US20140190063A1

US20140190063A1 - Mount Light for Firearm

Info

Publication number: US20140190063A1
Application number: US13/737,906
Authority: US
Inventors: Ping Sun LAU
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2013-01-09
Filing date: 2013-01-09
Publication date: 2014-07-10

Abstract

A mount light for a firearm includes a lighting apparatus and a rail mounting arrangement, which includes a plurality of side panels, an actuation switch, a locking member and a resilient element. The side panels are extended from the mounting side of the lighting apparatus to form a receiving channel between the side panels. The locking member is movably provided in the receiving channel to move between a mounting position and a releasing position. The resilient element is mounted in the receiving channel to normally urge the locking member to retain at the mounting position, wherein in the mounting position, the locking member is urged by the resilient element to engage with a locking slot of a rail of the firearm so as to securely retain the lighting apparatus on the lighting apparatus, wherein in the releasing position, the locking member is moved to disengage with the locking slot.

Description

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a firearm accessory, and more particularly to a mount light comprising a rail mounting arrangement which is capable of securely and conveniently mounting a lighting apparatus on a rail of a firearm.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ARTS

A conventional type of firearm accessory, such as a lighting accessory, usually comprises an illuminating device and an accessory mount mounting between the illuminating device and the firearm. The firearm is usually equipped with a mounting rail provided on a firearm body, while the accessory mount is slidably mounted onto the mounting rail.
The accessory mount usually comprises a mount body for receiving the illuminating device, a plurality of elongated sidewalls extended from the mount body for slidably mounting with the mounting rail, and a clamping screw operatively provided onto one of the sidewalls, wherein the clamping screw is arranged to penetrate the corresponding sidewall and bias against the mounting rail for securing the accessory mount onto the mounting rail of the firearm.
One of the major disadvantages of this type of firearm accessory is that a user has to screw the clamping screw whenever he or she wishes to mount the firearm accessory onto the firearm. Since the firearm is subject to great impact and vibrations when it is fired, if the clamping screw is loosely tightened against the mounting rail, the firearm accessory may loosen or fall off from the firearm.
Another type of firearm accessory does not involve the use of any clamping screw. As shown in FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 7,523,583 to Cheng, the firearm accessory comprises a main body, a first sidewall, a second sidewall extended from two sides of the main body respectively. The main body includes a first locating hole provided adjacent the first side wall and a second locating hole provided adjacent the second side wall. The firearm accessory further comprises a first locating bar pivotably coupled to the first locating hole by a first locating pin that extends parallel to the longitudinal axis of the barrel in which the first locating bar has a first baffle and a first press plate, and a second locating bar pivotably coupled into the second locating hole by a second locating pin that extends parallel to the longitudinal axis of the barrel, in which the second locating bar has a second baffle and a second press plate.
According to Cheng, a first elastic element is provided between the first press plate and the main body to pivot the first press plate with respect to the main body, and in turn drive the first baffle to protrude above the upper surface of the main body to be locked into the locating groove. On the other hand, a second elastic element is provided between the second press plate and the main body to pivot the second press plate with respect to the main body, and in turn drive the second baffle to protrude above the upper surface of the main body to be locked into the locating groove.
The major disadvantage in relation to this second type of firearm accessory is that the locking of the main body disclosed in Cheng relies on the pivotal movement of the first baffle and the second baffle. These are pivotally and individually driven to protrude above the upper surface of the main body by the first elastic element and the second elastic element. Thus, in order to lock the main body onto the firearm, the user has to individually operate the first and the second elastic element so as to drive the first baffle and the second baffle to position in the locating groove.
Moreover, conventional firearm accessories usually suffer from one more disadvantage in that the switch of the illuminating device is designed to be usually rotatable so that when the user wishes to switch on or off the illuminating device, the user has to manually rotate the switch in a predetermined direction. The problem with this is that the switches of conventional firearm accessories are usually too small and it is very inconvenient for the users to rotate, especially when one is holding the firearm.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a mount light comprising a rail mounting arrangement which is capable of securely and conveniently mounting a lighting apparatus or other firearm accessories on a rail of a firearm.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a mount light comprising a rail mounting arrangement which does not involve the use of any clamping screw for securing the lighting apparatus onto the rail of the firearm. Thus, when the mount light of the present invention is subject to great impact or vibrations, it is prevented from detaching from the firearm.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a mount light comprising a lighting apparatus, wherein a user is able to switch on or off the lighting apparatus by driving a switching member to move linearly with respect to the lighting apparatus. In other words, the lighting apparatus does not rely on any rotatable switch for operation.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a mount light comprising a rail mounting arrangement, wherein a user is able to easily and conveniently attach or detach the lighting apparatus onto or from the firearm in a single-handed manner (i.e. by using one hand only).
Accordingly, in order to accomplish the aforementioned objects, the present invention provides a mount light for a firearm comprising a rail having at least one locking slot, comprising:
a lighting apparatus which has a mounting side and is arranged to generate illumination toward a predetermined direction; and
a rail mounting arrangement, which comprises:
a plurality of side panels extended from the mounting side of the lighting apparatus to form a receiving channel between the side panels, wherein a width of the receiving channel is fitted to a width of the rail;
