IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,553,684
Granted Patent B2
US 12,553,684 · App. 18/594,041 · Granted Feb 17, 2026

Non-lethal gas operated gun

Inventors: Glenn Sandgren (Culver City, CA); Juan D. Tobón (Culver City, CA); Nathaniel Jacob Leon (Baltimore, MD); Christopher Blodgett (Downers Grove, IL); Daniel Luby (Downers Grove, IL); Charles Miller (Downers Grove, IL); Jamie Scott Snider (Culver City, CA); Sol Cody Snider (Culver City, CA); Zachary Christopher Lloyd (Culver City, CA)
Assignee: Unit Solutions, Inc.
F41B11/62F41A33/06F41B11/50F41B11/56F41B11/721F41B11/73
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,553,684
App. No.
18/594,041
Granted
Feb 17, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A pre-pack assembly for use with an air gun and for use with a magazine that is removably insertable into the air gun, the pre-pack assembly includes a pre-pack that contains a gas canister, wherein inserting the pre-pack into the chamber of the magazine fluidly connects the gas canister with the magazine.

Claims (26)

1 . A gas regulator assembly for use with an air gun and a gas canister containing gas pressurized at a canister pressure, the gas regulator assembly comprising:

a piercing portal comprising an invasive probe adapted to pierce the gas canister and fluidly couple the gas canister to the piercing portal and a seal adapted to fluidly seal the gas canister and the piercing portal;

a pressure regulator assembly comprising a restrictor valve, an inlet chamber and an outlet chamber, wherein the inlet chamber is fluidly coupled to the piercing portal, wherein the outlet chamber is fluidly coupled to the inlet chamber through the restrictor valve and wherein the restrictor valve reduces the pressure of gas passing through the restrictor valve to an operating pressure that is below the canister pressure;

a gas storage chamber fluidly coupled to the outlet chamber, wherein the gas storage chamber contains a sufficient volume of gas at the operating pressure to enable automatic firing of the air gun at the operating pressure;

a poppet valve fluidly coupled to the outlet chamber, wherein the poppet valve is adapted to provide sufficient gas flow from the outlet chamber and the gas storage chamber to fire the air gun when the poppet valve is actuated.

2 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 1 , wherein a volume of the gas storage chamber is larger than the outlet chamber.

3 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 1 , wherein a flow path between the outlet chamber and the poppet valve does not include the gas storage chamber.

4 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a relief valve fluidly coupled to the gas storage chamber, wherein the relief valve is adapted to reduce gas pressure in the gas storage chamber when gas pressure exceeds a maximum pressure.

5 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 1 , wherein the restrictor valve further comprises a first biasing mechanism that regulates the operating pressure.

6 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 5 , future comprising an adjuster mechanism adapted to adjust the operating pressure.

7 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 5 , further comprising a second biasing mechanism that acts against the first biasing mechanism.

8 . The gas regulator assembly of claim 7 , future comprising an adjuster mechanism adapted to adjust a force applied by the second biasing mechanism.

9 . An air gun assembly and a gas canister containing gas pressurized at a canister pressure, the air gun assembly comprising:

an air gun;

a magazine that is removably insertable into the air gun, wherein the magazine comprises the gas regulator assembly of claim 1 and wherein the magazine can be fluidly coupled to the air gun.

10 . The air gun assembly of claim 9 , wherein the magazine further comprises a gas seal outlet fluidly coupled to the poppet valve, wherein the gas seal outlet is adapted to transfer compressed air from the poppet valve to the air gun.

11 . The air gun assembly of claim 10 , wherein the air gun further comprises a bolt comprising a gas inlet adapted to fluidly seal with the gas seal outlet when the gas inlet is aligned with the gas seal outlet.

12 . The air gun assembly of claim 11 , wherein the bolt defines a front bore that is fluidly coupled to the gas inlet, wherein the front bore is configured to fire a projectile out of a barrel of the air gun when the poppet valve is actuated.

13 . The air gun assembly of claim 12 , wherein the bolt further comprises a rocket valve that closes after the air gun fires the projectile so that air pressure from the gas inlet initiates a recoil process where the bolt moves rearward relative to the air gun.

14 . The air gun assembly of claim 13 , wherein, when closed, the rocket valve closes the fluid path between the gas inlet and the front bore.

15 . The air gun assembly of claim 13 , further comprising a recoil buffer that pushes the bolt forward relative to the air gun.

16 . The air gun assembly of claim 13 , wherein the bolt moving rearwardly generates felt recoil that approximates the recoil of a conventional live-fire weapon.

17 . The air gun assembly of claim 13 , wherein the air gun further comprises a trigger assembly comprising a trigger and a hammer and wherein the bolt moving rearwardly cocks the hammer.

18 . The air gun assembly of claim 17 , wherein the hammer is adapted to impact a secondary hammer which is adapted to subsequently impact the poppet valve in the magazine when the trigger is pulled.

19 . The air gun assembly of claim 9 , wherein the magazine is adapted to receive and feed a plurality of rounds that are fired by the air gun.

