Abstract:
A pistol is concealed and stabilized by filling in an area below the barrel and in front of the grip with a spacer. The result is a rectangular shape similar to a wallet, which shape conceals the presence of the pistol when carried in a pocket (i.e., de-prints the pistol shape), and stabilizes the pistol in the pocket. The spacer may be attached to a trigger guard, to a portion of the pistol frame beneath the forward end of the barrel, or be integrated with the pistol grips, creating the rectangular shape. The spacer may further include a laser aiming device. In one embodiment, the spacer securely grasps a curved portion of the trigger guard and includes a contoured rear surface which is urged against a lower leading edge of the grip, thus firmly establishing a position for the device relative to the pistol.

Description:
The present application is a Divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/850,514 filed May 21, 2004 which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/546,694, filed Feb. 20, 2004, which applications are incorporated herein in their entirely by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to concealment of pocket pistols, and in particular to altering the profile of a pocket pistol to both alter the outline of a pistol carried in a pocket, and to stabilize the attitude of the pistol in the pocket. 
     Off duty and plain clothes law enforcement officers generally carry concealed weapons, and are in some instances required to carry such weapons. When an officer carries a pocket pistol, the outline of the piston may be observable, and either alert a criminal, or create concern among bystanders. Various articles have been developed to address these issues, but none have provided an adequate solution. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,387,523 for “Wallet Holster for a Semi Automatic Weapon,” describes a wallet shaped holster for providing concealment. Although the wallet holster alters the outline of the pistol, the feel of the grips is lost, and access to the safety, magazine, magazine release, etc. may be reduced. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,466,537 for “Concealable Holster,” describes a holster similar to the holster of the &#39;523 patent, but is larger and somewhat cumbersome, in addition to having the same disadvantages as the &#39;523 patent. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,465 for “Concealment Pocket Holster,” and U.S. Pat. No. 3,720,013 for “Handgun Concealing Pouch,” describe pouches for carrying revolvers, which pouches alter the profile to provide concealment. Such pouches further restrict access to safeties, magazines, magazine releases, etc., and are not suitable for pistols. 
     Further, pocket pistols are not well suited for aiming with standard sights. An ideal solution is the addition of a laser site such as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,898 for “Modular Sighting Laser for a Firearm.” Unfortunately, the laser sight described in the &#39;898 patent does not substantially alter the profile of a pistol carried in a pocket, and it interferes with the use of another device used to provide concealment. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention addresses the above and other needs by providing a pistol which is concealed and stabilized by filling in an area below the barrel and in front of the grip with a spacer. The result is a rectangular shape similar to a wallet, which shape conceals the presence of the pistol when carried in a pocket (i.e., de-prints the pistol shape), and stabilizes the pistol in the pocket. The spacer according to the present invention may be attached to a trigger guard, to a portion of the pistol frame beneath the forward end of the barrel, or be integrated with the pistol grips, creating the rectangular shape. The spacer may further include a laser aiming device. In one embodiment, the spacer securely grasps a curved portion of the trigger guard and includes a contoured rear surface which is urged against a lower leading edge of the grip, thus firmly establishing a position for the spacer relative to the pistol. 
     In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a pistol concealment device for a pistol having a barrel assembly, a hand grip, and a trigger guard. The pistol has a first distance extending horizontally from a front of the hand grip to a forward end of the barrel assembly, and a second distance extending vertically from an underside of the barrel assembly to a bottom of the hand grip. The concealment device comprising a spacer and a means for attaching the spacer to the pistol. The spacer has a length approximately equal to the first distance, a height approximately equal to the second distance, and a recessed corner. The recessed corner is positioned around to the trigger to allow access for a trigger finger to pull the trigger. Attachment of the spacer to the pistol results in a substantially rectangular profile. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
       The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following more particular description thereof, presented in conjunction with the following drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1A  is front view of a prior art pistol. 
         FIG. 1B  is a side view of the prior art pistol. 
         FIG. 1C  is a rear view of the prior art pistol. 
         FIG. 1D  is a side view of a slide of the prior art pistol. 
         FIG. 1E  is a side view of a frame of the prior art pistol. 
         FIG. 2A  shows how the prior art pistol is likely to rest in a pocket. 
         FIG. 2B  shows how the outline of the prior art pistols appears on the outside of the pocket. 
         FIG. 3A  is front view of a pistol including a spacer according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 3B  is side view of the pistol including the spacer according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 3C  shows how the pistol including the spacer is likely to rest in a pocket. 
