

2. A soft dart bow according to claim 1, wherein the air compressing means comprises a cup-shaped member mounted on the end of a rod and a compression spring for urging said rod forwards to compress air when released from a compressed position.

3. A soft dart bow according to claim 1 or 2, wherein means are provided to prevent the darts from spinning when ejected from the first chamber.

4. A soft dart bow according to claim 3, wherein said spin preventing means comprises a pair of diametrically opposed longitudinally extending ridges located inside said first chamber.

5. A soft dart bow according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second chamber carries a magazine having a number of apertures for storing spare darts.

6. A soft dart bow according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said hand grip portion comprises a hollow central section and two arm sections, the ends of which carry respective forkshaped members for securing to the hollow central section.

7. A soft dart bow according to claim 2, wherein the rod carries a stop at its rear end, the stop being provided with a knob by which manual retraction of the plunger against the action of the compression spring can be effected.

8. The combination of a soft dart bow according to any one of the preceding claims, and at least one dart made of soft plastics material and carrying a suction pad at its front end.

9. The combination of a soft dart bow according to claim 4, and at least one dart made of soft plastics material and having the cross section of a cross.

10. The combination according to claim 9, wherein said dart carries a suction pad at its front end and a notched circular disc at its other end against which compressed air from the nozzle means can impinge.

11. A soft dart bow constructed substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.