Cartridge Extractor of AR-Pattern Firearm

Abstract

A cartridge extracting tool for an AR-pattern firearm, such as the AR-15, M16, M4 and other variants, which employs a ratchet assembly with a charge handle claw that engages the firearm charge handle and buttstock, and applies tensile forces to withdrawn the charge handle, move the bolt carrier group, the bolt, and the jammed cartridge, to be ejected from the firearm.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS

None.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to tools for servicing firearms. More particularly, the present invention relates to a cartridge extracting tool for the purpose of removing jammed cartridges, or spent cartridge casings, from the chamber of AR-pattern firearm, such as the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and the M16 automatic rifle, as well as a wide range of variants thereof.

Description of Related Art

Those experienced in the construction, operation and use of AR-pattern firearms will be familiar with an occasional issue where a cartridge or casing is jammed in the chamber of the firearm and cannot easily be removed by manually cycling the firearm's action through manipulation its change handle. In effect, the cartridge or casing is jammed so tightly that the maximum amount of force that a user can manually apply to the charge handle is insufficient to cycle the firearm's action to remove it. When this occurs, the firearm becomes unserviceable. In prior art operations, the AR-pattern firearm would need to be partially disassembled with forces applied within the action or through the muzzle end of the barrel to remove the jammed cartridge or casing. This is a time consuming and a potentially dangerous operation in the case where a live round of ammunition is involved. Thus it can be appreciated that there is a need in the art to overcome the problems in the prior art.

As used in this disclosure, an “AR-pattern firearm” is any variant or derivative of the familiar AR-10, AR-15, M16, M4 rifles, and many other variants from many manufacturers, including rifle and pistol configuration, of that rifle platform well known to those skilled in the art. By way of background, the AR-pattern rifles began with the ArmaLite AR-10 battle rifle, chambered in 7.62 mm by 51 mm NATO caliber, designed by Eugene Stoner in the late 1950s and manufactured by ArmaLite division of the Fairchild Aircraft Corporation. When first introduced in 1956, the AR-10 used an innovative combination of a straight-line barrel/stock design with phenolic composite, a new and patented gas-operated bolt and bolt carrier system, and forged alloy parts resulting in a lightweight small arm. The ArmaLite AR-10 would become the progenitor for a wide range of AR-pattern firearms. In 1957, the basic AR-10 design was rescaled and substantially modified by ArmaLite to accommodate the 0.223 Remington cartridge, and given the designation ArmaLite AR-15.

In 1959, ArmaLite sold its rights to the AR-10 and AR-15 to Colt Firearms. After modifications (most notably, the charge handle was relocated from under the carrying handle like in the AR-10 to the upper-rear of the upper receiver), the new redesigned rifle was subsequently adopted by the U.S. military as the M16 rifle. Colt continued to use the AR-15 trademark for its line of semi-automatic rifles marketed to civilian and law-enforcement customers, known as Colt AR-15®.

Generally, an “AR-pattern firearm” is any lightweight automatic or semi-automatic firearm based on, or derived from, the Armalite/Colt AR-15 design. This includes both rifle and pistol configurations, as are known to those skilled in the art. The AR-pattern firearm is characterized has having a straight-line configuration of the barrel, chamber, bolt, bolt carrier, buffer, buffer spring, buffer tube, and buttstock, and with a charge handle located at the upper rear end of the upper receiver, also referred to as the breech end, which is operable to cycle the firearm's action, including the action of extracting a cartridge or casing from the chamber, where the cartridge or casing is ejected from the upper receiver through a side-located ejection port.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The problems in the prior art are addressed by the apparatus and methods of present invention. The present disclosure teaches a cartridge extractor for an AR-pattern firearm that forcibly cycles the firearm action and clears the firearm chamber of a jammed cartridge, where the AR-pattern firearm has a buttstock with a buttplate at a breech end thereof, and has an upper receiver with a charge handle that presents a grip portion adjacent to, and conforming with, a rear contour portion of the upper receiver. The cartridge extractor includes a tension bar and a ratchet assembly disposed about a first end of the tension bar, and has a ratchet actuator manually operable to forcibly move the ratchet assembly along the tension bar towards a second end, and a charge handle engagement assembly fixed to the second end of the tension bar, which has a charge handle claw extending therefrom in a direction substantially orthogonal to the tension bar, and also has an upper receiver recess formed into a distal end of the charge handle engagement assembly to provide conformal clearance for the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, thereby facilitating engagement of the charge handle claw with the grip portion of the charge handle. The ratchet assembly further includes a buttplate jaw positioned to align with the buttplate of the AR-pattern firearm while the charge handle engagement assembly is engaged with the grip portion of the charge handle. An where operation of the ratchet actuator while the jaw is engaged with the buttplate, and while the charge handle claw is engaged with the grip portion of the charge handle, applies tension forces that withdraw the charge handle from the upper receiver, thereby cycling the action and clearing the chamber of the AR-pattern firearm.

