Firearm with real-time cartridge counter

Abstract

A firearm with a real-time cartridge counter display function, comprising a firearm body, a cartridge clip, a scope, and ammunition cartridge or cartridges loaded within the cartridge clip.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A firearm with a real-time cartridge counter display function, comprising a firearm body, a cartridge clip, a scope  203 , and ammunition cartridge or cartridges loaded within the cartridge clip;
 wherein the scope includes a display displaying a current count of the ammunition cartridges in the clip, a wireless receiver module and a scope battery;   and wherein the cartridge clip includes an exterior portion and an interior portion with an open end to the interior portion on one end of the exterior portion of the cartridge clip, through which open end to the interior portion of the clip ammunition cartridges pass into and out of the clip; and wherein the cartridge clip includes in its interior, in order of arrangement, the open end, a base plate, a spring, and an Ohm meter module;   and wherein, between the base plate and the Ohm meter module, parallel to the spring, the cartridge clip also includes an electrical conductor and a series of resistors, the resistors being arranged sequentially between the base plate and the Ohm meter, the electrical conductor and the series of resistors together creating an electrical circuit between the base plate and the Ohm meter module;   and wherein, within the cartridge clip is formed a clip chamber, the clip chamber being a space between the open end of the cartridge clip and the base plate; the cartridge clip chamber providing a space to fit a stack of the ammunition cartridges;   and wherein, when ammunition cartridges are inserted into the clip chamber, the insertion of the ammunition cartridges pushes the base plate down against the spring with the base plate passing by and shorting out each resistor, one at a time, so that one resistor in the circuit is thus shorted out sequentially for each ammunition cartridge entering the chamber and pushing on the base plate, the sequential shorting out of each of the resistors, one resistor at a time, causing a proportional decrease in the resistance in the circuit;   and wherein, when ammunition cartridges are released from the clip chamber, the base plate recoils back pushed by the spring, thus restarting each of the resistors, one resistor at a time, and causing a proportional increase in the resistance in the circuit;   the proportional decrease and increase in the resistance in the circuit being displayed on the display as increases and decreases in the number of ammunition cartridges in the clip respectively.   
     
     
         2 . The firearm of  claim 1 , wherein the interior of the cartridge clip also includes a wireless transmitter clip module and a clip battery; and wherein the scope also includes a wireless receiver module and a scope battery. 
     
     
         3 . The firearm of  claim 2 , wherein, when the chamber is full of ammunition cartridges, the resistance is maximally decreased in the circuit, the maximally decreased resistance being measured by the Ohm meter module, and the measurement of the maximally decreased resistance being transmitted to the wireless clip module, the wireless clip module then transmitting the measurement of the maximally decreased resistance to the scope receiver module; then the scope receiver module communicating the maximally decreased resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope of the number of cartridges currently in the cartridge chamber based on the number of resistors in the clip that have been knocked out. 
     
     
         4 . The firearm of  claim 2 , wherein, when the open end of the cartridge clip is inserted into the firearm body, an ammunition cartridge can be transported from the cartridge clip into shooting position in the firearm body, and subsequently, an additional ammunition cartridge can be transported into the shooting position in the firearm body each time after the firearm is fired, until all of the ammunition cartridges are emptied out of the cartridge clip chamber;
 and wherein, as the ammunition cartridges, one at a time, pass out of the chamber into the firearm, the base plate is pushed back toward the clip open end by the spring, the traveling back of the base plate causing a release of tension in the spring which sequentially unsorts each resistor in the circuit, thus restarting each resistor, resistor by resistor, and sequentially reestablishing partial and then complete resistance in the circuit, which reestablished partial or complete resistance is then communicated to the Ohm meter which transmits a reestablished partial or complete resistance measurement to the wireless clip module which then transmits the reestablished partial or complete resistance measurement to the wireless scope module, which then communicates the reestablished partial or complete resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope corresponding to the partial or complete depletion of cartridges in the clip chamber.   
     
     
         5 . The firearm of  claim 2 , wherein, when no ammunition cartridges reside in the clip chamber, then all resistors function in the electrical circuit, as a result, the electrical circuit transmits a current with maximum resistance to the Ohm meter, the Ohm meter then transmitting the measurement of the maximum resistance to the wireless clip module and the wireless clip module communicating the maximum resistance measurement to the wireless scope module in the scope, the wireless scope module then communicating the maximum resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope  203  of no cartridges in the cartridge chamber. 
     
     
         6 . The firearm of  claim 2 , wherein the total number of resistors is denoted as N, the Ohm meter measuring the resistance of N times R where R is the resistance of each resistor in the circuit. 
     
