A rubber band launching device

Abstract

This invention provides a rubber band launching device, comprising: a gun body and a launching system, a feeding system, and a power system for powering the movement of the entire device, all mounted on the gun body. The launching system is mounted on the gun body via a fixed bracket and includes a main shaft, a fixed wheel, a first rocker arm, a rotating wheel, a rubber band hook, and a second drive wheel. The rotating wheel rotates around the fixed wheel and also rotates on its own axis, thereby driving the rubber band hook to perform a pulling and releasing action. The feeding system uses a belt-fed method; when the second drive wheel rotates one revolution, the feed wheel rotates one tooth pitch, thus actuating the belt to feed bullets one by one. This invention features safe loading, simple operation, and prevents finger injuries when installing rubber bands. It can freely switch between single-shot and fully automatic burst modes, and has a large ammunition capacity, allowing for the continuous firing of a large number of rubber bands, enabling players to fully enjoy the fun of shooting and offering high replayability.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of launching toys, specifically relating to a rubber band launching device. Background Technology

[0002] Rubber band guns are a classic type of toy that cleverly utilizes the elastic potential energy of the rubber band itself as a propellant, launching the rubber band as a projectile. The flexibility and limited elasticity of the rubber band perfectly control the "power" of the rubber band gun projectile.

[0003] Most mainstream rubber band guns, like the "new type of rubber band toy gun" with the publication number CN216409916U, require manual operation of stretching each rubber band one by one and attaching it to the gear at the rear of the gun to load it. Although it can fire continuously, the rubber band capacity is very limited, resulting in a small number of shots. Moreover, it is easy to injure your fingers while tightening the rubber band. In addition, it needs to be fired promptly after tightening the rubber band, otherwise it is easy for the rubber band to fatigue and lose its elasticity over time.

[0004] Patent CN201520421659.4 discloses a rapid-fire rubber band gun. In this gun, a slider is hooked at the rear, and rubber bands are hooked at equal intervals around the outer circumference of a cylinder. In this state, pulling the trigger backward once releases the slider, causing it to move to the forward position where a hook engages the rear end of a rubber band at the firing position. Subsequently, manually moving the slider backward stretches the rear end of the hooked rubber band, tautning it, while the slider remains hooked at the rear. Pulling the trigger backward again releases the slider, causing it to move forward. The hook on the taut rubber band's rear end then releases, firing the rubber band forward. Viewed from the front, the cylinder simultaneously rotates counter-clockwise by a certain amount. This rotation causes the hook to engage the rear end of the next rubber band reaching the firing position. Although the rubber bands were not stretched during installation, they still needed to be manually stretched after each shot was fired, making it not a true continuous firing system. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a rubber band launching device that is simple and safe to operate, has a large ammunition capacity, and can fire single shots or fully automatic bursts like a heavy machine gun.

[0006] This invention is implemented as follows:

[0007] This invention provides a rubber band launching device, comprising: a gun body and a launching system, a feeding system, and a power system for providing power for the movement of the entire device, all mounted on the gun body; the launching system is mounted on the gun body via a fixed bracket and includes a main shaft, a fixed wheel, a first rocker arm, a rotating wheel, a rubber band hook, and a second drive wheel; the main shaft is rotatably mounted on the fixed bracket, the first rocker arm is fixedly mounted on the main shaft, a rotating wheel is rotatably mounted on the free end of the first rocker arm, and a rubber band hook is fixedly mounted on the rotating wheel; the fixed wheel is fixedly mounted on the fixed bracket and is linked to the rotating wheel, so that the rotating wheel can rotate around the fixed wheel while also performing other actions. The rotation of the self-rotating mechanism drives the rubber band hook to complete the pulling and releasing action; the second driving wheel is coaxially fixed on the main shaft and is used to drive the feeding system and the launching system to move synchronously; the feeding system includes a bullet belt, a deflector, and a second driven wheel. The bullet belt is made up of several links hinged together and is used to store rubber bands to be launched. The deflector is rotatably mounted below the bullet belt and has several teeth on its circumferential axis for driving the movement of the bullet belt. The second driven wheel is linked to the second driving wheel and connected to the deflector through an intermittent motion mechanism. The intermittent motion mechanism allows the deflector to rotate one tooth pitch when the second driving wheel rotates one revolution, thereby driving the bullet belt to feed bullets one by one.

