U.S. patent number 3,672,677 [Application Number 05/065,609] was granted by the patent office on 1972-06-27 for frangible in flight arrow head cover.
Invention is credited to Vern E. Moore.
United States Patent |
3,672,677 |
Moore |
June 27, 1972 |
FRANGIBLE IN FLIGHT ARROW HEAD COVER
Abstract
A novel, in-flight cover to protect arrow points and archers
during handling of arrows has been invented. The novel cover has an
aerodynamic external shape and fractures upon impact with a target.
It is constructed preferably of a frangible material and has a
center opening to accommodate an arrow point and to frictionally
secure itself thereto. The external surface is preferably conical
in shape and may have vanes cut in the surface thereof to provide
stability for arrow shafts in flight. Frangible cellular materials
such as polystyrenes, polyurethanes and the like are useful
construction materials. The novel covers of this invention may
protect various types of points such as hunting points, field tips
and the like. An insertion device for placing the cover on an arrow
comprising a hard, rigid material having an internal opening having
substantially the same shape as the external surface of the cover
is also provided.
Inventors: |
Moore; Vern E. (Salt Lake City,
UT) |
Family
ID: |
22063887 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/065,609 |
Filed: |
August 20, 1970 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/578 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F42B
6/08 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
F42B
6/08 (20060101); F42B 6/00 (20060101); F41b
005/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;273/16.5R,16.5B,16.5C
;30/368,151 ;224/2D ;150/52R,52F,52H ;124/23 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Pinkham; Richard C.
Assistant Examiner: Shapiro; Paul E.
Claims
I claim:
1. An in flight cover for arrow points which protects during
handling and fractures upon impact comprising
a. a frangible material having an external surface of aerodynamic
shape, and
b. an internal central cavity opening in the rear face of said
cover and having such dimensions so as to frictionally secure said
cover to an arrow point,
c. said cover being of such a material and having a wall thickness
sufficiently thin that fracture of said cover occurs upon impact of
an arrow having said cover thereon with a target.
2. The arrow cover of claim 1 wherein the shape of the external
surface is conical, the fore end being smaller than the aft
end.
3. The arrow cover of claim 1 having a plurality of stabilization
vanes therein.
4. The arrow cover of claim 1 wherein the central, internal cavity
extends along the center, longitudinal axis of said cover from its
rear face to its front face, the rear opening of said cavity having
a greater width than the front opening.
5. The arrow cover of claim 4 wherein flap-like tabs are secured to
the rear face of said cover substantially perpendicularly to the
center longitudinal axis of said cover adapted to contact the rear
surface of an arrow point and substantially secure said cover to
said point.
6. The arrow cover of claim 4 wherein a plurality of longitudinal
splines raised above the outer surface of the internal central
opening are provided to contact the forward portion of an arrow
shaft when said cover is in place on an arrow.
7. The arrow cover of claim 4 wherein a plurality of vanes are
recessed in said cover.
8. The arrow cover of claim 7 wherein a pair of opposed vanes are
recessed in said cover.
9. The arrow cover of claim 4 wherein the wall thickness between
said internal opening and the front face of said cover is
sufficiently thin to permit easy puncturing by a blunt arrow
point.
10. The arrow cover of claim 1 wherein the central internal cavity
has slot-like openings extending radially therefrom adapted to
accommodate the blades of a hunting arrow.
11. The arrow cover of claim 10 wherein flap-like tabs are disposed
substantially perpendicularly to the center longitudinal axis of
said cover in the outermost surface of said slot-like openings
adapted to be sliced by the edge of a hunting point and
substantially secure said cover to said point.
12. The arrow cover of claim 10 wherein the wall thickness between
the external surface and the outer edge of said slot openings is
sufficiently thin to permit easy slicing by the blades of said
hunting arrow.
13. The arrow cover of claim 1 wherein the frangible material is a
cellular plastic.
14. The arrow cover of claim 13 wherein the cellular plastic is
cellular polystyrene.
15. The arrow cover of claim 1 wherein predetermined fracture lines
are provided.
16. An arrow comprising a shaft, an arrow point and an in-flight
cover having an aerodynamic shape frictionally secured to said
arrow, said cover being of such a material and having a wall
thickness sufficiently thin that fracture of said cover occurs upon
impact of said cover with a target.
17. The arrow of claim 16 wherein said cover has stabilizing
vanes.
18. The arrow of claim 17 wherein said shaft is featherless.
19. The arrow of claim 18 wherein said shaft has a double V-shaped,
open notch at the aft end of said shaft.
