Abstract:
A tracking device configured to hold a GPS tracking apparatus and a battery is adapted to engage an arrow shaft at the junction of the arrow shaft and an arrow head. In use, GPS data is displayed upon a personal electronic device to enable tracking stricken game.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present invention was first described in and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/032,128 filed Aug. 1, 2014, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to a tracking device configured to hold a GPS tracking apparatus and a power source and be adapted to engage an arrow bolt at the junction of the arrow bolt and arrow head. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     When a hunter strikes his game, he or she is often faced with subsequent tracking of the animal for some game can live for several hours after being hit. The likelihood of game continuing to live and remain mobile often depends upon the accuracy of the hunter&#39;s shot. In instances when game is not immediately immobilized, several things could happen. The game could run so far and so fast that the hunter never catches up to it or the wounded animal could be attacked by other wild animals, ruining the trophy and/or meat. 
     In fact, instances have been known to occur where other hunters come upon the wounded game, and simply claim it as their own. The occurrence of these situations is quite frequent when dealing with bow or cross-bow hunting situations. The difficulty experienced in producing an accurate shot with these devices increases the likelihood that it will not produce an instant kill, thus making necessary the aforementioned tracking of the injured but nevertheless mobile game. Furthermore, these problems are compounded in a situation where the hunter is hunting at dusk, dawn, or in cloudy/foggy situations where visibility is limited. Additionally, as arrows are becoming increasingly expensive, loss of an arrow can become an annoying and costly proposition. As a result, whether tracking a stricken game or looking for a lost arrow, the use of the tracking device ensures that the hunter can quickly locate it thereby minimizing any risk of loss. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The inventor has recognized the aforementioned inherent problems and lack in the art and observed that there is a need for an arrow head tracking device. 
     It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a tracking device including a housing, an aperture, a battery disposed within a compartment within the housing, a circuit disposed within the housing, a first locking feature disposed within the housing and an access lid. The battery is in electrical communication with the circuit. The housing is configured to be removably attached, via the aperture, between an arrow bolt and an arrow head. The housing also has an access lid further comprising a second locking feature. The second locking feature is disposed on underside of the access lid and matingly interacts with the first locking feature thereby removably attaching the access lid to the housing. 
     It is another object of the invention to fashion the housing in a generally “c”-shaped configuration, having barbed points located at distal ends of a pair of horizontal extensions. The aperture is located at a center point of a vertical portion linking the pair of horizontal members. 
     The circuit comprises a GPS receiver configured to receive a first signal. The circuit also comprises a cellular transmitter which is configured to transmit a second signal to a personal electronic device when said circuit receives said first signal. The second signal comprises GPS and map coordinate information regarding location of the device. The housing further comprises a power switch in electrical communication with the circuit and the battery. The device may also be configured to only be activated by insertion of the battery and only deactivated by removal of the battery. 
     The tracking device may also comprise an arrow head, further comprising a plurality of blades, a ferrule, a tip and a threaded adapter, a housing, an aperture, a battery disposed within a compartment within the housing, a circuit disposed within the housing, a first locking feature disposed within the housing and an access lid. In this embodiment, the aforementioned housing is fashioned, utilized, and installed in the same manner. 
     The circuit comprises a GPS receiver configured to receive a first signal. The circuit also comprises a cellular transmitter which is configured to transmit a second signal to a personal electronic device when said circuit receives said first signal. The second signal comprises GPS and map coordinate information regarding location of the device. The housing further comprises a power switch in electrical communication with the circuit and the battery. The device may also be configured to only be activated by insertion of the battery and only deactivated by removal of the battery. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an arrow head tracking device  10 , according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the arrow head tracking device  10 , according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and, 
         FIG. 3  is an electrical block diagram of the arrow head tracking device  10 , according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTIVE KEY 
     
         
         
           
               10  arrow head tracking device 
               20  circuit 
               23  battery 
               24  battery compartment 
               25  housing 
               26  access lid 
               27  mounting aperture 
               28  arrow head 
               29  ferrule 
               30  broadhead blade 
               32  broadhead tip 
               35  threaded adapter 
               37   a  male locking feature 
               37   b  female locking feature 
               100  arrow shaft 
               110  first signal 
               120  second signal 
               130  personal electronic device 
           
