Abstract:
Equipment for detecting that a target has received a direct hit from a simulated weapon including a weapon ( 10, 30 ) and a target ( 11, 12, 38, 45 ), and characterized in that said weapon ( 10, 30 ) provides an emitter of signals or laser shots ( 14, 33 ) operated by a switch ( 16, 35 ) and a trigger ( 18, 36 ), and in that said target includes sensors ( 19, 20, 38   a   , 41-44 ) affixed to a supporting element ( 12, 11, 38, 45 ). Said sensors are operatively connected to an electronic detection circuit for a signal or laser shot received by the same sensors.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention refers to equipment for detecting that a target has received a direct hit from a simulated weapon. 
   In the field of harmless weapons which, in turn, can be divided into toy war guns, hunting firearms and rifle range weapons, there are the so-called electric, gas, spring-loaded and compressed air types. 
   Electric weapons are powered by an electric motor which drives three gears in turn acting on a piston. Power supply is through a rechargeable battery. Gas weapons are powered by gas from a cylinder, spring-loaded weapons function thanks to a loaded spring ejecting the projectile. Lastly the compressed air types are powered by compressed CO 2 . 
   In general, all these weapons fire a projectile consisting of a 6 mm calibre plastic pellet. In addition, other projectile types exist, comprising of measured amounts of dye which strikes the target, thus confirming a direct hit thereof. However all of these require that the weapon, whatever type, must shoot a projectile which could potentially endanger users. 
   In addition, the part which is hit by the dye must be replaced or cleaned thus causing certain drawbacks. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Furthermore, with plastic projectiles, it is not always possible to ascertain with certainty, whether or not the target has been hit. The general object of the present invention is to solve the abovementioned problem associated with the state of the art in an extremely simple, low-cost and highly practical manner. 
   Another object is to eliminate any chance of danger and avoid the need to replace or clean target parts which have been hit. 
   Another object is to assert that the shot has hit the target. 
   WO-A-99/10700 relates to a firearm target system including a training firearm that emits laser signal in response to a mechanical wave generated from pulling the trigger of the firearm. 
   EP-A-0 232 157 refers to an equipment for detecting that a target has received a direct hit from a simulated weapon according to the preamble of claim  1 . 
   U.S. Pat. No. 4,487,583 describes a receiver garment for weapons engagement simulation system, wherein said garment carries a plurality of photosensitive detectors. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 5,344,320 discloses a dual mode apparatus for assisting in the aiming of a firearm including laser apparatus. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In view of the abovementioned objects, according to the present invention, it was decided to design equipment for detecting that a target has received a direct hit from a simulated weapon, possessing the features explained in greater detail in the enclosed claims. The design and practical features of the present invention, and its advantages compared to the known technique, will be made even clearer and apparent by the following description, referring to the enclosed drawings, which illustrate examples of equipment made according to the invention. In the drawings: 
       FIG. 1  shows a pistol constituting the first part of equipment used in an embodiment of the invention; 
       FIG. 2  shows a second part of equipment applied to the front of a person for use with the pistol in  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  shows the second part of equipment applied to the rear of a person for use with the pistol in  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 4  shows a rifle constituting the first part of equipment used in the second embodiment of the invention; 
       FIG. 5  shows the second part of equipment applied to an animal for use with the rifle in  FIG. 4 ; 
       FIG. 6  shows a rifle range target equipped with sensors according to the invention; 
       FIG. 7  shows a controller to be used with equipment of the abovementioned type; 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   With reference to the Figures, equipment is proposed for detecting that a target has received a direct hit from a simulated weapon. 
     FIGS. 1-3  show a first embodiment in which the equipment consists of a firearm, namely a pistol  10  and a target, namely a jacket  11  and a helmet  12  worn by an individual  13 . 
   The pistol  10  has a coded laser emitter  14  situated on the pistol barrel, connected to a switch  15  for its activation and another switch  16  situated on the pistol handle. 
   A magazine  17 , upon insertion into the pistol  10 , turns on switch  16  on the handle. A trigger  18 , when pulled, fires the pistol, brought about by the laser emitter  14 . 
   The individual  13  carries a circuit box  22  attached to a belt  24  which is connected, by wire  23 , to the pistol  10 , the same wire  23  enters the underside of the handle. In addition, the jacket  11  and helmet  12  are fitted with sensors  19  and  20  interconnected by another wire  21 , situated on the back of the individual  13 . 
   The circuit box  22  also contains a battery and an acoustic signaller. 
     FIGS. 4 and 5  show a second embodiment of the invention equipment, in which a rifle  30  is used as the weapon, containing a laser emitter  29 . The rifle  30  is fitted with sights  31  on a slide  32 , in turn located on a control box  33 , containing the laser control electronic circuit, in turn, positioned on an additional slide. The box  33  and the relative circuit are connected, by a wire  34 , to a battery pack, not shown, carried by the individual user. Only the circuit box  33  could also be carried by the user. 
   The rifle  30  also has a switch  35  which activates a trigger  36  of the laser emitter. A magazine  40  may be inserted into the rifle  30  near the trigger. An animal  37 , for example a deer, is covered with a vest or jacket  38  fitted with sensors  38   a  and a box  39  which contains a receiving circuit. 
   In the two examples shown, the receiving unit is positioned differently which is positioned respectively in the first instance ( FIGS. 1-3 ) in box  22  and in the second instance ( FIGS. 4-5 ) in box  39  which sends it to a computer (not shown), possibly connected in turn to the person with the rifle  30 , so as to allow the detection of a direct hit or not. 