In a specific embodiment of the foregoing cartridge extractor, the charge handle claw is canted in the range of zero to five degrees toward the tension bar, which thereby urges the charge handle engagement assembly to engage, grip, and close with the charge handle as tension forces build in the tension bar. In another specific embodiment, the charge handle claw is canted two degrees toward the tension bar, which thereby urges the charge handle engagement assembly to engage, grip, and close with the charge handle as tension forces build in the tension bar.

In a specific embodiment of the foregoing cartridge extractor, wherein the AR-pattern firearm charge handle includes a left and right charge handle grip portions, the charge handle engagement assembly includes left and right charge handle claws arranged to engage the left and right charge handle grip portions. In refinement to the foregoing embodiment, the charge handle engagement assembly further includes a forked frame having a tang extending from a first end and left and right fork tines extending from a second end, where the tang is attached to the tension bar, and wherein the left and right charge handle claws extend from the left and right fork tines, respectively.

In another refinement to the foregoing embodiment, the left and right charge handle claws are roll pins pressed into the forked frame. In yet another refinement, the left and right charge handle claws are integrally formed with the forked frame and located adjacent distal ends, respectively, of the left and right forked tines. In another embodiment, the forked frame is machined or molded from an aluminum alloy.

The present disclosure also teaches a method of forcibly cycling the action of an AR-pattern firearm for clearing the chamber of a jammed cartridge, where the AR-pattern firearm has a buttstock with a buttplate at its breech end, and has an upper receiver with a charge handle that presents a grip portion adjacent to, and conforming with, a rear contour portion of the upper receiver, and wherein the method employs a cartridge extractor that includes a tension bar with a ratchet assembly at a first end, which has a ratchet actuator that is manually operable to forcibly move the ratchet assembly along the tension bar towards its second end, and further has a charge handle engagement assembly fixed to the second end, where the charge handle engagement assembly has a charge handle claw that extends in an orthogonal direction to the tension bar, and has an upper receiver recess formed into a distal end of the charge handle engagement assembly for providing conformal clearance for the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, the ratchet assembly further including a buttplate jaw. The method includes the steps of adjusting the position of the ratchet assembly along the tension bar to a length simultaneously enabling the charge handle claw to engage the grip portion of the charge handle and enabling the buttplate jaw to engage the buttplate of the AR-pattern firearm, and then engaging the cartridge extractor with the AR-pattern firearm such that the charge handle engagement assembly upper receiver recess conformally clears the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, and the charge handle claw engages the grip portion of the charge handle, and the buttplate jaw engages the buttplate, and then manually actuating the ratchet actuator to advance the ratchet assembly along the tension bar toward the second end, thereby inducing tension in the tension bar and upon the charge handle engagement assembly and charge handle claw, and then continuing manually actuating the ratchet actuator, thereby increasing the tension forces and forcibly withdrawing the charge handle from the upper receiver, thereby cycling the action and clearing the chamber of the AR-pattern firearm.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a drawing of an exemplar AR-pattern firearm and FIG. 1B is a drawing of a cartridge extractor, illustrated in proportion to FIG. 1A, and according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are side drawings of a cartridge extractor engaged with an AR-pattern firearm according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view diagram of an AR-pattern firearm bolt carrier group assembly and charge handle assembly according to the prior art.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view photograph of the charge handle grip area of an AR-pattern firearm according to the prior art.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are perspective view drawings of a cartridge extractor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D are a side view drawing, a bottom view drawing, a front view drawing, and a rear view drawing, respectively, of a cartridge extractor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C, and 7D are a top view drawing, a side view drawing, a rear end view drawing, and a front end view drawing, respectively, of a charge handle claw according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view drawing of a charge handle claw according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a process diagram for operation of a cartridge extractor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Illustrative embodiments and exemplary applications will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings to disclose the advantageous teachings of the present invention.