an actuation switch operatively provided on at least one of the side panels;
a locking member movably provided in the receiving channel to move between a mounting position and a releasing position; and
a resilient element mounted in the receiving channel to normally urge the locking member to retain at the mounting position, wherein in the mounting position, the locking member is urged by the resilient element to engage with the locking slot of the rail of the firearm so as to securely retain the lighting apparatus on the mounting side of the lighting apparatus, wherein in the releasing position, the locking member is moved so that the locking member disengages with the locking slot so as to allow the lighting apparatus to be slidably detached from the rail of the firearm.
The above mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly described and shown in the following detailed description, drawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mount light according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is another perspective view of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is another exploded perspective view of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are sectional side views of the mount light according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 6, FIG. 7A to FIG. 7B of the drawings, a mount light according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. The mount light is for a firearm, such as a short gun, which comprises a rail 81 having at least one locking slot 82 formed thereon. The mount light comprises a lighting apparatus 10 and a rail mounting arrangement 20.
The lighting apparatus 10 has a mounting side 11 and is arranged to generate illumination toward a predetermined direction, such as at a front direction of the firearm. On the other hand, the rail mounting arrangement 20 comprises a plurality of side panels 21, an actuation switch 22, a locking member 23, and a resilient element 24.
The plurality of side panels 21 is extended from the mounting side 11 of the lighting apparatus 10 to form a receiving channel 211 between the side panels 21, wherein a width of the receiving channel 211 is fitted to a width of the rail 81. On the other hand, the actuation switch 22 is operatively provided on at least one of the side panels 21.
The locking member 23 is movably provided in the receiving channel 211 to move between a mounting position and a releasing position. The resilient element 24 is mounted in the receiving channel 211 to normally urge the locking member 23 to retain at the mounting position, wherein in the mounting position, the locking member 23 is urged by the resilient element 24 to engage with the locking slot 82 of the rail 81 of the firearm so as to securely retain the lighting apparatus 10 on the mounting side 11 of the lighting apparatus 10, wherein in the releasing position, the locking member 23 is moved so that the locking member 23 disengages with the locking slot 82 so as to allow the lighting apparatus 10 to be slidably detached from the rail 81 of the firearm.
According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the lighting apparatus 10 is for mounting on the firearm such as a short gun having a pre-existing rail 81. The lighting apparatus 10 further comprises a housing 12 defining a battery compartment 121 for receiving a replaceable battery 122 therein. Moreover, the lighting apparatus 10 further comprises an illumination device 13 mounted on a front end portion 123 of the housing 12 for providing illumination. The illumination device 13 comprises an annular member 131 movably mounted on and extended from the front end portion of the housing 12, a cone-shaped reflector 132 supported by the annular member 131, and an illuminating module 133 having a LED supported by the annular member 131 for providing illumination towards a front side of the lighting apparatus 10.
Moreover, the illumination device 13 is threadedly connected to the housing 12 in such a manner that when the illumination device 13 is threadedly detached from the housing 12, the battery compartment 121 is exposed to an exterior of the housing 12 so that a user is able to conveniently replace the replaceable battery 122 disposed in the battery compartment 121.
The side panels 21 are preferably integrally extended from two sides of the housing 12 at the mounting side 11 thereof respectively, wherein the receiving channel 211 is formed at a space between two inner surfaces of the side panels 21. Note that the mount light of the present invention is for being mounted onto a rail 81 of the firearm. The rail may be a conventional picatinny rail. As shown in FIG. 7A to FIG. 7B of the drawings, as an example, the rail 81 has a plurality of ridges 811 spacedly supported to form a plurality of locking slots 82 between each two ridges 811.
Each of the side panels 21 has a through switching slot 212 formed thereon, wherein the actuation switch 22 is mounted to the switching slots 212 for allowing a user to switch the locking member 23 between the mounting position and the releasing position as guided by the switching slots 212 and through operating the actuation switch 22.
Moreover, each of the side panels 21 further has a sliding groove 213 indently formed on an inner side of the corresponding side panel 21, wherein the rail 81 has a side protrusion 812 arranged to slidably engage with the corresponding sliding groove 213. It is important to mention that a distance between the two sliding grooves 213 is corresponding to a distance between the two side protrusion 812 of the rail 81 so that the rail 81 can be perfectly fitted into the receiving channel 211 and the lighting apparatus 10 can slide along the rail 80 through sliding of the side panels 21 with respect to the rail 81.
In order to form the sliding grooves 213 mentioned above, as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, each of the side panels 21 further has an engagement protrusion 214 longitudinally extended along an inner side of the corresponding side panel 21 so as to form the corresponding sliding groove 213 defined by a side surface of the engagement protrusion 214 and an inner side surface of the side panel 21. The sliding groove 213 is arranged to slidably engage with the side protrusion 812 of the rail 81 so that the lighting apparatus 10 can be slidably mounted onto the firearm.
The actuation switch 22 comprises a plurality of switching knobs 221 and a plurality of switching pins 222 inwardly extended from inner sides of the switching knobs 221 and penetrates the switching slots 212 respectively to connect to the locking member 23. Thus, each of the switching pins 222 extends between the corresponding switching knob 221 and the corresponding side of the locking member 23, and is arranged to move within the switching slot 212 for pivotally driving the locking member 23 to move between the mounting position and the releasing position.
