A compound archery bow dynamic model, suggesting modifications to improve accuracy

Abstract

This paper provides a static and dynamic mathematical model for a single cam compound archery bow. The static performance is that seen by the archer in drawing and aiming the bow. The dynamic performance is of importance in determining how the arrow is accelerated and exits the bow. Building on the work of Hickman, it is shown that in order to flatten the arrow acceleration profile during the power stroke it is important to select a limb profile that minimizes the limb's effective mass and to use a heavy arrow. To minimize the time the string and arrow spend in the vicinity of the archer's face it is necessary to minimize the inertia of the bow's cams. Various aspects of the model have been validated, showing a good fit with experimental data. The conclusions are applicable to other compound bow configurations.