Method and device for locating game shot with an arrow

Abstract

The invention disclosed herein is a device and method to enable a bow hunter to track a game animal wounded with an arrow through brush or conditions of low light. The device disclosed herein is composed of a hollow cylindrical tube which is beveled to a sharp point on the end of the tube which enters the body of the animal first. Inside the hollow cylindrical tube is a battery and GPS microchip which, on impacting the animal's body makes contact so as to provide electrical power to the GPS microchip. The GPS microchip then emits a GPS signal which can be detected by a GPS receiver and direct the bow hunter to the wounded animal.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application seeks priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/397,334 filed on Jun. 10, 2010.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

The invention disclosed herein was not the subject of any federally sponsored research or development.

THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

Not applicable.

REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Hunting game animals with bow and arrow has been a necessity and sport for many centuries. The bow hunter enters the prey's habitat in the wilderness and either stalks his game or lies in wait for the game to appear. When the bow hunter sights his quarry, the bow hunter takes aim and shoots an arrow at the game animal to mortally injure the game animal. On some occasions the arrow may strike the game animal and kill it instantly or very quickly. In that event, the game animal drops to the ground at or near where it was struck with the bow hunter's arrow. Finding this dead animal in the brush is relatively easy. The bow hunter travels to the place where he last saw the game animal after firing the arrow and usually finds the game animal.

In some situations, however, the game animal is not immediately killed by the arrow and may run a great distance into the brush from the place in which the game animal was struck by the arrow. When the injured game animal runs away into the brush, it may be very difficult, if not impossible to find the game animal. In the event the game animal is not found, the meat which might be obtained from the game animal is wasted. What is needed in the art is a method by which a game animal which has been shot by a bow hunter's arrow and which runs off into the brush may be easily tracked and found.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention disclosed herein is a device and method by which an animal which has been shot by a bow hunter's arrow and who runs into the brush may be easily tracked and found. The invention consists of a small hollow cylindrical tube, beveled to a sharp point at one end attached to the arrow tip. One type of arrow tip is a broadhead. Inside the small hollow cylindrical tube beveled to a sharp point at one end is a battery powered global positioning system (GPS) tracking chip which is lodged into the skin or outer musculature of the game animal when the arrow impacts the game animal. Once lodged into the skin or outer musculature of the game animal, the GPS tracking chip is activated and sends out a signal which may be detected with a GPS receiver. The GPS receiver may be developed as a software program which may be downloaded onto any wireless electronic device that will allow software applications downloads. When the game animal, injured by the bow hunter's arrow runs into the brush, the GPS tracking chip sends a signal which is detected by a GPS receiver carried by the bow hunter. The coordinates of the GPS signal received from the GPS tracking chip attached to the injured game animal may be plotted by the GPS receiver and by following those coordinates the injured game animal may be found. The meat from the game animal may then be harvested for consumption rather than wasted.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ATTACHED DRAWING FIGURES

A better understanding of the invention disclosed herein may be had by examination of the drawing figures described as follows:

FIG. 1 is a front view of the tip of the arrow's broadhead tip showing the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS tracking chip and power supply attached to the broadhead tip of the arrow.

FIG. 2 is an oblique side view of the broadhead tip of the arrow showing the arrangement of the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS tracking chip and power supply as attached to the broadhead tip of the arrow.

FIG. 3. Is a top view of the broadhead tip of the arrow showing the attachment of the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS tracking chip and power supply to the broadhead tip of the arrow.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the broadhead tip of the arrow showing the attachment of the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS tracking chip and power supply to the broadhead tip of the arrow.

FIG. 5 is a side view and cross section of the hollow cylindrical tube demonstrating the arrangement of the battery and GPS tracking chip inside the hollow cylindrical tube.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the broadhead tip of the arrow demonstrating that the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS tracking chip and battery separates from the broadhead tip of the arrow after entering the body of the game animal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION DISCLOSED HEREIN

In one embodiment of the invention disclosed herein and as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4, a hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing a GPS signal emitting device such as a GPS tracking chip and a power supply such as a battery is attached to the broadhead tip 1 of the arrow with the beveled end 8 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 facing toward the front of the broadhead tip 1 of the arrow and toward the direction of travel of the arrow. The hollow cylindrical tube 2 consists of a first end 8 which is beveled to a sharp point and a second end 7 which is the end opposite the first end 8. The first end 8 and second end 7 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 are separated by a body. An antenna 10 extends outside the second end 7 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2. On the top side of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 is a barb 9 which attaches to the flesh of the animal and prevents the hollow cylindrical tube 2 from becoming dislodged from the animal. Both the first end 8 and the second end 7 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 are sealed. This arrangement with the first end beveled to a sharp point 8 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 facing toward the direction of the arrow's flight facilitates entry of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip and battery into the skin of the game animal. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4 the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip and battery is attached to a broadhead tip 1 of an arrow. In other embodiments of the invention disclosed herein, the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip and battery could be attached to many different types, shapes and sizes of arrow tips.

