Firearm handgrip with a horizontal angle tracking bipod

Abstract

A firearm handgrip with a collapsible and concealable bipod positioned within the handgrip. The bipod enables tracking of the horizontal angle of the firearm. Specifically, the bipod is quickly deployable by pressing a button that activates a highly reliable release mechanism. Upon bipod deployment, the shooter is free to place the bipod on any surface, including uneven surfaces wherein the bipod legs are positioned on different heights so that the bipod maintains stability. The bipod enables panning (horizontal rotation), tilting (up-down) and canting (right-left) of the firearm. Additionally, after panning the firearm and subsequently lifting the bipod from the surface it lies on, the bipod's legs automatically realign to a plane perpendicular to the firearm, thus tracking and adjusting to the new horizontal angle of the firearm.

1 . A firearm handgrip with a horizontal angle tracking bipod, said handgrip comprising:
 a hollow housing mountable to a firearm;   a bipod that enables panning and canting and further comprises a first torsion spring that enables tracking a horizontal angle for quick realignment of the bipod legs;   a first compression spring for forcing deployment of the bipod;   a release mechanism for releasing the spring and deploying the bipod;   
   
   
       2 . The handgrip according to  claim 1 , wherein the hollow housing comprises a top end with a horizontal channel going through and an open bottom end;
 and wherein the bipod comprises
 a vertically sliding piston located within the housing, said piston having a top end and a bottom end; 
 two legs hingedly connected to the bottom end of said piston; 
 a first torsion spring positioned between the legs causing the legs to expand outward whenever the legs are released from the housing; 
 a tracking mechanism comprising a horizontally positioned second torsion spring having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end is connected to the legs and the second end is connected to the bottom end of the piston; 
   wherein upon bipod deployment and stabilizing the bipod on a surface, the handgrip enables panning a firearm horizontally;   and wherein upon lifting the firearm from said surface, the legs track the new horizontal angle of the firearm and align in a substantially perpendicular manner to the firearm.   
   
   
       3 . The handgrip according to  claim 2 , wherein the first compression spring is positioned within the housing between the top end of the housing and the top end of the piston. 
   
   
       4 . The handgrip according to  claim 1 , wherein the release mechanism for releasing the first compression spring, causes pushing the piston down enabling the deployment of the bipod. 
   
   
       5 . The handgrip according to  claim 2 , wherein upon bipod deployment, the handgrip enables panning the firearm in a horizontal rotational motion. 
   
   
       6 . The handgrip according to  claim 2 , wherein upon bipod deployment, the handgrip enables canting the firearm in a rotational motion around the bore of the firearm. 
   
   
       7 . The handgrip according to  claim 2 , wherein upon bipod deployment, the legs adjust to an uneven surface, wherein one leg is positioned higher than the other leg and wherein stabilized panning is achieved. 
   
   
       8 . The handgrip according to  claim 2 , wherein the piston further comprises a first magnet piece positioned at the top end of said piston and wherein the release mechanism comprises:
 a ram that is fitted into the channel in the top end of the housing; and   a second magnet piece positioned within said ram; and   a second compression spring positioned between one end of the ram and the housing;   wherein the polarity of the first magnet piece and the second magnet piece is opposite and wherein the magnetic attraction between the pieces overcomes the counter compression power of the first compression spring in the compressed position;   and wherein sliding the ram along the channel decreases the overlap between the magnetic pieces and the magnetic attraction between then until the first compression spring is released, which causes the deployment of the bipod.   
   
   
       9 . The handgrip according to  claim 1 , wherein the housing is made from at least one of the following materials: aluminum, hardened polymer, composite material. 
   
   
       10 . A method for tracking the horizontal angle of a firearm using a handgrip with a deployable bipod, said method comprising the steps of:
 releasing the bipod from the handgrip resulting in bipod deployment upon a support surface;   horizontally rotating the firearm in accordance with a moving target;   lifting the bipod from the support surface, causing the legs of the bipod to realign so that the plane of the legs becomes substantially perpendicular to the firearm.   
   
   
       11 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein lifting the bipod from the support surface is followed by repositioning the bipod on said support surface. 
   
   
       12 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein horizontally rotating the firearm in accordance with a moving target is performed while canting the firearm to adjust the bipod to an uneven support surface.