[0008] Preferably, the power system includes a joystick coaxially and fixedly connected to the main shaft, so as to facilitate the player to manually drive the main shaft to rotate.

[0009] Preferably, the launching system further includes a first driven wheel coaxially fixedly mounted on the main shaft; correspondingly, the power system further includes a first driving wheel and a motor for driving the first driving wheel to rotate, the first driving wheel and the first driven wheel being linked together to synchronously drive the first driven wheel to rotate.

[0010] Preferably, the power system further includes a sensor for detecting the motion state of the launching system and a control board electrically connected to it to achieve a single-shot effect; when the sensor detects that the launching system has launched a rubber band, it will control the motor to stop through the control board, and the launch button must be pressed again to launch again.

[0011] Preferably, the first driving wheel, the first driven wheel, the second driving wheel, the second driven wheel, the fixed wheel, and the rotating wheel are all toothed wheels, and the first driving wheel and the first driven wheel, the second driving wheel and the second driven wheel, and the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel are all connected by a synchronous belt.

[0012] Preferably, the transmission ratio between the second driving wheel and the second driven wheel is 1:1, and the transmission ratio between the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel is 1:2.

[0013] Preferably, the intermittent motion mechanism is a cam divider, including an output turret coaxially fixed on the rotating shaft of the dial wheel and a indexing cam coaxially fixed on the rotating shaft of the second driven wheel. The output turret and the indexing cam mesh with each other, and the number of cam rollers of the output turret is the same as the number of teeth of the dial wheel. The transmission ratio between the output turret and the indexing cam is 1:n, where n is the number of cam rollers of the output turret.

[0014] Preferably, the elastic chain is composed of several links hinged side by side. Each link has a first locking part and a second locking part at the front and rear for fixing the elastic band, so as to store the elastic band to be launched. The rear of the link also has a longitudinal groove to facilitate the elastic band hooking onto the elastic band.

[0015] Preferably, the top sides of the teeth of the derailleur are further provided with protrusions for direct contact with the chain links, so as to better engage in the gap between two adjacent chain links and drive the chain links to move.

[0016] Preferably, the ammunition feeding system further includes a support frame for supporting the ammunition belt, and a pressure plate is hinged to the support frame to cover the ammunition belt and prevent it from falling off during firing.

[0017] The beneficial effects of the rubber band launching device provided by this invention are:

[0018] 1. Safe loading: The rubber band is not stretched very long during the installation process, which avoids injury to fingers due to slippage or breakage of the rubber band when loading, and also prevents the rubber band from losing its elasticity if it is not fired in time after loading.

[0019] 2. It has a large ammunition capacity and uses belt feeding, which can fire a large number of rubber bands continuously at once, allowing players to fully enjoy the fun of shooting and making it highly playable.

[0020] 3. Simple to operate, with switchable shooting modes. Simply press a button to fire the rubber band, and you can freely switch between single-shot mode and fully automatic burst mode. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in this invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained from these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a partial structural diagram of the launching system in a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a partial structural diagram of the ammunition supply system in a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a single link in a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a rotating cam in a rubber band launching device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the working process of the launching system in a rubber band launching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] In the diagram: 11-muzzle, 12-body, 13-handle, 21-first drive wheel, 22-motor, 23-fire button, 24-mode switch, 25-master switch, 31-fixed bracket, 32-first driven wheel, 33-spindle, 34-fixed wheel, 35-rotating wheel, 36-first rocker arm, 37-second rocker arm, 38-rubber band hook, 39-second drive wheel, 41-second driven wheel, 42-dial, 43-output turret, 44-indexing cam, 45-ammunition belt, 450-chain link, 451-first locking part, 452-second locking part, 453-longitudinal groove, 46-support frame, 47-pressure plate, 470-ejection channel, 5-synchronous belt, 6-rubber band. Detailed Implementation

