MAGNETIC GUN HOLDER

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 63/626,499, filed on Jan. 29, 2024.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY

[0002]This invention pertains generally to gun racks. More specifically, the invention is directed to a magnetic gun rack comprising barrel member configured with a magnet to magnetically engage a gun's barrel and a stock member configured to mechanically engage the gun's buttstock.

[0003]There are a variety of situations in which it is desirable to transport a gun securely but also with ease of access. For example, many gun sporting events involve travel from shooting station to shooting station. On arrival at a shooting station, the participant prepares his or her firearm to engage the targets, fires on the targets, and then prepares the firearm for travel to the next station. Sporting clays is example of this kind of event.

[0004]In such situations, a user may manually carry the firearm from location to location, place the firearm in a gun bag or case on a transport vehicle, such as a utility vehicle or cart, or place the firearm in a rack mounted to such a vehicle. Each approach has drawbacks. For example, carrying the firearm can be cumbersome considering the other gear that must be carried. Storing the firearm in a travel bag or case may require extra steps to prepare the firearm for travel and then to prepare it for use at the destination, and the travel bag or case may require a larger transport area than is ideal. Transporting a fire loose in a rack poses the risk of harm to a jostled firearm that is inadvertently released from the rack during transport. Securing a firearm in a transport rack would required extra steps and time.

[0005]There is a need for a gun-transport rack that holds a firearm securely during transport, enables a firearm to be transported ready for use, and enables the user to quickly and easily retrieve the firearm for use.

[0006]In one aspect of the invention, a firearm transport rack includes a barrel member that is configured with a slot having a width to receive the barrel of a gun. A magnet is secured in place at a closed end of the slot and is configured to hold the barrel in place between two segments of the member that define the slot. Thus, when the firearm is placed in the slot, the magnet magnetically engages the barrel to hold the barrel in place at a closed end of the slot to prevent the barrel from inadvertently exiting the open-end of the slot. The slot edges further retain the barrel from undesired movement during transport. Ideally, the slot width is only slightly larger than the barrel to minimize barrel movement in the slot. (For firearms that have a barrel covering, the width is ideally only slightly larger than the covering.) All or a portion of the edges of the slot may be made of or lined with a material that is softer than a gun barrel to help avoid scratching or otherwise marring the barrel finish.

[0007]A stock member configured with a receptacle for a buttstock may be used to hold a firearm's buttstock in place while the barrel member hold the barrel in place. All or part of the edges of the receptacle may be made of or lined with a material that is softer than a gun buttstock to help avoid scratching or otherwise marring the buttstock finish. Use of barrel and stock members in concert may enable vertical transport of a long gun. For example, barrel and stock members may be attached to a vertical support member on a utility vehicle such that the barrel member is above the stock member. A long gun placed in the barrel and stock members, with the buttstock in the receptacle of the stock member and the barrel in the slot of the barrel member, would then be vertically oriented, with the muzzle pointing up. The barrel and stock members may be so oriented without a vertical support member (e.g., on two different horizontal support members). And the barrel and stock members may be oriented to hold the firearm at angles other than vertical.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008]These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

[0009]FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary magnetic gun rack comprising a barrel member and a stock member mounted to a support member and holding a rifle according to an aspect of the invention.

[0010]FIG. 2 is a top sectional view of section A-A′ of FIG. 1, illustrating an exemplary barrel member magnetically engaging a gun barrel.

[0011]FIGS. 3A and 3B are perspective and top views, respectively, of an exemplary barrel member of an exemplary magnetic gun rack according to an aspect of the invention.

[0012]FIGS. 4A and 4B are perspective and top views, respectively, of an exemplary stock member according to an aspect of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013]In the summary above, and in the description below, reference is made to particular features of the invention in the context of exemplary embodiments of the invention. The features are described in the context of the exemplary embodiments to facilitate understanding. But the invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments. And the features are not limited to the embodiments by which they are described. The invention provides a number of inventive features which can be combined in many ways, and the invention can be embodied in a wide variety of contexts. Unless expressly set forth as an essential feature of the invention, a feature of a particular embodiment should not be read into the claims unless expressly recited in a claim.

[0014]Except as explicitly defined otherwise, the words and phrases used herein, including terms used in the claims, carry the same meaning they carry to one of ordinary skill in the art as ordinarily used in the art.

[0015]Because one of ordinary skill in the art may best understand the structure of the invention by the function of various structural features of the invention, certain structural features may be explained or claimed with reference to the function of a feature. Unless used in the context of describing or claiming a particular inventive function (e.g., a process), reference to the function of a structural feature refers to the capability of the structural feature, not to an instance of use of the invention.

