U.S. patent application number 16/899216 was filed with the patent office on 2021-12-16 for rifle intelligence systems and methods.
The applicant listed for this patent is Reactor LLC. Invention is credited to Ryan Douglas McMillan, Anthony Palazzetti.
Application Number | 20210389080 16/899216 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005224460 |
Filed Date | 2021-12-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210389080 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
McMillan; Ryan Douglas ; et
al. |
December 16, 2021 |
Rifle Intelligence Systems and Methods
Abstract
A rifle intelligence system includes a sensor module comprising
an enclosure configured to be removably secured to a firearm; a
processor disposed within the module enclosure; and a plurality of
sensors disposed within the module enclosure and communicatively
coupled to the processor. The plurality of sensors is configured to
generate shot attribute data associated with operation of the
firearm and to wirelessly transmit the shot attribute data to a
mobile computing device. The shot attribute data includes at least
acceleration of the firearm along a bore axis and a temperature
measurement of the barrel of the firearm.
Inventors: |
McMillan; Ryan Douglas;
(Peoria, AZ) ; Palazzetti; Anthony; (Queen Creek,
AZ) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Reactor LLC |
Scottsdale |
AZ |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005224460 |
Appl. No.: |
16/899216 |
Filed: |
June 11, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F41C 33/029 20130101;
F41A 19/68 20130101; F41A 21/00 20130101; F41A 31/02 20130101; F41A
35/00 20130101 |
International
Class: |
F41C 33/02 20060101
F41C033/02; F41A 19/68 20060101 F41A019/68; F41A 31/02 20060101
F41A031/02; F41A 21/00 20060101 F41A021/00; F41A 35/00 20060101
F41A035/00 |
Claims
1. A sensor module for a rifle intelligence system, the sensor
module including: an enclosure configured to be removably secured
to a firearm; a processor disposed within the module enclosure; and
a plurality of sensors disposed within the module enclosure and
communicatively coupled to the processor, the plurality of sensors
configured to generate shot attribute data associated with
operation of the firearm and to wirelessly transmit the shot
attribute data to a mobile computing device; wherein the shot
attribute data includes at least acceleration of the firearm along
a bore axis.
2. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the shot attribute data
further includes a temperature measurement of the barrel of the
firearm.
3. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the shot attribute data
further includes the orientation of the bore axis of the
firearm.
4. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the shot attribute data
further includes an audio signal associated with the firearm.
5. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein temperature measurement is
produced via an infrared thermal sensor adjacent to the barrel of
the firearm.
6. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the processor is
configured to transmit the shot attribute data to the mobile
computing device a predetermined time after the firearm is
fired.
7. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the enclosure is
configured to be clamped to the stock of the firearm.
8. The sensor module of claim 1, further including an interface
configured to communicate with a plurality of peripheral systems,
the peripheral systems selected from the group consisting of a
weather meter, a scope mounted on the firearm, an electronic target
system downrange of the firearm, and a shooting chronograph.
9. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the
shot attribute data is wirelessly transmitted to the mobile
computing device a predetermined time after the firearm is
fired.
10. A rifle intelligence system comprising: a mobile computing
device; a sensor module configured to be removably secured to a
firearm, the sensor module including a plurality of sensors adapted
to generate shot attribute data associated with operation of the
firearm and to wirelessly transmit the shot attribute data to the
mobile computing device, and an interface configured to receive
peripheral data from at least one peripheral system; wherein the
shot attribute data includes at least acceleration of the firearm
along a bore axis and a temperature measurement of the barrel of
the firearm; a plurality of third-party data sources; a remote
server communicatively coupled to the mobile computing device and
the third-party data sources, the remote server including a
database for receiving and storing the shot attribute data and an
analysis module confirmed to perform predictive analytics based on
the stored shot attribute data, the peripheral data, and data from
the third-party data sources.
11. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein the shot
attribute data further includes the orientation of the barrel of
the firearm.
12. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein the shot
attribute data further includes an audio signal associated with the
firearm.
13. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein temperature
measurement is produced via an infrared thermal sensor adjacent to
the barrel of the firearm.
14. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein the
processor is configured to transmit the shot attribute data to the
mobile computing device
15. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein the
enclosure is configured to be clamped to the stock of the
firearm.
16. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, further including an
interface configured to communicate with a plurality of peripheral
systems, the peripheral systems selected from the group consisting
of a weather meter, a scope mounted on the firearm, an electronic
target system downrange of the firearm, and a shooting
chronograph.
17. The rifle intelligence system of claim 10, wherein at least a
portion of the shot attribute data is wirelessly transmitted to the
mobile computing device a predetermined time after the firearm is
fired.
18. A sensor module for a rifle intelligence system, the sensor
module including: an enclosure configured to be removably secured
to a stock of a firearm; a processor disposed within the module
enclosure; a plurality of sensors disposed within the module
enclosure and communicatively coupled to the processor, the
plurality of sensors configured to generate shot attribute data
associated with operation of the firearm and to wirelessly transmit
the shot attribute data to a mobile computing device; wherein the
shot attribute data includes at least acceleration of the firearm
along a bore axis, an infrared temperature measurement of the
barrel of the firearm, an audio signal associated with the firearm,
and orientation information associated with the firearm.
19. The sensor module of claim 18, further including an interface
configured to communicate with a plurality of peripheral systems,
the peripheral systems selected from the group consisting of a
weather meter, a scope mounted on the firearm, an electronic target
system downrange of the firearm, and a shooting chronograph.
20. The sensor module of claim 1, wherein the shot attribute data
further includes a muzzle velocity measurement.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates, generally, to the field of
firearms and, more particularly, to sensor systems used in
connection with rifles and other such firearms.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Recent years have seen a number of significant advances in
the field of firearm technology, driven primarily by improvements
in the speed, size, and cost of computer hardware and software.
Such advances relate not only to the firearms themselves, but also
to peripheral systems such as weather meters, smart-scopes,
electronic target systems, shooting chronographs, and other such
external systems.
[0003] Despite the availability of shooting range data, currently
known firearm intelligence systems are unsatisfactory in a number
of respects. For example, prior art systems do not provide an easy
way to acquire a wide array of information regarding the state of a
firearm before, during, and after firing. Furthermore, known
systems are not able to provide convenient methods for acquisition,
integration, and data fusion of disparate streams of firearm
related data.
[0004] Rifle intelligence systems and methods are therefore needed
that overcome these and other limitations of the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] Various embodiments of the present invention relate to
systems and methods for, inter alia: i) a sensor module including
an enclosure configured to be removably secured to a firearm (e.g.,
the stock of the firearm), a processor, and a plurality of sensors
disposed within the module enclosure for generating shot attribute
data associated with operation of the firearm, wherein the shot
attribute data is wirelessly transmitted to a mobile computing
device for further processing and visualization; ii) a rifle
intelligence system incorporating a sensor module as above that is
configured to communicate with one or more peripheral systems, such
as weather meters, scopes, electronic target systems, shooting
chronographs, or the like; iii) a rifle intelligence system as
above in which the peripheral systems are configured to communicate
directly with the mobile computing device; and iv) a distributed
rifle intelligence system as described above in which the shot
attribute data is further processed and stored within a cloud
computing environment for access by subscribers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0006] The present invention will hereinafter be described in
conjunction with the appended drawing figures, wherein like
numerals denote like elements, and:
[0007] FIG. 1 is a conceptual block diagram of a rifle intelligence
system in accordance with various embodiments;
[0008] FIG. 2 is a conceptual block diagram of a sensor module in
accordance with various embodiments;
[0009] FIGS. 3A-3B are isometric, exterior views of a sensor module
in accordance with one embodiment;
[0010] FIGS. 4 and 5 are isometric, exterior views of a sensor
module being attached to an exemplary rifle stock in accordance
with one embodiment; and
[0011] FIGS. 6A-6W illustrate various mobile device user interface
elements in accordance with various embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0012] The present subject matter relates to improved rifle
intelligence systems and methods. Specifically, a sensor module
mounted to a firearm and paired with a mobile device is able to
gather and display a wide range of useful information, such as shot
detection and counting, shot mapping, orientation (heading, cant,
and inclination), barrel temperature, environmental and weather
data, recoil measurements, and rifle lifespan/maintenance metrics.
In that regard, the following detailed description is merely
exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the inventions or
the application and uses of the inventions described herein.
Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory
presented in the preceding background or the following detailed
description. In the interest of brevity, conventional techniques
and components related to the firing, design, and operation of
firearms, the operation of accelerometers and other dynamic
sensors, the nature of machine learning systems, and the operation
of data communication protocols may not be described in detail
herein. Furthermore, the term "rifle" is used herein without loss
of generality. That is, the present invention is not limited to
rifles or other long guns, and may be adapted for use with a wide
variety of firearms and weapons, ranging from various types of bows
used in archery (e.g., recurve bows, compound bows, and the like),
to large military weapons.
[0013] Referring first to the conceptual block diagram shown in
FIG. 1, a rifle intelligence system (or simply "system") 100 in
accordance with one embodiment generally includes a firearm (e.g.,
a rifle) 110 to which a sensor module (or simply "module") 150 has
been mechanically and removably secured, e.g., via the rifle's
stock 112. Sensor module 150 is configured to be communicatively
coupled--through either a wired or wireless connection 129--to a
computing device 120 that may or may not include a display 122. The
phrase "shot attribute data" (also referred to as "shot data" or
simply "data") refers to any data or information directly or
indirectly derived from module 150 and its interaction with firearm
110--either before, after, or during the firing of a shot.
[0014] Computing device 120 may be a desktop computer, stand-alone
server, smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop, a smart-watch, or
any other device that, as described in further detail below,
receives, processes, and, in some cases, displays (in conjunction
with other available data) the shot attribute data received from
sensor module 150. In addition to displaying information, computing
device 120 and an optional associated application user interface
(UI) 122 may also be used to enter information regarding the
firearm, such as firearm model, type of ammunition used, etc.
Computing device 120 may also be used to register the module to a
particular individual, enter user preferences, and search/filter
shot data based on parameters (date, time, location, stock-type,
ammo-type). Computing device 120 may also be used to provide
updates relevant to the user's activities, such as hunting
registration deadlines, the location of nearby shooting ranges, the
location of land closed due to wildfires, or the like. The software
of the present system may also interact with other software on
device 120--e.g., to allow voice commands, text-to-voice
announcements, etc.
[0015] In some embodiments, computing device 120 is an integrated
display (e.g., a heads-up-device, or "HUD") that is suitably fixed
to firearm 110 so that it can be easily accessed and viewed during
a shooting session.
[0016] With continued reference to FIG. 1, sensor module 150 may be
configured to receive data (i.e., "peripheral data") from one or
more peripheral systems 160 located within the same geographical
area as the firearm during operation (e.g., a shooting range). This
communication may take place via any suitable wired or wireless
connection 169. Peripheral systems 160 may include, for example, a
weather meter 161 (for generating information relating to the
temperature, humidity, precipitation), a scope 162 (e.g., a
smart-scope attached to firearm 110), an electronic target system
163, a shooting chronograph 164 (for determining the muzzle
velocity of the projectile), or any other such peripheral system
that might assist in characterizing the state of the rifle, the
environment, or the target before, during, or after rifle 110 is
fired. Sensor module 150 may also communicate with a nearby drone
or other camera to gather additional information regarding the
environment.
[0017] A remote server 190 may be communicatively coupled to mobile
device 120 (and/or directly to sensor module 150) via network 125
(e.g., the Internet) for receiving and processing the shot
attribute data--e.g., via database 195 and data analysis module
192. Subscribers 180 (e.g., firearm manufacturers 181, ammunition
manufacturers 182, firearm owners, and other interested parties)
may be provided suitable credentials allowing access to a portion
of the data housed within database 195. Such data may be
anonymized, pseudonymized, or otherwise processed (e.g., via
differential security techniques) to remove any information that
might allow a threat-actor to determine the identity of individuals
associated with the shot attribute data.
[0018] Furthermore, information from various third-party data
sources or APIs 170 may be retrieved and combined with the shot
attribute data and peripheral data. Such third-party data sources
may include weather APIs, ammunition databases, firearm databases,
map databases (e.g., Google Maps), or the like. This data may be
available to the device itself (i.e., using the native maps and
weather apps on device 120), or may be requested by server 190.