[0030] The embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples. The following examples are for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

[0031] The present invention provides a rubber band launching device, comprising: a gun body, a feeding system, a launching system, and a power system, wherein the gun body includes a muzzle 11 and a gun body 12, wherein the gun body 12 is provided with a pair of handles 13 for easy gripping at the rear.

[0032] like Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the power system is installed at the rear of the gun body 12 to provide power for the movement of the entire device. In a preferred embodiment, the power system includes a first drive wheel 21 rotatably installed at the rear of the gun body and a motor 22 for driving the first drive wheel 21 to rotate. Furthermore, to enable free switching between single-shot and burst-fire modes, the power system also includes a control board electrically connected to the motor 22, and sensors, a launch button 23, a main switch 25, and a mode switching switch 24 electrically connected to the control board. The sensors are used to detect the movement of the launch system, the main switch 25 is used to control the on / off state of the main power supply, the launch button 23 is used to start the motor 22 to launch the rubber band 6, and the mode switching switch 24 is used to change the launch mode. In single-shot mode, pressing the launch button 23 will cause the sensor to detect that the launch system has launched one rubber band 6, and then control the motor 22 to stop rotating through the control board. The launch button 23 must be released and then pressed again to launch again. In burst-fire mode, pressing the launch button 23 will cause the motor 22 to rotate continuously, i.e., launch continuously. The motor 22 will stop rotating only when the launch button 23 is released.

[0033] Of course, as a low-cost implementation method, the power system can also be manually driven. A Z-shaped rocker arm can be installed coaxially on the outside of the first drive wheel 21 or directly on the outside of the main shaft 33. By rotating the rocker arm, the main shaft 33 can be rotated to launch the rubber band 6. Continuous rotation of the rocker arm can also achieve a continuous firing effect.

[0034] like Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, in this embodiment, the firing system is mounted on the middle of the gun body 12 via a fixed bracket 31, and includes a first driven wheel 32, a main shaft 33, a fixed wheel 34, a first rocker arm 36, a rotating wheel 35, a rubber band hook 38, and a second driving wheel 39. The main shaft 33 is rotatably mounted on the fixed bracket 31, and the first driven wheel 32 is coaxially fixedly mounted on the main shaft 33 and is linked with the first driving wheel 21. In a preferred embodiment, both the first driving wheel 21 and the first driven wheel 32 are toothed wheels, and the first driving wheel 21 and the first driven wheel 32 are connected by a synchronous belt 5. The first driving wheel 21 can drive the main shaft 33 to rotate synchronously. The first rocker arm 36 is fixedly mounted on the middle of the main shaft 33, so that the rocker arm can rotate together with the main shaft 33. A rotating wheel 35 is rotatably mounted on the free end of the first rocker arm 36, and the rotating wheel 35 has a through-hole. A rubber band hook 38 for launching the rubber band 6 is fixedly installed on the second rocker arm 37. The length of the second rocker arm 37 plus the length of the extended end of the rubber band hook 38 is slightly less than the length of the first rocker arm 36, ensuring that the rubber band hook 38 can rotate freely with the rotating wheel 35. The fixed wheel 34 and the rotating wheel 35 are also toothed wheels, and the transmission ratio between the fixed wheel 34 and the rotating wheel 35 is 1:2. The fixed wheel 34 is fixedly installed on the fixed bracket 31 and connected to the rotating wheel 35 through the synchronous belt 5, so that the rotating wheel 35 can rotate in the forward direction around the fixed wheel 34 and also rotate in the reverse direction to complete the forward pull and backward release action. The second drive wheel 39 is also a toothed wheel, coaxially fixedly installed on the main shaft 33 and can rotate together with the main shaft 33 to drive the ammunition feeding system to move synchronously with the launching system.

