ELECTRONIC COUNTING DEVICE

Abstract

Electronic counting device (11) of shots fired by a firearm, which comprises an impulse sensor (12) that is electrically connected to a signal processor (13), which in turn is electrically connected to a data storage unit (14).

Description

OBJECT

This invention refers to an electronic counting device of shots fired by an automatic or semiautomatic firearm.

STATE OF THE ART

U.S. patent publication number U.S. Pat. No. 7,143,644 refers to an electronic shot counter mounted on a firearm which detects an impulse in the firearm due to firing.

The electronic counter comprises an impulse sensor, a signal processor and a memory. The impulse sensor transfers the electric signals resulting from a shot to the processor.

The processor receives the first signal and opens a reception time window; during that time window it receives a second time signal, records that a shot has occurred and stores that information in the memory.

One drawback of the aforesaid electronic counter is the fact that a time window is opened whenever a signal is received from the impulse sensor with a view to a subsequent signal to count a shot.

If the signal received by the processor from the impulse sensor has not resulted from a shot, what happens is that electric power is consumed to open a time window while waiting for a subsequent signal. This unnecessary consumption shortens the lifetime of an electric battery that supplies electric power to the electronic shot counter.

SUMMARY

This invention seeks to solve one or more of the drawbacks explained above by means of an electronic shot counting device mounted on a firearm, as claimed in the claims.

One object of an embodiment of the electronic shot counting device is to make a partial count of the number of shots fired with the cartridges stored in a cartridge storage unit, as well as the total number of shots fired with the firearm to determine the firearm maintenance periods and the remaining useful life that the firearm itself and each of the assembled elements that form the firearm have left.

Still another object of the embodiment is to perform the aforesaid functions with minimum energy consumption to lengthen the life of an electric power source that supplies electric power to the electronic shot counting device.

The electronic shot counting device is adapted to distinguish impulses associated with a shot fired by the firearm from other types of impulses resulting from an improper use of the firearm; this type of analysis is completed in a minimum of time and with reduced electric power consumption.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

A more detailed explanation of the invention is provided in the following description and is based on the accompanying figures:

FIG. 1 shows, on a tension-time coordinate axis, a signal generated by an impulse sensor at one of its outputs corresponding to a shot fired by an automatic or semiautomatic firearm, and

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of the electronic counting device.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT

In relation to FIG. 2, an electronic shot counting device 11 comprises an impulse sensor 12 of the piezoelectric, accelerometer, etc. type; electrically connected to a signal processor 13 of the microprocessor type 13, which in turn is electrically connected to removable data storage unit 14 of the data memory type.

The electronic counter 11 is mounted inside an automatic or semiautomatic firearm, such that the impulse sensor 12 is located in a place near the gun firing chain to directly receive the impulse peaks originating in the gun when a shot is fired with it.

In relation now to FIGS. 1 and 2, when a shot is fired with the firearm, the impulse sensor 12 of the electronic counting device 11 supplies at one of its outputs a train of impulse peaks or an impulse signal relative to a shot fired by the firearm. The impulse signal is received at an input of the signal microprocessor 13.

It should be noted that, in the storage memory, a multitude of standard impulse signals are stored, respectively associated with each kind of cartridge that may be fired with the firearm.

Since the storage memory is removable, the standard impulse signals are loaded into it by inserting the removable memory into a USB connector of, for example, a portable computer type client device. Once the standard impulse signals have been stored in the memory, this is inserted into the appropriate connector of the firearm electronic counter 11.

Therefore, before a shot is fired by a shooter, the shooter has to indicate what kind of cartridge will be fired from among those stored in the memory.

The type of cartridge loaded in the gun that is to be fired is selected via a wireless interface unit that communicates with a data input-output unit 15 of the electronic counter 11, which is connected to the signal microprocessor 13.

Once the kind of cartridge to be fired is selected, the microprocessor 13 preloads data associated with the standard impulse signal of the selected cartridge.

The standard impulse signal includes a train of impulse peaks that comprises at least two successive impulse peaks with characteristic parameters associated with each of the impulse peaks of the impulse signal.

