The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United States of America for governmental purposes without payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to interface gun mounts and, more particularly, to a lightweight machine gun and ammunition can mount for use with weapons that do not have a forward mount point or a mid weapon mount orientation is required.
2. Description of the Background
The size and weight of many firearms, particularly large guns, such as machine guns, precludes accuracy and stability without some type of support or mounting apparatus to hold the weapon steady while being fired. Thus, mounting devices and other support apparatus have long been used with large guns to stabilize the gun and reduce vibration, thereby improving accuracy and alleviating fatigue and discomfort of the shooter. Indeed, when mounting devices and other support apparatus have not been available a shooter has often needed to rely on any immovable object available, such as walls, rocks, tree trunks, etc.
A variety of interface elements have evolved for use in mounting rifles or light machine guns. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,273,178 to Heinemann shows an apparatus designed for attachment to a hand machine gun to counteract its tendency to jump/recoil during firing. The apparatus is acted upon in a downward direction by the gases leaving the muzzle, thereby creating a downward force at the forward end of the gun""s barrel. The apparatus also includes a 10 pair of downward extending eyelets for optional attachment to a gun rest or mount.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,273,178 to Perry et al. discloses an apparatus utilized to mount a rapid fire gun on a motorcycle. The mounting apparatus allows a single individual to both drive the motorcycle and fire the gun. The mounting of the gun is such that it may be easily operated and adjusted without the rider leaving the seat of the motorcycle. The apparatus includes a circular clamping attachment to fixedly attach the gun to the position adjustment mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,194,678 to Kramer discloses a rest for the firearm or the like that attaches to the sling on the forearm of the firearm. The firearm rest is comprised of two major assemblies. The first assembly attaches to the sling swivel and provides a surrogate sling swivel and a female receptacle for the second assembly. The second assembly consists of a male protrusion that mates with the first assembly and two lightweight legs that can be quickly assembled and disassembled.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,103 to Keng discloses a bipod mounting assembly for attaching a bipod to the forearm stock portion of a firearm. The apparatus includes a mounting yoke adapted to quickly and easily attach to the swivel stud connector mounted to the forearm stock portion of the firearm. The mounting yoke is adapted to receive a mounting block thereover, with the mounting block being attached to the mounting yoke to thus attach the mounting block to the forearm stock portion of the firearm. A bipod-mounting frame is releasably attachable to the mounting block by a quick-release locking catch to enable the quick attachment/detachment of the legs of the bipod from the mounting block, and thus the firearm.
Although each of the prior art examples provides an interface for use in mounting firearms which uses the pre-existing structure of the gun, they do not accommodate weapons that have no forward attach point and which are not designed for mounting.
Consequently, there is a significant need for a lightweight machine gun and ammunition can gun mount for use with weapons that do not have a forward mount point or a mid weapon mount orientation is required, such as the MK46 and M249SPW weapons.
FIG. I is a drawing of an existing MK46 machine gun which illustrates the location of the ammunition can which is attached to an existing ammunition can mount bracket of the weapon, and a supplied forearm rail system. In addition, the weapon includes a main mounting lug located proximate to the trigger guard (obscured) for a single-point mount. Otherwise, no provision for vehicle or tripod mounting is provided.
The design challenge with such guns is to determine how to securely attach a vehicle or tripod mount to the weapon to allow easy firing without impacting the performance of the gun.
It is, therefore, the object of the present invention to provide a machine gun and ammunition can interface gun mount for use with weapons that do not have a forward mount point or a mid weapon mount orientation is required.
It is yet another object to provide a machine gun and ammunition can interface gun mount with two point secure attachment to allow easy firing without impacting the performance of the gun.
It is another object to provide a machine gun and ammunition can interface gun mount that is small, lightweight and economical to produce.
It is still another object to provide a machine gun and ammunition can interface gun mount with two point attachment for improved stability and anti-rotation, the first point being the ammunition can mount attached to the weapon for anti-rotation and the second point being directly in front of the trigger mechanism.
It is yet another object to provide a machine gun and ammunition can interface gun mount in which the ammunition can is repositioned to the left side of the gun for better alignment and ammunition feed.
According to the present invention, the above-described and other objects are accomplished by a gun mount that is securely attached to the weapon by using two existing separate structural features of the gun as attach points. The first point of attachment is the ammunition can mounting bracket and the second attachment point is the main mounting lug located proximate the trigger guard. The two point attachment allows the shooter to steady the gun and eliminate vibration and improve accuracy of aim. The ammunition can is relocated from the common position underneath the gun to a vertical position on the left side of the gun for better alignment and ammunition feed. Both the ammunition can interface and main mounting lug interface are formed of coated aluminum to effect a strong, compact and lightweight design. Thus, the present invention is small, compact, lightweight, and economical to manufacture.