Quick-release handgun holster body

Abstract

A quick-release handgun holster body with locking means designed to lock the gun trigger guard (230) once inserted into a housing (10) is disclosed. The holster body comprises a housing (10), a slider (20), a latch (30), a ball (40), a thrust fuse (50), a locking pin, and a fastening means. Pushing the surface (22) on the slider (20) with the user's index finger brings the latch (30) into the position where the ball (40) can enter the ball nest formed on the said latch. This action unlocks the trigger guard (230), and the user can easily pull the handgun out from the holster housing (10). The reverse action brings the handgun locked within the holster body. This invention enables fast and easy locking and unlocking of the handgun, in a natural move of the hand over the gripper (210), when reaching the handgun in the holster.

Description

[0001] QUICK-RELEASE HANDGUN HOLSTER BODY

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] Technical Field

[0004] The present disclosure relates to a quick-release handgun holster body with the fastening means for connecting to the selected belt or the appropriate carrier . The technical field of the present disclosure belongs to the means for wearing or carrying small arms , in particular handguns , equipped with a locking system for preventing unauthorized or accidental removal of the small arm from the holster .

[0005] Technical Problem

[0006] The present disclosure solves the problem of forming a quick-release handgun holster body, that prevents the accidental removal of the handgun from the holster , where the handgun is locked within the suitably designed holster body by its trigger guard . Furthermore , the present disclosure offers a solution that is designed ergonomically to be easily activated by the index finger . Pushing the locking means in the direction opposite from the handgun grip unlocks the handgun from the holster body . Similarly, once the handgun is inserted into the holster body, pulling the locking means in the direction towards the handgrip locks the handgun within the holster body on the trigger guard .

[0007] The disclosure offers a quick-release locking / unlocking and the locking mechanism which consists of a minimum number of elements , only five elements , where the holster body is not counted . The said holster body can be manufactured via inj ection molding with metal insertions of the parts subj ected to wear .

[0008] State of the Art

[0009] The state-of-the-art is moderately populated with technical solutions solving the same problem, i . e . , forming a quick-release handgun holster body .

[0010] US 11 , 415 , 388 for EASILY LOCKABLE AND UNLOCKABLE HANDGUN HOLSTER, filed in the name of Su Wei , CN . The said document discloses an easily lockable and unlockable handgun holster . When the handgun holster needs to be unlocked, it is only necessary to press a button with a finger to complete the unlocking of a handgun . When the handgun holster needs to be locked, it is only necessary to insert an end portion of the handgun into the handgun holster through an opening to complete the locking of the handgun . The handgun holster of the present invention has a simple structure and can be unlocked through a button . Although solving the same technical problem using the lever mechanism and the buckle , it is open to how fast locking and unlocking can be achieved with the cited locking mechanism, using the thumb .

[0011] International PCT patent application W02011 / 008293A2 for LOCKING HOLSTER WITH THUMB DRIVE , filed in the name Of Blade-Tech Industries , Inc . , US . This document teaches about a rigid holster for retaining a pistol or handgun of a specific design configuration with a locking pin that engages into the trigger guard ring area when the handgun is contained in the holster, thus retaining the handgun in place . To release the gun a user pushes a thumb pad which slides forward to release the locking pin . The disclosed system differs from the present disclosure in using a different locking mechanism with many metal parts , i . e . , levers and cams . US 7 , 556 , 181 for HOLSTER FOR HANDGUNS , filed in the name of P . Spielberger , AT teaches about yet another solution that is similar to those disclosed in W02011 / 008293A2 .

[0012] US 10 , 619 , 974 for THUMB-ACTUATED LOCKING HOLSTER, filed in the name of Vista Outdoor Operations LLC . , US , teaches about a holster for receiving and withdrawing a handgun . It has a proximal wall portion with a handgun retention mechanism thereon . The mechanism has a first lever with a tab portion for actuation and release of a trigger guard, the lever having a snap fit into a lever region without a separate pin . A belt-engaging member covers the lever region capturing the first lever therein . If a second retention mechanism is used, another lever with a tab portion is positioned so the tabs are stacked, depressing one also depresses the tab behind it , such that both mechanisms are released . Overmolded polymer layers in the holster body provide a softer interior handgun engagement surface .