FIG. 5 shows a cross section of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 in which the arrangement of the GPS tracking chip 3 and battery 4 within the body of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 is shown. The GPS tracking chip 3 is located nearer to the first end 8, which is beveled to a sharp point, of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 as compared to the battery 4 which is located toward the second end 7 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2. A gap 5 exists between the GPS tracking chip 3 and the battery 4. The purpose of the gap 5 is to prevent premature discharge of the battery's 4 electric power while the arrow is in storage or otherwise not in actual use in hunting for a game animal. The antenna 10 is attached to the GPS tracking chip 3.

As shown, FIG. 6, two events occur when the arrow tip 1 enters the body of the game animal 6. First, the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip 3 and battery 4 separates from the broadhead tip 1 of the arrow and remains located in the skin and musculature of the game animal. The barb 9 located on the body of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 attaches to the flesh of the animal and prevents the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip 3 and battery 4 from becoming dislodged and falling out of the animal. The antenna 10 which extends out of the second end 7 of the hollow cylindrical tube 2 is connected to the GPS microchip 3 and is of sufficient length to extend outside of the animal 6 so that the GPS signal generated by the GPS tracking chip 3 may be detected by a GPS receiver. Second, the force of impact of the arrow with its broadhead tip 1 to which the hollow cylindrical tube 2 containing the GPS tracking chip 3 and battery 4 is attached, causes the GPS tracking device 3 and battery 4 to come into contact eliminating the gap 5 shown in FIG. 5. Bringing the GPS tracking chip 3 into contact with the battery 4 causes a flow of electricity from the battery 4 to the GPS tracking chip 3. Now supplied with electricity from the battery 4, the GPS tracking chip 3 can send out a GPS signal which can be detected by a GPS receiver. The bow hunter carrying a GPS receiver can now track the injured animal which may have run some distance into the brush. By following the GPS signal emitted by the GPS tracking chip 3, the hunter can find the animal and harvest the meat for consumption. Any device which can detect a GPS signal may be used to capture the GPS signal emitted from the GPS tracking chip 3. Those devices include dedicated GPS receivers and other wireless electronic devices equipped capable of capturing GPS signals and displaying the direction from which the GPS signal is coming. The invention disclosed herein also permits a bow hunter to track the animal bearing the hollow cylindrical tube containing the battery and GPS tracking chip in low light conditions.

The invention disclosed herein is susceptible to many different and varied embodiments. Each of those other embodiments are included within the scope of the specification disclosed herein and as defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A device attached to the tip of a bow hunter's arrow which enables the bow hunter to track a wounded animal through the brush comprising:

A hollow cylindrical tube composed of a first end connected to a second end by a body;

Said first end of said hollow cylindrical tube is beveled to a sharp point and said hollow cylindrical tube is detachably affixed to said tip of said arrow such that said hollow cylindrical tube is parallel to the body of said tip of said arrow and said first end is pointing in the direction of travel of said arrow; A GPS signal emitting device and power source contained within said body of said hollow cylindrical tube and separated by a space;

An antenna attached to said GPS signal emitting device and extending through said second end and external to said hollow cylindrical tube.

Whereby, when an arrow to which the hollow cylindrical tube containing the GPS signal emitting device and power supply strikes a game animal, the hollow cylindrical device detaches from the arrow tip and the power supply comes into contact with the GPS signal emitting device providing power to the GPS signal emitting device so that the GPS signal emitting device transmits a GPS signal which can be detected by a GPS receiver and direct the bow hunter to the location of the GPS signal emitting device embedded within the animal.

2. The device attached to the tip of the bow hunter's arrow which enables the bow hunter to track a wounded animal through the brush as defined in claim 1 wherein said power source is a battery.

3. The device attached to the tip of the bow hunter's arrow which enables the bow hunter to track a wounded animal through the brush as defined in claim 1 wherein said GPS signal emitting device is a GPS tracking microchip.

4. A method for tracking an animal wounded by a bow hunter's arrow comprising steps of:

Inserting a GPS signal emitting device and power source inside the body of a hollow cylindrical tube beveled to a sharp point at the first end and having a second end opposite the first end and connected to the second end by said body;

Attaching an antenna to said GPS signal emitting device and extending said antenna out of said hollow cylindrical tube through the second end of said hollow cylindrical tube;

Attaching detachably the said hollow cylindrical tube to the tip of the arrow in such a manner so that said first end of said hollow cylindrical tube is pointing in the direction of the arrow's flight;

Aiming at an animal, said arrow to which has been attached said hollow cylindrical tube beveled to a sharp point at said first end and containing within said body of said hollow cylindrical tube a GPS signal emitting device and power source;

Shooting the animal with said arrow to which has been attached to the tip of said arrow said hollow cylindrical tube containing within said body of said hollow cylindrical tube a GPS emitting device and a power source configured in such a manner so that when said arrow strikes the animal, said power source comes into contact with said GPS signal emitting device supplying electricity to said GPS signal emitting device causing said GPS signal emitting device to emit a GPS signal;

Tracking the animal shot with said arrow to which has been attached to the tip of said arrow said hollow cylindrical tube containing within said body of said cylindrical tube said power source and said GPS signal emitting device which emits a GPS signal which is detected by a GPS receiver.

5. The method for tracking an animal wounded by a bow hunter's arrow as defined in claim 4 wherein said GPS signal emitting device is a GPS tracking microchip.

6. The method for tracking an animal wounded by a bow hunter's arrow as defined in claim 4 wherein said power source is a battery.