DUAL-SPEED ELEVATION TURRET FOR RIFLE SCOPES

Abstract

A turret for mounting on a rifle scope, e.g. for elevation adjustment, may comprise dual adjustment mechanisms. A course adjustment may provide long range adjustment of a reticle position within a single turn of the course adjustment. A fine adjustment may provide fine adjustment of the reticle position within a single turn of the fine adjustment. Each of the course adjustment and the fine adjustment may be provided with click-stop arrangements for audible and tactile feedback of the adjustment mechanisms.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. provisional patent applications Ser. No. 62/652823, filed Apr. 4, 2018, the contents of each of which are herein incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to turrets for riflescopes, in particular for adjusting windage and/or elevation.

BACKGROUND

A rifle scope (also called a “scope”) is an optical sighting system mounted on a rifle to improve its aiming accuracy. In a rifle scope, the “point of aim” is usually designated by a reticle or cross hairs. Reticles are most commonly represented as intersecting lines in a ‘+’ shape though many variations exist, including dots, posts, circles, etc. In a rifle scope, the reticle's shape is superimposed on the target image to provide a precise indication of the point of aim.

Modern rifle scopes are equipped with at least two turrets (adjustable knobs) for making elevation (up-down) and windage (left-right) adjustments to the point of aim. The turrets are precision mechanical assemblies which are mechanically linked to the reticle. Turning the turrets causes very precise vertical or horizontal movements in the reticle so that the sight's point of aim can be aligned with the firearm's “point of impact”.

The point of aim in a rifle scope is set to match the “point of impact” of the rifle at a given distance (say 100 meters). This is called zeroing-in the riflescope. It is necessary to re-adjust the scope in cases when the target is at different distances. For instance, if a riflescope has been zeroed-in at 100 meters, it needs to be re-adjusted when the distance to the target becomes 200 meters or 300 meters. This adjustment is performed by dialing (turning) the elevation turret.

The turrets used for elevation adjustment are usually marked with scales or indicia that show the amount of angular adjustment in units which could be as small as ¼ MOA (Minute of Arc) or 0.1 Milliradian (MIL). They are also designed such that moving from one position to the next makes a “click” so the shooter can also hear or feel how many MILs he has dialed into his rifle scope.

In recent years, interest in long range shooting has been rising. Therefore, riflescopes that allow a shooter to zero his rifle at a longer distance (say 600m) have become desirable. Since bullet drop increases significantly at longer distances, the shooter has to dial in many “clicks” in order to match his scope's point of aim to the bullet's point of impact.

In response to this requirement, some manufacturers have introduced multi-turn elevation turrets. For example, Schmidt and Bender, a well-known manufacturer of riflescopes from Germany has introduced a 5-turn elevation turret that offers an extremely accurate 0.050 MIL per-click adjustment value and a total elevation adjustment range of 39.3 MIL. This means, this turret can go through nearly 800 clicks!

Experienced shooters understand that it is difficult to turn a riflescope's turret by a precise number of clicks in a dark environment or when wearing gloves. The problem is compounded when the turret can turn more than once. This makes it very challenging to reset a multi-turn turret to its original zeroed-in position.

It is evident from the above review of the state of the art that there is a need for a single-turn elevation turret that can provide both high-precision and large adjustment range at the same time.

SUMMARY OF ONE EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Advantages of One or More Embodiments of the Present Invention

The various embodiments of the present invention may, but do not necessarily, achieve one or more of the following advantages:

the ability to provide different ranges of adjustment for a zero-in mark of a rifle scope;

provide a large range of adjustment for a rifle scope;

provide both course adjustment and fine adjustment of a rifle scope with a single mechanism;

provide multiple adjustment devices each with detectable click-stop movement.

These and other advantages may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification, claims, and abstract.

Brief Description of One Embodiment of the Present Invention

In one aspect, there is a provided a turret for a riflescope. The turret may include a base for connecting the turret to the riflescope. A course adjustment and a fine adjustment may be supported within the base. The fine adjustment may have a screw thread pitch that is finer than a screw thread pitch of the course adjustment. A reticle engagement component may be engaged by at least one of the course adjustment and the fine adjustment. Actuation of the course adjustment and the fine adjustment may cause movement of the reticle engagement component.