[0035] like Figure 2 , Figure 4 as well as Figure 6 As shown, the ammunition feeding system includes a support frame 46, an ammunition belt 45, a dial 42, and a second driven wheel 41. The support frame 46 is fixedly mounted on the front of the gun body 12 near the muzzle 11, and is used to mount the dial 42 and support the ammunition belt 45. The top of the support frame 46 also has a through hole to allow the normal rotation of the dial 42 to feed the ammunition belt 45 one round at a time. Figure 5As shown, the ammunition belt 45 is a previously filed patent application by the inventor, publication number CN207214902U, entitled "A rubber band fixing device for a rubber band gun." This ammunition belt 45 is composed of several chain links 450 hinged side-by-side. Each chain link 450 has a first locking part 451 and a second locking part 452 at its front and rear for fixing the rubber band 6, respectively, to store the rubber band 6 to be fired. Furthermore, the rear of each chain link 450 also has a longitudinal groove 453 for the rubber band hook 38 to pass through, facilitating the hook 38 to catch the rubber band 6. The dial wheel 42 is rotatably mounted below the support frame 46, and has several teeth circumferentially formed on it for driving the chain 45. The teeth of the dial wheel 42 protrude from the through holes of the support frame 46 and are engaged in the gaps between two adjacent chain links 450. The top sides of the teeth of the dial wheel 42 are also provided with protrusions for direct contact with the chain links 450 to better drive the chain links 450. The tooth grooves of the dial wheel 42 do not contact the chain links 450 to prevent the chain links 450 from being lifted by the upward component force during operation. By driving the dial 42 to rotate, the spring chain 45 can be moved horizontally, thereby sending the links 450 containing the rubber bands 6 to be launched one by one to the designated position. The second driven wheel 41 is also a toothed wheel, used to transmit the power of the second driving wheel 39 to the dial 42. The second driven wheel 41 is connected to the second driving wheel 39 via a synchronous belt 5. The transmission ratio between the second driven wheel 41 and the second driving wheel 39 is 1:1. When the main shaft 33 rotates one revolution, the second driven wheel 41 also rotates one revolution. The dial 42 and the second driven wheel 41 are connected by an intermittent motion mechanism. Specifically, the intermittent motion mechanism is a cam divider, which includes components coaxially fixedly mounted on the dial. The output turret 43 on the shaft 42 and the indexing cam 44 coaxially fixed on the shaft of the second driven wheel 41, wherein the output turret 43 and the indexing cam 44 mesh with each other, and the number of cam rollers on the output turret 43 is the same as the number of teeth on the dial wheel 42. The transmission ratio between the output turret 43 and the indexing cam 44 is 1:n, where n is the number of cam rollers on the output turret 43. This allows the dial wheel 42 to rotate one tooth pitch when the second drive wheel 39 rotates one revolution, turning the continuous motion of the dial wheel 42 into intermittent motion, driving the ammunition belt 45 to feed ammunition one by one, thereby preventing the link 450 of the ammunition belt 45 from shifting during loading and firing, reducing the failure rate, and ensuring shooting accuracy.

[0036] It is worth mentioning that the aforementioned driving wheel and driven wheel, as well as the fixed wheel 34 and rotating wheel 35, can be linked not only by the synchronous belt 5, but also by the chain drive, to launch rubber bands 6 with greater power; in addition, they can also be linked by gear drive, making the structure of the entire rubber band launching device more compact.

[0037] Furthermore, the sensor is a Hall sensor, which is set on the frame directly below the main shaft 33. Correspondingly, the rocker arm is equipped with a magnet. When the rocker arm rotates past the Hall sensor, the position of the rocker arm can be determined by the change in the magnetic field. Then, the control board controls the motor 22 to stop, thereby achieving the effect of single-shot burst firing.

