Patent Publication Number: US-2023144006-A1

Title: Weapon sight packaging

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent App. No. 63/263,685, filed Nov. 7, 2021, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     The present disclosure generally relates to product packaging, and more particularly to product packaging for a telescopic sight. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Optical sighting devices, such as telescopic sights (or “scopes”) are used on various types of firearms. Such products may be packaged for sale to consumers. A retail store commonly includes a counter storing samples of unpackaged products for consumers to inspect with the assistance of a store employee behind the counter. For example, a consumer may ask the employee to retrieve a certain product sample from the counter and permit the consumer to hold and test the product. When the user is finished, the product is returned to the counter by the employee. If the consumer decides to buy the product, the employee may give the consumer a packaged version of the product to carry to the store checkout counter. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one aspect, packaging is for a telescopic sight having a sighting axis along which a user looks to use the telescopic sight. The packaging comprises a package defining an interior sized and shaped to fit the telescopic sight. The package includes a base comprising a telescopic sight mount to which the telescopic sight is connected. The package comprises a cover connected to the base and at least partially bounding the interior. The cover is configured to permit the user to view the telescopic sight through the cover and to look through the telescopic sight along the sighting axis. 
     In another aspect, a telescopic sight assembly comprises a telescopic sight having a sighting axis along which a user looks to use the telescopic sight. A package at least partially houses the telescopic sight. The package comprises a non-opaque forward portion and a non-opaque rear portion. The telescopic sight is located in the packaging to permit viewing through the telescopic sight along the sighting axis through the forward and rear end portions. 
     Other objects and features of the present disclosure will be in part apparent and in part pointed out herein. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective of optical sight packaging of the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  2    is an exploded perspective of the optical sight packaging; 
         FIG.  3    is a perspective of a housing of the optical sight packaging; 
         FIG.  4    is a perspective of a cover of the optical sight packaging; 
         FIG.  5    is a perspective of an insert in the housing of the optical sight packaging; 
         FIG.  6    is a cross-section of the optical sight packaging; 
         FIG.  7    is a front perspective of a second embodiment of optical sight packaging of the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  8    is an enlarged fragmentary front perspective of the optical sight packaging of  FIG.  7   ; and 
         FIG.  9    is a rear perspective of the optical sight packaging. 
     
    
    
     Corresponding reference numbers indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1 - 7   , an optical sighting device packaging of the present disclosure is indicated generally by  10  for an optical sighting device  20 . The optical sighting device can be referred to as a telescopic sight, also commonly known as a “scope,” for a firearm or other weapon such as a crossbow. The sight is shown inside retail packaging (broadly, “product packaging”). The sight includes a tubular body  20 A having a front end (into which the user looks to aim the weapon) and a rear end (out of which the user looks). The sight includes one or more lenses  20 B (broadly, optical system) inside and supported by the body  20 A. The one or more lenses  20 B may magnify objects in the user&#39;s field of view through the site  20  (e.g., based on a refracting telescope configuration). The sight  20  also includes a reticle viewable in the user&#39;s field of view to aid a user in sighting a target. Other types of sights (e.g., tubular sights without a magnifying lens, and/or without a reticle, etc.) can be used without departing form the scope of the present disclosure. 
     In the illustrated embodiment, the retail packaging  10  for the sight comprises a base  12 , a cover  14 , an optional hanger  32 , and an optional imitation reticle indicator  36  (broadly, reticle imitation graphic). The base  12  defines a mount/bed  60  for connecting to the sight. The cover  14  is configured to connect to the base  12  to enclose the sight  10  but still permit viewing of the sight through the cover; and to permit viewing down a sight axis SA of the sight through the cover. It is understood that the sight has an optical sighting axis SA intended for the user to look down to use the sight. 
     In the illustrated embodiment, the base  12  comprises a housing  16  and an insert  18 . The housing  16  receives the insert  18 , and the insert  18  defines the mount/bed  60 . Other configurations (e.g. unitary base) can be used without departing from the scope of this disclosure. 
