Patent ID: 8215044

Claim:
A system for the real-time measurement of a level of ammunition contained within a magazine seated in a host weapon and providing a visible readout to the weapon operator's peripheral vision, the system comprising: a magazine configured to be removably coupled to the host weapon, the magazine comprising a magazine shell for housing ammunition, a follower that provide a mounting platform for electric components and positions ammunition within the magazine shell, a follower spring, a gray encoded ferromagnetic strip within a wall of the magazine shell, at least one sensing inductor inside the follower to read a magnetic signal from the gray encoded ferromagnetic strip at a specific point on the shell indicating an ammunition fill level in the magazine, and a Level Measurement Unit (LMU) capable of monitoring a level of ammunition based on the magnetic signal read by the at least one sensing inductor and providing follower position data; a Reader and Visualization Unit (RVU) which is configured to communicate with the LMU and receives follower position data transfer from the LMU, the RVU including at least one sensor that automatically turns on the system and wakes up the LMU and obtains a reading from the LMU, a storage means that stores the reading obtained from the LMU and a display that provides a read-out of the ammunition level, as calculated by the RVU based on the follower position data and RVU configuration data, and provides a visible interface to configure the system settings; and a PC Dongle which is configured to facilitate communication between the RVU and a personal computer (PC), enabling management of the RVU configuration and offloading of sensor obtained and system determined data values.