20. In combination with an arrow cover of the type set forth in
claim 1, an insertion device comprising a hard, rigid material
having an internal opening having substantially the same shape as
the external surface of said cover and having alignment means for
aligning said cover during placement of an arrow.
Description
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
The basic shape and design of arrows has remained substantially the
same for the last one thousand years, viz., an arrowhead disposed
at one end of a shaft with feathers provided at the aft end of the
shaft for in-flight stabilization. U.S. Pat. No. 2,212,345
discloses an arrow in which the blades of the arrowhead are
disposed at a slight angle to the longitudinal axis of the shaft to
provide rotation and in-flight stability However, the patent
indicates that in the preferred construction of the invention
feathers are retained at the aft end of the shaft. Thus, arrows
which are in prevalent use today have the blades of the arrowhead
disposed along the longitudinal axis of the shaft and are quite
similar to arrows used hundreds of years ago.
The need for covers for the razor-like heads frequently used on
modern hunting arrows is illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 2,611,354.
This patent discloses a cover for protecting an arrowhead during
handling and use. It is designed to drop automatically as the arrow
is drawn for shooting. Another method for protecting the sharp
point of an arrow or dart is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No.
2,620,190, wherein a permanent cover is designed to slide rearward
along the shaft of a dart as the cover makes contact with the
target thereby permitting the point of the dart to project through
and beyond the cover.
Other shapes for arrows are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,554,653
and No. 2,613,936. The arrow disclosed in the former patent is a
toy arrow having a rubber tip which is not designed for accurate
shooting inasmuch as there are no means disclosed for stabilizing
the arrow in flight. The latter patent discloses coating a
spiral-shaped tip with a plastic or soap-like material so that the
arrow could be easily removed from targets.
Although the above patents disclose innovations regarding arrow
shapes and protective covers for arrows, the modern arrow still
substantially resembles arrows used hundreds of years ago and is
generally used without the presence of a protective cover.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to provide a useful protective
cover which substantially protects an arrowhead from damage and
protects an archer from accidental injury from said arrowhead.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a protective
cover for arrows which is frictionally secured thereto and remains
with said arrow in flight.
A further objective of this invention is to provide a protective
cover which contributes in-flight stabilization to an arrow.
Further objects of the invention include the providing of a cover
which assists in aiming of an arrow; a cover which fractures upon
impact of the arrow with a target and a cover which assists an
archer in finding an arrow which has missed its target.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The above objects and others are realized by the instant invention
of a fracturable, in-flight, protective cover for arrow points,
said cover comprising a frangible material having an external
surface of aerodynamic shape and having a center, internal opening
which accommodates an arrow point.
Further description of the invention may be facilitated by
reference to the attached drawing.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cover for a hunting arrow, an
insertion device for inserting said cover on an arrow and a hunting
arrow;
FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of a novel protective cover
having stabilizing vanes therein;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view along plane 3--3 of the novel cover
illustrated in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a protective cover for
substantially blunt points such as field arrows and target arrows;
and
FIG. 5 is a sectional view along lines 5--5 of the cover
illustrated in FIG. 4.
In FIG. 1 there is illustrated a protective cover 10 oriented for
placement upon a hunting arrow 11 by means of an insertion device
12. The hunting arrow 11 has a broad head blade 13 and a razor-like
cross-blade 14 which has been inserted in a slot in the arrow and
is secured therein merely by friction between the blade and the
slot opening. These razor-like insert blades 14 are frequently lost
during hunting. The hunting arrow is further illustrated with a
double V-shaped notch 15 inasmuch as feathers have been omitted
from the aft end of the illustrated arrow. Whenever feathers are
used on the aft end of an arrow only a single narrow notch may be
placed in the nock of the arrow inasmuch as it is necessary to hold
the arrow in a particular orientation because of the placement of
the feathers. However, by eliminating feathers, wide double
V-shaped or multiple notches may be placed in the nock of the arrow
thereby facilitating rapid notching and drawing of such an
arrow.
The cover 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 has a substantially conical
surface 16 in which a portion of the surface has been removed to
provide a pair of vanes 17 and 18. These vanes cause an arrow
having such a cover thereon to rotate in flight and thereby be
stabilized. A conical shape is preferred for such protective
covers, however, pyrimidal shapes or other shapes may be utilized
so long as the fore end of the cover 19 has a substantially smaller
cross-section than the aft end of said cover 20.
The cover 10 is illustrated with a center, internal opening or
cavity 21 to accommodate the extended surface of the arrow shaft.
