초록 ▼

A bipod for a firearm, or other equipment utilizing a multiple-leg pod, is provided that features easy, snap-apart and snap-together legs and snap-on and snap-off connection of the bipod to a ball or knob on the firearm or other equipment. The legs are preferably received in bores/holes in the bipod

A bipod for a firearm, or other equipment utilizing a multiple-leg pod, is provided that features easy, snap-apart and snap-together legs and snap-on and snap-off connection of the bipod to a ball or knob on the firearm or other equipment. The legs are preferably received in bores/holes in the bipod body and, during snapping in and out, the legs move past protrusions that restrict movement of the legs between different lobes of the bores/holes. The ball joint formed between the ball/knob and the main body of the bipod serves as preferably the only connection that moves during use by the shooter. As the shooter swivels, tilts, or pans the gun, the ball/knob attached to the firearm moves in the top socket of the main body of the bipod, with the legs being stationary relative to the main body.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A pod support for a piece of equipment such as a weapon, the pod support comprising:a plurality of legs; a main body with an interior and having a guide hole extending into the interior for each of said legs, said guide hole being defined by a guide hole wall, wherein each guide hole comprises a

1. A pod support for a piece of equipment such as a weapon, the pod support comprising:a plurality of legs; a main body with an interior and having a guide hole extending into the interior for each of said legs, said guide hole being defined by a guide hole wall, wherein each guide hole comprises a plurality of hole lobes separated by a protrusion extending from the guide hole wall into the guide hole; wherein a leg is received in each of said guide holes and is movable relative to the main body between said plurality of lobes past said protrusion, wherein the protrusion restricts movement so that the leg snaps between the lobes of its guide hole and is held in a lobe until forced by the user to snap past said protrusion; and an attachment system for mounting the pod support to said piece of equipment, said attachment system comprising a knob adapted to be fixed to said piece equipment and a socket extending into a top surface of the main body and rotatably receiving the knob so that the knob rotates in said socket to move said piece of equipment relative to the main body of the pod support. 2. A pod support for a piece of equipment such as a weapon or a camera, the pod support comprising:right and left legs; a main body having a bottom surface, top surface, right and left side surfaces, a central interior region, and right and left guide holes extending generally upward into the main body from the bottom surface and receiving the right and left legs, respectively; wherein: said right guide hole has an outer hole portion near the right side surface and an inner hole portion near the central interior region, and said left guide hole has an outer hole portion near the left side surface and an inner hole portion near the central interior region; the right and left legs pivot toward each other to a storage position by moving into the inner hole portions of their respective guide holes, so that the legs are generally parallel and close to each other; the right and left legs pivot away from each other to a set-up position by moving into the outer hole portions of their respective guide holes, so that lower ends of the legs are distanced from each other for supporting said piece of equipment; said main body comprises a right protrusion extending into the right guide hole between the inner and outer hole portions of the right guide hole, the right protrusion being adapted to resist movement of the right leg between said inner and outer hole portions of the right guide hole; and said main body comprises a left protrusion extending into the left guide hole between the inner and outer hole portions of the left guide hole, the left protrusion being adapted to resist movement of the left leg between said inner and outer hole portions of the left guide hole; so that the right and left legs are retained in the set-up position until snapped past said right and left protrusion into the storage position. 3. A pod support as in claim 2, wherein said right protrusion and said left protrusion are made of resilient material.4. A pod support as in claim 2, further comprising knob adapted to be fixed to said piece of equipment, and said main body comprises a socket extending into a top surface of the main body, the socket rotatably receiving the knob so that the knob moves in said socket so that said piece of equipment is movable relative to the main body of the pod support.5. The pod support as in claim 4 comprising only one ball joint connection and wherein said one ball joint connection is said knob being rotatably received in the socket.6. The pod support as in claim 4, having only two legs and two guide holes which are said right and left legs and said right and left guide holes.7. The pod support as in claim 4, wherein the knob has a diameter and the socket has a restricted opening having a diameter smaller than the knob diameter, so that knob snaps into the socket past surfaces of the smaller diameter opening.8. A pod support comprising:a plurality of legs; a main body having a top surface, a bottom surface, and a central axis between the top surface and bottom surface, the main body further having a plurality of guide holes each having an axial dimension generally parallel to the central axis, each guide hole receiving one of said legs so that the leg is generally parallel to said axial dimension, each guide hole further having an inner hole portion extending transversely to the axial dimension toward said central axis and having an outer hole portion extending transversely to the axial dimension away from said central axis; wherein each leg is pivotal in its respective guide hole between the inner hole portion and the outer hole portion so that, when in the inner hole portions, the legs are generally parallel and close together in a collapsed position, and, when in the outer hole portions, the legs are spread apart in a support position for supporting an object; wherein a protrusion extends into each guide hole between the inner hole portion and the outer hole portion and is adapted to resist the leg received in the guide hole from moving between said inner hole portion and said outer hole portion until a user forces each leg past the protrusions in their respective holes. 9. A pod support as in claim 8, wherein said main body is made of a resilient material.10. A pod support as in claim 9, wherein said legs are extendable or adjusting length of the legs.11. A pod support as in claim 8, wherein said main body comprises two portions and a plurality of fasteners connecting said two portions together, wherein the fasteners extend through the main body and are adapted to hold the legs in the guide holes so that the legs pivot on the fasteners.12. A pod support as in claim 8, further comprising an adaptor that is attachable to a swivel stud on the firearm, and the adaptor having a ball on one end which is said knob and a bore on an opposite end that receives said swivel stud.13. A pod support as in claim 12, wherein said adaptor further comprises an extension adapted to hold a firearm sling.14. A pod support as in claim 8, wherein said protrusion into each guide hole is made of resilient material so the leg snaps past the protrusion.15. A pod support as in claim 8, further comprising:a connection system for connecting the main body to a firearm, the connecting system comprising a socket in a top surface of the main body, and a single knob adapted to be fixed to a firearm, the single knob snapping into, and being movably received in the socket so that the single knob is swivelable in the socket to swivel the firearm relative to the main body in a generally horizontal plane generally parallel to the top surface of the main body, and the single knob being rotatable in the socket so that the firearm may be tilted up and down relative to the main body in a plurality vertical planes.