As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 2 of the drawings, each of the switching knobs 221 has a first knob section 2211 and a second knob section 2212 wherein the first knob section 2211 has a uniform thickness while a thickness of the second knob section 2212 is gradually decreasing from near the first knob section 2211 to an outer side edge of the second knob section 2212. In addition, the switching knob 221 has a curved and concave outer surface 2213 formed on the second knob section 2212 for accommodating a finger of the user so that the user is able to push the locking member 23 to move from the mounting position to the releasing position by putting his or her fingers onto the curved outer surfaces 2213 of the switching knobs 221. When the locking member 23 is pushed to the releasing position, the lighting apparatus 10 can be slidably detached from the rail 81 or attached thereto.
The locking member 23 has a front portion 231 and two connecting portions 232 rearwardly extended from the front portion 231, wherein the two connecting portions 232 are pivotally mounted to the side panels 21 respectively for moving between the mounting position and the releasing position. The locking member 23 further has a locking latch 233 transversely formed on the front portion 231, wherein the locking latch 233 is shaped and sized for receiving into the locking slot 82 of the rail 81. Thus, when the locking member 23 is in the mounting position, the locking member 23 is pivotally urged by the resilient element 24 so that the locking latch 233 is pivotally moved to receive into the locking slot 82 for locking a frontward or rearward movement of the lighting apparatus 10. Note that a vertical movement of the lighting apparatus 10 is also locked and restrained by the sliding engagement between the sliding grooves 213 and the side protrusion 812 of the rail 81.
Moreover, the switching pins 222 are extended from the switching knobs 221 to connect to two sides of the front portion 231 of the locking member 23 so that when the switching knobs 221 is moved, the front portion 231 of the locking member 23 is also moved for disengaging the locking latch 233 from the locking slot 82.
According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the resilient element 24 is preferably a coil spring mounted in the receiving channel 211 at a space between the two connecting portions 232 of the locking member 23 for normally urging the locking member 23 in the mounting position (i.e. retaining the locking latch 233 in the locking slot 82).
The lighting apparatus 10 further comprises a lighting switch 14 operatively mounted on the housing 12 for selectively switching the illumination device 13. More specifically, the lighting switch 14 is slidably mounted on the housing 12 such that the user is able to switch on or off the illumination device 13 by sliding the lighting switch 14 in a transverse direction of the housing 12. This resolves the conventional problem as mentioned above when a user tries to rotate a switch of conventional lighting apparatus. In the present invention, the user does not need to rotate any switch for turning on or off the illumination device 13. Rather, the user merely needs to slide (i.e. push) the lighting switch 14 along a transverse direction of the housing 12 for turning on or off the illumination device 13.
Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 of the drawings, the lighting switch 14 has an elongated main portion 141 and a plurality of pushing portions 142 transversely and integrally extended from two ends of the elongated main portion 141 respectively, wherein the elongated main portion 141 is connected to the illumination device 13 while the pushing portions 142 are extended at two sides of the housing 12 for allowing a user to push thereon.
The elongated main portion 141 of the lighting switch 14 has an actuation slot 143 arranged for operatively engaging with the illumination device 13 such that when the lighting switch 14 is sidewardly pushed by the user, the actuation slot 143 is arranged to actuate the illumination device 13 for turning it on or off.
The operation of the present invention is as follows: the mount light of the present invention is arranged to be detachably mounted on the firearm. When the user wishes to mount the mount light on the firearm, he or she needs to push the switching knobs 221 towards the main housing 12 by two of his or her fingers so as to pivotally move the locking member 23 to the releasing position. At that time, the user is able to slidably engage the sliding grooves 213 with the rail 81. In other words, the mount light is now able to slide with respect to the rail 81.
After the mount light is slid to a desirable position as determined by the user, the user may release the switching knobs 221. The elastic urging force of the resilient element 24 urges the locking latch 233 of the locking member 23 to receive and be retained in the locking slot 82 of the rail so as to retain the locking member 23 at the mounting position. At this point, the mount light is securely retained on the rail 81 of the firearm. When the mount light is attached onto the firearm, the user may slightly push the pushing portions 142 of the lighting switch 14 in a predetermined sideward direction for switching on the illumination device 13.
When the user wishes to detach the mount light from the firearm, he or she needs to push the switching knobs 221 toward the housing 12 again so as to disengage the locking latch 233 of the locking member 23 from the locking slot 82. The front portion 231 of the locking member 23 is pivotally moved and the locking latch 233 is driven to move out of the locking slot 82. At this point, the user is able to slide the mount light and detach it from the rail 81.
It is important to point out that since the locking member 23 fittedly and securely locks up the position of the mount light in the longitudinal direction of the housing 12 while the sliding groove 213 securely retains the position of the mount light in a vertical direction thereof, when the mount light is mounted onto the rail 81, it is secured and is not movable even when it is subject to great impact from the operation of the firearm.
Moreover, the attaching and detaching procedure of the mount light (as mentioned above) does not require the user to tighten any screw. This substantially simplifies the mounting process of the mount light. The same can also be said to the detaching procedure because the user does not need to unscrew any connector or screw from the rail. The only thing the user needs to perform is to push the switching knobs 221 and slide the mount light along the rail 81. All these operations can be performed in a single-handed manner (i.e. by only using one hand).
The present invention, while illustrated and described in terms of a preferred embodiment and several alternatives, is not limited to the particular description contained in this specification. Additional alternative or equivalent components could be used to practice the present invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A mount light for a firearm comprising a rail having at least one locking slot and two side protrusions, comprising:

