Universal firearm mounted receiving apparatus for casings

Abstract

A universal firearm-mounted receiving apparatus adapted to receive an ejected casing from a firearm (FIG. 1). The apparatus has an arm with a mounting piece disposed at one end and a receptacle for shell casings disposed at the other end (opposite to) mounting piece. The arm further contains one or more hinges that allow(s) at least a portion of the arm to move independently of another portion, thereby making the arm and receptacle positionable for a variety of different firearms.

Claims

1. A universal firearm-mounted receiving apparatus adapted to receive an ejected casing from said firearm, comprising: a pair of arms, wherein a first arm of said pair of arms has a slidable or rotatable hinge disposed thereon and a second arm of said pair of arms is coupled with said slidable or rotatable hinge to thereby allow said second arm to slide along or rotate independently of the first arm; a mounting piece disposed at an end of said first arm; and a receptacle disposed at an end of said second arm.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hinge is a slidable hinge.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said mounting piece is a clamp.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said clamp is a quick-release clamp adapted to be mounted in a rail.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said receptacle is a bag with a spring frame disposed at a bottom thereof.

6. A universal firearm-mounted receiving apparatus adapted to receive an ejected casing from said firearm, comprising: an arm having a mounting piece disposed at first end of said arm and a receptacle disposed at an opposing end of said arm; wherein a first hinge is disposed at said first end of the arm between the mounting piece and the arm, and a second hinge is disposed on said arm between the first hinge and the receptacle.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said first hinge provides for at least one of rotation of the arm axially and rotation of the arm radially.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said second hinge is a slidable hinge.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said first hinge provides for at least one of rotation of the arm axially and rotation of the arm radially, and wherein said second hinge is a slidable hinge.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said mounting piece is a clamp.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said clamp is a quick-release clamp adapted to be mounted in a rail.

12. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said receptacle is a bag with a spring frame disposed at a bottom thereof.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 depicts a first embodiment of the invention.

(2) FIG. 2 illustrates one of several alternative mounting pieces for the embodiment of FIG. 1.

(3) FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a simplified rendition of the components for an embodiment of the invention.

(4) FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a simplified rendition of the components for another embodiment of the invention.

(5) FIG. 5 depicts a bag embodiment of the receptacle of FIG. 1 that further includes a spring frame.

(6) FIG. 6 depicts the bottom of the bag of FIG. 5 after the application of pressure to open the spring frame.

(7) FIG. 7 depicts a kit embodiment of the invention.

(8) FIG. 8 depicts another embodiment of the invention attached to a firearm.

(9) FIG. 9 depicts a perspective view of the embodiment in FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(10) Turning to FIG. 1, an embodiment suitable for mounting on a rail (such as a Picatinny rail) of a firearm is shown. The universal firearm-mounted receiving apparatus 2 includes an arm 4 containing a hinge 6 allowing a portion 8 of the arm to move independently of another portion 10. A mounting piece 12 is disposed at an end of the arm 4, and a receptacle 14 is disposed at an arm end opposite to mounting piece 12.

(11) The hinge 6 can be one of a great many varieties that allow for one or more of turning, swinging, slidable movement or other movement of one part of the arm independent of another part of the arm.

(12) The mounting piece 12 may be a clamp with quick release tabs 16 that allow grooves 18 to be engaged or released from a rail on a firearm through pressure applied by a user. However, other types of attaching or clamping arrangements are useable without the need for a rail, such as a simple pressure clamp like the c-clamp 20 and wing nut 22 (for tightening/loosening the clamp) shown in FIG. 2.

(13) As with the hinge and mounting piece, the receptacle may take a variety of forms and be made from a variety of materials. In one embodiment, the receptacle is a bag 24 attached to frame of receptacle 14 at the end of arm 4, thereby providing an opening 26 into which casings are ejected. The receptacle 14 is sized such that it can accommodate a large variety of shells sizes. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a spring frame 30 may be disposed at the bottom of bag 24 such that application of pressure P at the arrows will open the bag for release of the casings.

(14) As is further shown in FIG. 1, the universal firearm-mounted receiving apparatus 2 may additionally include another hinge 34. In this configuration, the hinge 34 is disposed at the first end of the arm between the mounting piece 12 and the arm 4, and the other hinge 6 is disposed on the arm 4 between the first hinge 34 and the receptacle 14. Hinge 34 provides for rotation of the arm radially 38 or rotation of the arm axially 40. In some embodiments, hinge 34 provides for both radial and axial movement of the arm 4 so that the receptacle 24 is positionable in a great many locations.

(15) Overall, the apparatus 2 may be made from any rigid material (with the receptacle additionally including any material that can capture and hold an ejected casing). Materials of lighter weight are preferred, such as aluminum or PVC plastic.

(16) As shown in simplified block form in FIGS. 3 and 4, embodiments may include a mounting piece 50, arm 52, hinge 54 and receptacle 56. Or they may include more than one hinge. For example, hinge 58 is a slidable hinge allowing receptacle 56 to be toward or away from hinge 58, while hinge 60 allows for radial movement R.

(17) A firearm casing collection kit also is contemplated. The kit may include a firearm-mounted receiving apparatus 70 having an arm 72 containing a hinge 74, allowing a portion of the arm to move independently, a mounting piece 76 disposed at an end of the arm, and receptacle 78 disposed at an end of the arm opposite to the mounting piece. The kit further includes a tube or sleeve 80 being adapted for attachment to a bottom of the receptacle 78, and a repository 82 adapted for attachment to the tube or sleeve.

(18) The repository 82, in one embodiment of the kit, is especially useful for mobile training or hunting in that it is adapted for attachment to a user's leg. Thus, it can include straps 84 that loop around a leg and attach at attachment point 86 using hook-and-loop fasteners and the like.

(19) As seen in FIGS. 8 and 9, another embodiment of the invention is shown attached to a firearm (using the c-clamp mounting piece of FIG. 2 and a slidable hinge arrangement 88).

(20) Thus, it is to be understood that while the invention has been described in conjunction with the detailed description thereof, the foregoing description is intended to illustrate and not limit the scope of the invention, which is defined by the scope of the appended claims. Other aspects, advantages, and modifications are within the scope of the following claims.