Remote control vehicle

• US 4,201,012 A
• Filed: 04/13/1978
• Issued: 05/06/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Harry L. Marshall
• Original Assignee: Harry L. Marshall
• Inventors: Marshall, Harry L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mancene, Louis G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hirsch, Paul J.
• Application Number:
  US05/895,859
• Time in Patent Office: 754 Days
• Field of Search: 273/101.1, 180/98, 46/256, 46/262
• US Class Current: 446/175
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 30/00 Remote-control arrangements specially adapted for toys, e.g. for toy vehicles steering mechanisms for toy vehicles A63H17/36; for model railways A63H19/24, A63H19/28

Abstract

A vehicle having four LDRs (light dependent resistors) on the upper surface thereof has a first motor for driving the vehicle in a forward or reverse direction and a second motor for turning the vehicle in a rightward or leftward direction. Selective light illumination on LDRs causes the vehicle to be propelled in a forward or reverse direction or to turn in a right or left direction. A selected LDR pair may be illuminated simultaneously to cause the vehicle to move forwardly and rightwardly; to move forwardly and leftwardly; to move rearwardly and rightwardly; and to move rearwardly and leftwardly. The LDRs may all be sensitive to the same radiation frequency range or may be responsive only to radiation frequencies in mutually exclusive ranges. A manually operated radiation frequency generator is used to illuminate the LDRs and control the car direction movement. The generator may have a single band of frequency ranges or may have specific limited and mutually exclusive radiation frequency bands. Each vehicle may have all of its LDRs sensitive to a given frequency range which range is mutually exclusive from the ranges of other vehicles.

Claims

1. A remote controllable vehicle apparatus comprising:

a vehicle body having a self-contained power supply mounted therein;

first, second, third, and fourth light responsive members mounted on said body and spaced from one another to be selectively illuminated;

first motor means coupled to said power supply in motor driving power receiving relation for providing a rotative drive in first and second rotative directions;

steering means being mounted to said vehicle body for steering said vehicle body in rightward and leftward directions;

said first motor means being drive-coupled to said steering means to steer said vehicle body in a rightward direction upon a first rotative drive direction and in a leftward direction upon a second rotative drive direction;

a manually pointable light source for selectively illuminating said members;

said first and second light responsive members being coupled to said first motor means and said power supply to couple said first motor means to said power supply to provide a rotative drive in said first direction when said first member is illuminated by said light source and to provide a rotative drive in said second direction when said second member is illuminated by said light source;

a second motor means coupled to said power supply in motor driving power receiving relation for providing a rotative drive in first and second rotative directions;

propelling means being mounted to the vehicle body for propelling said vehicle body in forward and reverse directions;

said second motor means being drive-coupled to said propelling means to propel said vehicle body in a forward direction upon a first rotative drive direction of said second motor means and in a rearward direction upon a second rotative drive direction of said second motor means;

said third and fourth light responsive members being coupled to said second motor means and said power supply to couple said second motor means to said power supply to provide a rotative drive in said first direction of said second motor means when said third member is illuminated by said light source and to provide a rotative drive in said second direction of said second motor means when said fourth member is illuminated by said light source.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said first motor means has a first winding and said second motor means has a second winding;

circuit means for coupling said first and second light responsive members to said first winding and said power supply to generate current in one direction through said first winding upon light incidence on said first light responsive member to steer said vehicle body rightwardly and for coupling said second light responsive member to said first winding and said power supply to generate current in said first winding in the direction opposite to said one direction upon light incidence on said second light responsive member to steer said vehicle body leftwardly;

circuit means for coupling said third and fourth light responsive members to said second winding and said power supply to generate current in one direction through said second winding upon light incidence on said third light responsive member to propel said vehicle body forwardly and to generate current in the opposite direction upon light incidence on said fourth light responsive member to propel said vehicle body rearwardly.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 including filter means for said first, second, third, and fourth light responsive members for providing mutually exclusive light energy frequency responsive member ranges to at least two of said members;

said light source having filter means for filtering the light energy frequency of said source to provide source ranges corresponding to said at least two member ranges whereby said at least two members can be energized mutually exclusively from said source.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said member ranges and corresponding source frequency ranges correspond to the colors red, green, and blue.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 including a plurality of remote controllable vehicle apparatuses;

first filter means for passing a first range of light energy frequencies for the first, second, third, and fourth light responsive members of a first apparatus;

second filter means for passing a second range of light energy frequencies for the first, second, third, and fourth light responsive members of a second apparatus;

the light energy frequencies in said first and second ranges being mutually exclusive;

a plurality of manually pointable light sources;

third filter means for filtering the light energy from a first of said sources to pass said first range of frequencies and not said second range of frequencies;

fourth filter means for filtering the light energy from a second of said sources to pass said second range of frequencies and not said first range of frequencies;

whereby said first apparatus is responsively controllable by said first light source and not said second light source and said second apparatus is responsively controllable by said second light source and not said first light source.