a lighting apparatus which has a mounting side and is arranged to generate illumination toward a predetermined direction; and

a rail mounting arrangement, which comprises:

a plurality of side panels extended from said mounting side of said lighting apparatus to form a receiving channel between said side panels, wherein a width of said receiving channel is fitted to a width of said rail;

an actuation switch operatively provided on at least one of said side panels;

a locking member movably provided in said receiving channel to move between a mounting position and a releasing position; and

a resilient element mounted in said receiving channel to normally urge said locking member to retain at said mounting position, wherein in said mounting position, said locking member is urged by said resilient element to engage with said locking slot of said rail of said firearm so as to securely retain said lighting apparatus on said mounting side of said lighting apparatus, wherein in said releasing position, said locking member is moved so that said locking member disengages with said locking slot so as to allow said lighting apparatus to be slidably detached from said rail of said firearm.

2. The mount light, as recited in claim 1, wherein each of said side panels has a through switching slot formed thereon, wherein said actuation switch is mounted to said switching slots for allowing a user to switch said locking member between said mounting position and said releasing position as guided by said switching slots through movement of said actuation switch.

3. The mount light, as recited in claim 1, wherein each of said side panels further has a sliding groove indently formed on an inner side of said corresponding side panel for slidably engaging with said side protrusion of said rail.

4. The mount light, as recited in claim 2, wherein each of said side panels further has a sliding groove indently formed on an inner side of said corresponding side panel for slidably engaging with said side protrusions of said rail.

5. The mount light, as recited in claim 4, wherein each of said side panels further has an engagement protrusion longitudinally extended along an inner side of said corresponding side panel so as to form said corresponding sliding groove defined by a side surface of said engagement protrusion and an inner side surface of said corresponding side panel.

6. The mount light, as recited in claim 5, wherein said actuation switch comprises a plurality of switching knobs and a plurality of switching pins inwardly extended from inner sides of said switching knobs and penetrates said switching slots respectively to connect to said locking member, wherein each of said switching pins is arranged to move within said switching slot for driving said locking member to move between said mounting position and said releasing position.

