Safety lock for securing a replaceable barrel to the housing of an automatic weapon

US5678343A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Rheinmetall Industrie AG · DE

Inventors

• Horst Menges · Ratingen, DE
• Lothar Post · Düsseldorf, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Apr 10, 1996
• Grant date: Oct 21, 1997
• Expiry date: Apr 10, 2016

Classification

• Technology area (CPC F): Mechanical Engineering; Lighting; Heating
• CPC primary: F41A21/481
• WIPO field: Other special machines
• WIPO sector: Mechanical engineering

Abstract

An automatic weapon includes a housing; a bolt movably received in the housing; a weapon barrel replaceably received in the housing and having a recess; and a locking member movably supported in the housing to assume locking and releasing positions. In the locking position the locking member projects into the recess for locking the weapon barrel to the housing and in the releasing position the locking member is withdrawn from the recess. There are further provided a spring for urging the locking member into the releasing position; a shaft rotatably supported in the housing and a cam secured to the shaft for rotating therewith as a unit and for contacting the locking member. The cam has a first angular position in which it holds the locking member in the locking position and a second angular position in which the spring holds the locking member in the releasing position. An external weapon-operating device moves the bolt into an unsecured position in which an accidental firing of a cartridge in the weapon barrel is possible and a secured position in which an accidental firing of a cartridge in the weapon barrel is not possible. The weapon-operating device moves the cam from the firs…