[0019] Regardless of the various data sources used, the results of
the analysis are suitably provided to the user in a convenient form
using an easy-to-use graphical user interface ("UI") 122--e.g., an
application running on mobile device 120. As described in further
detail below, UI 122 can be configured to provide information
regarding an individual shot taken during a shooting session (e.g.,
cant, attitude, and general orientation, ambient temperature, wind
speed, geographical location, ammunition type) as well as
cumulative statistics and prediction models (e.g., how long before
firearm 110 requires maintenance, etc.).
[0020] While FIG. 1 illustrates just a single firearm 110, the
invention is not so limited; any number of firearms (or various
types) may communicate with computing device 120, depending upon
the context. In an instruction context, for example, multiple
students at a firing range (each having their own firearm 110 and
corresponding module 150) may be connected to a single device 120
for monitoring by an experienced instructor.
[0021] Server system 190 may itself be part of a larger network,
such as a social network of like-minded gun owners who can compare
their shot data (e.g., via a leaderboard) and otherwise interact on
an associated social network platform. In such cases, gun-related
advertisements (which may not be welcome on other social networking
sites) may be presented to the user (on an opt-in basis) such that
the ads relate to their use of the module 150 (e.g., gun types,
ammunition, firing range locations, etc.)
[0022] In some embodiment, server system 190 is coupled to a
distribution system that monitors the flow of arms and/or
ammunition. For example, a scanning system may be provided for
scanning and tracking ammunition boxes. This allows an entity to
identify the type of ammo used, which in turn enables that entity
to deliver ammunition attributes to the user. The system may also
count the scanned ammunition as it is received, then count it as it
goes out (or gets shot). This allows the entity to suggest and
facilitate purchases of ammunition once a user has reached a
minimum threshold, which may be user-configurable.
[0023] Referring now to FIG. 2 in conjunction with FIG. 1, a
conceptual block diagram of an example sensor module 150 will now
be described. As shown, module 150 includes a number of sensors
200, a storage component 220 (e.g., a flash drive, SSD drive, or
the like), a power supply 230 (e.g., a compact rechargeable
battery, such as a lithium polymer battery), a controller 210
(e.g., a microprocessor), one or more user interface components 240
(e.g., an on/off button, an indicator LED, etc.), and a wireless
interface 250 (providing Bluetooth, near-field, WiFi, or other
wireless communication with mobile device 120). In addition, module
150 may provide a standardized communication bus for interfacing
with the peripheral systems 160 illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0024] A wide variety of sensors 200 may be incorporated into
module 150. In the illustrated embodiment, for example, module 150
includes an inertial measurement unit (IMU) 201 for measuring
specific force (i.e., acceleration), angular rate, and orientation
of module 150 and/or a discrete accelerometer 202. Regardless of
which sensor is used, module 150 is preferably configured such that
one axis is aligned with bore axis 114 (intersecting muzzle 113).
In this way, the acceleration parallel to bore axis 114 during a
shot can be recorded. Sensor module 150 may also include a
temperature sensor 203 (e.g., an infrared thermal sensor,
thermocouple, or the like) for measuring barrel temperature, a
microphone or other audio sensor 204 for recording the sound
profile during a shot. Other possible sensors 200 include on-board
weather sensors (humidity, barometric pressure), gesture or
proximity sensors (for buttonless interactions or knowing when a
user is looking through the scope), ambient light sensors for
determining overall light conditions, including for example the
sun's position during a shot. Controller 210 is generally
configured to run software stored within storage component 220, as
is known in the art. The software (which may be implemented using
any suitable language) is designed to perform the functions
described herein, such as acquiring the sensor data from one or
more of the sensors 200, processing that data, transmitting the
data via a wired or wireless interface 250, and interacting with UI
components 240. Controller 210 may provide a range of additional
functionality, such as calibration, inactivity time-out, remote
shutdown, etc.
[0025] FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate isometric, exterior views of a sensor
module 350 in accordance with one example embodiment. As a
preliminary matter, it will be appreciated that the sensor modules
of the present invention may implemented using a variety of
geometries and connection means, and that the examples provided
herein are not intended to be limiting.