20 . The air gun assembly of claim 9 , wherein the magazine is adapted to receive the gas canister.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 5, 2024
From: SANDGREN, GLENN; TOBÓN, JUAN D.; LEON, NATHANIEL JACOB; BLODGETT, CHRISTOPHER; LUBY, DANIEL; MILLER, CHARLES; SNIDER, JAMIE SCOTT; SNIDER, SOL CODY; LLOYD, ZACHARY CHRISTOPHER
To: UNIT SOLUTIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 066645/0719 →
Continuity (7)
Continuation 17712474 · Apr 4, 2022
Continuation In Part 17066912 · Oct 9, 2020
Continuation 16193304 · Nov 16, 2018
Continuation In Part 15690179 · Aug 29, 2017
Provisional Application 62644619 · Mar 19, 2018
Provisional Application 62380947 · Aug 29, 2016
Related Publication 20240344801A1 · Oct 17, 2024
References Cited (70)
US 3603020A · Wise · 1971 [cited by applicant]
US 4616622A · Milliman · 1986 [cited by examiner]
US 4819610A · Lacam · 1989 [cited by examiner]
US 5476087A · Kunimoto · 1995 [cited by applicant]
US 5477843A · Kunimoto · 1995 [cited by applicant]
US 5664552A · Kunimoto · 1997 [cited by applicant]
US 5704342A · Gibson · 1998 [cited by examiner]
US 6073620A · Kunimoto · 2000 [cited by applicant]
US 6112734A · Kunimoto · 2000 [cited by applicant]
US 6470872B1 · Tiberius · 2002 [cited by applicant]
US 6494194B2 · Shipachev · 2002 [cited by applicant]
US 6729322B2 · Schavone · 2004 [cited by applicant]
US 6892718B2 · Tiberius · 2005 [cited by examiner]
US 7237543B2 · Su · 2007 [cited by applicant]
US 7306462B2 · Metcalfe · 2007 [cited by applicant]
US 7415977B2 · Chen · 2008 [cited by applicant]
US 7540280B2 · Liao · 2009 [cited by applicant]
US 7861702B1 · Sze · 2011 [cited by applicant]
US 8051847B2 · Hu · 2011 [cited by applicant]
US 8056276B2 · Hu · 2011 [cited by applicant]
US 8449346B2 · Lee · 2013 [cited by applicant]
US 8602785B2 · Jensen · 2013 [cited by applicant]
US 8833353B2 · Cho · 2014 [cited by examiner]
US 9038304B1 · Hu · 2015 [cited by applicant]
US 9134089B2 · Yang · 2015 [cited by applicant]
US 9194647B2 · Maeda · 2015 [cited by applicant]
US 9395146B2 · Tippmann, Jr. et al. · 2016 [cited by applicant]
US 9638498B2 · Chang · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 9791236B2 · Lee · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 9835406B2 · Maeda · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 10132591B2 · Sandgren et al. · 2018 [cited by applicant]
US 10801804B2 · Sandgren et al. · 2020 [cited by applicant]
US 11293718B2 · Sandgren et al. · 2022 [cited by applicant]
US 11313642B2 · DiBlasio · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20040200466A1 · Salva · 2004 [cited by applicant]
US 20040256008A1 · Huang · 2004 [cited by applicant]
US 20050133393A1 · Lawrence et al. · 2005 [cited by applicant]
US 20060207584A1 · Yeh · 2006 [cited by applicant]
US 20070215137A1 · Jones et al. · 2007 [cited by applicant]
US 20070235014A1 · Tiberius · 2007 [cited by examiner]
US 20080289613A1 · Liao · 2008 [cited by applicant]
US 20090229591A1 · Gabrel · 2009 [cited by examiner]
US 20110252957A1 · Overstreet · 2011 [cited by applicant]
US 20110303206A1 · Lu · 2011 [cited by applicant]
US 20140096755A1 · Larmer · 2014 [cited by applicant]
US 20170176132A1 · Kng · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 20170336169A1 · Axelsson · 2017 [cited by examiner]
EP 2113736A1 · 2009 [cited by applicant]
EP 2354750A2 · 2011 [cited by applicant]
EP 2455700A2 · 2012 [cited by applicant]
EP 2787317A1 · 2014 [cited by applicant]
GB 2395543A · 2004 [cited by applicant]
JP 338593 · 1991 [cited by applicant]
JP H03236598A · 1991 [cited by applicant]
JP 2610610B · 1997 [cited by applicant]
JP 10220993A · 1998 [cited by applicant]
JP 2006308153A · 2006 [cited by applicant]
JP 5167434 · 2013 [cited by applicant]
JP 2016029326A · 2016 [cited by applicant]
KR 101698115B1 · 2017 [cited by applicant]
TW M404964U1 · 2011 [cited by applicant]
TW 201721079A · 2016 [cited by applicant]
Austrian Office Action dated Feb. 13, 2020 received in related Application No. A 9277/2017 (pp. 4). [cited by applicant]
European Extended Search Report dated Feb. 20, 2020 received in related EP Application No. 17847409.4 (pp. 8). [cited by applicant]
KWA Operator's Manual for LM4 Series, KWA Performance Industries, Inc., City of Industry, California, Apr. 20, 2015. [cited by applicant]
Machine translation of JP2016029326 by PatBase on Mar. 12, 2020 (41 pages). [cited by applicant]
Machine translation of JPH10220993 by Patent Translate European Patent Office on Nov. 7, 2019 (pp. 19). [cited by applicant]
Taiwan Office Action received in related Taiwan Application No. 107107077 dated Jun. 25, 2021 (pp. 5). [cited by applicant]
Translation of Talwan Office Action for related Taiwan Application No. 1071077077 dated Jun. 25, 2021 (pp. 4). [cited by applicant]
Machine Translation of TWM404964U1 by PatDocs PDF Export on Jun. 13, 2024 (pp. 9). [cited by applicant]