While the present invention is described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments within the scope hereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility.

In considering the detailed embodiments of the present invention, it will be observed that the present invention resides primarily in combinations of steps to accomplish various methods or components to form various apparatus and systems. Accordingly, the apparatus and system components, and method steps, have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the disclosures contained herein.

In this disclosure, relational terms such as first and second, top and bottom, upper and lower, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by “comprises a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.

The present disclosure teaches a cartridge extractor that is useful for extracting cartridges, or spent cartridge casings, from the chamber of an AR-pattern firearm by applying extraction forces to the charge handle of the firearm, that is to say, by applying forces to withdraw the charge handle from the upper receiver. These forces are potentially greater than the forces a typical user could manually apply. The cartridge extractor engages grip portion(s) of the charge handle and engages the buttplate portion of the firearm buttstock. Compressive force is applied between these locations using a tension bar on the cartridge extractor. A ratchet assembly comprises a jaw that engages the buttplate, and actuation of the ratchet assembly shortens the distance between the jaw and a charge handle claw, which is the portion of the cartridge extractor that engages the charge handle. As the ratchet is operated, the forces increase to the point where they are sufficient to extract the cartridge or casing from the firearm chamber, ejecting it through the ejection port of the firearm. With this action, the cartridge extractor is free to fall away from the firearm as the tension forces on the tension bar are instantly relieved, rendering the firearm in condition for continued use. Note that for the remainder of this disclosure, both a loaded cartridge and a spent cartridge casing will simply be referred to as a “cartridge”, for the sake of textural brevity.

Reference is directed to FIG. 1A, which is a drawing of an exemplar AR-pattern firearm 4 illustrated in graphical proportion to a cartridge extractor 2 illustrated in FIG. 1B. The AR-pattern firearm 4 illustrated in FIG. 1A shares several components that are typical of most AR-pattern firearms, and these include; a lower receiver 9, and upper receiver 11 with ejection port 3, a forestock 7 over a barrel 13, and a buttstock 5 having a buttplate 10 at the extreme breech end of the firearm 4. Note in particular that the AR-pattern firearm 4 includes a charge handle 15, which presents at least a first manual grip that is accessed by a user to withdraw the charge handle 12 outwardly from the breech end of the upper receiver 11, to thereby cycle an internal bolt carrier group (not shown) so as to cycle the firearm action, which cycle usually includes removal and ejection of a spent cartridge from the firearm's 4 internal chamber (not shown) through the ejection port 3.

Reference is directed to FIG. 1B, which is a drawing of a firearm cartridge extracting tool 2 (hereinafter “cartridge extractor”) that is useful for forcibly removing a cartridge, particularly one that is jammed in a firearm chamber, from an AR-pattern firearm. The cartridge extractor 2 includes a tension bar 22 with a charge handle engagement assembly 24 at a first end, which includes one of more charge handle claws 8 extending therefrom. At the opposite end of the tension bar 22 is a ratchet mechanism 12 the presents a jaw 6 for engaging the buttplate (item 10 in FIG. 1A) on an AR-pattern firearm. It should be noted that the “buttplate” is the extreme surface of the firearm's breech end, whether that be a convention fixed buttstock, a collapsible buttstock, or even a bare buffer tube, as may be present in an AR-pattern firearm in a pistol configuration. The essential relationship is that the jaw 6 engages the buttplate end of the firearm to apply compressive force thereto. In operation, the ratchet mechanism 12 is manually operated to reduce the distance between the jaw 6 and the claw(s) 8 through application of tension on the tension bar 22. When engaged with an AR-pattern firearm 4, this action applies greater force upon the charge handle 15 than is possible to apply manually, to thereby assist in rearward movement of the charge handle 15 in clearing a jammed cartridge from the firearm 4.