[0026] Sensor module 350, in this example, includes a body portion
351 (which will generally be mounted topmost and adjacent to the
barrel when installed), and a base portion 352. As described in
further detail below, body portion 351 and base portion 352 can be
removably attached to each other in such a way that they
effectively "clamp" on to a properly configured opening in a stock.
As shown in FIG. 3A, module 350 also includes a centrally located
and exposed infrared thermal sensor 360, which is preferably
mounted adjacent to (and can acquire the temperature of) the barrel
of firearm 110. In some embodiments, sensor 360 may be separately
articulatable and moveable (i.e., in cases where module 350 cannot
be mounted directly beneath the barrel). In some embodiments,
sensor module 350 is mounted to the barrel via a standard M-Lok or
Picatinny connection.
[0027] Referring to FIG. 3B, the underside of module 350 may
include a pair of fasteners (e.g., bolts or screws) 371, 372, a
charging interface 380 (e.g., a USB-C connector) for the enclosed
power supply (e.g., power supply 230 of FIG. 2), an ON/OFF button
392, and an indicator LED 391. The state of LED 391 (e.g., color,
flashing/solid, etc.) may be used to indicate battery condition,
status of module 350, or the like.
[0028] As shown, when body portion 351 and base portion 352 are
secured together via fasteners 371, 372, the resulting structure
has a notch-shaped perimeter 353 that can be secured to a suitably
configured opening in a rifle stock.
[0029] Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, for example, the two halves (351
and 352) are shown being attached to a stock 112--with body portion
351 being inserted from the top, and base portion 352 being
inserted from the bottom. As shown in FIG. 5, the result is a
module that has been securely fixed to stock 112 in a position that
is just below the firearm's barrel (not shown).
[0030] The shot attribute data as well as any analytics based on
that data may be presented to the user in a variety of ways. FIGS.
6A-6W illustrate just one example--a set of interrelated user
interface images that might be used in the context of a
smart-phone, tablet, HUD, or other such device. As a preliminary
matter, it will be understood that neither the content nor user
interface components illustrated in these figures are intended to
be limiting in any way.
[0031] FIG. 6A illustrates an initial "dashboard" screen 601 that
provides user interface components (e.g., buttons, as shown) that
allow the user to perform a variety of initialization functions,
such as pairing a module (e.g., module 150), specifying a rifle,
and specifying ammunition, as described in further detail
below.
[0032] Screen 601 also displays, in the middle region, various
categories of information. For example, FIG. 6A lists activity
stats (shots taken, rifles used, and ammo used for the current
month and for all time). The user can swipe laterally to reveal
rifle usage stats (screen 602, FIG. 6B) and ammunition usage
(screen 603, FIG. 6C) for the shots listed in the previous summary.
Buttons are illustrated near the bottom of screens 601-603 for
examining shot logs as well as settings and equipment.
[0033] In that regard, FIGS. 6D and 6E (screens 604 and 605)
provide set logs in both list view and map view. More particularly,
FIG. 6D illustrates a list of sets in reverse chronological order,
each of which can be selected to provide further detail. FIG. 6E
illustrates a map view of the same data--i.e., it provides a
graphical representation of the location at which particular sets
took place geographically.
[0034] FIGS. 6F and 6G (screens 606 and 607) illustrate additional
details (in the form of a summary) that the user can review by
selecting individual sets listed in FIG. 6D. For example, FIG. 6F
illustrates the number of shots, average heading, average cant,
altitude, average inclination, and wind speed for a particular set.
The user is also provided the option of resuming the set. Below
this set-level information, the user can select individual shots
(e.g., shot 2 of 2 in FIG. 6F, and shot 1 of 2 in FIG. 6G) and
display even more detailed information regarding range to target,
shooting position, heading, cant, inclination, etc.
[0035] FIGS. 6H-6K (screens 608-611) illustrate additional
information regarding individual shots (in this case, shot 2 of 2).
For example, FIG. 6H provides barrel temperature, muzzle velocity,
range to target, shooting position, and an optional "notes" field.
