REMOVABLE BARREL AND HAND GUARD FOR MODULAR RIFLES
A system for connecting a barrel to an upper receiver of a modular rifle, the upper receiver having an upper receiver extension. The system comprises an upper receiver coupler having a first opening for receiving the upper receiver extension, which is removably secured in the first opening. The system includes a barrel coupler and a gas tube for attaching to a forward segment of the barrel, extending rearwardly along the barrel, passing through a second opening of the barrel coupler and coupled to a gas port that extends from the upper receiver and into the upper receiver coupler. The gas tube is shorter than the barrel. The barrel passes through and is removably secured within a third opening of the barrel coupler; passes through the first opening of the upper receiver coupler and into the upper receiver extension. The upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler are removably connected.
The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) to the provisional patent application filed on Apr. 21, 2017 and assigned application No. 62/488,458. This provisional patent application is incorporated herein in its entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONA method, system, and kit related to a removable and replaceable barrel kit with a gas tube for modular rifles.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONM16 and AR15 rifles are air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed assault rifles. These rifles are the primary assault weapons used by military and police forces.
A gas-operated rifle uses a portion of the high-pressure gas formed as the ammunition round travels through the barrel to supply energy to operate the auto-loading feature of the rifle. The high—pressure gas powers a mechanism to extract the spent casing and chamber a new cartridge. Energy from the gas is harnessed through either a port in the barrel or a trap in the muzzle. This high-pressure gas travels through a gas tube that is located parallel to the barrel and upon exiting the tube impinges on a surface such as a piston head to provide motion for unlocking the action, extracting the spent casing, ejecting the spent casing, cocking the hammer or striker, chambering a fresh cartridge, and finally locking the action.
Such a modular rifle is illustrated in
The lower receiver assembly 1 contains a lower receiver, fire control components, and a buffer assembly included in the butt-stock. These components are not separately designated in
Prior art
Prior art
In the prior art modular rifles of
The forgoing and other features of the present invention will be apparent to one skilled in the art to which the present invention relates upon consideration of the description of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. The use of the same reference numeral in the various figures refers to the same element.
Before describing in detail the particular methods and apparatuses related to a removable barrel and hand guard for modular rifles, it should be observed that the present invention resides primarily in a novel and non-obvious combination of elements and process steps. So as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, certain conventional elements and steps have been presented with lesser detail, while the drawings and the specification describe in greater detail other elements and steps pertinent to understanding the inventions.
The presented embodiments are not intended to define limits as to the structures, elements or methods of the inventions, but only to provide exemplary constructions. The embodiments are permissive rather than mandatory and illustrative rather than exhaustive.
The components of the present invention when installed in a rifle allow the rifle user to easily and quickly remove the barrel without specialized tools and replace the removed barrel with a barrel of a different length. As is known by those skilled in the art, a longer barrel allows the ammunition round to exit the barrel with a greater velocity and thus travel farther (i.e., have a longer range) than a round shot from a shorter barrel.
Advantages of the present invention include at least: allowing the rifle barrel to be easily removed to store or transport the rifle in a smaller space; allowing the user to easily remove and replace the barrel with a different length barrel; allowing conversion of the rifle to a different caliber; and, simplifying cleaning of the weapon as specialized tools are not required to disassemble the rifle. With regard to different barrel lengths, a sniper prefers a longer rifle barrel while a shorter barrel is desired in close-quarter combat.
The invention also permits the user to use any one of many different available hand guards. Alternatively, the barrel coupler of the present invention may be supplied with a hand guard permanently integrated with the barrel coupler. In this latter embodiment the barrel and hand guard can both be removed from the rifle as one unit without the user of tools.
The components of the present invention may be installed on any rifle or weapon having an appropriately styled barrel and receiver interface.
The components of the invention may also be considered a kit for adding and/or replacing the components of an existing rifle to allow the user to then easily and conveniently exchange a barrel of a first length for a barrel of a second length. The kit components can be installed on an existing rifle without any permanent modifications to the rifle. Alternatively, certain of the invention components can be integrated into a new rifle as it is manufactured, e.g., the upper receiver coupler integral with the upper receiver and/or the barrel coupler integral with the barrel.
