Abstract:
This invention relates to an archery quiver that can be conveniently attached to a bow for securely and safely carrying a plurality of arrows. The quiver includes, among other things, an improved arrangement for engaging and securing the arrows within the quiver.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/625,178 filed Nov. 3, 2004, which application is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0002]     This invention relates to archery equipment and, more particularly, a device for holding arrows commonly referred to as a quiver.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0003]     Arrow holding devices commonly referred to as quivers enable archers to store and transport arrows conveniently and safely. Many different styles of quivers are well known. Traditionally, quivers are designed to be strapped to, or otherwise attached to, the archer. More recently developed quivers attach directly to the bow. Exemplary quivers are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,973,776 to Ogle; U.S. Pat. No. 4,156,496 to Stinson; U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,069 to Schreiber; U.S. Pat. No. 6,390,085 to Stinson, U.S. Pat. No. 6,691,694 to Stinson; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,162 to Mizek et al.  
         [0004]     In the field, archers often traverse rugged, densely foliaged terrain. Under such harsh conditions arrows held in the quivers described in the above-identified patents tend to snag on brush and can fall out of the quiver unnoticed. In some cases it is only after the archers reach their remote destination when they realize that most or all of their arrows have been lost in transit. Accordingly, one object of the invention is to provide a lightweight, durable quiver that more securely retains arrows during field use. Other objects of the invention include, for example, providing a quiver that: enables archers to conveniently access the arrows, protects the arrows from being damaged by the rugged environment, protects the archer from being injured due to accidental contact with the arrows, and is easily attachable and detachable from a bow.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0005]     This invention relates to an archery quiver that can be conveniently attached to a bow for securely and safely carrying a plurality of arrows. The quiver includes, among other things, an improved arrangement for engaging and securing the arrows within the quiver. This invention also relates to a method for retaining arrows in a quiver that includes the step of positioning a strap across the arrow shafts. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a quiver according to the principles of the present disclosure;  
         [0007]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a portion of the quiver shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0008]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a portion of the quiver shown in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0009]      FIGS. 4A-4D  are perspective views and front views of the quiver shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0010]     In the following description of the preferred embodiment, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shown, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.  
         [0011]     Referring to FIGS.  1 - 4 (A-D), a quiver is shown. The quiver  10  includes an arrow shaft retainer  12 , an arrowhead protector  14 , and a quiver mounting assembly  16 . The shaft retainer  12  is constructed to secure the arrow shafts  102  of the arrows  100  in the quiver  10 . The arrowhead protector  14  protects the arrowheads (not shown) of the arrows  100  from being damaged or dulled and also protects the archer from being cut or impaled by the arrowhead. The quiver mounting assembly  16  attaches the arrow shaft retainer  12  and the arrowhead protector  14  to a bow (not shown). The above components of the quiver  10  will be discussed in further detail below.  
         [0012]     The arrow shaft retainer  12  includes an arrow shaft engagement member  18  and a securing member  20 . In the embodiment shown, the arrow shaft engagement member  18  is comprised of a resilient material having a number of spaced apart nests  22  (e.g., pockets) that are sized and configured to securely engage the arrow shafts  102 . The five nests  22  shown are for holding five arrow shafts  102  and each nest  22  includes a resilient (e.g., rubber) construction. Between each nest  22  is a spacer  26  that is sized and configured so that the arrows  100  are spaced apart. The spacers  26  include fingers or arms  28  that define the nests  22 . The arms  28  are resilient and flex apart to allow an arrow shaft to be inserted into a nest, and then resiliently move back together once the arrow is within the nest to hold, clamp or otherwise retain the shaft within the nest. The spacers  26  at the ends  29  and  30  include hook portions  32  and  34  that are constructed to engage a securing member  20 .  
         [0013]     The securing member  20  can be connected to the first shaft engagement member  18  once the arrows  100  are in the nests  22  to provide a more secure engagement between the arrow shafts  102  and the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 2 , the securing member  20  is shown as a flat retaining strap  36 . The flat retaining strap  36  is a loop of rubber material that includes a tab  38  for conveniently gripping during application and removal and a first substantially flat surface  40  for contacting the arrow shafts  102 . When attached, the strap  36  straddles the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . The first length  37  of the strap  36  and the second length  39  of the strap extend across the arrow shafts  102  on opposite sides (e.g., top and bottom sides) of the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . The hooks  32  and  34  of the first retaining member  18  retain the securing member  20  to the first engagement member  18  as shown at  FIG. 2 . While transporting the arrows  100  the flat retaining strap  36  provides added security to the arrows thereby decreasing the chance that the arrows  100  are lost during transport. Once the archer reaches the desired location, the flat retaining strap  36  can be removed for quicker access to the arrows  100  in the quiver  10 . To prevent the strap from interfering with accessing the arrows, the strap can be hooked across the back side of the member  18  when the hunter reaches the hunting location.  
         [0014]     Many alternative embodiments of the first shaft engagement member  18  are possible. For example, though the first shaft engagement member  18  shown is constructed of rubber it can be constructed of any type of material including non-resilient materials. In addition, the nests  22  for engaging the arrow shafts  102  need not be positioned in a single plane. In alterative embodiments the nests  22  can be staggered to create a two or more tiered structure so that the quiver  10  can house a larger number of arrows  100 . It should also be appreciated that the spacers  26  need not include the arms  28  or the hook portions  32  and  34  as shown.  
         [0015]     Likewise, many alternative embodiments of the securing member  20  are also possible. For example, the securing member  20  need not be constructed of a resilient material such as rubber. For example, straps such as Velcro straps, cloth straps and straps with fasteners (e.g., buckles, clips, snaps, etc.) can also be used. Also, in some alternative embodiments the securing member  20  is hinged with the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . In such an embodiment, the hinge is preferably closed during transport and open when the archer is ready to shoot. In addition, in alternative embodiments the securing member  20  is a band  42 . The band  42  need not include a flat surface  40 . An example of such an alternative embodiment is shown in  FIGS. 3-5 . In such an embodiment, the band  42  has a circular transverse cross-section. In the embodiment shown, the band  42  does not include a tab  38 . In other embodiments, a first end of the securing member  20  is fixed to a first side of an arrow shaft engagement member  18 , and the second end of the securing member  20  includes a locking mechanism that is adapted to interlock with the second side of the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . Also, it should be appreciated that in any embodiment, the strap or band may not be a loop shape and, therefore, may not straddle the arrow engagement member  18 . In such embodiments the strap may rest over the arrow shaft engagement member  18 , or the strap may sit below the arrow shaft engagement member  18  or above the arrow shaft engagement member  18 . In some embodiments, the shaft engagement member does not normally contact the arrow shaft  102 . In such embodiments the arrow shaft engagement member  20  only contacts the arrow shaft  102  when the arrow is about to fall out of the quiver  10 .  
         [0016]     The arrowhead protector  14  includes a housing  44  and arrowhead engagement portion  46  within the housing  44 . The arrowhead engagement portion  46  can include a soft resilient material such as a foam or rubber so that either the sharp center point or the blades (not shown) of the arrow  100  can cut in the arrowhead engagement portion  46 . In the embodiment shown, the arrowhead engagement portion  46  includes holes  48  for receiving the center of the arrowheads. The depicted arrangement can securely engage large arrowheads that are used in hunting having razor sharp edges commonly referred to as broadheads. The holes  48  of the engagement portion  46  are spaced apart to prevent the arrowheads from contacting one another, which can dull and damage the arrowheads. In the depicted embodiment, the housing  44  is contoured to include five partially barrel-shaped portions  52 . The housing can be constructed of any material including, for example, polymeric materials as well as metal materials.  
         [0017]     It should be understood that the housing  44  of the arrowhead engagement portion  46  in alterative embodiments might include different features than the ones described above. The housing  44  can be any structure that protects the archer from accidentally contacting the sharp portions of the arrowheads. The arrowhead engagement portion  46  can be any structure of the arrowhead protector  14  that secures the ends of the arrows  100  nearest the arrowhead from free movement. For example, in some embodiments the housing can be a cage-like structure and the arrowhead engagement portion  46  can be a similar structure to the shaft retainer  12  described above. In other words, in alternative embodiments of the quiver  10  there may be two or more shaft engagement members: one positioned closer to the arrowheads and the other positioned closer to the end opposite the arrowheads.  
         [0018]     Referring in particular to  FIG. 1 , the quiver mounting assembly  16  shown includes a first frame member  60  having a first end  62 , a second end  64 , and a mid portion  66  disposed therebetween. The first end  62  is connected to the arrowhead protector  14  and the second end  64  is connected to the arrow shaft retainer  12 . The mid portion  66  includes two quick release fasteners  86  and  88  mounted to two of the plurality of threaded holes  84  The plurality of threaded holes  84  enables the archer to adjust the vertical position of the quiver  10  relative to the bow. It should be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, the threaded holes  84  can be replaced with slots so that the vertical position of the quiver can be adjusted.  
         [0019]     The depicted quiver mounting assembly  16  includes a bow engagement member  68  that includes first frame member mounting ends  70  and  72  and a bow mounting end  74 . The bow mounting end  74  includes holes  76  and  78  adapted to engage fasteners for mounting the bow engagement member  68  to a bow. The first frame member mounting ends  70  and  72  include slots  80  and ridges  82  that are sized and constructed to engage first and second quick release fasteners  86  and  88  at the mid portion  66  of the first frame member  60 . The depicted quiver mounting assembly further includes cutouts  54  that decrease the overall weight of the quiver as well as harmonic dampeners  56  and  58  for decreasing the vibrations in the mounting assembly  16 .  
         [0020]     In should be understood that many alternative arrangements of the quiver mounting assembly  16  are possible. One alternative embodiment is shown in FIGS.  4 (A-D). In the embodiment shown, the mounting assembly does not include a mid portion  66  or a separate bow engagement member  68 . Rather, the mounting assembly includes two separate pieces: an arrow shaft retainer mounting member  90  and an arrowhead protector mounting member  92 . Each of these members is constructed to mount to the bow or some other member. In the depicted embodiment the arrow shaft retainer mounting member is mounted to the bow via fasteners  150 ,  152 , and  154 , and the arrowhead protector mounting member is mounted to the bow via fasteners  158 ,  160 , and  162 .  
         [0021]     In other alternative embodiments the mounting assembly  16  is integral with or otherwise connected to the bow engagement member  68 . In such embodiments the mounting assembly may include a quick release fastener at a connection between the bow and the mounting assembly.  
         [0022]     The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the composition of the invention. Since many embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, the invention resides in the claims hereinafter appended.