FIG. 6I includes a weather panel that lists temperature, pressure,
humidity, wind velocity, visibility, and cloud cover associated
with the shot. FIG. 6J illustrates a HUD snapshot for the shot
(illustrating, graphically, the heading, cant, and incline). FIG.
6K illustrates the recoil profile (i.e., G's of acceleration) of
the rifle during the shot.
[0036] FIGS. 6L and 6M (screens 612 and 613) illustrate information
provided by the "equipment" option within the set view, which may
have been entered by the user or determined in some other fashion.
In this view, the user is provided with information regarding the
rifle used during the set (name, caliber, manufacturer, action,
barrel, stock, etc.), the ammunition used for the set (name,
caliber, manufacturer, bullet weight), and the module (FUSION
MODULE.TM.) used during the set (name/model, software version,
hardware version, etc.).
[0037] FIGS. 6N-6P (screens 614-616) illustrate the "target" option
within the set view. That is, as shown in FIG. 6O, the user is
given the option of taking and storing a picture of the target. The
user may also record the GPS coordinates and display a map
associated with the target (FIG. 6P), which may be provided via any
suitable map API.
[0038] FIG. 6Q (screen 617) illustrates the pairing of a given
module to the computing device (which may be selected from the
first screen, shown in FIG. 6A). Similarly, FIGS. 6R and 6S
(screens 618-619) illustrate the selection of the "Rifle" and
"Ammunition" buttons of FIG. 6A, respectively.
[0039] FIG. 6T (screen 620) includes a button ("View HUD") that
allows the user to display a real-time HUD associated with the
module, as shown in FIGS. 6U and 6V (screens 621-622). That is, the
HUD view includes telemetry data, such as a heading indicator
utilizing compass directions, a display of cant, heading, and
incline below that, followed by a graphical illustration of the
cant and incline angle as shown. FIG. 6V (screen 622), which is
also a part of the HUD, displays the current weather at the
shooting site (temperature, pressure, humidity, wind, visibility,
and cloud cover). The weather may be provided by any suitable
third-party source (e.g., 171 or 172 in FIG. 1), such as a public
API. Finally, FIG. 6W (screen 623) provides information regarding
the active set, and allows the user to view the HUD or end the
current set.
[0040] Analysis module 192 and/or any of the various applications
within mobile device 120 may be implemented using one or more
machine learning models. As a preliminary matter, the phrase
"machine learning" model is used without loss of generality to
refer to any result of an analysis method that is designed to
produce some form of prediction, such as predicting the state of a
response variable, clustering variables (e.g., shot data),
determining association rules, and performing anomaly detection
(e.g., determining whether rifle 110 requires maintenance). Thus,
for example, the term "machine learning" refers to models that
undergo supervised, unsupervised, semi-supervised, and/or
reinforcement learning. Such models may perform classification
(e.g., binary or multiclass classification), regression,
clustering, dimensionality reduction, and/or such tasks. Examples
of such models include, without limitation, artificial neural
networks (ANN) (such as a recurrent neural networks (RNN) and
convolutional neural network (CNN)), decision tree models (such as
classification and regression trees (CART)), ensemble learning
models (such as boosting, bootstrapped aggregation, gradient
boosting machines, and random forests), Bayesian network models
(e.g., naive Bayes), principal component analysis (PCA), support
vector machines (SVM), clustering models (such as
K-nearest-neighbor, K-means, expectation maximization, hierarchical
clustering, etc.), and linear discriminant analysis models.
[0041] In addition, the various components of FIG. 1 may be
implemented using a variety of available computing platforms, and
is not limited to any particular architecture. For example, system
100 may be deployed on a dedicated physical server or may be
deployed in the cloud, via Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform,
Amazon Web Services (AWS), or any other such platform.
[0042] A variety of symmetrical and/or asymmetrical encryption
schemes and standards may be employed to securely handle rifle
intelligence data at rest (e.g., in database 195) and in motion
(e.g., when being transferred between the various modules
illustrated in FIG. 1). Without limiting the foregoing, such
encryption standards and key-exchange protocols might include
Triple Data Encryption Standard (3DES), Advanced Encryption
Standard (AES) (such as AES-128, 192, or 256),
Rivest-Shamir-Adelman (RSA), Twofish, RC4, RC5, RC6, Transport
Layer Security (TLS), Diffie-Hellman key exchange, and Secure
Sockets Layer (SSL). In addition, various hashing functions may be
used to address integrity concerns associated with the rifle
intelligence data.