     Referring now to  FIG.  4   , the housing  16  includes a bottom wall  50 A, a forward wall  50 B, a rear wall  50 C, a left wall  50 D and a right wall  50 E. Together the walls form an interior. The interior is sized and shaped for receiving the insert  18 . The housing  16  includes housing connectors  52 . In the illustrated embodiment, the housing connectors  52  comprise retaining lips. The function of the housing connectors will be explained in further detail below. 
     Referring now to  FIG.  2   , the insert  18  includes a forward wall  62 A, a rear wall  62 B, a left wall  62 C, a right wall  62 D, and an upper portion  62 E. The upper portion  62 E defines the mount/bed  60 . The insert  18  further comprises a peripheral flange  64  defining an upwardly facing shoulder  66  for reasons explained below. The upper portion  62 E defines firearm imitation structure  68  intended to imitate a portion of a firearm on which the sight is intended to be mounted. In the illustrated embodiment, the firearm imitation structure comprises imitation structure representing a dovetail-type rail  68 A of a firearm, such as a rail on a rifle. Optionally, connectors  22  (e.g., scope rings) can be used to connect the sight to the firearm imitation structure (mount/bed). Examples of such connectors are described in further detail below. Other types of connectors can be used, and the connectors can be omitted, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     Now referring to  FIGS.  4  and  6   , the cover  14  will be described in further detail. In the illustrated embodiment, the cover  14  is made from a transparent material (broadly, “non-opaque” material) for reasons that will be explained below. The cover  14  can be made of plastic (e.g. acrylic) or another suitable material. The cover  14  includes a cover body  30  comprising a forward wall  38 A, a rear wall  38 B, a left wall  38 C, a right wall  38 D, and an upper portion  38 E. The forward wall  38 A is spaced forward from the lens of the optical sighting device. In the illustrated embodiment, the cover includes the hanger  32  and the hanger  32  is connected to the cover body. The hanger comprises a plastic hanger  32 A defining a hanger opening through which a display rack could extend for displaying the packaging hanging from the rack. It will be understood other types of hangers could be used (e.g. a cord), and the hanger could be omitted, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     As shown in  FIG.  4   , the cover  14  includes cover connectors  40 . The cover connectors are connected to the cover body and serve to connect the cover to the base. In the illustrated embodiment, the cover connectors comprise lugs  40 A that protrude laterally outward from the cover body. The lugs include upwardly facing retaining surfaces  40 B that interact with the base to secure the cover to the base. Other configurations of cover connectors can be used, or the cover connectors can be omitted, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     It will be appreciated that the housing  16  and cover  14  can be referred to collectively as an enclosure  42  in which the optical sighting device  20  and insert  18  are received. 
     The cover connectors  40  connect to the housing connectors  52  to connect the cover to the housing. The cover connectors  40  are located on the cover body to be in registration with respective connectors  52  of the housing. The cover connectors  40  and housing connectors  52  are arranged to engage each other when the cover is installed into the housing. The arrangement is such that the connections of the lugs  40 A and the housing openings  54  are formed automatically when the cover  14  is installed in the housing  16 . In the illustrated embodiment, the connection is not releasable (semi-permanent) but can be disconnected by intentionally damaging the package to remove the sight from the packaging after purchase. The upwardly facing retaining surfaces  40 B of the cover connectors oppose the retaining lips  52  of the housing to obstruct upward movement of the cover relative to the housing. Absent tearing the housing to disconnect the cover from the housing (or some other destruction of the packaging), desirably the cover is not readily removable from the housing such that the connections are semi-permanent. It will be understood that other configurations of connectors (e.g., releasable connectors) and/or connections can be used without departing from the scope of this disclosure. For example, adhesive, tape, etc. could be used in addition to or instead of the cover and housing connectors. 
     In the illustrated embodiment, a bottom portion of the cover  14  engages the shoulder  66  of the insert  18  to locate the insert in the housing  16 . The engagement of the cover and insert holds the insert in the housing. 