In one aspect, there is provided a turret for a riflescope. The turret may include base means for connecting the turret to the riflescope and reticle engagement means for engaging a reticle of the riflescope. The turret may also include course adjustment means and fine adjustment means for moving the reticle engagement means.

The above description sets forth, rather broadly, a summary of one embodiment of the present invention so that the detailed description that follows may be better understood and contributions of the present invention to the art may be better appreciated. Some of the embodiments of the present invention may not include all of the features or characteristics listed in the above summary. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described below and will form the subject matter of claims. In this respect, before explaining at least one preferred embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and to the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or as illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is substantially an isometric view of the dual-speed turret of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is substantially adjustment screws of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is substantially a cross-sectional view of the adjustment screws of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is substantially an exploded view of the movement piece and adjustment screws of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is substantially an isometric view of the movement piece and adjustment screw of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is substantially a bottom isometric view of the movement piece of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is substantially an exploded view of the base, movement piece and adjustment screws of the presentation invention.

FIG. 8 is substantially an exploded assembly view of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is substantially an isometric view of the dual-speed turret of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is substantially a cross-sectional side-view of the dual-speed turret of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application. The drawings show, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

As stated above, turret solutions that can account for large ranges have been proposed, but with many of these solutions featuring multiple turns that make it difficult for the shooter to know the precise position, especially in low light, when wearing gloves, etc. The present disclosure provides an enhanced solution. In accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, an elevation turret features two knobs for “coarse-tuning” and “fine-tuning” the point of aim. In one embodiment, each knob only turns one turn (or a fraction of a turn). The main knob (course tuning) is graduated at 1 MIL/click and provides 12 clicks within a single turn. The fine-tuning knob is graduated at 0.05 MIL/click and provides 20 clicks also in a single turn. This arrangement allows the shooter to dial very pricewise adjustments to the point of aim of the riflescope in a much more convenient way.

A general view of the dual-speed turret according to the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. With reference to this figure, the turret comprises a “rough adjustment knob” (3) and a “fine adjustment knob” (1). These two knobs mesh with a rough adjustment screw (10) and a fine adjustment screw (11) shown in FIG. 2.

With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the rough adjustment screw (10) has a threaded hole 102 which allows the fine adjustment screw (11) to be screwed inside it. The thread pitch 112 on the fine adjustment screw (11) is finer than the thread pitch 104 on the outside surface of the rough adjustment screw (10). Also, the fine adjustment screw (11) is taller than the rough adjustment screw (10) such that when it is screwed inside the rough adjustment screw (10), its bottom end 114 protrudes from the rough adjustment screw (10) (See FIG. 3). A reticle engagement component 20 includes a bottom plate 20 that has a contact surface 220 (the bottom surface as shown in FIGS. 3 and 10) that, in use, engages a reticle assembly of a riflescope. The reticle engagement component 20 is engaged by at least one of the adjustment screws 10, 11. In the embodiment depicted, the fine adjustment screw 11 includes an internal longitudinal hole 116 in its lower end. The base 20 includes an upward projecting stem 224 that can be inserted into the hole 116 to secure the reticle engagement component 20 to the fine adjustment piece 11. The reticle engagement portion may be considered optional. In alternative embodiments, one or both of the course adjustment 10 or fine adjustment 11 may engage the reticle directly.

The turret includes a base piece 8 that may be secured to the riflescope in engagement with the reticle. In one embodiment, the riflescope (not shown), may include a threaded aperture that receives a turret. The threaded aperture may have a standard size. The base 8 of the turret may include a threaded lower portion 82 that can be received into the threaded aperture of the riflescope. The adjustment screws 10, 11 and the reticle engagement piece 20 may project through the base piece 8 and thus, in use, through the threaded hole of the riflescope to engage the reticle within the riflescope.

The principle of operation of the dual-speed turret can now be understood with reference to the preceding description and with reference to FIGS. 1, 3 and 10. The turret may be secured to a riflescope by securing the thread 82 of the base 8 to a complementary threaded hole in the riflescope that aligns the turret with the reticle within the riflescope.

When the rough adjustment screw (10) is turned via the knob (3), the bottom plate (20) will make relatively large vertical movements due to the relatively large thread pitch 104 on the outside surface of the rough adjustment screw (10). But if the fine adjustment screw (11) is turned via the fine adjustment knob (1), the bottom plate (20) will make relatively small vertical movements because of the fine thread pitch 112 of the fine adjust screw (11). The bottom plate (20) makes contact with the reticle assembly inside the riflescopes and causes the reticle to shift on the target image proportional to the adjustment values “dialed in” using the knobs (1) and (3).

In a riflescope it is desirable that the adjustment knobs make “clicks” so that the shooter receives tactile feedback when he or she dials in a specific adjustment in the elevation turret. For this purpose, the fine adjustment screw and the rough adjustment screw are together mounted in a rough-adjust movement part (2). As shown in FIG. 4, the rough adjust movement part (2) has a wider top part 202 and a narrower bottom part 204. The inner wall of the top part has vertical indentations (21) (FIG. 5) which are used to create a “click stop” movement feature when the fine adjust screw (11) is turned.

The rough adjustment screw (10) is mounted inside the rough adjust movement piece (2) as shown in FIG. 5. The inner wall of the bottom part 204 has indentations (22) (FIG. 6) that mesh with the indentations on the top of the rough adjustment screw (10) such that these two parts are rotationally connected. Therefore, the rough adjust screw (10) turns when the rough adjustment movement piece (2) is turned. (See FIG. 6). Also, the bottom part 204 of the rough adjust movement piece (2) is long enough such that the rough adjustment screw (10) can move up and down for a few millimeters without losing rotational contact with the rough movement piece (2).

Another feature of the rough adjust movement piece (2) is that it includes the indentations (25) on the bottom side of its top part 202 (see FIG. 6). These indentations are used to induce “click-stop” movements when the rough adjust knob (2) is turned.

The rough adjust movement piece (2) will be mounted onto the base (8) as shown in FIG. 7. With reference to FIG. 7, the base (8) includes mounting holes for one or more ball bearings (26) which make contact with the indentations (25) cut onto the bottom surface of the rough adjust piece (2). These ball bearings are supported by small springs (not shown) so that they move up and down when the rough adjust movement piece (2) is turned. This, in turn, provides mechanical resistance so that the rotation of the rough adjust movement piece (2) will have a “click-stop” nature.

With reference to FIG. 7, the base (8) also includes an internal threaded hole (24) which the rough adjustment screw (10) is screwed into. Therefore, turning the rough adjustment piece (2) will cause the rough adjustment screw (10) to move up and down inside the base (8). The height of the base (8) is chosen such that the bottom plate (20) which is attached to the bottom end of the fine adjustment screw (11) (itself being mounted inside the rough adjustment screw (10)) will protrude from its bottom end to make contact with the reticle assembly inside the riflescope.

FIG. 8 shows a nearly complete assembly of the dual-speed turret including the fine adjustment knob (1), the rough adjustment knob (3) and the fine adjust movement part (4). Once the turret is fully assembled, the rough adjustment knob (3) is securely connected to the rough adjust movement piece (2) via one or more screws. The rough adjust movement piece (2) is itself in mesh with the rough adjustment screw (10) as described before. So, in the end, turning the rough adjustment knob (3) turns the rough adjustment screw (10) by the same amount.

With reference to FIG. 8, the fine adjustment knob (1) is connected to the fine adjustment screw (11) via the fine adjust movement piece (4). The fine adjust movement piece (4) can be made of plastic or other suitable material. It features a semi-circular groove (13) cut into its outer perimeter. A pin (17) mounted in the perimeter of the rough adjustment knob (3) and pointing towards the center enters into the groove (13) and limits the range of rotation of the fine adjust movement piece (4) with respect to the rough adjustment knob (3). This groove provides a limiter. As a result of this feature, the fine adjustment knob (1) turns less than 360 degrees when the rough adjustment knob (3) is held at a fixed position.

The top side of the fine adjust movement piece (4) has one or more threaded holes 42 which allow it to be firmly connected to the fine adjustment knob (1) via one or more screws 119 through similar holes 118 in the top of the fine adjustment knob 1. (See FIGS. 8 and 9).

The bottom side of the fine adjust movement piece (4) has a hollow cylindrical section whose inner wall has indentations that match the indentations machined around the top end of the fine adjustment screw (11). Therefore, when these two parts are mounted together, they will be rotationally linked. The hollow cylindrical section is made long enough to allow the top section of the fine adjustment screw (11) to move up and down inside it.

The fine adjust movement peace (4) further includes a ball bearing mounted in a recessed position on the outside of its perimeter. This ball bearing makes contact with the vertical indentations (21) carved on the inside surface of the top portion of the rough adjust movement piece (2) to provide “click-stop” movement for the fine adjustment knob (1).