[0013] None of the above-cited documents uses a ball engaged with the slider as one of the locking elements to the trigger guard and the index finger for the locking / unlocking procedure . In all cited prior art , it seems that the thumb is generally considered the best finger for the unlocking procedure , which implies that significant effort should be exercised to lock and unlock the cited prior art mechanisms .

[0014] Summary of the Invention

[0015] A quick-release handgun holster body with locking means capable of locking the gun trigger guard once inserted into it is hereby disclosed . The said holster body comprises a housing , a slider , a latch, a ball , a thrust fuse , a locking pin, and a fastening means .

[0016] The housing is formed to receive a handgun and encloses its parts with a trigger chamber that surrounds the trigger guard, and a barrel chamber equipped with the fastening means . The trigger chamber has a latch tunnel for the latch insertion provided with the ball insertion hole and a ball nest for receiving the ball . In addition, the housing has support with two distant fuse recesses .

[0017] The slider encloses the latch tunnel and slides over it parallel to the trigger chamber via the force exerted on the slider locking surface or unlocking surface situated substantially perpendicular to the latch tunnel . The slider is also equipped with a latch hole for the latch insertion, wedge nests for receiving latch wedges , a fuse nest , a locking pin bore , and a locking pin nest .

[0018] The latch has a longitudinal grove with a latch nest and latch wedges on one side of the latch . In addition, the latch has a locking pin recess which enables the said latch and the slider firm connection upon the locking pin insertion .

[0019] The ball , once inserted in the housing via the hole , partially protrudes into the trigger chamber and sits in the ball nest . The ball is dimensioned to rotate in the nest and to travel along the grove once the latch is inserted through the slider latch hole into the housing latch tunnel . The spring-loaded thrust fuse is inserted in the thrust fuse nest , slides over the support , and locks itself in one of two fuse recesses designed for that purpose .

[0020] The core of the invention is the locking means for the handgun trigger guard, which is formed by the ball capable of moving in and out from the ball nest into the latch nest by the slider' s action and the latch fixed thereto , which locks or unlocks the handgun trigger guard within the trigger chamber .

[0021] In the preferred embodiment , the housing, the slider , and the latch are manufactured via inj ection molding with metal insertions of the fastening means to the housing , rendering the housing light for carrying . In all variants , the fastening means enabling fastening of the housing to the selected belt or the carrier , by screws or rivets . The use of the quick-release handgun holster body is simple . Starting from the locked handgun within the holster body : pushing the slider' s unlocking surface in the direction opposite from the handgun grip moves the slider and the thrust fuse from the first fuse recess into the second fuse recess , which rotates the ball within the ball nest and rolls it over the groove into the latch nest which releases the handgun trigger guard locked via the said ball from the trigger chamber, and the handgun can be easily pulled out from the holster body, and once the handgun is inserted into the holster body, pulling the slider' s locking surface towards the handgun grip move the slider and the thrust fuse from the second fuse recess into the first fuse recess which ej ects the ball from the latch nest out into the trigger chamber within the ball nest and locks the inserted gun trigger guard locked via the said ball within the trigger chamber .

[0022] In the preferred embodiment , the unlocking surface and the locking surface are designed ergonomically to be easily activated by the index finger .

[0023] Description of Figures

[0024] Figure 1 depicts the quick-release handgun holster body .

[0025] Figure 2 shows the exploded view of the handgun holster body with all parts separated .

[0026] Figure 3 shows the handgun inserted into the holster body .

[0027] Figure 4 shows the A-A cross-section indicated in Figure 3 , with the view taken from below, where the handgun is locked within the holster . Figure 5 shows the A-A cross-section indicated in Figure 3, with the view taken from below, where the handgun is unlocked within the holster, and capable of pulling out.

