RAPID ATTACHMENT/DETACHMENT MECHANISM FOR WEAPON-MOUNTABLE LIGHTING DEVICES
A mechanism adapted for rapid attachment/detachment of a lighting device to a rail system of a host weapon system. The mechanism includes a body, a fixed rail clamp, and a floating rail clamp that is adjustably attached to the body in an opposing manner to the fixed rail clamp to provide a clamping effect therebetween. The floating rail clamp has a recess in a surface opposite the fixed rail clamp. A holding screw passes through a bore in the fixed rail clamp, and a clamp screw passes through a slot in the floating rail clamp and is threaded into one end of the holding screw. An oppositely-disposed end of the clamp screw protrudes within the recess of the floating rail clamp, and a cam arm has a first end pivotably coupled to the second end of the clamp screw and an oppositely-disposed distal end that protrudes from the recess.
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This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/440,128, filed Feb. 7, 2011, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION:Existing weapon-mountable lighting devices use a variety of methods to secure the actual device to a host weapon system. The most common method involves clamping the device to a system such as the Picatinny 1913 mounting rail. A plethora of means of fixedly fastening these devices to a rail system exist and include, but are not limited to simple screw mechanisms that provide dual opposing lateral clamping force against a rail system, spring mechanisms that apply perpendicular force against a rail system, and even singular lateral clamping force against a rail system. Some of the commercially available systems' attachment means are not ruggedized, that is they do not maintain their position during normal use such as weapon transport or firing.
Most systems do not provide for a means of rapid attachment or detachment from the rail system, and certainly not without the use of tools. Of the those systems that do provide a means for rapid attachment, some devices have to be installed in a certain manner, i.e., slid on from a particular direction, which can be a hindrance if the entry point is blocked by other attachments or even parts of the host weapon itself. Other rapid attachment mechanisms provide a biasing means that forces a user to physically hold the device open while attaching it to a rail system.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention provides a mechanism adapted for rapid attachment of a weapon-mountable lighting device to a rail system of a host weapon system via a hand-operated cam mechanism that allows for mounting from any direction, avoiding the need to remove other accessories.
According to one aspect of the invention, the rapid attachment/detachment mechanism includes a body, a fixed rail clamp that defines a non-adjustable portion of the body, the fixed rail clamp having a bore defined therein, and a floating rail clamp that is adjustably attached to the body in an opposing manner to the fixed rail clamp to provide a clamping effect therebetween. The floating rail clamp has a recess defined in a surface thereof opposite the fixed rail clamp and a slot defined within the recess. A holding screw passes through the bore in the fixed rail clamp, has a head end protruding from the fixed rail clamp, and has an oppositely-disposed threaded end received in the bore of the fixed rail clamp. A clamp screw passes through the slot in the floating rail clamp and has a first end threaded into the threaded end of the holding screw and an oppositely-disposed second end protruding within the recess of the floating rail clamp. A cam arm has a first end pivotably coupled to the second end of the clamp screw and an oppositely-disposed distal end. All but the distal end of the cam arm is received in the recess of the floating rail clamp when the cam arm is in a closed position that causes the floating rail clamp to move toward the fixed rail clamp.
A technical effect of the invention is the ability of the attachment/detachment mechanism to provide for a normally open design rail clamp that is allows for a weapon-mountable lighting device to be placed from any direction on a rail system. The mechanism is preferably held open, or biased, in an open position to ease attachment effort while speeding up detachment if needed. Furthermore, the mechanism provides a positive and ruggedized clamping force capable of maintaining a device's alignment to a host weapon system during transit or actual firing. Finally, because only the distal end of the cam arm protrudes from the recess in the floating rail clamp, the cam arm is less vulnerable to inadvertent movement.
This invention allows for rapidly attaching or detaching a weapon-mountable lighting device to a weapon rail system, for example, a Picatinny 1913 or similar mounting schemes utilized with host weapon systems. As will be described below, the invention utilizes a cam lever to engage a floating rail clamp to apply pressure to a host weapon rail system. The floating rail is symmetrically biased in an open position to allow for rapid and solid attachment of a weapon-mountable lighting device to the rail of the host weapon, and also allows for quick detachment of the device.
Referring to
Referring to
As evident from
Components of the rapid attachment/detachment mechanism 1 are visible in an exploded perspective view illustrated in
While the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, it is apparent that other forms could be adopted by one skilled in the art. For example, the assembly could differ in appearance and construction from the embodiments shown in the Figures, the functions of each component of the device could be performed by components of different construction but capable of a similar (though not necessarily equivalent) function, and appropriate materials could be substituted for those noted. Therefore, the scope of the invention is to be limited only by the following claims.
Claims
1. A rapid attachment/detachment mechanism for a weapon-mountable lighting device, the mechanism comprising:
- a body;
- a fixed rail clamp that defines a non-adjustable portion of the body, the fixed rail clamp having a bore defined therein;
- a floating rail clamp that is adjustably attached to the body in an opposing manner to the fixed rail clamp to provide a clamping effect therebetween, the floating rail clamp having a recess defined in a surface thereof opposite the fixed rail clamp and a slot defined within the recess;
- a holding screw passing through the bore in the fixed rail clamp, the holding screw having a head end protruding from the fixed rail clamp and an oppositely-disposed threaded end received in the bore of the fixed rail clamp;
- a clamp screw passing through the slot in the floating rail clamp, the clamp screw having a first end threaded into the threaded end of the holding screw and an oppositely-disposed second end protruding within the recess of the floating rail clamp; and
- a cam arm having a first end pivotably coupled to the second end of the clamp screw and an oppositely-disposed distal end, wherein all but the distal end of the cam arm is received in the recess of the floating rail clamp when the cam arm is in a closed position that causes the floating rail clamp to move toward the fixed rail clamp.
2. The rapid attachment/detachment mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising means for biasing the floating rail clamp away from the fixed rail clamp.
3. The rapid attachment/detachment mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising means for damping sound and vibration when the cam arm is rotated.
4. The rapid attachment/detachment mechanism according to claim 3, wherein damping means is disposed between the holding screw and the fixed rail clamp.
5. The rapid attachment/detachment mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising means for rotating the holding screw to adjust the clamp screw relative to the floating and fixed rail clamps.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 7, 2012
Publication Date: Aug 9, 2012
Applicant: (Coral Gables, FL)
Inventors: Louis F. Riley (Weston, FL), Juan Carlos Casas (Coral Gables, FL)
Application Number: 13/367,857