Bipod
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Bipod comes from the Latin and Greek roots bi and pod, meaning "two" and "foot, or feet" respectively.[1] A bipod is an attachment for either a photographical device or a weapon that creates a steady plane for whatever it may be attached. It provides significant stability along two axes of motion (side-to-side, and up-and-down). The concept for a bipod dates back to pre-20th century times, and is still used today by agencies such as NASA.
Firearms
On firearms, bipods are commonly used on rifles and shotguns to provide a forward rest and reduce motion. They are also seen on other long-barrelled weapons. The bipod permits the operator to rest the weapon on the ground, a low wall, or other object, reducing operator fatigue and permitting increased accuracy. Bipods can be of fixed or adjustable length. Some can be tilted and also have their tilting point close to the bore central axis, allowing the weapon to tilt a little left and right, allowing a quick horizontal sight picture on uneven ground and keeping the operator close to the ground. Bipods are for the most part folded away forward, not back towards the shooter, and sometimes fold into vertical foregrips.
Aspects and Advantages
When firing a weapon without a bipod support, the ability to aim and steady your iron sight is much more difficult.[2] The advantage of having a deployable bipod was to increase weapon accuracy and efficiency was the key in warfare. The bipod only pertained to long barreled rifles, such as snipers, but then gave way to light and heavy machine guns, even small pistols.[3] When deploying the bipod on a weapon, both of the legs prop out and attempt to level out with the ground to obtain a firm and secure firing position. The overall advantage of a bipod is to increase accuracy and be able to mount your weapon on any terrain. Some bipods used for rifles allow the rifle to swivel or "hang" near its bore axis, offering a more stable shooting position with large and heavy aiming optics mounted.
Other Uses
Photography
The bipod support system is composed of an A-frame figure with a pivotal, rotational, mounting spot. The bipod was invented first for cameras, it was the pivotal invention in the photography industry to take close-up photographs for terrestrial photogrammetry purposes.[4] The pivotal mounting spot is used so the camera can stay at the same angle of elevation while scanning the land from east to west while keeping a constant horizontal motion. Having a bipod built into the camera virtually revolutionized the way pictures were taken due to the fact that the camera could stay stationary. Due to this invention of the bipod, photography readily advanced into what it is today.
NASA and Rocket Technology
The simple design is also included in circumstances such as NASA’s space shuttle launches. NASA honed the idea in a different way, they used the bipod system to create a launch pad for their rocket ships to launch off, it basically acted as a track for the rocket to propel on.[5] The bipod launch system revolutionized the way space shuttles lift off into space, in a straight vertical line. More recently, rockets have scaled to a much smaller size, thus leading to a new hobby of model rocket building. The design of the toy is very simple, it includes a silver launch pad at the bottom and two metal rods that act as a bipod for the scaled rocket to launch.
Gallery
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Most squad automatic weapons, such as this FN Minimi, have a bipod to increase accuracy in full-automatic mode. -
See also
- ^ "Bipod-Definition and More". Retrieved 10 February 2012.
- ^ Hawks, Chuck. [CHUCKHAWKS.com "Choosing the Right Sight"]. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ USA Army. "Infantry Weapons Test Methods". Retrieved 10 February 2012.
- ^ Garand, John. "Google Patents". Retrieved 25 January 2012.
- ^ Mamini, P. "Beacon Espace at Jet Propulsion Laboratory".
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