Patent Publication Number: US-2006010752-A1

Title: Shotgun shell dispenser

Description:
This is a utility patent application, which claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/583,269 filed on Jun. 11, 2004. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      This invention relates to carriers for ammunition, and more particularly to carriers used to temporarily hold shotgun shells.  
      2. Description of the Related Art  
      Carriers for shotgun shells that attached to the belt of a hunter are well known. (See U.S. Pat. Nos. 278,980; 2,075,988; 2,122,003; 2,756,913; 2,837,258; and 3,219,244). Ideally, such carriers should allow the hunter to easily load a box of shotgun shells, securely hold the shells while hunting, and then allow the hunter to easily remove individual shells when needed.  
      Some carriers include a dispensing mechanism that facilitates the removal of individual shells from the carrier. Unfortunately, the dispensing mechanisms require the hunter to use both hands to refill the carrier. In order to refill the carrier, the carrier must be removed from the hunter&#39;s belt, which is a great nuisance.  
      Many hunters plan their hunting trips several days in advance. In preparation of the trip, the hunter will purchase several boxes of new shells and then loaded them into a carrier shown and described in the patents referenced above. The filled carriers are neatly stored in a large box or bag. Because such carriers are irregular shaped, the carriers become scattered inside the box or bag.  
      What is needed is a belt mounted, shotgun shell carrier that allows a hunter to easily dispense and refill the carrier with one hand and allows multiple carriers to be easily and neatly stacked.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      It is an object of the present invention to provide a shotgun shell carrier.  
      It is another object of the invention to provide such a carrier that allows a hunter to easily dispense and refill the carrier with one hand.  
      It is another object of the present invention to provide such a carrier that allows multiple carriers to be easily stacked together.  
      These and other objects of the invention which will become apparent are met by a shotgun shell dispenser disclosed herein that includes a rectangular-shaped housing with a lower loading and discharge opening formed on its front surface. Disposed transversely inside the discharge opening is a pivoting bail with a shell-receiving surface formed thereon. The bail also includes an elevated rear flat surface, two outward extending finger tabs, and a centrally aligned u-shaped finger cutout.  
      The shell-receiving surface is designed to receive one shell transversely aligned inside the housing. The shell-receiving surface is located centrally in the bail with the rear flat surface located behind and elevated above the shell-receiving surface. The lower front surface of the housing is curved inward, thereby partially holding the shell on the shell-receiving surface when the bail is in a resting position inside the housing.  
      The pivoting bail is biased so that the two finger tabs extending outward and slightly downward through the discharge opening. When the bail is at rest, the elevated rear on the bail flat surface is rotated forward inside the housing. When a shell is loaded onto the shell-receiving surface, the hunter is able to place his or her ring and index fingers on the two finger tabs and insert his or her middle finger into the u-shaped opening. When the fingers are lifted gently, the bail slowly rotates and the shell simultaneously slides off the bail. The lower shell located inside the housing adjacent to bail&#39;s flat surface then automatically falls into the shell-receiving surface.  
      The housing includes a hollow cavity designed to hold a row of stacked, transversely aligned shells. Located inside the housing is a downward biased stomper plate that presses against the upper most shell to constantly force the row of shells downward and towards the pivoting bail. Because the inside surface of the front sidewall of the housing is sloped inward, the shells located inside the hollow cavity are forced inward and into a narrow discharge shoot located adjacent to the bail. As stated above, when the pivoting bail is at rest, it receives and temporarily holds one shell and then blocks the downward movement of the roll of shells in the housing.  
      An optional holding clip attaches to the rear surface of the housing and used to temporarily attach the device to a duck blind, boat gunwale or to the user&#39;s belt. Also, optional stacking features are provided in the front and rear surfaces of the housing that enable multiple housing to be stacked together.  
      To manually dispense the shells from the housing, the hunter inserts his or her fingers into the loading and discharge opening and the u-shaped finger opening in the bail and then simultaneously lifts and rotates the pivoting bail and grasps the shell to remove the shell from the housing. When the bail is rotated upward and the shell is removed, the next lower shell in the row of shells is able to automatically fall into the shell-receiving surface on the pivoting bail when the bail is reset in the resting position the shell is then ready to be discharged. These steps are reversed when loading shells into the housing. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the shotgun shell dispenser disclosed herein.  
       FIG. 2  is a front elevational view of the shotgun shell dispenser shown in  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 3  is a bottom plan view of the dispenser shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  
       FIG. 4  is a side elevational view taken along line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 2 .  
       FIG. 5  is a sectional side elevational view of the dispenser similar to the view shown in  FIG. 4  with a plurality of shells loaded inside the dispenser.  
       FIG. 6  is a rear elevational view of the dispenser.  
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the bail.  
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the stomper. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)  
      Referring the Figs., there is shown a shotgun shell dispenser  10  used to carrier a plurality of shot gun shells  90  specially designed to allow a hunter to easily remove and load individual shells  90  into the dispenser  10  using the fingers on one hand. The dispenser  10  is also specifically designed to allow the hunter to pre-pack multiple dispensers  10  and then stack them in an organized manner inside a box or suitable container.  