7. The mount light, as recited in claim 6, wherein each of said switching knobs has a first knob section and a second knob section wherein said first knob section has a uniform thickness while a thickness of said second knob section is gradually decreasing from said first knob section to an outer side edge of said second knob section, wherein said switching knob has a curved outer surface formed on said second knob section for accommodating a finger of said user so that said user is able to push said locking member to move from said mounting position to said releasing position by pushing on one of said curved outer surfaces of one of said switching knobs.

8. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 7, wherein said locking member has a front portion and two connecting portions rearwardly extended from said front portion, wherein said two connecting portions are pivotally mounted to said side panels respectively for moving between said mounting position and said releasing position, wherein two sides of said front portion are connected to said switching pins respectively so that a user is able to drive said front portion of said locking member to move by moving at least of said switching knobs.

9. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 8, wherein said locking member further has a locking latch transversely formed on said front portion, wherein said locking latch is shaped and sized for receiving into said locking slot of said rail, wherein when said locking member is in said mounting position, said locking member is pivotally urged by said resilient element so that said locking latch is pivotally moved to receive into said locking slot for locking a longitudinal movement of said lighting apparatus.

10. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 10, wherein said resilient element is a coil spring mounted in said receiving channel at a space between said two connecting portions of said locking member for normally urging said locking member in said mounting position.

11. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 2, wherein said lighting apparatus further comprises a housing defining a battery compartment for receiving a replaceable battery therein, and an illumination device mounted on a front end portion of said housing for providing illumination at a predetermined direction.

12. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 9, wherein said lighting apparatus further comprises a housing defining a battery compartment for receiving a replaceable battery therein, and an illumination device mounted on a front end portion of said housing for providing illumination at a predetermined direction.

13. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 10, wherein said lighting apparatus further comprises a housing defining a battery compartment for receiving a replaceable battery therein, and an illumination device mounted on a front end portion of said housing for providing illumination at a predetermined direction.

14. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 12, wherein said lighting apparatus further comprises a lighting switch operatively mounted on said housing for selectively switching said illumination device, wherein said lighting switch is slidably mounted on said housing such that a user is able to operate said illumination device by sliding said lighting switch in a transverse direction of said housing.

15. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 13, wherein said lighting apparatus further comprises a lighting switch operatively mounted on said housing for selectively switching said illumination device, wherein said lighting switch is slidably mounted on said housing such that a user is able to operate said illumination device by sliding said lighting switch in a transverse direction of said housing.

16. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 14, wherein said lighting switch has an elongated main portion and a plurality of pushing portions transversely and integrally extended from two ends of said elongated main portion respectively, wherein said elongated main portion is connected to said illumination device while said pushing portions are extended at two sides of said housing for allowing a user to push thereon.

17. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 15, wherein said lighting switch has an elongated main portion and a plurality of pushing portions transversely and integrally extended from two ends of said elongated main portion respectively, wherein said elongated main portion is connected to said illumination device while said pushing portions are extended at two sides of said housing for allowing a user to push thereon.

18. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 16, wherein said elongated main portion of said lighting switch has an actuation slot arranged for operatively engaging with said illumination device in such a manner that when said lighting switch is sidewardly pushed by said user, said actuation slot is arranged to actuate said illumination device.

19. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 17, wherein said elongated main portion of said lighting switch has an actuation slot arranged for operatively engaging with said illumination device in such a manner that when said lighting switch is sidewardly pushed by said user, said actuation slot is arranged to actuate said illumination device.

20. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 18, wherein said illumination device comprises an annular member movably mounted on and extended from said front end portion of said housing, a cone-shaped reflector supported by said annular member, and an illuminating module having a LED supported by said annular member for providing illumination towards a front side of said lighting apparatus.

21. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 19, wherein said illumination device comprises an annular member movably mounted on and extended from said front end portion of said housing, a cone-shaped reflector supported by said annular member, and an illuminating module having a LED supported by said annular member for providing illumination towards a front side of said lighting apparatus.

22. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 20, wherein said illumination device is threadedly connected to said housing in such a manner that when said illumination device threadedly detached from said housing, said battery compartment is exposed to an exterior of said housing so that a user is able to conveniently replace said replaceable battery disposed in said battery compartment.

23. The mount light arrangement, as recited in claim 21, wherein said illumination device is threadedly connected to said housing in such a manner that when said illumination device threadedly detached from said housing, said battery compartment is exposed to an exterior of said housing so that a user is able to conveniently replace said replaceable battery disposed in said battery compartment.