Safety mechanism for hammer-operated firearms

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11215417-B2
Application number	US-202016942203-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 29, 2020
Priority date	Jul 29, 2019
Publication date	Jan 4, 2022
Grant date	Jan 4, 2022

Abstract

A firearm with safety mechanism in one embodiment includes a barrel supported by a housing, at least one cartridge-receiving chamber in communication with a bore of the barrel, and a rotatable hammer. The safety mechanism includes a biased safety component, which may be a blocking pin in one embodiment, mounted to and rotatable with the hammer. When the firearm is exposed to an abnormal impact force caused by bumping or dropping the firearm, the safety component changes position and interacts with a blocking feature on the hammer pivot pin to stop or delay the motion of the hammer in a manner which prevents discharging the firearm. The blocking feature may be a notch in one embodiment. Rotating the hammer between rearward cocked and forward firing positions alternatingly aligns or misaligns the blocking pin with the notch, respectively.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A firearm with safety mechanism comprising:
a housing;
a spring-biased hammer rotatably supported by a transverse hammer pivot pin fixed in position relative to the housing, the hammer movable between a rearward cocked position and a forward firing position;
a trigger operable to release the hammer from the cocked position to discharge the firearm;
a blocking feature formed on the hammer pivot pin; and
a hammer blocking member movably mounted to the hammer and selectively engageable with the blocking feature;
wherein rotating the hammer from the firing position to the cocked position aligns the blocking member with the blocking feature of the hammer pivot pin such that the blocking member is movable to engage the blocking feature.

2. The firearm according to claim 1 , wherein the blocking member is slideably mounted in a pin bore formed in the hammer and rotatably movable therewith about the hammer pivot pin.

3. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the blocking member is transversely oriented to the hammer pivot pin.

4. The firearm according to claim 3 , wherein the hammer pivot pin has a cylindrical body and the blocking feature comprises a flat blocking surface engageable with the blocking member.

5. The firearm according to claim 4 , wherein rotating the hammer to the cocked position linearly aligns the blocking feature and the blocking member to allow sliding engagement between the blocking member and blocking surface, and rotating the hammer to the firing position linearly misaligns the blocking feature and blocking member to prevent engagement between the blocking member and blocking surface.

6. The firearm according to claim 4 , wherein the blocking feature is a notch having a depth measured to the blocking surface from a full diameter portion of the hammer pivot pin is between about and including 15-50 percent of the full diameter of the hammer pivot pin.

7. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the hammer pivot pin is received in a transversely extending pivot pin hole in the housing and the pin bore for the blocking member in the hammer intersects the pivot pin hole.

8. The firearm according to claim 7 , wherein a centerline of the pin bore for the blocking member is offset from a centerline of the pivot pin hole for the hammer pivot pin.

9. The firearm according to claim 7 , further comprising a locking clip arranged on a shaft of the hammer pivot pin engaged with a circumferential locking groove formed inside the pivot pin hole in the housing for the hammer, the locking clip operable to resist withdrawal of the hammer pivot pin from the pivot pin hole.

10. The firearm according to claim 9 , further comprising a circumferential locking groove formed in the shaft of the hammer pivot pin which is also engaged with the locking clip.

11. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the hammer pivot pin is non-rotatable relative to the housing.

12. The firearm according to claim 11 , wherein the hammer pivot pin includes a transversely elongated cylindrical body and an anti-rotation protrusion extending perpendicularly therefrom which engages a fixation slot in the housing to prevent rotation of the hammer pivot pin.

13. The firearm according to claim 12 , further comprising a grip attached to a rear portion of the housing, wherein the grip at least partially overlaps the anti-rotation protrusion to resist withdrawal of the hammer pivot pin from the housing.

14. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the blocking member is mounted in a lower operating end portion of the hammer opposite an upper striking end portion of the hammer.

15. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the pin bore includes a smaller diameter section, a larger diameter section slideably receiving a diametrically enlarged retention flange of the blocking member, and a spring acting on the retention flange which biases the blocking member away from the hammer pivot pin.

16. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the hammer pivot pin is non-rotatable relative to the housing.

17. The firearm according to claim 16 , wherein the blocking member is linearly and slideably moveable in the pin bore between a retracted non-blocking position, and a projected blocking position engageable with the blocking feature.

18. The firearm according to claim 17 , further comprising a spring biasing the blocking member towards the retracted position.

19. The firearm according to claim 17 , wherein the blocking member automatically moves from the retracted position to the projected position when the hammer is in the cocked position which aligns the blocking member with the blocking feature and the firearm is dropped or impacted on a surface.

20. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the blocking member is not aligned with the blocking feature of the hammer pivot pin when the hammer is in the forward firing position.

21. The firearm according to claim 2 , wherein the blocking member is mounted below and movable in an arcuate path about the hammer pivot pin.

22. The firearm according to claim 1 , wherein the blocking member blocks full rotational movement of the hammer from the cocked position to firing position when the blocking member engages the blocking feature of the hammer pivot pin such that the firearm cannot be discharged.

23. The firearm according to claim 22 , wherein the blocking member when engaged with the blocking feature prevents or retards movement of the hammer from the cocked position such that a firing pin of the firearm cannot be reached or struck with sufficient force by the hammer to discharge the firearm.

24. The firearm according to claim 1 , wherein the firearm is a revolver including a rotatable cylinder supported by the housing and defining the at least one cartridge-receiving chamber.

25. The firearm according to claim 1 , wherein the blocking member has an anti-friction coating on an exterior surface thereof.

26. The method according to claim 25 , wherein the hammer pivot pin is non-rotatable relative to the housing.

27. A firearm with safety mechanism comprising:
a housing;
a spring-biased hammer rotatably supported by a transverse hammer pivot pin fixed in position relative to the housing, the hammer movable between a rearward cocked position and a forward firing position;
a trigger operable to release the hammer from the cocked position to discharge the firearm;
a blocking feature formed on the hammer pivot pin; and
a hammer blocking member movably mounted to the hammer and selectively engageable with the blocking feature;
wherein rotating the hammer from the firing position to the cocked position aligns the blocking member with the blocking feature of the hammer pivot pin such that the blocking member is movable to engage the blocking feature;
wherein the blocking member is a cylindrical pin and the blocking feature of the hammer pivot pin is a notch.

28. A method for blocking a firing mechanism of a firearm comprising:
providing the firearm including a hammer mounted about a hammer pivot pin and rotatable between a rearward cocked position and a forward firing position, a trigger operable to release the hammer, and a movable blocking member;
positioning the hammer in the firing position, the blocking member being misaligned with a blocking feature on the hammer pivot pin;
rotating the hammer to the cocked position;

Assignees

• Sturm Ruger & Comany Inc
• Sturm Ruger & Co

Inventors

• Mather Jonathan Philip
• Beland Andrew James
• Smith Geoffrey William
• Mcloud Kenneth Bruce
• Callum Eric Mitchell
• Barrett Jonathan

Classifications

• F41A17/76 Primary

  automatically operated, i.e. operated by breech opening or closing movement · CPC title

• F41C3/14

  Revolvers (F41C3/10 takes precedence; sealing aspects F41A3/76; using a revolving drum magazine for feeding revolver-type guns other than revolvers F41A9/27; extractors or ejectors therefor F41A15/02) · CPC title

• F41A17/72

  trigger-operated, i.e. the movement of the trigger bringing a firing-pin safety into inoperative position during the firing · CPC title

• F41A17/74 Primary

  Hammer safeties, i.e. means for preventing the hammer from hitting the cartridge or the firing pin (F41A17/02 - F41A17/40 take precedence) · CPC title