      The dispenser  10  includes a rectangular-shaped, six-sided housing  12  with a lower loading and discharge opening  20 . Located on the lower end wall of the housing  12  adjacent to the lower loading and discharge opening  20  is a pivoting ball  40  with a u-shaped finger cutout  24  formed thereon that allows the hunter to extend his or her middle finger around a shell  90  disposed on the bail  40 . The housing  12  includes a hollow cavity  25  designed to hold a row of stacked, transversely aligned shells  90 . (See  FIG. 5 )  
      Located inside the hollow cavity  25  is a downward biased stomper plate  50  designed to press against the upper shell  90  to force the row of shells  90  downward inside the housing  12  and towards the lower loading and discharge opening  20 . The inside surface  23  of the front sidewall  22  of the housing  12  is sloped inward thereby forcing the lower stacked shells inward towards a narrow discharge shoot  28  formed within the housing  12 .  
      As shown in  FIG. 8 , the stomper plate  50  includes an upper horizontal plate  52  and a lower horizontal plate  54 . Located on the opposite sides of the stomper plate  50  are two vertical posts  56 ,  58 . Two biasing means  60  is disposed between the two posts  56 ,  58  and two lips (not shown) formed on the inside surface of the housing  12  and used to force the stomper plate  50  downward in the housing  12 .  
      Located inside the discharge opening  20  is a pivoting bail  40  designed to receive and temporarily hold the lower shell  90 ″ in a blocking position inside the discharge opening  20 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , the bail  40  includes two lower, forward finger tabs  41 A,  41 B and two laterally extending arms  46 ,  48 . A u-shaped finger opening  24  is formed between the two finger tabs  41 A,  41 B. The arms  46  and  48  extend into two small passageways (Not shown) located on the opposite sidewalls adjacent to the near surface of the housing  12 . Formed on the rear portion of the bail  40  are two upward extending blocking arms  42 ,  44 . The tips of the arms  42 ,  44  curved forward and directly under the lowest shell in the row of shells  90  to block downward movement of the row of shells  90 . It should be understood that the two arms  42 ,  44  may be replaced with a larger single arm  42 C. When the bottom of the bail  40  is rotated forward, the finger tabs  41 A,  41 B are lifted and rotated rearward through the discharge opening  20 . The tips of the arms  42 ,  44  are rotated rearward thereby allowing the lowest shell to fall into the shell-receiving surface  49 . When the shell  90  drops onto the surface  49 , it is ready to be discharged. During use, the pivoting bail  40  is biased inward via two side springs  56 ,  58  located around the two laterally extending arms  46 ,  48  and the two opposite side walls. The two springs  56 ,  58  hold the rear flat surface in a blocking position to prevent the lower shell  90 ″ in the stack of shells from being accidentally discharged.  
      As shown in  FIG. 2 , formed on the front surface  14  is a recessed square-shaped cavity  15 . Formed on the rear surface  16  of the housing  12  is a rearward projecting square platform  17  designed to fit inside the square shaped cavity  15  when two dispensers  10 ,  10 ′ are stacked together. Also, attached to the square platform  17  is a removable clip  80  so that it enables the dispenser  10  to be attached to the upper edge of a duck blind, a boat gunwale, or to the hunter&#39;s belt. The clip  80  includes a rearward-extending stud  82  with longitudinally aligned wings  83 ,  84 . Formed on the platform  17  is a keyhole  85  complementary in shape with the stud  82 . The keyhole  85  includes transversely aligned recessed slots  86 ,  87  that are complementary to the wings  83 ,  84  formed on the studs  82 , which engage the wings  83 ,  84  when the clip  80  is longitudinally aligned with the housing  12 .  
      To dispense the shells from the housing  12 , the hunter places his or her index finger onto the two finger tabs  41 A,  41 B and inserts the middle finger into the u-shaped finger opening  24 . The hunter then lifts and rotates the bail  40  and simultaneously pulls the shell  90  resting in the bail  40  through the discharge opening  20 . The lower shell  90 ″ in the row of stacked shells  90  is then able to automatically fall onto the shell support surface  49  of the bail  40 . The bail  40  is then released and allowed to rotate back to its original resting position via the two side springs  56 ,  58 . These steps are reversed to load shells into the housing  20 .  
      In the preferred embodiment, the housing  12  measures approximate 3 inches in width, 7 inches in length, and 2½ inches in height. The discharge opening  20  is rectangular and measures approximately 2½ inches wide and 2 inches in height. The bail  40  is approximately 2¼ inches in length and one inch in width. The u-shaped finger opening  24  is approximately 1⅛ inches in diameter. The housing  12 , the bail  40 , the stomper plate  50  and the clip  80  are all made of durable lightweight plastic.  
      In compliance with the statute, the invention described herein has been described in language more or less specific as to structural features. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the specific features shown, since the means and construction shown is comprised only of the preferred embodiments for putting the invention into effect. The invention is therefore claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the legitimate and valid scope of the amended claims, appropriately interpreted in accordance with the doctrine of equivalents.