         FIG. 3D  shows how the pistol including the spacer appears on the outside of the pocket. 
         FIG. 4A  is a front view of the spacer. 
         FIG. 4B  is a side view of the spacer. 
         FIG. 4C  is a rear view of the spacer. 
         FIG. 4D  is a top view of the spacer. 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the spacer taken along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4A . 
         FIG. 6A  is a front view of the pistol with a second embodiment of the spacer. 
         FIG. 6B  is a side view of the pistol with the second embodiment of the spacer. 
         FIG. 7A  is a rear view of the pistol with a third embodiment of the spacer. 
         FIG. 7B  is a side view of the pistol with the third embodiment of the spacer. 
         FIG. 8  describes a method of manufacturing the spacer. 
     
    
    
     Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding components throughout the several views of the drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The following description is of the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of describing one or more preferred embodiments of the invention. The scope of the invention should be determined with reference to the claims. 
     A typical prior art pistol  10  is shown in  FIG. 1A  in front view, and in  FIG. 1B  is side view. The pistol  10  includes a frame  14 , barrel assembly comprising a barrel  11  and a slide  12 , a grip  20 , a trigger guard  16 , a trigger  18 , and a magazine release  22 . The pistol  10  has a horizontal distance D 2  between the grip  20  and the front of the pistol, and a distance D 2 ′ which is the overall length of the pistol  10 . The pistol  10  has a vertical distance D 1  between the bottom of the barrel assembly and the bottom of grip portion  20 , and a distance D 1 ′ which is the overall height of the pistol  10 . The trigger guard has a width W 1  and a thickness T 1 . The grip portion  20  has a grip front surface  21 . A rear view of the pistol  10  is shown in  FIG. 1C . Grips  20   a  and  20   b  are attached to a grip frame  52  of the frame  14  by grip screws  44 . 
     The slide  12  only is shown in side view in  FIG. 1D , and the frame  14  only is shown in side view in  FIG. 1E . The frame  14  includes the grip frame  52  having grip screw holes  45 . 
     Law enforcement officers often carry prior art small pistols (sometimes called pocket pistols) similar to the pistol  10  when off duty, or when in plain clothes. The some cases, it is convenient to carry the pistol  10  in a pocket  24  as shown in  FIG. 2A . Unfortunately, the pistol  10  may rest in the position shown in  FIG. 2A . making quick access to the pistol  10  difficult. Further, a clear outline  10 ′ may be readily apparent as shown in  FIG. 2B , which may cause alarm among those who are unaware that the carrier is a law enforcement officer, or may disclose the presence of the pistol to a criminal. 
     A pistol  10  with a spacer  26  according to the present invention is shown in  FIG. 3A  in front view, and in  FIG. 3B  in side view. The spacer  26  preferably is constructed of two sides  26   a  and  26   b . A laser aiming device  28  may be included in the spacer  26 , and an actuator (or switch)  30  (preferably an electrical switch) is included in the spacer  26  for controlling the laser aiming device  28 . The spacer  26  may be assembled using at least one screw  32 , and preferably two screws  32 . The screws  32  preferable engage nuts held in shaped recesses in the opposite side of the device  26 . 
     The spacer  26  fills in the area under the barrel assembly and in front of the grip to create a substantially rectangular outline, that is, there are some small variations due to, for example, the shape of the rear of the pistol  10 , but the overall shape is rectangular. The spacer  26  and the pistol  10  combination defines a trigger opening  33   a  overlapping the interior of the trigger guard  16 , allowing a trigger finger to access to the trigger  18 , and a second opening  33   b  below the trigger guard  16  allowing at least one finger to grasp the grip portion  20 . 
     The pistol  10  with the spacer  26  attached is shown in the pocket  24  in  FIG. 3C . Because of the rectangular shape, the pistol  10  with spacer  26  remains in a predictable upright position, and is easily drawn from the pocket  24  if needed. An outline  10 ″ of the pistol  10  with the spacer  26  attached in shown in  FIG. 3D , which outline  10 ″ resembles a wallet. 
     A front view of the spacer  26  is shown in  FIG. 4A , and a side view of the spacer  26  is shown in  FIG. 4B . The spacer  26  has a height H and a length L. The height H is approximately equal to the distance D 1  and the length L is substantially equal to the distance D 2  (see  FIGS. 1A and 1B ). A recessed corner is shown generally at  19 . The recessed corner  19  is positioned and of sufficient size to provide access for a trigger finger to the trigger  18  when the spacer  26  is attached to the pistol  10 . 
