F41B 11/00 - Definition 
Definition statement
This subclass covers:
Guns or devices for discharging projectiles through a barrel by conversion of the potential energy stored in a compressed gas into kinetic energy for the propulsion of the projectile.
The compressed gas is either available in a pre-compressed form or compressed with mechanical means, i.e. without use of explosive or combustible propellant charge, immediately before or during the launching of each projectile.
Informative references
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Stationary arranged devices for projecting balls | A63B 69/40 |
Projectiles for airguns | F42B 6/10 |
Hand-held nailing tools operated by fluid pressure | B25C 1/04 |
Glossary of terms
In this subclass, the following terms or expressions are used with the meaning indicated:
| airgun | generic term for compressed gas guns, sometimes used for guns using compressed gas other than air, most commonly CO2. Classical airguns project so-called airgun pellets, waisted projectile hollowed at the base and available in a variety of head styles  |
Synonyms and Keywords
In patent documents the following abbreviations are often used:
| BB gun | gun for projecting BBs (birdshot pellets), usually rounded 4.5 mm diameter metallic pellets |
| softair/airsoft gun | also sometimes referred to as BB guns, however using plastic pellets of 6mm diameter. Softair guns are usually externally shaped like firearms. |
| marker/paintball marker | guns for projecting paintballs, i.e. hollow gelatine balls filled with paint, for marking the point of impact |
| hopper | magazine for loosely holding projectiles above the air gun |
| blowback | or blow back mechanism, used for the cycling, i.e. automatic reloading, or for simulating recoil operation |