Reference is directed to FIGS. 2A and 2B, which are sideview drawings of a cartridge extractor 2 engaged with another AR-pattern firearm 30 according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 2A, the firearm 30 has its action and charge handle 32 in the close position, with a cartridge (item 41 in FIG. 2B) jammed in the chamber (not shown). The AR-pattern firearm 30 comprises a lower receiver 46 with handgrip 48, an upper receiver 38 with an integrated carry handle 40, and having an ejection port 45 on the side of the upper receiver 38, a forestock 42, a barrel 44, a buffer tube 34, an adjustable-position buttstock 36 with buttplate 37, The charge handle 32 is presented at the breech end of the upper receiver 38. The cartridge extractor 2 comprises a tension bar 22, a charge handle engagement assembly 24, which includes one or more charge handle claws 8 extending therefrom. At the opposite end of the tension bar 22 is a ratchet mechanism 12. The ratchet mechanism 12 includes a handgrip 16 with ratchet actuator 18. A user squeezes the ratchet actuator 18 towards the handgrip 16 to advance the ratchet mechanism 12 along the tension bar 22. The ratchet mechanism 12 further includes a ratchet release lever 20, which is actuated to release the ratchet mechanism 12 so as to manually slide the ratchet mechanism 12 along the tension bar 22. A jaw support 14 extends from the ratchet mechanism 12 so as to align a buttplate jaw 6 with the buttplate 37 of the buttstock 36.

Now continuing to FIG. 2B, this drawing illustrates the operation of the cartridge extractor 2 as the ratchet assembly 12 advances along the tension bar 22, which results in movement 25 of the charge handle 32 out of the upper receiver 38. Note that one important feature of the cartridge extractor 2 charge handle engagement assembly 24 is that the charge handle claw 8 must engage and release the charge handle latch (see item 66 in FIGS. 3 and 4 for reference, infra.) as it withdraws the charge handle 32 from the upper receiver 38. The shape and orientation for the charge handle claws 8 described herein accomplish this important function. As the ratchet assembly 12 advances, the buttplate 37 and jaw 6 engagement prevent any movement thereof, other than withdrawal 25 of the charge handle 32 from the upper receiver 38. The manual force applied to the ratchet actuator 18 is multiplied by a mechanical advantage of the ratchet assembly 12, thereby providing sufficient forces along the tension bar 22 to withdraw 25 the change handle 32, as illustrated. As this movement 25 occurs, the cartridge 41, being engaged about its rim by the firearm's bolt 43, is withdrawn from the chamber (not shown) to be ejected out the side of the upper receiver, through the ejection port 45.

Reference is directed to FIG. 3, which is an exploded view diagram of an AR-pattern firearm bolt carrier group assembly 50 and charge handle assembly 52 according to the prior art. This is provided as a reference to readers unfamiliar with AR-pattern firearm design and operation. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the bolt carrier group assembly 50 comprises a bolt carrier 54, a bolt 56 together with its alignment cam 60 and cotter pin 61, a gas key 58 with its fasteners 59, and a firing pin 62. The charge handle assembly 52 comprises the charge handle 64 with left snd right grip portions 65, and a latch 66 with latch spring 67. As assembled into a AR-pattern firearm (not shown), the gas key 58 is attached to the bolt carrier 54, and the distal end 63 of the charge handle 64 is positioned about the gas key 58. As the charge handle 64 is retracted rearwardly from the upper receiver (not shown, but see FIG. 2B) of the AR-pattern firearm (not shown), the distal end 63 engages the gas key 58, which urges the gas key 58 and bolt carrier 54, as well as the bolt 56, rearwardly within the upper receiver (not shown) toward the breech end of the firearm (not shown). Since the bolt 56 will be engaged with the rim of a cartridge (not shown) in the AR-pattern firearm chamber (not shown), that cartridge would also also be urged rearwardly within the upper receiver (not shown). The foregoing is the normal mode of operation of these assemblies 50, 52 in a typical AR-pattern firearm.