     A rear view of the spacer  26  is shown in  FIG. 4C , and a top view of the spacer  26  is shown in  FIG. 4D . A trigger guard slot  34  is provided in the spacer  26  to allow the spacer to enclose a portion of the trigger guard  16  (see  FIG. 1B ), thereby attaching the spacer  26  to the pistol  10 . The trigger guard slot  34  has a width W 2  sized to provide a firm fit to the trigger guard  16  width W 1  (see  FIG. 1A ). A contoured surface  35  cooperates with the grip front surface  21  (see  FIG. 1B ) to position the spacer  26  on the pistol  10 , wherein assembling the spacer  16  over the trigger guard  16  causes the contoured surface  35  to be urged against the grip front surface  21 . The spacer has a face  27  and a base  25 . 
     A cross-sectional view of the spacer  26  taken along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4A  is shown in  FIG. 5 . The trigger guard slot  34  is shown to curve down and to the rear substantially matching a curved portion of the trigger guard  16 . The trigger guard slot  34  has a thickness T 2  sufficient to allow the spacer  16  to be assembled over the trigger guard  16 . A laser cavity  29  is provided for positioning the laser aiming device  28  in the spacer  26 . A battery cavity  39  is provided for a battery  38  for powering the laser aiming device  28 . A switch cavity  31  is provided for a switch  30  for turning the laser aiming device  28  on. The switch cavity  31  is located in a portion of the spacer  26  proximal to the grip  20  (see  FIG. 1B ) and on a rear surface of the second opening  33   b  (see  FIG. 3B ). Wires  36   a  and  36   b  electrically connect the laser aiming device  28  to the battery  38 , through the switch  30 . The wires  36   a ,  36   b  are preferably thin flat wires, and are preferably bonded to an interior surface of one of the sides  26   a ,  26   b.    
     Another embodiment of the present invention including horizontal frame rails  41  in front of and above the trigger guard, cooperating with corresponding spacer rails  42  to attach a second spacer  40  to the pistol  10 , is shown in front view in  FIG. 6A  and in side view in  FIG. 6B . One of the screws  32  may be located near the rails  42 , thereby applying gripping force to the cooperation of the rails  41 ,  42 . 
     Yet another embodiment of the present invention including a spacer  48  having integral grips  50   a  and  50   b  is shown in  FIG. 7A , wherein the spacer  48  is preferably attached to the frame using the grip screw holes  45  (see  FIG. 1E ). 
     A method for manufacturing a spacer  26  is described in  FIG. 8 . A starting set of pistol dimensions are obtained at step  100 . A prototype of the spacer is made based on the starting set of pistol dimensions at step  102 . The prototype device is compared to the pistol at step  104 . If the prototype spacer is not a good fit to the pistol, the dimensions are adjusted if necessary at step  106 . The prototype is modified, or a new prototype is made, based on the adjusted dimensions at step  108 , and the comparison is repeated at  104 . If the prototype spacer is a good fit to the pistol, the prototype dimensions are used to manufacture the spacers  26  at step  110 . 
     In a preferred method, the comparison step  104  includes testing the aim of the laser aiming device  28 , and adjusting the dimensions to adjust the aim of the laser aiming device  28 . The laser cavity  28  (see  FIG. 5 ) is preferably formed to sight-in the laser aiming device  28  such that at a distance of approximately 21 feet, a laser beam from the laser aiming device  28  will designate a bullet impact point. A preferred method also includes modifying the dimensions by modifying CNC machine code. 
     The method described in  FIG. 8  is preferred for small to medium production levels. In the case of very high volume production, for example, when the space is included as part of a production pistol, other methods may be preferred, for example, injection molding. 
     The spacer  26  may be manufactured to mount to a variety of pistols, for example, the Baretta® Tomcat pistol, the Kel-Tec Inc. model P-32 and P-3AT pistols, the North American Arms® Inc. Guardian .380 pistol, the L. W. Seecamp Company Seecamp 32 pistol, the Rohrbaugh R-9 pistol, and many other pocket pistols. Various embodiments of the present invention are contemplated for these and other pistols, the various embodiments being adapted to individual pistol designs and/or dimensions, and any spacer providing a substantially rectangular profile when attached below the barrel assembly and in front of the grip, is intended to come within the scope of the present invention. 
     While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific embodiments and applications thereof, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention set forth in the claims.