The components of the invention generally comprise: an upper receiver coupler for attaching to an upper receiver of an existing rifle and a barrel coupler for attaching to a barrel of the existing rifle. The upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler are removably joined or latched together using components attached to the upper receiver coupler, to the barrel coupler, and/or to both. Further, the invention comprises a novel gas tube that is attached to the barrel, passes through the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler, and via a gas tube extension attaches to the rifle upper receiver.
Additionally, when the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler are joined, a gas tube running parallel to the barrel extends from a forward end of the barrel, passes through both couplers, and is received within the upper receiver of the rifle. Gas flowing through this path actuates various rifle functions as described above.
Turing to
With reference to
Semicircular grooves 16 in an outer circumference of the star nut 11 receive mating protrusions of a tool (not shown) for tightening the star nut 11. However, this feature is not a required element of the invention, instead it is merely a convenient technique for tightening the star nut 11.
In an alternative embodiment, in lieu of using the star nut 11, the upper receiver plate 10 comprises internal threads 25 (see
With reference to
With continued reference to
As can be seen in
In lieu of using the set screws 17, the barrel can be held in place within the barrel coupler 103 by a compression fitting comprising a slot defined in the barrel plate 14 and a tension screw to close the slot after the barrel is inserted. Alternatively, an end of the barrel comprises a split cone feature with an outside-threaded nut for threading into mating threads extending from a rear surface of the barrel plate.
Returning to
The hooks 12 and levers 13 are held together by pins not illustrated in
With the barrel coupler 103 in contact with the upper receiver coupler 100, exerting an inwardly-directed force on the levers 13 forces the hooks 12 to each engage a hardened pin 21 within each recess 10B in the upper receiver plate 10. This action locks the barrel plate 14 to the receiver plate 10 and thereby locks the barrel coupler 103 to the upper receiver coupler 100. Another hook, lever, recess and pin are disposed on an opposing side of the respective barrel plate and the upper receiver plate and thus are hidden from view in
The illustrated pin 21 is held in position by action of a set screw 23.
With the barrel 5 attached to the barrel coupler 103 with the set screws 17, the barrel coupler 103 attached to the upper receiver coupler 100 with the hooks 12, and the upper receiver coupler attached to the upper receiver 3 with the star nut 11, the barrel is thereby coupled to upper receiver to provide a path for the round as it exits the upper receiver, enters and passes through the barrel segment 5B (see
With this invention the barrel 5 can be easily and quickly changed by operating the levers 13 to release the hooks 12 and thereby separate the upper receiver coupler 100 from the barrel coupler 103 and loosening the set screws 17. This operation is much simpler than the required operations to remove the barrel in a prior art rifle.
With reference to
As described above, a gas-operated rifle uses some of the high-pressure gas generated as the ammunition round travels through the barrel to supply energy to operate the auto-loading feature of the rifle. In the present invention, a high-pressure gas path extends from an entry point of the gas tube on the barrel 5, along the barrel, through the barrel coupler 103, through the upper receiver coupler 100 and finally to the upper receiver 3.
As can be seen in
Working toward the butt stock of the rifle and beginning at the barrel plate 14, the primary gas tube 33 passes through the opening 29 (see
To avoid interference between the rearward segment 33A of the primary gas tube 33 and the upper receiver coupler 100 and its associated components, the rearward segment 33A is disposed within one of the semicircular grooves 16 of the star nut 11.
An end 35A of the gas tube extension 35 (both of which are depicted in
To mate the upper receiver coupler 100 and the barrel coupler 103, (see
Each hook 122 comprises a head 130 affixed to a shaft 132 at a first end thereof. A second end of the shaft 132 terminates in a ring 133 concentrically mounted on a pin 136 that is in turn attached to or captured within a barrel plate 137. The hooks 122 are pivoted into the recesses 120 to lock the upper receiver coupler 111 and the barrel coupler 113 together.