The internal opening generally has tapering walls so that the
opening at the rear face has a greater diameter than the forward
terminus of said opening at or near the forward surface 19. Four
lateral slots 22, 23, 24, and 25 to accommodate the broadhead arrow
13 and the razor-like insert 14 open at the rear surface 20 of the
cover. These slots generally extend substantially the length of
said cover. In another embodiment of the cover the slot openings
22, 23, 24, and 25 may be omitted and the cover placed on the arrow
with sufficient force to cause the broadhead arrow 13 and
razor-like insert 14 to cut their own cavities in the cover and to
seat themselves therein without premature fracturing of said cover.
In either embodiment it is preferred to have the center opening or
cavity 21 pass along the central axis completely through the cover
as illustrated herein in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5. The longitudinal center
opening 21 facilitates fracturing of the cover upon impact of the
cover and arrow with a target, especially when the longitudinal
opening extends to the front surface 19 of the cover.
The cover 10 of FIG. 1 is illustrated with a pair of cup-shaped
indentations 26 and 27 located on the aft surface of the conical
cover to facilitate drawing of an arrow having such a cover thereon
without interference by the archer's hand holding the bow.
The insert device 12 of FIG. 1 can have substantially any external
shape with an internal opening which has preferably substantially
the same shape as the external surface of said cover 10. The
insertion device 12 is constructed of a substantially rigid
material which is not easily pierced. It is used to place a cover
10 on an arrow so that the cover can be properly aligned with the
arrow shaft. Also, the use of an insertion device 12 materially
assists in preventing excess force from being applied to the cover
10 during its insertion on an arrow 11.
The insertion device 12 helps to align the cover 10 as it is placed
on the arrow. The device 12 preferably has a solid bottom 28 which
substantially eliminates possibility of injury to the hand during
insertion of the cover on an arrow. Furthermore, by having a slight
projection or protrusion 29 on the interior bottom surface to align
with the hole in the fore surface 19 of said cover 10, the proper
placement of the cover can be further facilitated and the broadhead
arrow point 13 can be prevented from extending farther than desired
into said cover 10. Alternatively, the insertion device 12 may have
a thick bottom with a central hole therein so that the cover having
an opening in its front surface may be visually aligned with an
arrow.
Although the cover 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 is provided with vanes
it is useful without vanes whenever an arrow having aft-placed
feathers is utilized. Thus, a cover having a conical or pyrimidal
or other appropriate shaped surface having aerodynamic
characteristics may be utilized without having vanes formed in the
surface of said cover. Also, the vanes on a cover may project from
the surface rather than be recessed therein. Recessed vanes,
however, are generally preferred because of the frangible nature of
the cover.
In FIGS. 2 and 3 a front end and sectional view of a cover for a
broad head arrow are illustrated. In FIG. 2, a front, elevational
view of a cover similar to that shown in FIG. 1 is illustrated
showing the conical surface 16 and vane surfaces 17 and 18. The
vane surfaces may be formed in the conical surface to substantially
any desired angle although for most purposes an angle of about
1/2.degree. to about 10.degree. off a plane passing through the
longitudinal center axis of the shaft is sufficient to provide
stabilization. A vane angle of about 2.degree. to about 5.degree.
is preferred for most purposes. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the most
forward portion or edge of the vane is substantially aligned with
the center axis with the vane surface trailing rearward at an angle
to the center axis so that the rear edge of the vane is offset from
the center longitudinal axis of the shaft.
FIG. 2 further illustrates the opening 30 in the front surface 19
of the cover 10. The front surface 19 has a diameter as small as
possible consistent with providing a surface for said opening 30.
The cover is illustrated with an arrow in place and the broadhead
point of the arrow may be seen in the front opening 30.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view along section 3--3 of FIG. 2,
illustrating an internal construction of a cover. Phantom lines
indicate the placement of the arrow in said cover. The sectional
view is along a pair of opposed slots so that the slot openings are
illustrated as well as the internal center opening. The opposed
slot openings 23 and 25 are illustrated in FIG. 3 as having
slightly less length and height dimensions than the broad head
arrow. By means of this construction the arrow does seat itself in
a very small portion of the cone near the tip and at a very small
portion of the wall of the cover at the aft portion of the cover.
The internal opening 21 conforms substantially to the shape of the
forward portion of the arrow 31. Also, an internal opening 21 is
substantially conical in shape to accommodate the forward portion
of the shaft 31.
As the arrow makes contact with the target and presses forward in
said cover the blades of the arrow tend to cut through the external
surface of the cover at substantially the same time the shaft
portion 31 moves forward in internal opening 21 thereby placing an
outward force on the cover and causing the cover to burst upon
impact. The bursting effect may further be enhanced by providing
weakened sections or fracture lines in the walls of said cone.