[0038] Furthermore, a pressure plate 47 is hinged to the upper part of the support frame 46. The pressure plate 47 covers part of the ammunition belt 45 above the support frame 46. After the pressure plate 47 is closed, a certain gap is left between it and the ammunition belt 45, thereby ensuring normal feeding of the ammunition belt 45 while preventing the ammunition belt 45 from slipping off the feed wheel 42 due to excessive firing rate. In addition, the pressure plate 47 also has a through-flow firing channel 470, which corresponds to the firing path of the rubber band 6 to ensure normal firing of the rubber band 6.

[0039] The specific workflow of this invention is as follows:

[0040] First, open the pressure plate 47, place the spring chain 45 filled with rubber bands 6 on the support frame 46, so that the pulley teeth are inserted into the first gap of the spring chain 45, and then close the pressure plate 47. Figure 7 As shown in Figure a, the initial position is with the rotating wheel 35 directly below the fixed wheel 34, the second rocker arm 37 vertically upward and overlapping with the first rocker arm 36, and the rubber band hook 38 opening downward. In single-shot mode, pressing the fire button 23 will cause the first rocker arm 36 to rotate clockwise under the drive of the motor 22. Since the transmission ratio between the fixed wheel 34 and the rotating wheel 35 is 2:1, the trajectory of the free end of the rubber band hook 38 is an ellipse with an eccentricity close to 1. Therefore, as... Figure 7 As shown in c, when the first rocker arm 36 rotates 90° clockwise along the axis of the main shaft 33 (i.e., pointing towards the muzzle 11), the second rocker arm 37 will rotate 180° counterclockwise around the rotating wheel 35. Therefore, the second rocker arm 37 will also point towards the muzzle 11, and the angle between it and the first rocker arm 36 will also be 180°. At this time, the rubber band hook 38 on the second rocker arm 37 opens backward and can just enter the longitudinal groove 453 of the link 450 to hook the rubber band 6 to be fired. As the first rocker arm 36 continues to rotate, the rubber band hook 38 will hook the rubber band 6, causing the rubber band 6 to disengage from the second locking part 452 on the link 450 and stretching the rubber band 6. Figure 7As shown in f, when the first rocker arm 36 rotates clockwise by approximately 270° along the axis of the main shaft 33, the second rocker arm 37 rotates counterclockwise by approximately one and a half turns around the rotating wheel 35, thus turning to the side away from the muzzle 11. At this time, the angle between the first rocker arm 36 and the second rocker arm 37 is still approximately 180°, and the rubber band hook 38 on the second rocker arm 37 faces forward, allowing the rubber band 6 to detach from the rubber band hook 38 and be launched. However, because the rubber band 6 has a certain tension after being stretched, in reality, when the first rocker arm 36 rotates clockwise by approximately 225° along the axis of the main shaft 33, the rubber band 6 will detach and be launched. Therefore, the launch point is slightly higher than the hook point, which avoids the risk of the rubber band 6 getting stuck back on the second locking part 452 after launch, ensuring that the rubber band 6 can be successfully launched from above the link 450. Then, the first rocker arm 36 and the rubber band hook 38 continue to rotate. When the first rocker arm 36 rotates 360° back to its lowest point, the Hall sensor located directly below the main shaft 33 detects the proximity of the magnet on the first rocker arm 36. At this time, the Hall sensor transmits a signal to the control board, which then controls the motor 22 to stop, thus completing the burst firing of one rubber band 6. During the firing of the rubber band 6, the ammunition feeding system moves synchronously. When the first rocker arm 36 rotates one revolution, the dial 42 rotates one tooth pitch to drive the ammunition belt 45 to deliver the next rubber band 6 to be fired, preparing for the next firing. The continuous firing process of the rubber band 6 is basically the same, except that after pressing the fire button 23, the motor 22 will continue to rotate. Even if the Hall sensor detects that the first rocker arm 36 has moved to its lowest point, it will not transmit a stop command. The fire button 23 must be released to stop the motor 22.