Reference is directed to FIG. 4, which is a perspective view photograph of the charge handle grip area of an AR-pattern firearm according to the prior art. In this photograph, the left and right grip portions 65 and the latch 66 of the charge handle are visible in relation to the upper receiver 38 and the lower receiver 46, as pictured. Note that a buffer tube 34 extends from the lower receiver 46, and supports the buttstock 36 thereupon. Further note that there exists an upper receiver rear contour portion 39 that extends upwardly from the upper receiver 38 at the juncture with the charge handle in its closed position. This contour portion 39 is present on most AR-pattern firearms, whether they be of the aforementioned A1, A2, A4 or other known variants. Some of these variants employ a Picatinny rail on top of the upper receiver, and others employ a carry handle, either detachable of fixed, to the upper receiver. In any case, there is a corresponding contour portion 39, as illustrated. This is of significance, as the aforementioned charge handle engagement assembly of the cartridge extractor must clear the contour portion 39 of the upper receiver 38, yet its jaws must be aligned to engage at least one of the grip portions 65, and preferable both of them.

Reference is directed to FIGS. 5A and 5B, which are perspective view drawings of a cartridge extractor 2 according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. The tension bar 22 is fabricated from a durable material, such as hardened steel or other suitable material known to the skilled in the material arts. The length of the tension bar is selected to accommodate AR-pattern firearms known to have the longest length of pull, which is typically a fixed-stock AR-pattern rifle (see FIG. 1A). The cartridge extractor 2 further comprises a charge handle engagement assembly 24, which includes a forked frame 25 one or more charge handle claws 8 extending therefrom. In an illustrative embodiment, this is fabricated from a readily machinable material with sufficient strength, such as aluminum alloy. The forked frame 25 may be attached to the tension bar 22 in a suitable manner, which are attachment roll pins 23 in the illustrative embodiment. The charge handle claws 8 may be integrally formed with the forked frame 25, or may be attached by other suitable manners. In the illustrate embodiment, the claws 8 are roll pins pressed into the forked frame 25. Note that the claws 8 are substantially orthogonal to the tension bar 22, but may be canted a few degrees (see FIG. 6A), in the range of zero to five degrees, and preferably two degrees, toward the tension bar 22, so that they tend to engage, grip, and close the forked frame 25 against the charge handle (not shown) as tension forces 25 build in the tension bar 22 during ratcheting operation. At the opposite end of the tension bar 22 is a ratchet mechanism 12. The ratchet mechanism 12 includes a handgrip 16 with ratchet actuator 18. A user squeezes the ratchet actuator 18 towards the handgrip 16 to advance 25 the ratchet mechanism 12 along the tension bar 22. The ratchet mechanism 12 further includes a ratchet release lever 20, which is actuated to release the ratchet so as to manually slide the ratchet mechanism 12 along the tension bar 22. A jaw support 14 extends from the ratchet mechanism 12 and presents a buttplate jaw 6. In the illustrate embodiment, the ratchet mechanism 12 and tension bar 22 are components of commercial bar clamps, such as the Irwin Quick-Grip™ (www.irwin.com) clamps available from retail hardware providers.

Reference is directed to FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D, which are a side view drawing, a bottom view drawing, a front view drawing, and a rear view drawing, respectively, of a cartridge extractor 2 according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. The tension bar 22 is fixed to the charge handle engagement assembly 24 at one end, which includes a forked frame 25, and one or more charge handle claws 8 extending therefrom. The forked frame 25 may be attached to the tension bar 22 in any suitable manner that will accommodate the forces involved, and which are attachment roll pins 23 in the illustrative embodiment. The charge handle claws 8 may be integrally formed with the forked frame 25, or may be attached in other suitable manners. In the illustrate embodiment, the claws 8 are roll pins pressed into the forked frame 25. Note that the claws 8 are canted a few degrees toward the tension bar 22, so that they tend to engage, grip, and close the forked frame 25 against the top of the charge handle (not shown) as tension forces 25 build in the tension bar 22 during ratcheting operation. Design parameters have been established, which provide that five degrees is the reasonable maximum canted angle. The most workable canted angle across a range of upper receiver style, (i.e. A1, A2, and A4 upper receivers) is two degrees. Any more than five degrees, and the cartridge extractor may not go forward enough to engage the charge handle without interference with the upper receiver rear contour portion (items 39 in FIG. 4). In certain illustrative embodiments, a zero canted angle has shown to be effective, particularly with the A4 type, flat-top, upper receiver.

