Magazine

Abstract

A magazine for storing and feeding paintballs to a paintball marker is disclosed. The magazine includes at least one channel that is open to an opening and a follower configured to travel within the at least one channel and contact a column of paintballs. The magazine can further include a door biased to cover the opening so as to prevent the paintball from passing through the opening. The magazine can include a retainer that is movable between at least a first position and a second position. The retainer prevents the follower from moving towards the opening when in the first position and allows the follower to move towards the opening when in the second position.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A magazine for storing and feeding paintballs to a paintball marker, the magazine comprising:
 a casing having at least one opening located near an end of the casing, the at least one opening being sized and shaped to allow a paintball to pass therethrough;   at least one channel disposed in the casing and being open to the at least one opening, the at least one channel being adapted to hold a column of paintballs;   a follower configured to travel within the at least one channel and contact the column of paintballs;   a member disposed so as to bias the follower to move towards the opening;   a door biased to cover at least a portion of the at least one opening so as to prevent the paintball from passing through the opening; and   a retainer disposed in the casing and being movable between at least a first position and a second position, the retainer preventing the follower from moving towards the opening when in the first position and allowing the follower to move towards the opening when in the second position at least when the at least one channel is full of paintballs.   
     
     
         2 . The magazine of  claim 1  further comprising a slot generally parallel to the at least one channel, the door being slidable within the slot. 
     
     
         3 . The magazine of  claim 2  further comprising a rod having a first end and a second end, the first end being coupled to the door and the second end being coupled to the retainer, the rod being slidable generally in a direction parallel to the slot. 
     
     
         4 . The magazine of  claim 3 , wherein the retainer comprises a contact surface, and wherein the rod includes a curved portion, the curved portion contacting the contact surface on the retainer so as to move the retainer towards the second position. 
     
     
         5 . The magazine of  claim 1 , wherein the casing comprises a first portion and a second portion, the first and second portions forming the casing when joined together. 
     
     
         6 . The magazine of  claim 1 , wherein the member is a spring. 
     
     
         7 . The magazine of  claim 1 , wherein the door is coupled to the retainer so that when the door is covering at least a portion of the at least one opening the retainer is in the first position and when the door is not covering at least a portion of the at least one opening the retainer is in the second position. 
     
     
         8 . The magazine of  claim 1  further comprising a spring, the spring being disposed so as to bias the retainer towards the first position. 
     
     
         9 . The magazine of  claim 1  further comprising a spring, the spring being disposed so as to bias the door to cover at least a portion of the at least one opening. 
     
     
         10 . The magazine of  claim 1 , wherein the door further comprises a tab configured to catch the paintball marker when the magazine is coupled to the marker and to slide the door away from the at least one opening allowing the paintball to pass therethrough. 
     
     
         11 . The magazine of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one opening has a D-shape. 
     
     
         12 . A magazine for storing and feeding paintballs to a paintball marker, the magazine comprising:
 a casing having a plurality of openings sized to allow a paintball to pass therethrough;   a plurality of channels disposed in the casing, each channel being open to one of the plurality of openings and being adapted to hold a column of paintballs;   a plurality of followers configured to travel within the plurality of channel and being biased to move towards the opening;   a plurality of doors being configured to reduce the size of each opening so as to prevent the paintball from passing through the opening; and   a plurality of retainers disposed in the casing, each retainer be associated with one of the plurality of channels,   wherein movement of each door moves one of the plurality of retainers between a first position and a second position so as to selectively prevent the follower from moving towards the opening at least when the channel is full of paintballs.   
     
     
         13 . The magazine of  claim 12  further comprising a slot generally parallel to the plurality of channels, the door being slidable within the slot. 
     
     
         14 . The magazine of  claim 13  further comprising a rod having a first end and a second end, the first end being coupled to one of the plurality of the doors and the second end being coupled to one of the plurality of retainers, the rod being slidable generally in a direction parallel to the slot. 
     
     
         15 . The magazine of  claim 12 , wherein at least a portion of each of the plurality of doors moves in a direction that is perpendicular to a direction of movement for the plurality of retainers. 
     
     
         16 . The magazine of  claim 12 , wherein each of the plurality of followers comprises at least one shoulder, the shoulder being disposed so as to engage with one of the plurality of retainers at least when the channel associated with the retainer is full of paintballs and the door is preventing the paintballs from exiting the magazine through the opening. 
     
     
         17 . The magazine of  claim 12  further comprising a locking mechanism that is operable to lock at least one of the plurality of doors in position when the door is preventing the paintball from passing through the opening. 
     
     
         18 . A magazine for storing and feeding paintballs to a paintball marker, the magazine comprising:
 a casing having a top side and a bottom side and a plurality of channels and a plurality of slots therebetween, each channel being adapted to hold a column of paintballs;   a plurality of openings in the top side of the casing, each opening being sized to allow paintballs to pass therethrough;   a plurality of sliding doors disposed in the plurality of slots and being movable between a first position and a second position, the plurality of sliding doors reducing the size of the plurality of openings when in the first position so as to prevent the paintballs from passing therethrough; and   a plurality of movable retainers disposed closer to the bottom side of the casing than the top side and being configured to selectively prevent the columns of paintballs from moving towards the plurality of openings at least when the channels are full of paintballs and the plurality of sliding doors are in the first position,   wherein each of the plurality of sliding doors and each of the plurality of movable retainers are coupled together via a linkage.   
     
     
         19 . The magazine of  claim 18 , wherein the linkage comprises a rod and spring, the spring biasing the sliding door in a direction away from the plurality of retainers. 
     
     
         20 . The magazine of  claim 18  further comprising an actuator and a stop, wherein at least one of the plurality of sliding doors is engaged with the stop when in the first position, and wherein movement of the actuator disengages the sliding door from the stop allowing the sliding door to move from the first position to a third position, the sliding door covering one of the plurality of openings when in the third position. 
     
     
         21 . A method of aligning an outlet of a magazine with an inlet port of a paintball marker, the magazine have a movable door blocking at least a portion of the outlet so as to prevent paintballs from exiting the outlet, the method comprising:
 coarsely aligning the magazine with a receptacle in the paintball marker, the inlet port being disposed in the receptacle;   contacting at least a portion of the door with the receptacle;   inserting the magazine into the receptacle; and   moving the door a sufficient amount as the magazine is being inserted into the receptacle to allow the paintballs to exit the outlet and enter the paintball marker.