     The packaging  10  permits a consumer to view the reticle (broadly, sighting graphic and/or display graphic) of the sight and experience the field of view of the sight. When the sight is in the packaging  10 , the packaging permits the consumer to view the reticle and field of view by looking through the sight. The person/purchaser simply holds the packaged sight to their line of sight and looks through the rear wall and down the sighting axis SA to see the reticle of the sight. 
     Optionally, the user can also reference the imitation reticle indicator  36 , which may be located on the packaging to be in line with the sighting axis SA. In the view of  FIG.  4   , the packaging  10  is shown as including the imitation reticle indicator  36 . In the illustrated embodiment, the indicator  36  is provided on the forward wall  38 A of the cover so the indicator is intersected by the sighting axis SA. In the illustrated embodiment, the reticle indicia  36  includes cross hairs reticle indicia including a vertical primary cross hair  36 A and a horizontal primary cross hair  36 B. Shorter secondary horizontal cross hairs cross the vertical primary cross hair, and shorter secondary vertical cross hairs cross the horizontal primary cross hair. The reticle  36  can include reference indicators (e.g., numbers) at various locations (e.g., for assisting in adjusting aim for various windage and elevation circumstances). A circle  36 C is provided around the reticle indicia to estimate the view through the scope. 
     The imitation reticle indicator  36  is shown as printed on the housing, but it will be appreciated the indicator  36  could be provided in other ways, such as on a sticker applied to the housing. Such a sticker could be made from a transparent material (e.g. clear tape) to provide a clear view for the user when looking down the sighting axis SA of the sight. The imitation reticle indicator  36  is representative of the reticle of the sight in the packaging. Desirably, one or more of the size, shape, pattern, color, etc. of the imitation reticle indicator  36  is the same as the size, shape, pattern, color of the reticle of the sight, when the sight is outside of the enclosure, turned on, and in use. More desirably, the imitation reticle indicator  36  is approximately to scale (e.g. +/−20%; +/−15%; +/−10%) of the size of the reticle of the sight. It will be understood that the imitation reticle indicator may change in accordance with the sighting graphic provided by the sight housed in the packaging. Moreover, the imitation reticle indicator may be omitted (e.g., if the actual reticle is visible, or if the sight does not include a reticle). 
     In the illustrated embodiment, the bottom wall  50 A of the housing includes a removable portion (panel)  58 . For example, the removable portion could be breakable away from the remainder of the bottom wall  50 A (e.g., frangible connection, perforation, scoring, etc.). When the removable portion  58  is removed, the bottom wall  50 A defines an opening which provides an access point for the person to continue to remove the bottom wall, and thus the insert from the housing. In another embodiment, the bottom wall  50 A may define an opening sized and shaped for the person to insert a finger to begin disassembling the packaging. Other configurations of providing an access point to begin opening the package (e.g. pull-tab) are not outside the scope of this disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1  and  5   , the mount is sized and shaped to imitate firearm structure, as described above. With reference to  FIG.  5   , the mount includes a dovetail-style rail  68 A (e.g., integrally formed with the body of the insert) imitating a rail of a firearm. As shown in  FIG.  2   , the connectors  22  each comprise a pair of jaws  22 A for securing the connectors to the rail, and each include a ring  22 B for securing the sight  10  to the connector  22 . The jaws  22 A are clamped on the rail  68 A (e.g., by tightening screws), and the rings  22 B are tightened on the sight  10  (e.g., by tightening screws). It will be appreciated the connectors  22  can be made of metal and intended for installation on a firearm, or can be made of plastic or other disposable material and intended for temporary use with the packaging. Other types of connectors can be used without departing form the scope of the present disclosure. For example, zip ties, cinch cords, or zip ties, (broadly, ties) can be used to secure the sight to the insert (e.g., through one or more openings in the insert). In such a configuration, the insert might not include imitation firearm structure and yet include a bed or cradle configured to stabilize and securely hold the sight in conjunction with the fastener(s). Other types of connectors can be used, other numbers of connectors can be used, and the connectors can be omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     Referring to  FIGS.  7  and  8   , a second embodiment of the present disclosure is generally indicated by  110 . In this embodiment, the packaging  110  includes a housing  112  (broadly, first packaging component) and a cover  114  (broadly, second packaging component). The housing  112  comprises a box  113  of transparent material (broadly, non-opaque material), having six sides (front, rear, left, right, top, and bottom). The box  113  is generally elongate and defines an interior sized to hold the sight  20  therein. The front end of the sight  20  is located adjacent the front end of the box  113 , and the rear end of the sight is located adjacent the rear end of the box. Likewise, the top of the sight  20  is oriented to be adjacent the top of the box  113 , and the bottom of the sight is oriented to be adjacent the bottom of the box, etc. The box  113  can include a door (e.g., rear end panel) configured to permit opening and closing of the box. For example, the rear end panel of the box can be hinged to the remainder of the box and movable to open/close the box for insertion and removal of the sight. The box  113  can have opaque segments (e.g., printed logo, indicia, text, etc.), but generally the box is made of transparent or translucent material to permit viewing the sight therethrough. Other configurations can be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     The cover  114  comprises a sleeve  115  formed of opaque material. For example, the cover  114  could comprise paper, cardboard, plastic, etc. The cover  114  overlies the housing  112 . The cover  114  defines an interior in which a portion of the housing  112  is received and in which a portion of the sight  20  is received. In the illustrated embodiment, the cover  114  includes top, bottom, left, and right walls extending around the housing  112 . The cover  114  has open front and rear ends such that the housing  112  can extend forward out of the cover, and the rear wall of the housing is exposed at the open rear end of the cover. The arrangement is such that the customer can see through the housing  112  from the front end to the rear end, and out the rear end. This permits the customer to look through the sight  20  to simulate using the sight, without having to remove the sight from the packaging  110 . This assists the customer in determining whether to purchase the sight, without needing store personnel to open the packaging or provide a different unpackaged sample for the user to see. Other configurations can be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     Alternatively, one or more ends of the housing can be opaque, covered (e.g., covered by a wall of the second packaging component), etc. to prevent viewing through the scope to daylight. 
     The cover  114  provides visual contrast relative to the housing and provides additional area for logos, indicia, text, etc. The cover also can provide a color contrast relative to the first packaging component. For example, the cover  114  can be formed of or have printed thereon a color such as red, green, black, and/or blue. In assembly, the cover  114  is installed over the housing  112 , before or after the sight  20  is installed in the housing. The cover  114  can be held in position by friction fit with the housing  112  or by tape, adhesive, etc. Securing the cover to the housing may serve a secondary function of locking the door of the housing (e.g., by overlapping and/or being adhered to the door) and requiring destruction of the cover and/or housing to access the sight therein (e.g., after purchase by a consumer). 
     In this embodiment, the sight  20  is not mounted to the packaging  110  but may have a relatively tight fit in the packaging to prevent movement of the sight in the packaging. Alternatively, an insert having a mount can be provided for securing the sight (e.g., using suitable connectors). Other configurations can be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     As explained above, in the illustrated embodiment, the weapon sight  20  has a cross hairs reticle. In this embodiment of the packaging  110 , indicia representing the reticle  136  is provided (e.g., printed) on the housing  112  adjacent its front end to be adjacent and in register with the front end of the sight (through which the user looks). The reticle indicia  136  on the packaging can simulate the actual reticle of the sight. For example, the reticle indicia  136  may be provided in scale to represent the view of the reticle the user would have when looking through the sight. As with the first embodiment, the cross hairs reticle indicia  136  includes a vertical primary cross hair  136 A and a horizontal primary cross hair  136 B. Shorter secondary horizontal cross hairs cross the vertical primary cross hair, and shorter secondary vertical cross hairs cross the horizontal primary cross hair. The reticle  136  can include reference indicators (e.g., numbers) at various locations (e.g., for assisting in adjusting aim for various windage and elevation circumstances). A circle  136 C is provided around the reticle indicia to estimate the view through the scope. Sights with other types of reticles can be housed in the packaging, and such reticles can be shown/represented on the packaging, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     It will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the appended claims. The dimensions and proportions described herein are by way of example without limitation. Other dimensions and proportions can be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. 
     As various changes could be made in the above constructions and methods without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.