Continuing in FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D, at the opposite end of the tension bar 22 is a ratchet mechanism 12. The ratchet mechanism 12 includes a handgrip 16 with ratchet actuator 18. The ratchet mechanism 12 further includes a ratchet release lever 20, which is actuated to release the ratchet so as to manually slide the ratchet mechanism 12 along the tension bar 22. A jaw support 14 extends from the ratchet mechanism 12 and presents a buttplate jaw 6, which is arranged to engage the buttplate of an AR-pattern firearm (not shown).

Reference is directed to FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C, and 7D, which are a top view drawing, a side view drawing, a rear end view drawing, and a front end view drawing, respectively, of a charge handle forked frame 25 according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. Reference is also directed to FIG. 8, which is a corresponding perspective view drawing of a charge handle forked frame 25. In the illustrative embodiment, the frame 25 is fabricated from machined aluminum alloy. However, the frame 25 could also be machined from other suitable materials, as are known to those skilled in the art. The frame 25 could also be cast or molded, as well as three-dimensionally printed, again, using a material having suitable strength, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. The forked frame 25 includes a pair of mounting tangs 72 extending from a generally forked shape frame 76, which has two fork tines 78 extending on the opposite end from the tangs 72. A gap 74 is provided between the tangs 72 to accept one end of the aforementioned tension bar (not shown), which is connected to the tangs 72 using bolts or pins (not shown) through plural mounting holes 84 in the tangs 72, as illustrated. The fork tines 78 also include mounting holes 80 for insertion of the aforementioned roll pins (not shown), which are used as the charge handle claws discussed hereinbefore. In an illustrative embodiment, the roll pins are 5/16″ diameter and extend ½″ (dimension 83 in FIG. 7B) from the lower surface of the tines 78. The clearance recess 86 defined between the tines 78 define the clearance opening 86 that provides clearance for the upper receiver rear contour portion (items 39 in FIG. 4). This clearance recess 86 is important to the functionality of the cartridge extractor, as it enables the charge handle forked frame 25 and claws (item 8, shown in phantom in FIG. 7B) to fully engage the grip portions of the charge handle (not shown, but see FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 4), while clearing the structure of the upper receiver (not shown, but see FIG. 4). In a preferred embodiment, the space between the tines 78 is a minimum of 11/16″ (dimension 77), and the distance from the rear of the claw mounting holes 80 to the rear of the clearance recess 86, in FIG. 7A, is ⅝″ minimum (dimension 79) and the inner radius of the clearance recess 86 (dimension 81) is one half the tine 78 spacing, which is 11/32″. These dimensional constraints have shown to reliably engage charge handles on a wide range of AR-pattern rifles configuration known in the art.

Reference is directed to FIG. 9, which is a process diagram for operation of a cartridge extractor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. The process begins at step 90 and proceeds to step 91 where a user has determined that a jammed condition in the AR-pattern firearm exists. At step 92, the firearm is rendered to a safe conditions, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. At step 93, the user activates the ratchet release and draws the ratchet assembly away from the charge handle engagement assembly so that the cartridge extractor can engage both the charge handle and the buttplate of the firearm, which is accomplished at step 94. At step 95, the user operates the cartridge extractor by cycling the ratchet actuator, thereby gradually withdrawing the charge handle from the upper receiver of the AR-pattern forearm, which also draws the bolt carrier, bolt, and cartridge from the chamber of the firearm. At step 96, the user checks to see if the cartridge has been fully withdrawn from the firearm chamber. If not, flow returns step 95 to continue the withdrawal process, above. If the cartridge is fully withdrawn from the firearm at step 96, flow continues to step 97 where the user activated the ratchet release to free the cartridge extractor from the firearm, and process ends at step 98.

Thus, the present invention has been described herein with reference to a particular embodiment for a particular application. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the present teachings will recognize additional modifications, applications and embodiments within the scope thereof.