Pivoting of the hooks 122 out of the recesses 120 permits separation of the upper receiver coupler 111 and the barrel coupler 113. Only one of the hooks 122 is depicted in its entirety in
In one embodiment the head 130 threadably engages mating threads (not shown) on the shaft 132. The coupling force exerted by the hook 122 on the upper receiver coupler 111 is adjusted by turning the head 130 on the mating threads of the shaft 132.
Conventional after-market removable barrels comprise a gas tube (also referred to as a barrel gas tube) with a portion of the barrel gas tube (referred to as a projecting gas tube segment) extending beyond an end of the barrel. See prior art
When attaching the barrel to the receiver, this projecting gas tube segment is inserted into a gas key (element 205 in the prior art
The protruding gas tube can also be damaged when the user is transporting the rifle in a disassembled condition, as the protruding tube extends beyond the “safety” of the heavy barrel. Also, the heavy barrel may exert a force on the extending tube when set down or dropped.
Of course, if the projecting segment is severed from the barrel gas tube the weapon is inoperable.
The present embodiment eliminates the projecting gas tube segment 200A of
To eliminate or shorten the projecting gas tube segment, the receiver/gas key must be modified to accept the shorter barrel gas tube. See
This invention (or a kit embodying the features of the invention) allows a user who has already purchased a removable barrel system to “upgrade” the rifle to one that is much less susceptible to damage while transporting or installing in the receiver.
The inventive components can also be sold by weapon manufacturers who currently sell prior art barrel systems with a gas tube that extends beyond the barrel's end. Such barrels absent the protruding end segment would undoubtedly be favorably considered by weapon owners.
Because the components of the present invention can be added to an existing rifle without modifying the existing rifle, these components can be easily removed and the rifle returned to its original configuration whenever desired. This is an advantage to the rifle owner who may wish to sell or trade-in a rifle that has been modified to implement the features of the present invention.
While the invention has been described with reference to various embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalent elements and process steps may be substituted for elements and steps thereof without departing from the scope of the present invention. The scope of the present invention further includes any combination of the elements and process steps from the various embodiments set forth herein. In addition, modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation to the teachings of the present invention without departing from its essential scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. A kit for use with a modular weapon having a barrel and an upper receiver, the upper receiver defining a gas port and a barrel opening, the kit comprising:
- an upper receiver coupler for attaching to the upper receiver;
- a barrel coupler;
- one or more first components for removably attaching the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler;
- the barrel for passing through a first opening of the barrel coupler, through a second opening of the upper receiver coupler, and into the barrel opening in the upper receiver;
- one or more second components for securing the barrel within the first opening of the barrel coupler;
- a gas key extending from the upper receiver and received within a third opening of the receiver coupler; and
- a gas tube connected to the barrel, extending rearwardly along the barrel, passing through a fourth opening in the barrel coupler and connected to the gas key.
2. The kit of claim 1 wherein the modular weapon comprises a modular rifle.
3. The kit of claim 1 wherein the one or more second components for securing the barrel within the first opening of the barrel coupler comprise threaded members threadably engaged in the barrel coupler and urged against the barrel.
4. The kit of claim 1 the upper receiver comprising an upper receiver extension, the barrel opening defined therein, the upper receiver extension received within the second opening of the upper receiver coupler, the kit further comprising a nut for attaching the upper receiver coupler to the upper receiver extension with the nut having internal threads for threadably engaging external threads of the upper receiver extension.
5. The kit of claim 1 wherein the one or more first components comprise one or more latches disposed on one of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler for capturing one or more respective capture devices disposed on an other of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler.
6. The kit of claim 5 wherein the one or more latches comprise first and second hooks spaced apart at 180 degrees along a circumference of the barrel coupler, and wherein the one or more capture devices comprise a first pin and a second pin spaced apart at 180 degrees along a circumference of the upper receiver coupler, the first and second pins for capturing respective first and second hooks.
7. The kit of claim 5 wherein the one or more latches each comprises a hook operated by a lever, and the one or more capture devices each comprise a pin, and wherein application of a force on the lever moves the hook to removably capture the pin.
