Firearms – Safety mechanism – Hammer or firing pin
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-19
2001-07-10
Johnson, Stephen M. (Department: 3641)
Firearms
Safety mechanism
Hammer or firing pin
C042S069030, C089S147000, C089S154000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06256918
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a safety mechanism for a semi-automatic handgun. More particularly, the invention relates to a firing pin locking assembly.
Accidental firings of semi-automatic handguns pose a danger risk for handgun owners. Handgun designers and manufacturers are continuously attempting to design new and improved safety devices that will decrease the danger risk of handguns by preventing accidental firings. Many different aspects of handgun operation readily lend themselves to safety devices.
The operation of the firing pin is one such aspect. In a typical semi-automatic handgun, a round is fired by bringing the firing pin into contact with a chambered round. The physical contact between the firing pin and the round causes the discharge of the round. To create the contact with the round, a hammer strikes the firing pin, which is slidably mounted in a slide, and pushes the firing pin into contact with the round. Allowing the firing pin to move freely within the slide could potentially result in an accidental discharge of the handgun. Thus, a safety device that locks the firing pin in place until the trigger is pulled can eliminate several potential safety hazards.
Firing pin locking devices for semi-automatic handguns are known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,861 to Khoury discloses one example of such a firing pin locking device. However, the known devices, like the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,861, do not completely eliminate the possibility of accidental firings.
The known firing pin locks work in conjunction with trigger assemblies to lock the firing pin in place until the trigger is pulled. The firing pin lock is positioned in the slide and is directly connected to the trigger. Pulling the trigger releases the hammer and causes the firing pin lock to disengage from the firing pin so the firing pin can move within the slide. The hammer strikes the firing pin to thereby fire a round. The recoil action of the fired round causes the slide to move rearwardly to extract the spent round. The slide then returns to the forward position and chambers the next round to be fired.
The safety concern with such prior art safety devices occurs when the trigger remains in the pulled position after the round is fired. Because the known firing pin locks have a direct connection to the trigger, the firing pin locks do not re-engage the firing pin until the trigger is released. Thus, when the slide moves forward to move the next round into the chamber, the firing pin remains unlocked unless the trigger is released. The forward momentum of the slide and firing pin could potentially result in the firing pin striking the recently chambered round, thereby initiating an accidental shot.
This scenario could repeat on each successive round until the trigger is released. Consequently, the handgun could potentially fire automatically because the firing pin lock does not re-engage the firing pin until the trigger is released. Thus, a handgun that was not intended to be fired automatically could become automatic if the trigger remains pulled or otherwise jams.
In light of the foregoing there is a need for a firing pin locking device for a semi-automatic weapon that locks the firing pin after each round is fired, regardless of the trigger position.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a semi-automatic handgun. The advantages and purposes of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The advantages and purposes of the invention will be realized and attained by the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
To attain the advantages and in accordance with the purposes of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention is directed to a semi-automatic handgun comprising a frame having a sear pin, a hammer pin, a safety pin, and a trigger. A slide is mounted on the frame and can slide between forward and rearward positions. A firing pin is slidably disposed in the slide. There is provided a firing pin plunger that has a locked position and an unlocked position. In the locked position, the firing pin plunger engages the firing pin. In the unlocked position, the firing pin plunger is disengaged from the firing pin. A plunger spring is provided to bias the firing pin plunger into the locked position. There is also provided a trigger assembly mounted in the frame. The trigger assembly moves the firing pin plunger to the unlocked position when the trigger is pulled and subsequently releases the firing pin plunger after each round is fired regardless of the position of the trigger. The release of the firing pin plunger allows the plunger spring to urge the firing pin plunger into the locked position.
According to another aspect, the invention is directed to a firing pin locking assembly for a semi-automatic handgun including a frame having a trigger and a slide. The assembly comprises a firing pin slidably mounted in the slide. There is provided a firing pin plunger that has a locked position and an unlocked position. In the locked position, the firing pin plunger engages the firing pin. In the unlocked position, the firing pin plunger is disengaged from the firing pin. A plunger spring is provided to bias the firing pin plunger into the locked position. There is also provided a trigger assembly mounted in the frame. The trigger assembly moves the firing pin plunger to the unlocked position when the trigger is pulled and subsequently releases the firing pin plunger after each round is fired regardless of the position of the trigger. The release of the firing pin plunger allows the plunger spring to urge the firing pin plunger into the locked position.
In another aspect, the invention is directed to a firing pin lock assembly for a semi-automatic handgun. The assembly comprises a locking means for locking the firing pin in place. There is provided a trigger assembly for selectively disengaging the locking means from the firing pin. The trigger assembly enables the locking means to automatically lock the firing pin after each round is fired.
In still another aspect, the invention is directed to a semi-automatic handgun comprising a frame having a trigger. A slide is mounted on the frame for sliding movement. A firing pin is mounted in the slide and is operable to contact a chambered round of ammunition to fire the round. There is provided a firing pin plunger that is moveable between a locked position where the firing pin plunger locks the firing pin and an unlocked position where the firing pin is free to move into contact with the chambered round to fire the round. The firing pin plunger is normally biased into the locked position. There is also provided a trigger assembly that, in response to movement of the trigger, selectively disengages the firing pin plunger from the locked position and holds the plunger in the unlocked position. The trigger assembly is operable to release the plunger from the unlocked position to thereby lock the firing pin in response to movement of the slide subsequent to the firing of the chambered round.
According to another aspect, the present invention is directed to a semi-automatic handgun comprising a frame having a trigger. A slide is mounted on the frame for sliding movement. A firing pin is mounted in the slide and is operable to contact a chambered round of ammunition to fire the round. There is provided a firing pin plunger that is moveable between a locked position where the firing pin plunger locks the firing pin and an unlocked position where the firing pin is free to move into contact with the chambered round to fire the round. There is also provided a plunger operating mechanism that is selectively movable between a safe position and a firing position in response to a movement of the trigger. The movement of the plunger operating mechanism from the safe position to the firing position causes the firing pin plunger to
Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner L.L.P.
Johnson Stephen M.
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