[0028] Figure 6 depicts the housing with trigger and barrel chambers, and the fastening means .

[0029] Figure 7 depicts the housing and a space for receiving the locking mechanism.

[0030] Figure 8 depicts the side view of the housing depicted in Figure 7.

[0031] Figure 9 shows the B-B cross-section indicated in Figure 8, with enlarged section S.

[0032] Figure 10 shows the perspective view of the latch.

[0033] Figure 11 shows the C-C cross-section indicated in Figure 10.

[0034] Figures 12 and 13 depict the outer and the inner side of the slider respectively.

[0035] Figure 14 represents the D-D cross-section indicated in Figure 13.

[0036] Detailed Description of the Invention

[0037] As mentioned above, the quick-release handgun holster body (100) with a new, reliable, and simple locking means is disclosed. Figure 1 shows the body (100) which is fully operational and completed from all elements we will discuss in the rest of the text. Two main parts of the holster body (100) are the housing (10) and slider (20) . The slider (20) hides other essential elements; the latch (30) , the ball (40) , the thrust fuse (50) , and the locking pin (60) , depicted in Figure 2. Fastening means (70) are also a necessary part of the holster body (100) , situated oppositely to the slider (20) . The arrow in Figures 1 and 2 indicates the handgun (200) insertion path.

[0038] Figure 3 shows the handgun (200) inserted into the holster body (100) in a way that a grip (210) stays out where the trigger (220) and the corresponding trigger guard (230) are partially enclosed with the housing (10) , more precisely the trigger chamber (11) of the said housing (10) . The handgun (200) barrel is enclosed partially by the barrel chamber (12) , both chambers are marked in Figures 6 and 7.

[0039] The housing

[0040] The housing (10) is depicted in Figures 6-9 in detail. Figure 6 depicts the housing (10) from the opposite side of those presented in Figure 1, a set of fastening means (70) , preferably made of metal, are distributed over the substantially flat surface. This fastening means (70) enables the fastening of the said housing (10) to the selected belt or the carrier. The housing (10) can be fastened via screws if the fastening means (70) has threads, via rivets, or in any other conventional manner known in the art. The metal fastening means (70) are inserted into the housing (10) during the process of injection molding, with appropriate anchors to assure a durable connection thereto .

[0041] The person skilled in the art may conceive that for each handgun (200) model, the specifically designed housing (10) , i.e., chambers (11, 12) are used. These chambers (11, 12) should be carefully designed to avoid negative angles to simply the molds used in the production. Thanks to the generic handgun (200) geometry, this is not a huge problem.

[0042] Figure 7 depicts the opposite side of the housing (10) from those depicted in Figure 6. Above the trigger chamber (11) , a part of the locking mechanism is formed; the latch tunnel (13) of substantial trapeze cross-section, with the longitudinal latch cavity (18) through the entire tunnel (13) and the support (14) . The support (14) is made with two recesses (15, 16) for receiving a thrust fuse (50) . In the preferred embodiment, the support (14) and recesses (15, 16) are created as an integral part of the housing (10) , but other variants are also possible. The latch tunnel (13) is on its one end, closest to the trigger (220) once the handgun (200) is inserted and close to the support (14) , equipped with the ball insertion hole (17) . The ball insertion hole (17) has a diameter that is greater than the ball (40) diameter and ensures that the ball (40) can pass the latch tunnel towards the ball nest (19) formed as a bore between the trigger chamber (11) and the latch tunnel (13) , more particularly latch cavity (18) . This is well depicted in Figures 8 and 9, especially on the enlarged section S, of the B-B cross-section indicated in Figure 8. A closer look reveals that the ball nest (19) has a bottom rim of a diameter that is smaller than the ball' s diameter, preventing the drop-down of the ball (40) in the trigger chamber (11) , once the ball (40) is inserted. Furthermore, the nest (19) enables the ball (40) to rotate with the said nest (19) with the minimum possible friction.