An impulse peak relative to the shot itself, the next impulse peak relative to a sliding movement in the direction of a sliding element of the firearm associated with the displacement of a fired cartridge case, e.g., a slide, a cylinder, etc., and finally a subsequent impulse peak relative to the insertion of a cartridge ready to be fired in the firearm chamber. It should be noted that, if there is no cartridge in the magazine, this latter peak is not observed.

Therefore, each type of impulse peak presents an upward and downward gradient, a maximum peak value, distance between successive peaks, etc., which are parameters that characterize the impulse signal as a whole.

Consequently, in accordance with the characteristic parameters derived from the standard impulse signal preloaded in the microprocessor 13, this microprocessor determines at what instants of time it should acquire samples in the upward and downward gradient of a first impulse peak received at the input of the microprocessor 13, which may be associated with an impulse signal relative to a shot fired with the firearm.

Once the samples are acquired, the microprocessor 13 analyses whether the tension values of the acquired samples are greater than a predetermined tension value threshold; if the comparison is affirmative, i.e., the tension values are greater than the threshold value, then the microprocessor 13 gets ready to receive a subsequent impulse peak.

In short, in the steps described above, the microprocessor 13 has calculated that in a predetermined impulse peak time, i.e., peak area, the samples acquired from the received impulse peak are greater than the threshold tension value corresponding to an impulse peak associated with a stored standard impulse signal, where the threshold value is greater than the maximum value of the next impulse peak of the standard impulse signal.

If the area previously calculated by the microprocessor 13 is less than the area derived from the stored standard impulse signal, then the microprocessor 13 determines that the received impulse peak does not correspond to an impulse peak associated with an impulse signal relative to a fired shot. As a result, the signal microprocessor 13 switches to a state of minimum energy consumption or sleep mode.

However, if the area previously calculated by the microprocessor 13 is greater than or equal to the area derived from the stored standard impulse signal, it gets ready to acquire a predetermined number of samples in an off-peak zone subsequent to the received impulse peak.

Likewise, based on the standard impulse signal preloaded in the signal microprocessor 13, the microprocessor determines the instants of time at which it has to acquire the predetermined number of samples of an off-peak period between successive impulse peaks and associated with an impulse signal relative to a shot.

Once the samples are acquired, the microprocessor 13 analyses whether the tension values of the acquired samples are less than a predetermined tension value threshold; if the comparison is affirmative, i.e., the tension values are less than or equal to the threshold value, then the microprocessor 13 gets ready to acquire a predetermined number of samples relative to an impulse peak separate from the first impulse peak received, which is prior to the aforesaid off-peak zone.

However, if the samples previously acquired by the microprocessor 13 are greater than the threshold of the off-peak zone derived from the stored standard impulse signal, then the microprocessor 13 determines that an off-peak zone has not been received between impulse peaks associated with an impulse signal relative to a fired shot; as a result of the above, the signal microprocessor 13 switches to a state of minimum energy consumption or sleep mode.

Therefore, based on the characteristic parameters derived from the standard impulse signal preloaded in the microprocessor 13, it determines at what instants of time it should acquire samples in an impulse peak subsequent to the off-peak zone which has followed the impulse peak received at the input of the microprocessor 13.

Similarly, once the samples are acquired, the microprocessor 13 analyses whether the tension values of the acquired samples are greater than a predetermined tension value threshold; if the comparison is affirmative, i.e., the tension values are greater than the threshold value, then the microprocessor 13 gets ready to receive a subsequent impulse signal off-peak zone.

Based on the standard impulse signal preloaded in the signal microprocessor 13, the latter determines the instants of time at which it has to acquire a predetermined number of samples relative to an off-peak subsequent to a second impulse peak received at the input of the microprocessor 13.

Once the samples are acquired, the microprocessor 13 analyses whether the tension values of the acquired samples are less than a predetermined tension value threshold; if the comparison is affirmative, i.e., the tension values are less than or equal to the threshold value, then the microprocessor 13 gets ready to acquire a predetermined number of samples relative to an impulse peak separate from the second impulse peak received, which is prior to the aforesaid off-peak zone.