[0043] In summary, the present subject matter relates to various
systems and methods for gathering and processing data associated
with the operation of a firearm. In accordance with one embodiment,
a sensor module for a rifle intelligence system includes an
enclosure configured to be removably secured to a firearm, a
processor disposed within the module enclosure, and a plurality of
sensors disposed within the module enclosure. The plurality of
sensors is communicatively coupled to the processor and are
configured to generate shot attribute data associated with
operation of the firearm and to wirelessly transmit the shot
attribute data to a mobile computing device.
[0044] In one embodiment, the shot attribute data includes at least
acceleration of the firearm along a bore axis and a temperature
measurement of the barrel of the firearm. In others, the shot
attribute data further includes the orientation of the barrel of
the firearm and/or an audio signal associated with the firearm. In
one embodiment, the temperature measurement is produced via an
infrared thermal sensor adjacent to the barrel of the firearm.
[0045] In one embodiment, the processor is configured to transmit
the shot attribute data to the mobile computing device a
predetermined time after the firearm is fired.
[0046] In one embodiment, the enclosure is configured to be clamped
to the stock of the firearm.
[0047] One embodiment further includes an interface configured to
communicate with a plurality of peripheral systems, the peripheral
systems selected from the group consisting of a weather meter, a
scope mounted on the firearm, an electronic target system downrange
of the firearm, and a shooting chronograph.
[0048] In one embodiment, at least a portion of the shot attribute
data is wirelessly transmitted to the mobile computing device a
predetermined time after the firearm is fired.
[0049] In one embodiment, a sensor module includes: an enclosure
configured to be removably secured to a stock of a firearm; a
processor disposed within the module enclosure; a plurality of
sensors disposed within the module enclosure and communicatively
coupled to the processor, the plurality of sensors configured to
generate shot attribute data associated with operation of the
firearm and to wirelessly transmit the shot attribute data to a
mobile computing device; wherein the shot attribute data includes
at least acceleration of the firearm along a bore axis, an infrared
temperature measurement of the barrel of the firearm, an audio
signal associated with the firearm, and orientation information
associated with the firearm.
[0050] Rifle intelligence systems of the present disclosure may be
described in terms of functional and/or logical block components
and various processing steps (e.g., FIGS. 1 and 2). It should be
appreciated that such block components may be realized by any
number of hardware, software, and/or firmware components configured
to perform the specified functions. For example, an embodiment of
the present disclosure may employ various integrated circuit
components, e.g., memory elements, digital signal processing
elements, logic elements, look-up tables, or the like, which may
carry out a variety of functions under the control of one or more
microprocessors or other control devices.
[0051] In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that
embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced in
conjunction with any number of systems, and that the systems
described herein are merely exemplary embodiments of the present
disclosure. Further, the connecting lines shown in the various
figures contained herein are intended to represent example
functional relationships and/or physical couplings between the
various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or
additional functional relationships or physical connections may be
present in an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0052] As used herein, the terms "module" or "controller" refer to
any hardware, software, firmware, electronic control component,
processing logic, and/or processor device, individually or in any
combination, including without limitation: application specific
integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate-arrays
(FPGAs), dedicated neural network devices (e.g., Google Tensor
Processing Units), electronic circuits, processors (shared,
dedicated, or group) configured to execute one or more software or
firmware programs, a combinational logic circuit, and/or other
suitable components that provide the described functionality.
[0053] As used herein, the word "exemplary" means "serving as an
example, instance, or illustration." Any implementation described
herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as
preferred or advantageous over other implementations, nor is it
intended to be construed as a model that must be literally
duplicated.
[0054] While the foregoing detailed description will provide those
skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing
various embodiments of the invention, it should be appreciated that
the particular embodiments described above are only examples, and
are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or
configuration of the invention in any way. To the contrary, various
changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements
described without departing from the scope of the invention.
* * * * *