[0043] The latch

[0044] The latch (30) is depicted in Figures 10-11 in detail. As the housing (10) , the latch (30) is formed by injection molding. According to the preferred embodiment, the latch (30) has a longitudinal groove (31) on one of its sides, dimensioned to fit the ball (40) curvature. Closer to one of its ends, the latch has a latch nest (32) for receiving the ball (40) , and one or more wedges (34) for fixing the latch (30) in the slider (20) . On the opposite side from the nest (32) , a locking pin recess (33) is formed which helps to secure the said latch within the slider (20) and keep the locking mechanism compact .

[0045] The slider

[0046] The slider (20) is depicted in Figures 12-14 in detail. It has a shell form whose outer side, oriented to the user, is convex, while the inner side is concave, dimensioned to interact with the housing (10) and to accommodate a latch (30) and a latch tunnel (13) , with substantially flat edges that lay on the housing (10) .

[0047] On the outer side of the slider (20) , see Figure 12, there are locking surface (21) , and opposite to it an unlocking surface (22) , the latch hole (23) formed opposite to the surface (21) , and the locking pin bore (26) for receiving the locking pin (60) . On the inner side of the slider (20) , see Figure 13, there are wedge nests (24) for receiving the latch wedges (34) , a fuse nest (25) situated beneath the surfaces (21, 22) for receiving the thrust fuse (50) . The fuse nest (50) is dimensioned according to the thrust fuse (50) diameter, i.e. , to receive it with a small resistance that allows the said fuse (50) to remain within its nest (25) . The slider (20) cross-section, taken over the D-D line in Figure 13, is presented in Figure 14. This cross-section reveals the locking pin nest (27) positioned beneath the locking pin bore (26) , and a fuse nest (25) situated at one end of the slider (20) .

[0048] The ball, thrust fuse, and locking pin

[0049] The ball (40) , preferably made of steel, is dimensioned to easily pass the ball insertion hole (17) and to sit in the ball nest (19) once the locking mechanism is formed and tightened.

[0050] In the preferred embodiment, the spring-loaded thrust fuse (50) or spring-loaded thrust peace as sometimes called, see for instance: https : / / ecom.meusburger . com / e / index .asp?eg=2&ekategorie=et&id=34&k=s &lang=2 is dimensioned to be inserted in the thrust fuse nest (25) , and capable of sliding over the support (14) with its tip. As explained earlier, its role is to lock itself in one of two fuse recesses (15, 16) formed on the housing (10) and define the locked and unlocked position of the locking mechanism / means .

[0051] The locking pin (60) , formed as the metal cylinder, enables the latch (30) and the slider (20) firm connection upon the locking pin (60) insertion through the bore (26) in the locking pin nest (27) which locks the locking pin recess (33) . The locking pin (60) diameter is slightly over-dimensioned to fit tight.

[0052] All three elements are well known in the art and preferably made of appropriate metals or metal alloys.

[0053] Assembly of the handgun holster body

[0054] Assembling or disassembling the holster body (100) is rather straightforward .

[0055] The assembling process is given by the steps below:

[0056] A. The ball (40) is inserted through the ball insertion hole (17) in the nest (19) , ensuring that the position of the housing (10) allows the ball (40) to rest in the nest (19) .

[0057] B. The spring-loaded thrust fuse (50) is inserted into the slider's fuse nest (25) . The slider (20) is then put over the latch tunnel (13) in the position depicted in Figure 4, where the thrust fuse (50) is situated in the first recess (15)

[0058] C. The latch (30) is inserted through the slider's latch's hole (23) into the latch's tunnel (13) , in a way that the latch's wedges (34) enter the wedge's nests (24) formed in the slider (20) .

[0059] D. The locking pin (60) is then inserted through the locking pin bore (26) between the locking pin nest (27) formed on the slider (20) and the locking pin recess (33) formed on the latch (30) that locks the said latch (30) to the slider (20) and forms one sliding body formed by the said latch (30) and the said slider (20) .

