ELECTRICL AUTOMOBILE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

• US 3,637,956 A
• Filed: 01/27/1970
• Issued: 01/25/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/1970
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Robert D. Blackman
• Original Assignee: Robert D. Blackman
• Inventors: Blackman, Robert D.
• Primary Examiner(s): La Point, Arthur L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Libman, George H.
• Application Number:
  US05/006,259
• Time in Patent Office: 728 Days
• Field of Search: 191/4,3 180/2 105/50,51 174/117.6 46/244 95/1.5
• US Class Current: 191/4
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 5/38 for collecting current from conductor rails B60L5/40 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60M 1/30 Power rails

Abstract

An electrically powered automotive transit system including an automotive vehicle having electrical propulsion means and an electrical power system for supplying electrical energy to the vehicle while on the road. The power system embodies exposed electrified conductors on the road and electrical current collectors on the vehicle for contacting the road conductors to effect transmission of electrical energy from the conductors to the vehicle propulsions means. The electrical energy thus supplied to the vehicle may be utilized periodically to charge a battery in the vehicle which powers the vehicle propulsion motor during normal cruising operation continuously or to power the motor directly during cruising operation.

Claims

1. An electrically powered automotive transit system comprising:

a road having a substantially smooth surface, a steerable electrically powered wheeled motor vehicle including electrical propulsion means for propelling said vehicle, said vehicle being operable on and off said road, electrical conductor means extending a fixed distance along said road, including plural pairs of parallel, uniformly spaced road conductors adhesively secured to the road within charging zones arranged at intervals along said road, the profile of said conductors being such as to permit the unimpeded passage of the wheels of said vehicle laterally across said conductors, and a pair of electrical feeders transmitting electrical energy from an electrical power source to two sets of alternate conductors, and a pair of current collectors associated with said vehicle and connected in electrical circuit with said vehicle propulsion means, the width of each of said current collectors being less than the space between adjacent ones of said road conductors, whereby neither collector can contact both said conductors simultaneously, said current collectors being spaced laterally of said vehicle to contact one conductor of one of said conductor sets and one conductor of the remaining conductor set when said vehicle is aligned with said conductors, said vehicle propulsion means including an electrical propulsion motor, a rechargeable storage battery energizing said motor, and means connecting said battery to said current collectors, whereby said battery receives charging current from said road conductors when said current collectors are in electrical contact therewith.

2. An automotive transit system as defined by claim 22 wherein:

said vehicle propulsion means comprises relay means for connecting said motor and battery in parallel with said current collectors in response to contact of said current collectors with the electrified road conductors and connecting said battery and motor to one another in response to movement of said current collectors out of contact with said electrified road conductors.

3. An automotive transit system as defined in claim 1 wherein said road conductors are thin conductive strips adhesively retained in channels provided in the road, the exposed surfaces of said strips being substantially level with the surface of the road.

4. An automotive transit system as defined by claim 2 wherein said road conductors are thin conductive strips adhesively retained in channels provided in the road, the exposed surfaces of said strips being substantially level with the surface of the road.