Magazine safety

Details Magazine safety Magazine safety

1999-04-26

2001-06-05

Jordan, Charles T. (Department: 3641)

Firearms

Safety mechanism

Magazine operated

Reexamination Certificate

active

06240669

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to safety mechanisms for firearms and particularly to a magazine safety.
2. Discussion of Background
Although safety mechanisms play an important role in preventing the accidental discharge of a firearm, many accidental shootings still occur each year. Carelessness and negligence factor into many accidental shootings; however, many times an undetected bullet remaining in the chamber of the firearm is unintentionally discharged. Persons familiar with firearm safety realize that a firearm may still be potentially deadly, even though the magazine is removed.
In semi-automatic firearms, the bullets are fed into the chamber automatically upon firing. Although the trigger may be actuated in rapid succession, the automatically fed bullets can become a safety hazard. Unless the entire magazine load has been fired, a bullet will remain in the chamber of the firearm.
In order to reduce the safety risks posed by a bullet remaining in the chamber of the firearm, numerous magazine safeties have been devised. A magazine safety functions to prevent movement of the trigger if the magazine is removed from the firearm; however, the trigger is free to move if the magazine is within the firearm, unless another safety prevents movement of the trigger. Unfortunately, the magazine safeties that have currently been devised are overly complex and thereby likely to fail.
Therefore, there is a need for a magazine safety having a simple design that can be manufactured in a cost-effective manner.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to its major aspects and broadly stated, the present invention is a magazine safety for a firearm. The magazine safety comprises a sleeve that is slidably received within a recessed pocket, which is formed in the magazine well. The sleeve has an upper blocking projection that is capable of engaging a notch in the trigger bar of the firearm and a lower engaging projection that extends into the magazine well and engages the inserted magazine, thereby lifting the sleeve and removing its upper blocking projection from the notch in the trigger arm. If the magazine well is empty or a magazine is partially inserted, the sleeve is urged downward into the pocket and the upper projection is urged into engagement with the notch of the trigger arm by a spring.
The magazine safety is moved between a safe position and a fire position by the insertion of a magazine. When the magazine well is empty or a magazine that is partially inserted, the upper blocking projection engages the notch in the trigger bar, thereby preventing movement. Since the trigger bar is incapable of movement, the firearm cannot be fired. As a magazine is inserted, the magazine safety is moved into the fire position, the sleeve is lifted so that the upper blocking projection does not prevent movement of the trigger bar; consequently, the firearm is capable of firing.
A major feature of the present invention is the use of the upper blocking projection to directly prevent movement of the trigger bar. Instead of blocking the sear, as in other magazine safeties, preventing movement of the trigger bar directly results in a simpler design. Moreover, blocking the trigger bar directly allows the trigger to be stopped earlier in the motion set in place by moving the trigger than blocking the sear.
The simplicity of the design is a major advantage of the present invention. The simplicity is created by the upper blocking mechanism that engages the notch in the trigger bar directly.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a careful reading of the Detailed Description of a Preferred Embodiment presented below and accompanied by the drawings.


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