         
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The best mode for carrying out the invention is presented in terms of its preferred embodiment, herein depicted within  FIGS. 1 through 3 . However, the invention is not limited to the described embodiment, and a person skilled in the art will appreciate that many other embodiments of the invention are possible without deviating from the basic concept of the invention and that any such work around will also fall under scope of this invention. It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and only one (1) particular configuration shall be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items. 
     The present invention describes an arrow head tracking device (herein described as the “device”)  10 , which provides a specially equipped arrow head  28  being threadingly installed upon a conventional arrow shaft  100 . The device  10  includes circuitry  20  which provides a global positioning system (GPS) receiver and a cellular transmitter, both powered by an on-board miniature battery  23  being similar to those in hearing aids. The device  10  allows a hunter to quickly locate an arrow shaft  100  having the device  10  using a personal electronic device  130  such as a cellular telephone, containing a specialized software application. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , perspective and exploded views of the device  10 , according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, are disclosed. The device  10  includes a generally rectangular plastic housing  25  having aerodynamically shaped features disposed longitudinally along the center portion of the arrow head  30 . The housing  25  contains the aforementioned circuit  20  and battery  23  portions. The device  10  is shown here being attached to a broad arrow-type arrow head  28  having conventional integral portions such as a central ferrule  29 , a plurality of broadhead blades  30 , a pointed broadhead tip  32 , and a threaded adapter  35  for attachment to an arrow shaft  100 . Although the device  10  is illustrated here being used with a broad head-type arrow head  28 , it is understood that the device  10  could be adapted to all types of arrowheads, and as such should not be interpreted as a limiting factor of the invention  10 . 
     The housing  25  further provides a snap-in-type access lid  26  which enables easy access to an internal battery compartment  24 , thereby allowing convenient replacement of the battery  23 . The access lid  26  is envisioned to include integrally-molded male locking features  37   a  which attach to corresponding female locking feature portions  37   b  molded into the housing  25 , to secure the battery  23  within. It is also envisioned that other locking features may be employed. The housing  25  also provides a mounting aperture  27  with a circular cross-section, being sized so as to enable sliding insertion of a threaded adapter portion  35  of the arrow head  28  through the device  10 . Subsequently, as the arrow shaft  100  and arrow head  28  are threadingly attached to each other, the housing  25  is entrapped and secured in position between the arrow head  28  and the arrow shaft  100 . 
     It is envisioned that the device  10  would be electronically activated upon installation of the battery  23 ; however, it is understood that other means of activation and deactivation of the device  10  may be utilized to conserve battery life such as incorporating a miniature on/off switch, or by activating and deactivating the device  10  using the personal electronic device  130 , and as such should not be interpreted as a limiting factor of the device  10 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , an electrical block diagram of the device  10 , according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, is disclosed. During the tracking of game, having been shot with the arrow shaft  100  containing the arrow head  28  and the device  10 , a GPS receiver portion of the circuit  20  receives and processes data from GPS satellites, and the cellular transmitter portion of the circuit  20  then communicates calculated coordinates of the device  10  to the personal electronic device  130  in the user&#39;s possession, together with GPS and mapping software also contained within the personal electronic device  130 , the user is guided to the device  10  and the game via directions which are displayed upon the screen of the personal electronic device  130 . 
     The device  10  is envisioned to be equally effective in tracking stricken game or for just looking for a lost arrow equipped with the device  10 . 
     It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and only one particular configuration shall be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     The preferred embodiment of the present invention can be utilized by the common user in a simple and effortless manner with little or no training. After initial purchase or acquisition of the device  10 , it would be installed as indicated in  FIG. 1 . 
     The method of configuring and utilizing the device  10  may be achieved by performing the following steps: procuring the device  10 ; fastening the housing  20  to the arrow head  28  by inserting the threaded adapter portion  35  of the arrow head  28  through the mounting aperture portion  27  of the housing  25 ; entrapping the device  10  by threading the threaded adapter  35  into an end portion of the arrow shaft  100 ; downloading a specific software application into an existing personal electronic device  130  such as a cellular telephone, if not previously installed; installing a fresh battery  23  into the housing to electronically activate the device  10  by removing the access lid  26 ; inserting the battery  23  into the battery compartment  24 ; replacing the access lid  26 ; proceeding to a hunting area while carrying the arrow shaft  100  equipped with the device  10  and the personal electronic device  130 ; shooting the arrow shaft  100  at game in a normal manner using a bow; tracking the game as needed by utilizing a first signal  110  as it is transmitted by GPS satellites and received by the circuit portion  20  of the device  10 ; allowing the device  10  to process the received data and intermittently transmit resultant coordinate data to the personal electronic device  130  via a second signal  120 ; following directions being displayed on a screen portion of the personal electronic device  130  until finding the game; and, benefiting from recovering the arrow shaft  100 , the arrow head  28 , the device  10 , and the game, afforded a user of the present invention  10 . 
     The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.