In FIG. 3 a small tab or waifer 32 is illustrated as part of the
internal construction of the cover. The tab or waifer 32 is
preferably located in a slot such as slot 25 so that the broadhead
arrow as it is placed in said cover will cut the thin tab or
waifer. The tab may be constructed of a thin paper, plastic, or
other material. This tab or waifer 32 upon being cut tends to hold
the cover in place by its flap-like action. The cover may be
utilized without the use of such tabs or waifers, however, the
cover remains more securely on the arrow if said tabs or waifers
are utilized particularly during handling. Although a single tab or
waifer is effective, it is generally preferred to use at least a
pair of tabs or waifers each disposed in slots opposite one
another.
In FIGS. 4 and 5 a protective cover for blunt tips such as field
arrows is disclosed. In FIG. 4 the cover 33 has a conical surface
34 with vanes 35, 36, and 37 disposed in the external portion
thereof. As illustrated in FIG. 5, it is preferred to have the
internal opening 38 pass through the cover. This type of cover may
also be used for target points preferably having a larger opening
in the fore-end of the cover.
In FIG. 4 internal splines 39 and 40 are illustrated so that too
much friction does not occur between the field tip and the cover.
Thus, the field tip rests against the raised surface of the spline
such as splines 39 and 40 rather than against the continuous wall
of opening 38. The presence of splines is preferred so that the
arrow will not bind in the cover on impact, but will move forward
as intended. Also, illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 are external tabs
41 and 42 which may be of a plastic paper, or other sheet-like
material having some rigidity and which aid in holding the tip in
place once the cover is inserted upon the arrow.
In the field tip cover illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 it is preferred
to have the forward portion 43 of rather thin cross section between
the internal opening 38 and the external surface 33 so that upon
contact with a target the field tip 44 can easily punch through the
forward wall of the cover. Alternatively, the cover may be provided
with fracture lines which are substantially weaker than the
remaining sections of the cover so that upon contact with a target
the cover opening would burst as the field tip 44 moves forward in
the cover thereby placing an outward pressure upon the internal
surfaces of the cover opening 38.
The covers of this invention may be constructed of any appropriate
material which is frangible or brittle so that the blades of a
hunting arrow may easily cut through the thin cross-section between
the slot openings and the external surface or the tip of a field
arrow may easily punch through the forward portion of such a cover.
Such materials of construction may include cellular plastics or
paper covers. Of the plastics, cellular polystyrene and
polyurethane of a frangible nature are preferred. Cellular
polystyrene is especially useful not only because it is economical
but because it is readily produced in a frangible form and upon
exposure to sunlight and weather over a period of months the
material substantially disintegrates thereby eliminating a litter
problem.
The covers of this invention may be provided with vanes which are
generally cut into the surface of the material by removing a
portion of the surface although said vanes could protrude from a
conical or pyrimidal surface to provide stabilization for arrows
having such a cover attached. The invention is especially
advantageous in this regard inasmuch as it has not been previously
considered to have a cover remain on an arrow in flight.
Furthermore, by providing vanes in the covers of this invention the
need for aft feathers may be eliminated thereby offering the
possibility of providing an open notch in the nock of said arrow to
facilitate notching and drawing rapidly of an arrow. Also, such
aerodynamic stabilizing arrows are an improvement, especially with
flat head arrows in which the flat head is frequently slightly
bent, causing the arrow to fly untrue.
Furthermore, the covers of this invention may be provided with a
protective paint coating. When said coating on the rear face of the
cover is white in color it assists in aiming the arrow and in
following the arrow in flight. This is especially true during the
dimly lit periods of the day which are the most frequent periods
during which an archer encounters game. Thus, it assists an archer
in determining if his arrow has hit the target and further assists
him in finding the arrow if it has missed its target. If a coating
is provided on the aerodynamic surface, a dark coating is
preferred.
The novel cover of this invention provides a new type of archery
article, viz. an arrow comprising a shaft, a point and a cover of
the type described herein, frictionally secured thereto.
Furthermore, the arrow shaft need not have feathers when said cover
possesses stabilization vanes. Also, a featherless shaft may be
provided with a plurality of notches for rapid notching and
drawing.
The novel covers may be readily formed by casting a foamable
plastic in a mold of appropriate shape. By using a male and female
mold combination a cover having the desired internal openings and
external shape can be cast and later drilled or cut to provide the
appropriate internal cavities.
Although the instant invention has been described with reference to
specific embodiments it is not intended that the invention be
limited solely thereto but to include all the modifications and
variations included within the scope of the appended claims.
* * * * *