[0016]Except for claims that include language introducing a function with “means for” or “step for,” the claims are not recited in so-called means-plus-function or step-plus-function format governed by 35 U.S.C. §112(f). Claims that include the “means for [function]” language but also recite the structure for performing the function are not means-plus-function claims governed by §112(f). Claims that include the “step for [function]” language but also recite an act for performing the function are not step-plus-function claims governed by § 112(f).

[0017]Except as otherwise stated herein or as is otherwise clear from context, the inventive methods comprising or consisting of more than one step may be carried out without concern for the order of the steps.

[0018]The terms “comprising,” “comprises,” “including,” “includes,” “having,” “haves,” and their grammatical equivalents are used herein to mean that other components or steps are optionally present. For example, an article comprising A, B, and C includes an article having only A, B, and C as well as articles having A, B, C, and other components. And a method comprising the steps A, B, and C includes methods having only the steps A, B, and C as well as methods having the steps A, B, C, and other steps.

[0019]Terms of degree, such as “substantially,” “about,” and “roughly” are used herein to denote features that satisfy their technological purpose equivalently to a feature that is “exact.” For example, a component A is “substantially” perpendicular to a second component B if A and B are at an angle such as to equivalently satisfy the technological purpose of A being perpendicular to B.

[0020]Except as otherwise stated herein, or as is otherwise clear from context, the term “or” is used herein in its inclusive sense. For example, “A or B” means “A or B, or both A and B.”

[0021]FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating an exemplary magnetic gun holder according to an aspect of the invention. A barrel member 10 is installed to a support member 20 via, e.g., a bolt 18 or a clamp (not depicted). The support member 20 may be, e.g., a riser or post on a utility vehicle. The barrel member 10 has a slot 10a (shown in FIGS. 2-3B) configured to receive the barrel 14a of a firearm 14. A magnet 16 is disposed in or part of the slot (10a). The barrel 14a (assuming it is made of a suitable material) will magnetically engage with the magnet 16, and will be thereby be forced toward the magnet 16. Thus, to remove the barrel 14a from the barrel member 10, a force must be applied to the barrel that is greater than the magnetic force acting on the barrel 14a. Thus, the magnet 16 may be configured to provide a magnetic barrel-retention force that is greater than what the barrel is expected to experience through transport but not so great as to make it difficult for a person to remove the gun from the barrel member 10.

[0022]A stock member 12 is installed to a support surface such as the transport surface in a truck or utility cart. The stock member 12 has a receptacle 12a (shown in FIG. 4A-B) configured to receive the buttstock 14b of a firearm 14. The receptacle 12a is configured to restrain side-to-side motion of the buttstock 14b when the gun 14 is installed in the barrel member 10 and stock member 12 as depicted in FIG. 1.

[0023]FIG. 2 is a sectional view of section A-A′ of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 depicts the configuration show in FIG. 1 from a top view. The barrel slot 10a is defined (in part) by edges 10d, 10e of the barrel member 10 and has a functional width 10f larger than the diameter of the barrel 14a. The magnet 16 is disposed in the slot 10a or forms one edge of the slot 10a such that when the barrel 14a is positioned in the slot 10a it will magnetically engage the magnet 16, experiencing a magnet force toward the magnet 16 thereby acting to keep the barrel 14a from exiting the slot 10a. FIGS. 3A and 3B depict the barrel member 10 in perspective and top views, respectively, without the barrel 14a or support member 20.

[0024]FIGS. 4A and 4B depict the stock member 12 in perspective and top views, respectively, without the buttstock 14b. The stock member 12 includes a receptacle 12a configured as a cavity dimensioned to receive the buttstock of a firearm. (The receptacle size can be varied depending on the firearm to be received.) As depicted, the receptacle 12a may be a hole entirely through the stock member 12, which could allow the butt end of the buttstock to pass through the member 12 if not stopped by another surface (such as depicted in FIG. 1). Alternatively, the receptacle 12a may not pass entirely through the stock member 12 in which case the stock member itself will provide a surface that would prevent the butt end of the buttstock from passing through the member 12.

[0025]While the foregoing description is directed to the preferred embodiments of the invention, other and further embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art and may be made without departing from the basic scope of the invention. And features described with reference to one embodiment may be combined with other embodiments, even if not explicitly stated above, without departing from the scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the claims which follow.