However, if the area previously calculated by the microprocessor 13 is less than the area of the off-peak zone derived from the stored standard impulse signal, then the microprocessor 13 determines that an off-peak zone has not been received between impulse peaks associated with an impulse signal relative to a shot fired; as a result of the above, the signal microprocessor 13 switches to a state of minimum energy consumption or sleep mode.

Therefore, based on the characteristic parameters derived from the standard impulse signal preloaded in the microprocessor 13, it determines at what instants of time it should acquire samples in an impulse peak subsequent to the off-peak zone which has followed the last impulse peak received at the input of the microprocessor 13.

Similarly, once the samples are acquired, the microprocessor 13 analyses whether the tension values of the acquired samples are greater than a predetermined tension value threshold; if the comparison is affirmative, i.e., the tension values are greater than the threshold value, then the microprocessor 13 enters a shot in the count that it keeps in the storage memory.

It should be noted that the microprocessor 13 increases by one unit the count of the number of shots fired by the firearm, even though the microprocessor 13 does not receive the impulse peak relative to the insertion of a cartridge ready to be fired in the firearm chamber, whenever the microprocessor 13 has checked that two impulse peaks have been received separated by an off-peak zone and a second off-peak zone subsequent to the impulse peak relative to the sliding movement of the firearm slide.

The microprocessor 13 generates at one of its outputs a warning signal relative to an empty cartridge storage unit; this signal is sent to a information data display, which shows to the shooter the number of shots fired with the cartridge storage unit 14 currently mounted on the firearm, the total number of shots fired with the firearm, the warning signal of an empty cartridge storage unit 14, etc.

Claims

1-10. (canceled)

11. An electronic counting device of shots fired by a firearm characterized in that the electronic counting device (11) comprises an impulse sensor (12); a signal processor (13) electrically connected to the impulse sensor (12); and a data storage unit (14) electrically connected to the signal processor (13).

12. The device of claim 11 characterized in that the electronic counting device (11) is adapted to be mounted on a body of the firearm and wherein the impulse sensor (12) is located near a gun firing chain of the firearm to supply impulse peaks at one of its output terminals.

13. The device of claim 11 characterized in that the data storage unit (14) is adapted to store impulse peaks associated with standard impulse signals relative to shots fired by the firearm with different kinds of cartridges.

14. The device of claim 13 characterized in that the data storage unit (14) is a removable memory type.

15. The device of claim 13 characterized in that the device further comprises a wireless interface unit; and a data input-output unit (15); and further characterized in that the wireless interface unit communicates with the data input-output unit (15) which is connected to the signal microprocessor (13) of the electronic counting device (11) to select the kind of cartridge loaded in the firearm.

16. A method to count shots fired with a firearm, comprising:

selecting a kind of cartridge stored in a data storage unit (14);

acquiring a multitude of samples at predetermined instants of time in an impulse peak received at an input terminal of a signal processor (13) based on characteristic parameters derived from a standard impulse signal associated with the kind of cartridge selected,

comparing the tension value of the acquired samples with a predetermined tension value threshold based on an impulse peak relative to the shot itself included in the selected standard impulse signal; if the acquired samples are greater than or equal to the predetermined tension threshold and are maintained during a time interval determined by the standard impulse signal, and

acquiring a predetermined number of samples in an off-peak zone subsequent to the impulse peak received.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising:

comparing the tension value of the acquired samples with a predetermined tension value threshold based on an off-peak zone subsequent to the impulse peak relative to the shot itself included in the selected standard impulse signal; if the acquired samples are less than or equal to the predetermined tension threshold and are maintained during a time interval determined by the standard impulse signal, and

acquiring a predetermined number of samples in an impulse peak relative to a sliding movement in the direction of a sliding element of the firearm associated with the displacement of the case of a fired cartridge.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

comparing the tension value of the acquired samples with a predetermined tension value threshold based on an impulse peak relative to a sliding movement included in the selected standard impulse signal; if the acquired samples are greater than or equal to the predetermined tension threshold and are maintained during a time interval determined by the standard impulse signal, and

increasing by one unit in the shot count made by the electronic counting device (11).

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

transmitting the shot count to a display device mounted on the firearm.

20. A firearm that stores cartridges for firing the cartridges characterized in that the firearm comprises an electronic shot counting device (11) of claim 11.