It is therefore intended by the appended claims to cover any and all such applications, modifications and embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cartridge extractor for an AR-pattern firearm for forcibly cycling the firearm action and clearing the firearm chamber of a jammed cartridge, the AR-pattern firearm having a buttstock with a buttplate at a breech end thereof, and having an upper receiver with a charge handle that presents a grip portion adjacent to and conforming with a rear contour portion of the upper receiver, the cartridge extractor comprising:

a tension bar;

a ratchet assembly disposed about a first end of said tension bar, and having a ratchet actuator manually operable to forcibly move said ratchet assembly along said tension bar towards a second end thereof;

a charge handle engagement assembly fixed to said second end of said tension bar, and having a charge handle claw extending therefrom in a direction substantially orthogonal to said tension bar, and having an upper receiver recess formed into a distal end of said charge handle engagement assembly to provide conformal clearance for the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, to thereby facilitate engagement of said charge handle claw with the grip portion of the charge handle, and wherein

said ratchet assembly further includes a buttplate jaw positioned to align with the buttplate of the AR-pattern firearm while said charge handle engagement assembly is engaged with the grip portion of the charge handle, and wherein

operation of said ratchet actuator while said jaw is engaged with the buttplate, and while said charge handle claw is engaged with the grip portion of the charge handle, applies tension forces that withdraw the charge handle from the upper receiver, thereby cycling the action and clearing the chamber of the AR-pattern firearm.

2. The cartridge extractor of claim 1, wherein:

said charge handle claw is canted in the range of zero to five degrees toward said tension bar, thereby urging said charge handle engagement assembly to engage, grip, and close with the charge handle as tension forces build in said tension bar.

3. The cartridge extractor of claim 1, wherein:

said charge handle claw is canted two degrees toward said tension bar, thereby urging said charge handle engagement assembly to engage, grip, and close with the charge handle as tension forces build in said tension bar.

4. The cartridge extractor of claim 1, wherein the AR-pattern firearm charge handle includes a left and right charge handle grip portions, and wherein

said charge handle engagement assembly includes left and right charge handle claws arranged to engage the left and right charge handle grip portions.

5. The cartridge extractor of claim 5 wherein said charge handle engagement assembly further comprises:

a forked frame having a tang extending from a first end and left and right fork tines extending from a second end, and wherein

said tang is attached to said tension bar, and wherein

said left and right charge handle claws extend from said left and right fork tines, respectively.

6. The cartridge extractor of claim 5, and wherein

said left and right charge handle claws are roll pins pressed into said fired frame.

7. The cartridge extractor of claim 5, and wherein

said left and right charge handle claws are roll pins pressed into said forked frame.

8. The cartridge extractor of claim 5, and wherein

said left and right charge handle claws are integrally formed with said forked frame and located adjacent distal ends, respectively, of said left and right forked tines.

9. The cartridge extractor of claim 5, and wherein

said forked frame is machined from an aluminum alloy.

10. A method of forcibly cycling the action of an AR-pattern firearm for clearing the chamber of a jammed cartridge, the AR-pattern firearm having a buttstock with a buttplate at a breech end thereof, and having an upper receiver with a charge handle that presents a grip portion adjacent to and conforming with a rear contour portion of the upper receiver, the method employing a cartridge extractor including a tension bar having a ratchet assembly disposed about a first end thereof, and having a ratchet actuator manually operable for forcibly moving the ratchet assembly along the tension bar towards a second end thereof, and having a charge handle engagement assembly fixed to the second end of the tension bar, the charge handle engagement assembly having a charge handle claw extending therefrom in a direction substantially orthogonal to the tension bar, and having an upper receiver recess formed into a distal end of the charge handle engagement assembly for providing conformal clearance for the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, the ratchet assembly further including a buttplate jaw, the method comprising the steps of:

adjusting the position of the ratchet assembly along the tension bar to a length simultaneously enabling the charge handle claw to engage the grip portion of the charge handle and enabling the buttplate jaw to engage the buttplate of the AR-pattern firearm;

engaging the cartridge extractor with the AR-pattern firearm such that the charge handle engagement assembly upper receiver recess conformally clears the AR-pattern firearm upper receiver rear contour portion, and the charge handle claw engages the grip portion of the charge handle, and the buttplate jaw engages the buttplate;

manually actuating the ratchet actuator to advance the ratchet assembly along the tension bar toward the second end, thereby inducing tension in the tension bar and upon the charge handle engagement assembly and charge handle claw, and

continuing manually actuating the ratchet actuator, thereby increasing the tension forces and forcibly withdrawing the charge handle from the upper receiver, thereby cycling the action and clearing the chamber of the AR-pattern firearm.