Indicating target for projectiles

Claim 1

A target impenetratable to the projectiles used for automatically registering the position of the projectile impact comprising in combination: a sectionalized impact plate consisting of a plurality of interfitting flush translucent segments which are separated from each other and movable independently of each other, a back plate arranged substantially coextensive with the sectionalized impact plate, said back plate having a plurality of perforations one aligned with each of said segments, a plurality of electric lamp means mounted on the side of said back plate opposite to said impact plate with lamp means mounted to direct its rays of light through a different one of said perforations against its associated segment, a conductive surface mounted on said back plate juxtapositioned to said impact plate, at least one elastically deformable post interconnecting said back plate and each segment of said impact plate for suspending said segment from said back plate a predetermined distance therefrom, at least one conductive member mounted on each of said segments and extending laterally thereof toward said back plate, a conductive member of each segment and said conductive surface being electrically connected in series to form a plurality of parallelly arranged circuits, each circuit energizing a different one of said lamp means across a source of electric power, said segments of said impact plate being spaced from said back plate a distance such that upon impact of a projectile against one of said segments of said impact plate the conductive member associated with said one of said segments engages said back plate to complete an electric circuit through its associated lamp means thereby illuminating this segment, each of said perforations being aligned with approximately the center of its associated segment, each of said lamp means comprising a first circuit means including an incandescent lamp connected in parallel with a different one of said circuits and energized by the flow of current through the associated conductive member, and a second circuit means connected in parallel with each of said first circuit means for interrupting the current flow through its associated first circuit means after a predetermined energization of the associated lamp, thereby placing the target back in its initial condition, said second circuit means comprising a bimetallic element in series with said source of electric power to sequentially open and close the circuit to an incandescent lamp to cause it to blink.