Firearms – Safety mechanism – Trigger lock
Reexamination Certificate
2003-06-16
2004-11-16
Johnson, Stephen M. (Department: 3641)
Firearms
Safety mechanism
Trigger lock
C042S070010, C042S066000, C382S121000, C382S124000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06817130
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to unauthorized user prevention devices, and more specifically relates to a sensor array for use in such devices. While applicable to many environments, the invention is especially applicable to an identification device and method to prevent the discharge of a firearm by anyone other than an owner and/or registered user.
2. Description of the Related Art
All too often there are tragic news reports of people who are gravely injured or killed by gunshots fired by a person who is not the owner or an authorized user of the firearm. Regardless of the specific cause, it is evident that many of these incidents could be avoided if the firearm were only fireable by the owner or other authorized user of the gun.
A number of prior art patents have been directed to technology for solving this vexing problem. U.S. Pat. No. 4,970,819 to Mayhak, for example, discloses a system for sensing the grip pattern of the hand of a potential user of a firearm and permitting the firing thereof if it senses a particular grip pattern of an authorized user which it has been programmed to recognize. The system includes grip pattern sensing means on the handgrip of the firearm, a simulated neural network memory capable of being “trained” to recognize a particular grip pattern and a microprocessor for accessing the neural network to inquire whether it recognizes the grip pattern being sensed by the sensing means. The microprocessor also controls means for permitting and preventing actuation of the firing mechanism of the firearm to allow the firearm to be discharged only when the grip pattern sensed by the sensing means is that of the authorized user which the simulated neural network memory has been programmed to recognize.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,179 discloses a safety mechanism for a firearm consisting of a specialized scanning mechanism built into the firearm's trigger. The scanner is programmed to read the unique fingerprints of a given individual. The device is also capable of holding the programmed print information for more than one person, so that multiple people would he able to use the firearm. However, usage is limited to only those persons whose handprints have been prestored in the scanner. The scanner mechanism is connected to the firearm's safety lock. The safety is prevented from being released without proper authorization from the scanner. When a person grips the weapon and places his finger on the trigger, the pressure of the finger on the trigger activates the scanner, and the scanner reads the fingerprint to determine if the scanned fingerprint matches one of the pre-stored fingerprint images. If the individual is an authorized user, the scanner transmits a signal to the safety, releasing this device and activating the firearm for use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,479 to Wong discloses a firearm training system, which allows the measurement and display as a function of time of the hand grip force pattern applied to the grip of a firearm by a weapon hand of a shooter. This permits the detection of variations in the individual handgrip forces in the pattern during firing of the weapon. This firearm training system preferably also provides for the detection and display as a function of time of the position of the firearm trigger. The system includes separate force transducers for the side and front-to-back grip forces applied to the side surfaces and one of the front and back surfaces of the grip respectively as well as a trigger position sensor. A relative value of the hand grip forces detected by the transducers and a relative trigger position detected by the sensor are graphically displayed by the system as a function of time.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,563,940, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, a further weapon discharge protection system is disclosed that prohibits a firearm, such as a handgun, from being fired by anyone other than its owner or other authorized person. The present invention can be considered as an improvement on the invention of U.S. Pat. No. 6,563,940 patent, and the entire disclosure of such patent is hereby incorporated by reference. In one embodiment of this prior patent, pressure sensors are arranged within the handgrip of the firearm. When one attempts to fire the firearm, he or she exerts a unique pressure signature profile on the handgrip. That is, each person exerts a pressure signature profile that is comprised of (1) the position of the hand on the gun handle; (2) pressure as a function of position on the gun handle; and (3) pressure as a function of time. Pressure signature profiles are sufficiently distinctive as a means for differentiating the owner or other authorized person, whose pressure signature profile is stored in memory, from the remainder of the population-at-large. This signature profile is most differentiating during the half of a second just prior to the trigger pull, as the user prepares to fire the weapon. Initial data show that no more than 1% of the population-at-large possess a given pressure profile. In other words, there is a very low probability that a person who is not the owner or authorized user of a gun would be permitted to fire the gun because he or she matched the stored pressure signature profile.
In one embodiment of the U.S. Pat. No. 6,563,940 patent, quartz crystals, arranged along the surface of the handle, are used as the pressure sensors. When biased these crystals, which are used in timepieces, oscillate at a fixed frequency, and pressure applied to the crystals result in repeatable, precise changes in this oscillation frequency. The electrical signals from the quartz crystals, which correspond to the pressure signature profile, or other sensor material, is inputted to a processing unit, such as a microprocessor. The signal could be the electrical signal generated by the pressure signature profile of the lawful owner or user, inputted to the processing unit for the first time. In this case, by entering a sequence of commands, the signal will be stored within the processing unit as the pressure signature profile of the owner or authorized user. On the other hand, the signal generated by the pressure signature profile could be that of a person who is attempting to fire the firearm, in which case the electrical signal outputted from the crystals to the processing unit is compared to the signal stored as pressure signature profile of the owner or authorized user. If the signal matches the signal stored as the pressure signal profile, then the processing unit activates a mechanism that allows the owner or authorized user to fire the firearm. If the signal outputted from the crystals does not match the signal stored on the pressure signal profile, then the processing unit does not activate the mechanism, so that the firearm cannot be fired.
FIG. 1
herein is taken from the U.S. Pat. No. 6,563,940 patent and is a prior art depiction of a firearm
100
, which in this particular example is a handgun having a revolver design. The firearm
100
is provided with a handgrip
120
and is fired when firing mechanism
130
is actuated. The firing mechanism
130
includes trigger
140
, which is pivotally mounted in the frame of the gun at
150
. Movement of the trigger
140
will cause a hammer
160
to be cocked and released, thus firing a bullet (not shown) stored in the cylinder
170
. The firearm
100
is provided with a safety, which is moved in and out of position to prevent and permit the actuation of the firing mechanism
130
. The safety is a sliding latch member
180
adapted to engage a portion
190
on trigger
140
, which extends under the latch member
180
. Latch member
180
is biased by a spring
185
to a position in which it is it is adjacent to portion
190
, thereby preventing trigger
140
from being pulled, in which case it pivots around pivot
150
into the fired position. In effect, latch member
180
prevents actuation of the firing mechanism. This handgun is further provided with a solenoid
195
into which an end of
Johnson Stephen M.
Klauber & Jackson
New Jersey Institute of Technology
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