     
         7 . A method of displaying in a scope of a firearm a real-time count of ammunition cartridges in a cartridge clip of a firearm, comprising the steps of:
 a) providing a firearm comprising a firearm body, a cartridge clip, a scope, and ammunition cartridges stored within the cartridge clip, and wherein, the scope includes a display in the scope which displays the current count of the ammunition cartridges in the clip;   wherein the clip includes, in order of placement in the cartridge clip, an open end, a base plate, a spring, and an Ohm meter module;   wherein, between the base plate and the Ohm meter module, parallel to the spring, the cartridge clip also includes a conductor and a series of resistors which together create an electrical circuit between the base plate and the Ohm meter module;   and wherein, within the cartridge clip is formed a clip chamber, the clip chamber being a space between the open end of the cartridge clip and the base plate, the space in the cartridge clip chamber fitting a stack of one or more ammunition cartridges;   b) loading the clip chamber with one or more ammunition cartridges;   and wherein, when the ammunition cartridges are loaded into the clip chamber, the insertion of the ammunition cartridges pushes the base plate down against the spring with the base plate passing by and shorting out each resistor, one at a time, so that each resistor in the circuit is thus shorted out sequentially for each ammunition cartridge entering the chamber and pushing on the base plate, the sequential shorting out each of the resistors one at a time causing a proportional decrease in the resistance in the circuit, the proportional decrease in the resistance in the circuit being displayed on the display as increases in the number of ammunition cartridges in the clip.   c) inserting the cartridge clip at the open end into the firearm body; resulting in transport of ammunition cartridges, one at a time, into the firearm body;   and wherein, when the open end of the cartridge clip is inserted into the firearm body, an ammunition cartridge can be transported from the cartridge clip into shooting position in the firearm body, and subsequently, an additional ammunition cartridge can be transported into the shooting position in the firearm body each time after the firearm is fired until all of the ammunition cartridges are emptied out of the cartridge clip chamber into the firearm body;   d) firing one cartridge at a time from the firearm;   and wherein, when the ammunition cartridges are released from the clip chamber, the base plate recoils back with each released cartridge, the recoil causing the sequential, restarting of each of the resistors, one at a time, causing a proportional increase in the resistance in the circuit;   the proportional increase in the resistance in the circuit being displayed on the display as decreases in the number of ammunition cartridges in the clip.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the interior of the cartridge clip also includes a wireless transmitter clip module and a clip battery; and wherein the scope also includes a wireless receiver module and a scope battery. 
     
     
         9 . The method according to  claim 8  wherein the loading step is conducted in such a way that when the stack of ammunition cartridges is inserted into the clip chamber, the stack pushes the base plate down against the spring with the base plate passing by and shorting out, one at a time, each resistor so that one resistor in the circuit is thus shorted out sequentially for each ammunition cartridge entering the chamber and pushing on the base plate, causing the base plate to push against the spring, toward the Ohm meter module;
 and wherein, the sequential shorting out of each of the resistors causing a proportional decrease in the resistance in the circuit, so that when the chamber is full of ammunition, the resistance is maximally decreased, the maximally decreased resistance being measured by the Ohm meter module, and the measurement of the maximally decreased resistance being transmitted to the wireless clip module; the wireless clip module then transmitting the measurement of the maximally decreased resistance to the scope receiver module, the scope receiver module communicating the maximally decreased resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope of the number of cartridges currently in the cartridge chamber based on the number of resistors that have been shorted out. 
 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8  wherein the firing step is conducted in such a way that wherein, each time the firearm is fired, the wireless transmitter clip module communicates the current number of ammunition cartridges in the clip to the wireless receiver module in the scope, so that the scope displays the current count of the ammunition cartridges in the clip;
 and wherein as the ammunition cartridges, one at a time, pass out of the chamber into the firearm, the base plate is pushed back toward the clip open by the spring, the traveling back of the base plate causing a release of tension in the spring which sequentially unshorts each resistor in the circuit, thus restarting each resistor and sequentially increasing resistance in the circuit in steps; 
 and wherein, the increasing resistance is then communicated to the Ohm meter which transmits an increased resistance measurement to the wireless clip module, which then transmits the increased resistance measurement to the wireless scope module, which then communicates the decreased resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope of the remaining number of cartridges in the cartridge chamber proportional to the number of resistors that are still shorted out; 
 and wherein, when no ammunition cartridges reside in the clip chamber then all resistors function in the circuit, and, as a result, the circuit transmits a current with maximum resistance to the Ohm meter, and wherein, the Ohm meter then transmits the measurement of the current with maximum resistance to the wireless clip module and the wireless clip module communicating the maximum resistance measurement to the wireless scope module in the scope, the wireless scope module then communicating the maximum resistance measurement to the display to provide a real-time display in the scope of no cartridges in the cartridge chamber. 
 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the total number of resistors is denoted as N, the Ohm meter measuring the resistance of N times R where R is the resistance of each resistor in the circuit.