FIG. 9 shows an external view of the complete dual-speed turret. This figure also shows an optional locking knob (9) which can move up and down. This knob can be used to lock the rough adjust knob (3) so that it can not turn accidentally or when the fine adjustment knob (1) is turned.

A side-view of the complete dual-speed elevation turret is shown in FIG. 10.

The dual-speed turret described in the present disclosure can be used both for elevation (vertical) and windage (horizontal) adjustment in a riflescope. The turret is mounted on the riflescope such that the base (8) is fixedly attached to the riflescope's main housing and the bottom plate (20) makes contact with the reticle assembly inside the riflescope. This ensures that when the rough adjustment knob (3) or the fine adjustment knob (1) are turned, the reticle is shifted by a proportional amount inside the riflescope.

To operate the dual-speed turret, the shooter first rotates the rough adjustment knob (3) which is graduated at 1 MIL/click to a setting close to the desired elevation. He or she then turns the fine-adjustment knob (1) which is graduated at 0.05 MIL/click to set the precise amount of elevation adjustment. While specific adjustment rates are described herein, the person skilled in the art will recognize that other adjustment rates are feasible and will depend on the size of the adjustment knobs, pitch of the screw threads, etc. Further, while the Applicant has described embodiments in which both the rough adjustment knob and fine adjustment knob are designed to travel through a range of a single complete turn, the person skilled in the art will recognize that other ranges of movement are contemplated within the scope of the invention. The key provision is a rough or course adjustment knob that has a different, i.e. faster, adjustment rate to a fine adjustment knob.

The dual-speed turret enables the shooter to dial-in very precise adjustments to the point of aim of the riflescope in a fast and convenient way. Since each knob makes only a single turn, there is no need to remember the number of turns.

Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the embodiments of this invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given.

Claims

1. A turret for a riflescope comprising:

(A) a base for connecting the turret to the riflescope;

(B) a course adjustment supported within the base, the course adjustment comprising a first screw thread comprising a first screw pitch;

(C) a fine adjustment supported within the base, the fine adjustment comprising a second screw thread comprising a second screw pitch that is finer than the first screw pitch; and

(D) a reticle engagement component that engages at least one of the course adjustment and fine adjustment;

(E) wherein actuation of the course adjustment and the fine adjustment causes movement of the reticle engagement component.

2. The turret of claim 1 wherein the course adjustment is rotationally mounted within the base.

3. The turret of claim 2 comprising a course adjust movement piece that is rotationally linked to the course adjustment.

4. The turret of claim 3 comprising a first click-stop arrangement between the course adjust movement piece and the base.

5. The turret of claim 2 wherein the fine adjustment is rotationally mounted within the course adjustment.

6. The turret of claim 5 wherein rotation of the course adjustment relative to the base also rotates the fine adjustment.

7. The turret of claim 5 comprising a fine adjust movement piece that is rotationally linked to the fine adjustment.

8. The turret of claim 7 comprising a second click stop arrangement between the fine adjust movement piece and the course adjust movement piece.

9. The turret of claim 1 comprising a limiter for limiting the rotational range of the fine adjustment with respect to the course adjustment.

10. The turret of claim 9 wherein the fine adjustment is limited to a rotational range of less than 360 degrees for a fixed position of the course adjustment.

11. A turret for a riflescope comprising:

(A) base means for connecting the turret to the riflescope;

(B) reticle engagement means for engaging with a reticle of the riflescope;

(C) course adjustment means for course movement of the reticle engagement means; and

(D) fine adjustment means for fine movement of the reticle engagement means.

12. The turret of claim 11 wherein the course adjustment means is rotationally mounted within the base means.

13. The turret of claim 12 comprising course adjust movement means for rotating the course adjustment means.

14. The turret of claim 13 comprising first click-stop means between the course adjust movement means and the base means.

15. The turret of claim 12 wherein the fine adjustment means is rotationally mounted within the course adjustment means.

16. The turret of claim 15 comprising fine adjust movement means for rotating the fine adjustment means.

17. The turret of claim 16 comprising second click stop means between the fine adjust movement means and the course adjust movement means.

18. The turret of claim 11 comprising limiter means for limiting the rotational range of the fine adjustment means with respect to the course adjustment means.