8. The kit of claim 1 wherein the one or more first components comprise:
- first and second pins attached to the barrel coupler;
- first and second shafts each having a first end attached to and rotatable about respective first and second pins;
- first and second heads attached to a second end of respective first and second shafts; and
- the first and second shafts captured within respective first and second recesses of the upper receiver coupler and held within the respective first and second recesses by the respective first and second heads exerting a force directed against a surface of the upper receiver coupler.
9. The kit of claim 1 the barrel coupler further comprising a threaded member extending from a front surface of the barrel coupler for threadably engaging a hand guard such that the hand guard surrounds at least a segment of the barrel.
10. The kit of claim 1 wherein one of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler comprises an alignment pin for engaging an alignment opening in an other of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler when the upper receiver coupler is removably attached to the barrel coupler.
11. The kit of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of barrels of differing lengths, a forward end of the gas tube for attaching to one of the plurality of barrels with a gas block.
12. The kit of claim 1 the gas key further comprising a bolt carrier attachment interface for attaching to the upper receiver and a gas tube attachment interface for attaching to the gas tube.
13. The kit of claim 12 the gas tube attachment interface comprising a tubular segment protruding forwardly out from the upper receiver, the tubular segment received within the third opening of the receiver coupler and comprising the gas tube attachment interface for attaching to the gas tube.
14. The kit of claim the gas tube shorter than the barrel.
15. A system for connecting a barrel to an upper receiver of a modular rifle, the upper receiver comprising an upper receiver extension, the system comprising:
- an upper receiver coupler defining a first opening therethrough for receiving the upper receiver extension, the upper receiver extension removably secured within the first opening;
- a barrel coupler;
- a gas tube for attaching to a forward segment of the barrel, extending rearwardly along the barrel, passing through a second opening of the barrel coupler and for coupling to a gas port disposed in the upper receiver;
- the barrel for passing through and removably secured within a third opening of the barrel coupler, the barrel further passing through the first opening of the upper receiver coupler and for receiving within the upper receiver extension; and
- a component for removably connecting the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler.
16. The system of claim 15 a length of the gas tube less than a length of the barrel.
17. The system of claim 15 wherein the gas port comprises a gas key further comprising a bolt carrier attachment interface for attaching to a bolt carrier of the upper receiver and a gas tube attachment interface for coupling to the gas tube, the gas tube attachment interface further comprising a tubular segment protruding forwardly out from a fourth opening of the receiver coupler, the tubular segment comprising the gas tube attachment interface for attaching to the gas tube.
18. The system of claim 15 wherein the barrel is removably secured within the third opening of the barrel coupler by a plurality of threaded members threadably engaged in the barrel coupler and urged against the barrel.
19. The system of claim 15 wherein the component for removably attaching the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler comprises one or more latches disposed on one of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler for capturing one or more respective pins disposed on an other of the upper receiver coupler and the barrel coupler.
20. A weapon comprising:
- an upper receiver defining a gas port and a barrel opening, the barrel opening extending through a threaded upper receiver extension;
- a barrel;
- an upper receiver coupler, the threaded upper receiver extension extending through a first opening defined in the upper receiver coupler;
- a threaded component for threadably engaging and attaching the threaded upper receiver extension to the upper receiver coupler and thereby to the upper receiver;
- a barrel coupler defining a second opening for receiving the barrel, the barrel secured within the second opening and into the barrel opening in the upper receiver extension;
- a gas tube having a length less than a length of the barrel;
- a gas key having a first end attached to the upper receiver and a second end extending into a third opening defined in the receiver coupler;
- a forward end of the gas tube attached to a forward end of the barrel;
- a rearward end of the gas tube extending through a fourth opening in the barrel coupler and attached to the second end of the gas key for creating a continuous gas flow path from the forward end of the barrel to the upper receiver; and
- the upper receiver coupler attached to the barrel coupler.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 23, 2018
Publication Date: Jan 3, 2019
Inventor: Mike Selvetti (Palm Bay, FL)
Application Number: 15/960,499