   A similar arrangement to the second is that which may also be used in rifle range equipment which envisages a fixed target  45  ( FIG. 6 ) and a weapon used by the shooter, namely those shown in  FIGS. 1 and 4 , both connected to a computer and supplied with signalling devices. 
   The target  45  may contain sensors  41 ,  42 ,  43 ,  44 ) at the various zones marked by concentric rings. Naturally, real weapons may also be used with blank rounds or plastic pellets. 
   As regards the production of a device or electronic control circuit of the equipment,  FIG. 7  shows one possible example by way of a block diagram denoted, as a whole, by  50 . 
   The device  50  is built around an RISC technology microcontroller ( 56 ), which performs the vast majority of the functions required by the specific application. 
   Power supply is provided by a pack of four 1.5 V batteries, or five rechargeable 1.2 V batteries. Note that the maximum electrical input when firing volleys is 83 mA, whereas it is 7.7 mA with weapon  10  or  30  at rest with a backup magazine  17  or  40  in the barrel. Such values permit a battery operating range with 500 mA/h batteries of between six to eleven hours of activity considering weapon usage of respectively 100% and 50% of the activity time. Obviously batteries with greater capacities will result in proportionately increased operating ranges. 
   The sensors  19 ,  20 , and  38   a  of hit detection are, according to the invention, made of solar cells. Preference for these solar cells over ordinary photocells has allowed a reduction in sensor thickness which are fitted in the “bulletproof vest”  11 , on the helmet  12  or the vest  38 . 
   The solar cell responds, without any attenuation, to incident beams even with angulations well outside what is normal to the plane of the same sensors. More expensive new generation solar cells, which are readily available on the market and made from flexible materials, make the sensors less sensitive to knocks. 
   To increase the reaction to random light signals common to all solar units, the same units could be counter-series connected. This greatly decreases the reduction in reception sensitivity caused by electrical discharge light sources, namely neon and mercury-discharge lamps. To curb this effect, a red film (not shown) is applied to the surface of the sensor and acts as an optic filter which cuts out the emissions in the upper band of the luminous spectrum. 
   Such an arrangement solves the problem connected with the use of photocells which would have required the use of lenticular optic units, with a focus of no less than 5 cm, to cover the discrete areas of detection. 
   Besides, the presence and use of optic collimation units of the light bands would have made the reception system directive. 
   In support of the microcontroller  56  for that concerning the processing of the signal detected by the optic sensors  19 ,  20 ,  38   a  an amplification and filtering chain has been included to eliminate random components from the optic signal and to bring the signal to a level which is compatible with the same microcontroller. 
   The sensor signal passes into an attenuator circuit  51  which, by raising the input impedance, acts as a limiter for input into a subsequent amplifier  54  which is integrated upstream and downstream by high-pass filters  52 . Due to the high gain of the input amplifier  54 , a low-pass filter  53  is placed on the power supply to lessen and make insignificant any sound produced by the microcontroller  56 . 
   The output of the amplifier  54  is clipped and made compatible with the microcontroller  56  by a Schmitt trigger  55  which, with a 1% opening of the input voltage, removes any possible background noise from the signal. A following additional low-pass filter  53  removes all the possible high frequency components which could interfere with the functioning of the microcontroller  56 . 
   The microcontroller  56  picks up the signal coming from the sensors  19 ,  20  and  38   a  and emits a message based on the decoded signal. 
   In fact, there is an indicator  59  of a player&#39;s “death”, for example a flashing red light. Another signal  60  indicates if the weapon is unloaded and another signaller  58  shows the presence of magazines in a weapon that is activated. 
   When the magazine  17 ,  40  is released or the signaller  59 , indicating the player&#39;s “death”, is activated the microcontroller  56  makes it impossible for any further shots to be fired. 
   The shot is represented by a coded signal lasting approximately 50 m/s which can be emitted singly or repeatedly, at a rate of ten signals per second, depending on a manual or automatic weapon dial  57  (repeater shots or machine gun). The emitted shot signal controls a laser diode with radiation at the lower end of the frequency spectrum making up visible light (red colour at 670 nm; max. power 5 mW). 
   When the magazine  17 ,  40  in the barrel runs out of shots, the microcontroller  56  prevents their emission and activates a signaller  60  which flashes green for an eighth of a second every second. 
   To replace the magazine  17 ,  40  it must be disconnected from the weapon  10 ,  30  until the flashing green signaller  60  stops flashing. 
   In addition, the microcontroller  56  emits two signals for a generator of sound effects which reproduces differentiated sounds for when shots are fired and when a player is hit. Quartz was appropriately chosen as the base time reference of microcontroller  56 , since the coding signals emitted (shots) and the decoding system of the signals received do not require any setting procedure. 
   To use the first weapon  10  with individuals equipped with jacket  11  and helmet  12 , the users  13  must wear mirrored protective glasses to avoid the laser emission striking the pupils. This would cause irreparable damage to the retina. 
   The shot is a single modulated laser emission so as to avoid the random effect of external light sources. 
   The object mentioned in the preamble of the description is thus achieved in this way. 
   The invention is likewise applicable to real weapons loaded with blank rounds, where two adversaries fight each other, or in hunting which, with the use of the system according to the invention, could be called “fair hunting” since it is indeed without bloodshed. 
   It would be sufficient to fit the chosen animal with a solar cell. 
   The scope of protection of the invention is therefore defined by the claims enclosed.