Non-collimating firearm sight with divergent reticle projection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Collimating sights for firearms have a small field of view, making it difficult to align the reticle with the target, especially for hand-held guns, due to their design which blocks the target from view and causes exophoria issues, and existing alignment mechanisms are complex and expensive.
Innovation Solution
A non-collimating sight with a reticle and lens system that allows use with one or both eyes open, featuring a large Maximum Noticeable Angle (MNA) and a simple, adjustable mechanism for alignment, using a thick lens and fluorescent optical fiber to project a clear image without obscuring the target, and allowing for misalignment compensation without mechanical adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a collimating sight is used to project the reticle image to infinity, then the reticle stays on target and parallax is eliminated, but the field of view becomes very small making it difficult to detect the aiming point
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of collimating the reticle image to infinity as in conventional sights, this invention uses a non-collimating optical system where the reticle is positioned beyond the focal plane of the lens, creating a divergent beam that projects a virtual image closer to the shooter's eye. This inversion of the optical approach dramatically increases the field of view while maintaining adequate alignment precision through the divergent light paths.
2Ease of operation
If a collimated sight with opaque tube is used, then the reticle can be viewed with one eye, but the target is blocked from view and exophoria causes the reticle image to drift or disappear
Solution Approach 1:
The sight tube is made transparent rather than opaque, allowing both the reticle and target to be visible simultaneously through the same optical path. This local change in material property (from opaque to transparent) eliminates the need to choose between single-eye viewing and target visibility, enabling the shooter to see both the projected reticle and the target through the transparent tube.
3Measurement precision
If existing alignment mechanisms are used to adjust sight orientation, then alignment accuracy can be improved, but the mechanism becomes complex and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The sight incorporates a self-aligning feature where the divergent optical system naturally compensates for minor misalignments through its wide field of view and relaxed eye relief requirements. The design eliminates the need for complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms by using optical geometry (reticle positioned beyond focal plane) to provide inherent alignment tolerance and ease of use.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables accurate and quick alignment of the sight with the target, maintaining high accuracy while being durable, inexpensive, and easy to manufacture, with a larger field of view and adjustable image size for improved shooting precision.
Implementation Method 1
a lens, the reticle being projected by the lens toward a user eye
Implementation Method 2
fluorescent optical fiber to project a clear image
Data Source
AI summary
A sight for firearms based on a non-collimating optical system includes a reticle, a lens and a housing for holding the reticle to be centered with the optical axis of the lens, which is parallel to the barrel's center line of the firearm. The reticle is located axially apart of the lens back focal plane and projected toward the user's eye, such that the projected reticle appears centered to the lens barrel only when the user eye is on the same lens optical axis.