Patent Publication Number: US-8978561-B1

Title: Multi barrel paint ball mine powered by firearm cartridge primer

Description:
This application claims, the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 61/475,305 filed Apr. 14, 2011. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a multi barrel paint ball mine powered by a firearm cartridge primer. The sport of paint ball allows individuals to participate in a simulated war game. Paint ball games utilize a number of paint ball weapons which utilize as ammunition small diameter paint balls filled with a dye to mark players that have been hit. 
     Among weapons used in the paint ball game, are devices to simulate a land mine. For example U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,448 to Denton et al. describes a reusable gas-powered war game land mine. U.S. Pat. No. 6,289,819 to Dolderer describes a single barrel paint ball land mine designed to simulate the function of a U.S. military claymore anti-personnel mine and U.S. Pat. No. 6,688,234 to Huber et al. describes a gas-powered paint ball land mine. 
     The present invention provides a paint ball land mine which is powered by a firearm cartridge primer. When the primer is discharged, paint balls are projected through multiple barrels outwardly with a resultant explosive noise which adds to the realism of this paint ball mine. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     A paint ball mine having an expansion chamber with a plurality of barrels mounted to a top wall of the expansion chamber. Each barrel opens into the expansion chamber and is adapted to receive a paint ball. A primer receptacle opens through one of the end walls of the expansion chamber and is adapted to receive a firearm primer. A cocking rod is slidably mounted on the outer surface of the bottom wall and is movable from a cocked position to a firing position where a firing pin, secured to the cocking rod, strikes the primer. A coil tension spring is mounted to the cocking rod for biasing the cocking rod toward the firing position. The cocking rod is movable against the bias force of the spring to the cocked position and apparatus is provided for releasably holding the cocking rod in the cocked position. A trigger device is used for releasing the cocking rod from the cocked position whereby the cocking rod with firing pin are advanced to the firing position with the bias force of the spring. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, a preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective elevational view of a multi barrel paint ball mine according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a top perspective view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a partially exploded perspective view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a detail view of a portion of an open top chamber used with the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded top view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a detail right hand view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a detail perspective right hand view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 8  is a left side perspective elevational view of the invention shown in  FIG. 5  with parts broken away; 
         FIG. 9  is a bottom view of the invention shown in  FIG. 1  with a cocking arm shown in a cocked position; 
         FIG. 10  is a front elevational view of the invention shown in  FIG. 9 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a detail view showing a safety pin used with the present invention; 
         FIG. 12  is an elevational view of the present invention showing a trigger for releasing the cocking rod; 
         FIG. 13  is a detail end view of the present invention showing a safety pin. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     A multi barrel paint ball mine apparatus  10  is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The apparatus  10  includes an open top chamber  12  having end walls  14  and  16 , side walls  18  and  20  and a floor  22  as shown in  FIG. 3 . A lid  24  is sized to fit on top of the chamber  12  and is secured thereto as by welding as shown in  FIG. 1 . The lid  24  is provided with a plurality of barrels  26  which open into the chamber  12 . The bottom of each of the barrels  26  has a stop (not shown) for retaining a paint ball in the barrel  26  prior to firing. The end wall  16  is provided with a primer receptor  28  as shown in  FIG. 4 . The primer receptor  28  is sized and shaped to receive a firearm cartridge primer which in a preferred embodiment is a  209  primer but many other primers would work equally as well such as primers used with shotguns. A stake  30  having a threaded bolt end  32  is threaded into a nut  34  located on the inside of wall  18  as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . The stake  30  is used for either planting the apparatus  10  in the ground or also as a handle for manually holding the apparatus. 
     A bracket  34  is secured to the wall  16  of the chamber  12  as by welding as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 6 . The primer receptacle  28  extends through bracket  34  to receive a primer  36 . A primer retainer arm  38  is rotatably mounted on pin  40  and is sized so that the arm  38  may be rotated to partially cover the primer  36  when in place to prevent the primer from dropping out of the primer receptacle  28  as shown in  FIG. 6 . The bracket  38  may be rotated on the pin  40  so that the primer  36  can be removed from the primer receptacle  28  as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     The bracket  34  has a hole  42  provided therein for slidably receiving a cocking rod  44 . At one end of cocking rod  44  is provided a handle  46  for manipulating the cocking rod  44 : A firing pin  48  is secured to the cocking rod  44  as by welding and has a tip  50  sized to strike the primer  36  located in the primer receptacle  28  as shown in  FIG. 8 . A block member  52  is mounted on the cocking rod  44  as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . A coil tension spring  54  is mounted on the cocking rod  44  between the block member  52  and the bracket  34 . 
     A ledge member  56  is mounted on an outside surface of the floor  22  of the chamber  12  as shown in  FIG. 10 . When the rod  44  is drawn outwardly from the bracket  34  against the bias force of the spring  54  and the block  52  manipulated to rest against the ledge member  56 , the apparatus  10  is in a cocked position as shown in  FIG. 10 . 
     A trigger  58  is used to release the firing pin  48  when the firing pin  48  is in the cocked position as shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 . The trigger  58  includes a trigger arm  60  and a trigger handle  62 . The trigger arm  60  lies on the floor  22  underneath the cocking rod  44  as shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 . In a preferred embodiment, a case  64  having a top  66  and two sidewalls  68  and  70  is welded to the floor  22 . The sidewalls  68  and  70  are each provided with an enlarged opening  72  sized to allow the trigger arm  60  to tip upwardly against the cocking rod  44  thereby disengaging the block  52  from the ledge  56  as shown in  FIG. 12 . When this happens, the spring  54  causes the firing pin  48  to strike against the primer  36 . The explosive force of the primer in the chamber  12  causes the pellet balls in the barrels  26  to be projected outwardly. The trigger handle  62  may be manipulated manually with the hand of a user or it could be manipulated by pulling a string attached to the handle  62  or by a trip wire attached to the handle  62 . The trigger arm  60  is also provided with lugs (not shown) preventing the trigger arm  60  from slipping out of the enlarged openings  72 . 
     A safety pin  74  is used to prevent accidental firing. The two sidewalls  68  and  70  of the case  64  are provided with aligned holes through which the safety pin  74  extends as shown in  FIG. 13 . The holes in the sidewalls  68  and  70  are positioned so that when the firing pin  48  is used, the firing pin extends across the top of the cocking rod  44  thereby preventing the block  52  from disengaging from the ledge member  56  when the apparatus  10  is in the cocked position. 
     In operation, the present invention is easy to user and set up. Paint balls are inserted in the barrels  26  and a primer  36  is inserted in the primer receptacle  28 . The apparatus  10  is then manually held with the stake  30  or the stake  30  is driven into the ground. The cocking rod  44  is then drawn outwardly against the bias force of the spring  54  and the block member  52  is tipped to engage the block member  52  with the ledge member  56 . When the trigger arm  60  is tipped by manipulating the trigger handle  62 , the block member  52  is disengaged from the ledge member  56  and the firing pin  48  under the force of the spring  54  strikes the primer  36 . When the primer  36  explodes there is a loud noise and the explosive force causes the pellet balls in the barrels  26  to be projected outwardly in a spread pattern providing a realistic experience of a land mine simulation. By mounting the barrels  26  at an angle to the lid  24 , a variety of patterns can be achieved. The apparatus  10  is reusable by inserting new pellet balls in the barrels  26  and replacing the used primer  36 . 
     While the fundamental novel features of the invention have been shown and described, it should be understood that various substitutions, modifications, and variations may be made by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Accordingly, all such modifications or variations are included in the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims: