US3455027A - Archery bow sight - Google Patents

Description

y 15, 1969 D. J. PERKINS 3,455,027

' ARCHERY BOW SIGHT Filed Aug. 30, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 EYE 70 TARGET DISTANCE E 5 7 6/Gh DISTANCE F I6. I Z 6 1 014M: reg a; RING INVENTOR DAVID J. PERKINS BY MQ ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,455,027 ARCHERY BOW SIGHT David J. Perkins, 3015 Benjamin,

Royal Oak, Mich. 48073 Filed Aug. 30, 1967, Ser. No. 664,529 Int. Cl. G01c 15/12, 21/04, 21/10 US. CI. 33-46 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This invention relates to sighting devices and range finders for archery bows and the like, and more particularly to a range finding device having a plurality of sighting apertures, each having an individual diameter corresponding to a selected target range and removably mounted on a support which is attached to the midsection of the bow.

Description of the prior art Numerous devices have been suggested in the prior art for sighting a weapon in order to fire a projectile in a given trajectory. The geometry on which such devices have been founded is well known and based on the concept that the image presented to the eye of a target decreases in size as the distance from the eye to the target increases.

As early as 1852 a British patent disclosed a range finding device for a musket based on this geometry which employed a sighting plate having a sefies of vertically aligned, progressively reduced sighting apertures. Variations of this concept have been disclosed in subsequent patents. Generally these variations are similar in that the sighting apertures form a permanent part of their sighting plate. Such devices have proven generally satisfactory for rifles and the like where the distance from the users eye to the sight is fixed by the rifle structure and does not substantially vary between individuals. Variations of these rifle range finders have been employed as a means for sighting archery bows. In general such prior .art sighting devices have not proven satisfactory for archers. Thus some archers who are expert on a target range where the target distance is known are often unsuccessful in hunting game on unfamiliar terrain where it is extremely diflicult to estimate the target distance.

The reason that the range finders of the prior art have not been successfully employed by archers is because they do not permit the archer to adjust the sights to accommodate his own physical characteristics and the bow and arrow characteristics. Where the archer must match the target image with a sighting aperture or similar means on a range finder, the distance from the archers eye to the sight is a critical factor. Because of the variable physical dimensions between different archers, and various bow strengths, conventional range finders having .a fixed setting between the sighting apertures are ineffective.

3,455,027 Patented July 15, 1969 Thus there are two requirements that must be satisfied by an effective sighting device for an archery bow. First the vertical distance between the sighting apertures must be preset by the archer in order to reflect his own physical characteristics .as well as the bow and arrow characteristics. Secondly, the supporting device on which the apertures are mounted must be vertically adjustable relative to the bow in order to reflect a condition requiring the adjustment of all the apertures such as a change in draw length, anchor point or the arrows e.g. wood vs. aluminum arrows. That is to say that a sight which is preset for a particular archer will generally have adjustied from a position which is suitable for an aluminum .arrow to a different position to accommodate wooden arrows.

It is the broad purpose of the present invention to provide an automatic sight and range finder for archery bows which permits the archer to adjust the range finder in order to accommodate his own physical characteristics as well as the characteristics of the bow and the arrows.

SUMMARY The preferred embodiment of the present invention, which will be subsequently described in greater detail, is employed with a hunting bow for shooting game such as deer or the like. A transparent, plastic, support plate is mounted on the mid-section of the how by a bracket which permits both vertical and horizontal adjustment with respect to the bow. A set of sight rings are mounted on the support plate in a vertical arrangement. The sight rings progressively increase in size from the lowermost ring to the uppermost ring. Each set of sight rings are chosen to accommodate a target of a given size. Thus for hunting deer, a target size of fourteen inches which reflects the breast to back dimensions of a typical white tail deer is chosen.

The sight rings are formed on individual strips of transparent tape having an adhesive backing. This permits the archer to mount the sight rings on the transparent support plate so that the relative distance between the sight rings is associated with his own physical sighting characteristics. The sight rings are preferably each formed on the tape as a circle having a predetermined inner diameter. However, the sight rings could as well take other geometrical shapes such as a triangle, a square, an ellipse or the like which permit the archer to match the image of the target with the ring.

The sight rings are normally pre-set by the archer by trial and error. This is achieved by taking a target of given size and moving away from the target until the targets image fills a given sight ring. The archer then shoots an arrow at the target with the bow held at different elevations until a trajectory is found which intersects the target. By holding the bow at this elevation, the sight ring is secured on the transparent support plate on an axis passing from the eye of the archer to the target. This is done with each of the sight rings. The archer then can hunt .and select a target at an unknown distance by raising or lowering the bow until the target fills a particular sight ring. He then knows that he is on target. It is to be understood, of course, that the archer pulls the bow string rearwardly to similarly flex the bow for all ranges. That is to say that the propelling force produced on the arrow by the bow string does not vary for different target ranges. Thus the archer accommodates different ranges primarily by inclining the bow.

The preferred embodiment of the invention, is simply constructed and comprises relatively few components and provides means for achieving a high degree of accuracy which has not heretofore been achieved by archers employing other forms of range finders.

The rings could be die cut from an adhesive backed, colored plastic tape.

Another embodiment of the invention takes the form of a series of steel rings, each independently and resiliently clamped on a mounting plate. The rings are movable relative to one another and individually separable from the mounting plate.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved combination sight and range finder for archery bows.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a range finder for archery bows that can be preset to accommodate the individual characteristics of the archer.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a range finder for archery bows and the like employing a series of vertically aligned sighting apertures mounted on a supporting member so that therelative vertical distance between the apertures can be adjusted.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a range finding device for archery bows comprising a support member mounted on the bow with a series of sighting apertures removably mounted on the support member so that the archer can re-adjust the relative distance between the sighting apertures.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic range finder for archery bows comprising a transparent support secured to the bow and a series of individually mounted sighting rings each formed on a tape having an adhesive backing to permit the sighting rings to be mounted on the support.

Still further objects and advantages of the present invention will readily occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains upon reference to the following detailed description.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The description refers to the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views and in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of an archer with a conventional archery bow employing a range finder embodying the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the range finder of FIGURE I mounted on the bow;

FIGURE 3 is a view of the preferred range finder as viewed from the side opposite to FIGURE 2 and separated from the bow;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged plan view of the preferred view of the preferred range finder;

FIGURE 5 illustrates another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along lines 66 of FIGURE 5; and

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of another form of a preferred sighting ring.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, FIGURE 1 shows an archer 10 drawing a bow string 12 which is secured to the extreme ends of a conventional how 14. A range finding device, generally indicated at 16, is mounted adjacent the arrow rest of the how 14 and enables the archer 10 by raising or lowering the bow to launch an arrow 18 in a trajectory which intersects a target.

The range finder 16 comprises a mounting plate 20, a bracket 22 and a transparent support plate 24. The mounting plate 20 is mounted by threaded fasteners (not shown) to a lateral side of the bow 14. The bracket 22 has a pair of horizontal adjusting slots 26 and a pair of vertical adjusting slots 28. A pair of threaded fasteners 30 received by the slots 26 mount the bracket 22 on the mounting plate 20 so that the bracket extends across the front of the bow 14.

The support plate 24 is secured to the bracket 22 by a pair of threaded fasteners 32 received by the slots 28 and 4 which permit the support plate 24 to be vertically adjusted with respect to the mid-portion of the bow 14.

The support plate 24 is preferably rectangular in shape and formed of a clear, transparent, plastic material, A vertical sighting line 34 is scribed on the plate and provides means for the archer to mount a series of vertically aligned sighting rings 36, 38, 40, 42 and 44. The sighting rings progressively increase in size from the lowermost ring 44 to the uppermost ring 36 and are preferably each formed on an individual strip of transparent tape having an adhesive backing which permits the archer to mount each ring in a selected position on the support 24 and to remove each ring from the support 24.

Each of the rings has a predetermined diameter and each set of rings are normally associated with a target of a given size. Thus in'the preferred embodiment, the. ring 36 has a .65 inch inner diameter; the ring 38 has a .42 inch diameter, the ring 40 has a .32 inch diameter, the ring 42 has a .28 inch diameter and the ring 44 has a .24 inch diameter. The diameter of the rings each correspond to the image of a 14 inch target at distances of 18, 28, 36, 42 and 49 yards when viewed by an archer having an eye to sight distance of 30 inches.

The archer normally pre-sets the rings 36, 38, 40, 42 and 44 on the support plate 24 at a relative vertical spacing accommodating his own eye to sight distance. Each ring is pre-set by employing a target having a given diameter and moving away from the target until its image fills the particular ring which is being adjusted, and then raising or lowering the bow by a trial and error process until an arrow launched from the bow travels in a trajectory which intersects the target. When this trajectory has been determined, the ring is secured in place. The archer then moves away from the target until the targets image has diminished so that it fills the next smaller size ring and the trial and error process repeated.

It will be noted that the support plate 24 can be vertically and horizontally adjusted on the how 14. This permits the archer to re-adjust the position of the support plate when he uses arrows having different flight characteristics such'as when he switches from wooden arrows to aluminum arrows.

When the archer goes into the field to hunt game, the pre-set sight rings enable him to sight the bow when he encounters game without being concerned as to the particular range of the game. He merely raises and lowers the bow until the game fills a particular ring. If necessary he can move toward and away from the game when the range is between a pair of rings or use the upper ring of a pair and shoot high or use the lower ring of a pair and shoot low.

It is to be understood that although the sight rings employed in the preferred embodiment have a circular configuration, that the term sight rings as employed in this specification refer to other geometric shapes such as triangles, rectangles, ellipsis which can be used to frame a target's image.

The sight-rings could as well be die cut from a colored or opaque tape having an adhesive backing and individually mounted on the support plate.

Although the archer need not be concerned with the targets range as measured in yards when he is hunting, the preferred range finder can be employed as a means for determining the targets range by employing the following formula:

Sight circle diameter:

target diameterX eye to sight distance eye to target distance range finder 100 comprising a mounting plate 102 having mounting holes 104 for securing the plate to a bow.

An elongated, rigid, wire 106 is removably mounted on the plate 102 in a generally upright position.

A series of spring steel clamping elements 108 are slidably and pivotally mounted on the Wire 106. The outer end of each of the clamping elements 108 is bent as at 110 to engage the inclined edge 112 of the plate 102. The wire 106 is parallel to the inclined edge 112 and acts as a fulcrum for each of the elements 108.

Preferably a screw 114 is carried at the inner end of each of the clamping elements and functions as a means for biasing the outer end of the clamping elements toward the plate 102 in the matter of a lever.

A series of metal sighting rings 116, 118, 120, 122 and 124 each having a shank 126 are clamped to the mounting plate 102 in a vertical alignment by the clamp ing elements 108.

The sighting rings are preferably formed of spring steel and each has a predetermined diameter associated with the image of a target of a given size at various ranges. Each of the rings can be individually vertically adjusted in the manner described with reference to the preferred embodiment 16 illustrated in FIGURES l-4.

FIGURE 7 illustrates another form of sighting ring 128 having a shank 130 which can also be employed in the embodiment of FIGURES 5 and 6. The sighting ring 128 is preferably formed of spring wire.

It is to be understood that I have described in detail a novel form of range finder for archery bows which permits the archer to individually pre-set a series of vertically arranged sighting rings. The preferred embodiments are each formed of a relatively few components which can be easily and inexpensively manufactured while providing a reliable means for sighting a bow for hunting or target shooting.

Although I have described several embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that various changes and revisions can be made therein Without departing from the spirit of the invention as expressed in the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, I claim: 1. A sight for an archery bow, comprising: (a) a transparent support plate having a flat surface; (b) a bracket for mounting said support plate to an intermediate section of an archery bow, with said flat surface in a vertical plane substantially normal to and within the line of sight of an archer using said bow, said bracket having means permitting said transparent support plate to be horizontally and vertically adjusted relative to the intermediate section of said archery bow; and (c) a plurality of sight rings, each having a discrete diameter individually adjusta-bly disposed on the flat surface of said transparent support plate whereby said sight rings are disposed within the line of sight for an archer using said bow, each of said rings being disposed on said surface in vertical alignment with the other of said sight rings each of said rings having a diameter corresponding to the apparent size presented by a target having a predetermined size at a predetermined range associated with the ring, said sight rings being supported on the support plate in order of increasing diameter from the lowermost sight ring to the uppermost sight ring. 2. The combination as defined in claim 1, in which said sight rings are removably mounted on the face of said support plate.

3. The combination as defined in claim 1, in which each of the sight rings comprises an opaque ring having an adhesive surface attached to the face of the support plate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,574,599 11/1951 Stieber 3346 3,056,206 10/1962 Moore 3346 3,234,651 2/ 1966 Rivers. 3,365,800 1/1968 Carella 3346- 2,998,811 9/1961 Sackmann 12424 3,225,755 12/ 1965 Shankland 124-24 FOREIGN PATENTS 171 10/ 1852 Great Britain.

RICHARD C. PINKI-IAM, Primary Examiner W. R. BROWNE, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 124-23

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