Amusement ride

• US 3,949,679 A
• Filed: 10/04/1974
• Issued: 04/13/1976
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Venture Ride Manufacturing Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Venture Ride Manufacturing Incorporated
• Inventors: Barber, Gerald L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Makay, Albert J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Reese, Randolph A.
• Application Number:
  US05/512,105
• Time in Patent Office: 557 Days
• Field of Search: 104/53, 104/63, 104/64, 104/67, 104/84, 104/89, 104/91, 104/93, 104/106, 104/110, 272/24, 272/28 R, 272/29, 272/34, 272/39, 272/40, 272/43, 272/44, 272/45, 191/4
• US Class Current: 104/63
• CPC Class Codes: A63G 31/00 Amusement arrangements hoop exercising apparatus driven by the user A63B19/00

Abstract

An amusement ride, especially a trailer mounted amusement ride, in which passenger cabs, or compartments, are suspended from a track which has one reach extending longitudinally along the trailer on the outside and another reach inside the trailer following a sinuous path therethrough. The track portion outside the trailer is detachable therefrom for transporting the ride from place to place. The trailer vehicle is also adapted for being coupled to another trailer vehicle in end to end relation to form an elongated ride. The passenger cabs, or compartments, have individual drive motors thereon for propelling the cabs along the track and each motor is battery powered by a battery on the respective cab. Conveniently, battery charging rails are provided inside the trailer so that the batteries are charged while the cabs are moving inside the trailer and the cabs run solely on battery power while outside the trailer.

Claims

1. In an amusement ride device;

enclosed trailer vehicle means, endless track means comprising a first reach extending longitudinally through the trailer means and a second reach extending outside the trailer means, and end sections joining said reaches, passenger cabs supported by said track means, and a motor on each of said cabs for propelling the cabs along said track means, said trailer vehicle means comprising a pair of trailer vehicles in end to end abutment, communicating door means in the abutting ends of said vehicles, said first reach of said track means extending through both of said vehicles and including separable connector means in the region of abutment of the vehicles, said second reach of said track means extending along the outside of said vehicles, said end sections of said track means being adjacent the ends of the vehicles which are remote from one another.

2. An amusement ride device according to claim 1 in which at least said first reach of said track means follows a sinuous path inside at least one of said vehicles.

3. An amusement ride device according to claim 1 in which said end sections of said track means include separable coupling means and said second reach of said track means is detachably supported on the vehicles to facilitate partial disassembly of the device for transport.

4. An amusement ride device according to claim 1 in which said first reach of said track means follows a sinuous path inside said vehicles and includes at least one relatively abrupt decline thereon.

5. An amusement ride device according to claim 1 in which each motor is a battery powered electric motor, a battery on each cab, circuit means for each cab including an on-off switch connecting the battery on the cab with the motor thereon, a battery charger, and connector means operable while said cabs are within a predetermined range along said track for electrically connecting the said batteries thereon with said battery charger.

6. An amusement ride device according to claim 5 in which said connector means comprises rail means in at least one of said vehicles electrically connected to said battery charger, and slider means on each cab electrically connected to the respective battery and engageable with said rail means during movement of the cabs along said first reach of said track means.

7. An amusement ride device according to claim 5 which includes a support and drive roller for each cab engaging said track means from above, bracket means supporting said roller and dependent therefrom and extending laterally beneath the track means, each cab being swingably suspended from the respective bracket, each bracket supporting the respective electric motor and the battery therefor, and drive means connecting each motor to the respective roller.

8. An amusement ride device according to claim 5 in which said second reach of said track means includes a longitudinal loading region for the loading and unloading of passengers, and means near the entrance end of said region for turning each said on-off switch to the "OFF" position thereof as the respective cab enters the said region.

9. An amusement ride device according to claim 8 in which said loading region is at a lower elevation than the remainder of said track means.