[0041] The above embodiments are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to the embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that various combinations, modifications, or equivalent substitutions of the technical solutions of the invention do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention and should be covered within the scope of the claims of the invention.

Claims

1. A rubber band launching device, characterized in that, include: The gun body and the firing system, the feeding system and the power system for providing power for the movement of the entire device mounted on the gun body; The firing system is mounted on the gun body via a fixed bracket and includes a main shaft, a fixed wheel, a first rocker arm, a rotating wheel, a rubber band hook, and a second drive wheel. The main shaft is rotatably mounted on the fixed bracket, the first rocker arm is fixedly mounted on the main shaft, and a rotating wheel is rotatably mounted on the free end of the first rocker arm. A rubber band hook is fixedly mounted on the rotating wheel. The fixed wheel is fixedly mounted on the fixed bracket and is linked with the rotating wheel, so that the rotating wheel can rotate in the forward direction around the fixed wheel and also rotate in the reverse direction, thereby driving the rubber band hook to complete the forward and backward pulling action. The second drive wheel is coaxially fixedly mounted on the main shaft and is used to drive the ammunition feeding system to move synchronously with the firing system. The ammunition feeding system includes an ammunition belt, a deflector, and a second driven wheel. The ammunition belt is composed of several links hinged together and is used to store rubber bands to be fired. The deflector is rotatably mounted below the ammunition belt and has several teeth circumferentially arranged to drive the movement of the ammunition belt. The second driven wheel is linked to the second driving wheel and connected to the deflector through an intermittent motion mechanism. The intermittent motion mechanism enables the deflector to rotate one tooth pitch when the second driving wheel rotates one revolution, thereby actuating the ammunition belt to feed ammunition one by one. The launching system includes a first driven wheel coaxially fixedly mounted on the main shaft; correspondingly, the power system includes a first driving wheel and a motor for driving the first driving wheel to rotate, the first driving wheel and the first driven wheel are linked together to synchronously drive the first driven wheel to rotate; The transmission ratio between the second driving wheel and the second driven wheel is 1:1, and the transmission ratio between the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel is 1:

2.

2. The rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The power system includes a joystick that is fixedly connected coaxially to the main shaft, so that the player can manually drive the main shaft to rotate.

3. The rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The power system also includes a sensor for detecting the motion state of the launch system and a control board electrically connected to it to achieve a single-shot effect; when the sensor detects that the launch system has launched a rubber band, it will control the motor to stop through the control board, and the launch button must be pressed again to launch again.

4. A rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The first driving wheel, the first driven wheel, the second driving wheel, the second driven wheel, the fixed wheel, and the rotating wheel are all toothed wheels. The first driving wheel and the first driven wheel, the second driving wheel and the second driven wheel, and the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel are all connected by a synchronous belt.

5. A rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The intermittent motion mechanism is a cam divider, including an output turret coaxially fixed on the rotating shaft of the dial wheel and a indexing cam coaxially fixed on the rotating shaft of the second driven wheel. The output turret and the indexing cam mesh with each other, and the number of cam rollers of the output turret is the same as the number of teeth of the dial wheel. The transmission ratio between the output turret and the indexing cam is 1:n, where n is the number of cam rollers of the output turret.

6. A rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The elastic chain is composed of several links hinged side by side. Each link has a first locking part and a second locking part at the front and rear for fixing the elastic band, so as to store the elastic band to be launched. The rear of the link also has a longitudinal groove to facilitate the elastic band hooking onto the elastic band.

7. A rubber band launching device as described in claim 6, characterized in that: The top of the teeth of the dial wheel is provided with protrusions on both sides for direct contact with the chain links, so as to better engage in the gap between two adjacent chain links to drive the chain links to move.

8. A rubber band launching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The ammunition feeding system also includes a support frame for supporting the ammunition belt, and a pressure plate is hinged to the support frame to cover the ammunition belt and prevent it from falling off during firing.

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