[0060] Appropriate lubricants can be used to allow lubrication of the mutually sliding or engaging parts. The disassembly is carried out in the reverse order, i.e. , from the step D. to the step A. Firstly, the locking pin (60) is pushed out from its seat composed of locking pin recess (33) and locking pin nest (27) by inserting the pin extractor, i.e., a rod or needle, through the bore (26) from the direction depicted in Figure 13. The holster body (100) should be unlocked, i.e., in the position shown in Figure 5, and the pin extractor should bring the locking pin (60) out from the slider (20) to release the latch (30) .

[0061] For the person skilled in the art, it is obvious that the left-handed user's holster body (100' ) can be easily formed from the right-handed user's holster body (100) by the mirror-symmetrical process or using the mirror-symmetrical molds .

[0062] Locking mechanism and its action

[0063] The core of the invention is the locking mechanism, i.e., the locking means for the handgun trigger-guard. It is formed by the ball (40) capable of moving in and out from the ball nest (19) into the latch nest (32) by the action of the slider (20) and the latch (30) fixed thereto. Slider (20) movements lock or unlock the handgun trigger guard within the trigger chamber (11) . The details are given in the paragraphs below.

[0064] Once assembled, the holster body (100) is ready for its purpose. Figures 3-5 disclose the locking mechanism and its action in detail. For the explanation, it is good to start with the position depicted in Figure 4, i.e., where the handgun (200) is inserted entirely in the holster body (100) , and the slider (20) is in the position where the thrust fuse (50) is locked to the first recess (15) , where the ball (40) is fully nested in the nest (19) and where the part of the ball (40) locks the trigger guard (230) within the housing (10) , more precisely, within the trigger chamber (11) .

[0065] Now, pushing the slider, preferably with the index finger, to the unlocking surface (22) in the direction opposite from the handgun grip moves the slider (20) and the thrust fuse (50) from the first fuse recess (15) into the second fuse recess (16) . Such an action rotates the ball (40) within the ball nest (19) and rolls it over the groove (31) into the latch nest (32) during the sliding of the slider (20) over the housing (10) . Once reaching the nest (32) , the ball (40) releases the handgun trigger guard (230) locked via the said ball (40) from the trigger chamber (11) . So, the handgun can be easily pulled out from the holster body (100) without effort or counterforce which has to be overcome. This ensures a true quick-release motion within the blink of an eye, in less than 0.1 seconds, with the natural index finger movement.

[0066] The locking process is reversible and starts with the position depicted in Figure 5. Once the handgun is inserted into the holster body (100) , pulling the slider's locking surface (21) towards the handgun grip with the index finger - move the slider (20) and the thrust fuse (50) from the second fuse recess (16) into the first fuse recess (15) . This action ejects the ball (40) from the latch nest (32) out, into the trigger chamber (11) , i.e. , in the ball nest (19) . The ball (40) is pressed and locked in that position by the latch's groove (31) , where the ball (40) locks the inserted gun trigger guard (230) within the trigger chamber (11) , which brings the locking means in the position depicted in Figure 4.

[0067] Industrial Applicability

[0068] The present disclosure relates to a quick-release handgun holster body with the fastening means for connecting to the selected belt or the appropriate carrier. This quick-release handgun holster body (100) has an improved locking means that locks the gun trigger guard once inserted into it and enables single-finger operation from locked into unlocked state. The industrial applicability of the present invention is obvious . Reference numbers

[0069] 10 housing

[0070] 11 trigger chamber

[0071] 12 barrel chamber

[0072] 13 latch tunnel

[0073] 14 support

[0074] 15 first fuse recess

[0075] 16 second fuse recess

[0076] 17 ball insertion hole

[0077] 18 latch cavity

[0078] 19 ball nest

[0079] 20 slider

[0080] 21 locking surface

[0081] 22 unlocking surface

[0082] 23 latch hole

[0083] 24 wedge nest

[0084] 25 fuse nest

[0085] 26 locking pin bore

[0086] 27 locking pin nest

[0087] 30 latch

[0088] 31 groove

[0089] 32 latch nest

[0090] 33 locking pin recess

[0091] 34 wedge

[0092] 40 ball

[0093] 50 thrust fuse

[0094] 60 locking pin

[0095] 70 fastening means

[0096] 100 holster body

[0097] 200 handgun

[0098] 210 grip

[0099] 220 trigger

[0100] 230 trigger guard

Claims

CLAIMS1. A quick-release handgun holster body (100) with locking means that locks the gun trigger guard once inserted into it, where the said holster body (100) comprising a housing (10) , a slider (20) , a latch (30) , a ball (40) , a thrust fuse (50) , a locking pin (60) and a fastening means (70) , where the housing (10) is formed to receive a handgun and encloses its parts with a trigger chamber (11) that encloses the trigger guard and a barrel chamber (12) equipped with the fastening means (70) , where the trigger chamber (11) has a latch tunnel (13) for the latch (30) insertion provided with the ball insertion hole (17) and a ball nest (19) for receiving the ball (40) , and a support (14) with two distant fuse recesses (15, 16) , where the slider (20) encloses the latch tunnel (13) and slides over it parallel to the trigger chamber (11) via the force exerted on the slider locking surface (21) or unlocking surface (22) situated substantially perpendicular to the latch tunnel (13) , where the slider (20) is further equipped with a latch hole (23) for the latch (30) insertion and wedge nests (24) for receiving latch wedges (34) , a thrust fuse nest (25) , a locking pin bore (26) and a locking pin nest (27) , where the latch (30) has a longitudinal grove (31) with a latch nest (32) and latch wedges (34) on one side of the latch, and a locking pin recess (33) which enables the said latch (30) and the slider (20) firm connection upon the locking pin (60) insertion, where the ball (40) , once inserted in the housing (10) via the hole (17) partially protrudes into the trigger chamber (11) and sits in the ball nest (19) , and where the ball (40) is dimensioned to rotate in the nest (19) and to travel along the grove (31) once the latch (30) is inserted through the slider latch hole (23) into the housing latch tunnel (13) ,where the spring-loaded thrust fuse (50) is inserted in the thrust fuse nest (25) , slides over the support (14) , and locks itself in one of two fuse recesses (15, 16) , wherein, the locking means for the handgun trigger is formed by the ball (40) capable of moving in and out from the ball nest (19) into the latch nest (32) by the action of the slider (20) and the latch (30) fixed thereto, that locks or unlocks the handgun trigger guard within the trigger chamber (11) .

2. The quick-release handgun holster body (100) according to claim 1, wherein the housing (10) , the slider (20) , and the latch (30) are manufactured via injection molding with metal insertions of the fastening means (70) to the housing (10) .

3. The quick-release handgun holster body (100) according to claim 1, wherein fastening means (70) enabling fastening of the housing (10) to the selected belt or the carrier, by screws or rivets.

4. Use of the quick-release handgun holster body (100) according to any of claims 1-3, wherein, starting from the locked handgun within the holster body (100) : pushing the slider's unlocking surface (22) in the direction opposite from the handgun grip moves the slider (20) and the thrust fuse (50) from the first fuse recess (15) into the second fuse recess (16) which rotates the ball (40) within the ball nest (19) and rolls it over the groove (31) into the latch nest (32) which releases the handgun trigger guard locked via the said ball (40) from the trigger chamber (11) , and the handgun can be easily pulled out from the holster body ( 100 ) , and once the handgun is inserted into the holster body (100) , pulling the slider's locking surface (21) towards the handgun grip move the slider (20) and the thrust fuse (50) from the second fuse recess (16) into the first fuse recess (15) which ejects the ball (40) from the latch nest (32) out into the trigger chamber (11) within the ball nest (19) and locks theinserted gun trigger guard locked via the said ball (40) within the trigger chamber (11) .

5. Use of the quick-release handgun holster body (100) according to claim 4, where the unlocking surface (22) and the locking surface (21) are designed ergonomically to be easily activated by the index finger.

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