6. A remote controlled vehicle apparatus comprising:

a vehicle body having a power supply mounted therein;

a plurality of light responsive members being mounted on said body in spaced relation from one another;

drive means mounted in said vehicle body and coupled to said power supply in drive receiving power relation for maneuvering said vehicle body;

said drive means being operable in first and second directions;

a manually pointable light beam source having a beam definition sufficiently narrow to selectively illuminate said members;

circuit means for coupling said members to said drive means to selectively couple said drive means and said power supply to maneuver said body in correspondence with selective illumination of said members by said source;

said circuit means comprising switch means for selectively coupling said drive means to said power supply, said switch means having first and second switches being coupled to and switchably responsive to illumination of said members whereby during periods of unequal illumination of said members by said manually pointable light beam source only one of said switches is closed to couple said drive means to said power supply to maneuver said body in a direction corresponding to said unequal illumination and during periods of equal illumination of said members both of said switches are open to decouple said drive means from said power supply so that ambient light effect is minimized, said drive means being directly coupled to the switch output from either of said switches.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said circuit means comprises:

two of said light responsive members being coupled in series and connected at a junction;

said power supply comprising battery means being coupled in parallel across said two members;

said switch means comprising an NPN transistor having a base, collector, and emitter being connected in series with a PNP transistor having a base collector and emitter, the emitters of said transistors being coupled at a grounded terminal and the collectors of said transistors being coupled to opposite poles of said battery means;

said junction being coupled to the bases of said transistors whereby upon equal illumination of said two members neither transistor will conduct and upon one member being illuminated greater than the other member, one of said transistors will conduct, and the other of said transistors will conduct when the other member is illuminated greater than said one member;

said transistors being coupled to said drive means for energizing said drive means in one direction upon conduction of one of said transistors and energizing said drive means in the other direction upon conduction of the other of said transistors.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 including:

a first conductive resilient arm being coupled to the emitter of one transistor and resiliently engageable with said ground terminal;

a second conductive resilient arm being coupled to the emitter of the other of said transistor and resiliently engageable with said ground terminal;

steering limit means for resiliently displacing said first arm to disconnect said first arm from said ground terminal to limit steering movement in a rightward direction and for resiliently displacing said second arm from said ground terminal to limit steering movement in a leftward direction.

9. Remote controlled vehicle apparatus comprising:

a vehicle body;

first means mounted in said body and responsive to light energy for causing said body to turn in a rightward direction and for causing said body to turn in a leftward direction;

second means mounted in said body and responsive to light energy for propelling said body in a forward direction and for propelling said body in a reverse direction;

at least one wheel mounted to the underside of said body for rotation about the wheel axis for movably supporting said body on a supporting surface;

said wheel being mounted to the underside of said body for turning about a vertical axis to steer said body;

said first means comprising a first motor coupled to said wheel to turn said wheel about said vertical axis to cause said body to be steered in one of a right and left direction;

a second wheel spaced from said one wheel and mounted to the underside of said body for rotation about the axis of said second wheel;

said second means comprising a second motor to rotate said second wheel about its axis to propel said body in one of a forward and reverse direction;

said first motor having a motor winding for rotating a motor shaft in a direction depending on current direction through said winding;

a first light responsive member;

a second light responsive member;

circuit means for coupling said first light responsive member to said winding to generate current in one direction through said winding upon light incidence on said first light responsive member and for coupling said second light responsive member to said winding to generate current in the direction opposite to said one direction upon light incidence on said second light responsive member, whereby incident light on said first light responsive member will cause said motor shaft to turn said one wheel in a rightward direction and incident light on said second light responsive member will cause said one wheel to turn in a leftward direction;

said circuit means comprising first, second, third and fourth transistors each having a base, collector and emitter;

a power source having positive and negative voltage outputs;

said first light responsive member being coupled between said positive voltage output and the base of said first transistor;

the collector of said first transistor being resistively coupled to said positive voltage output and the base of said second transistor;

said second light responsive member being coupled between said negative voltage output and the base of said third transistor;

the collector of said third transistor being resistively coupled between said negative voltage output and the base of said fourth transistor;

one terminal of said winding being coupled to the collectors of said second and fourth transistors; and

the other terminal of said winding being coupled to a potential intermediate of said positive and negative voltage outputs;

the emitters of said first and third transistors being coupled to said intermediate potential;

the bases of said first and third transistors being resistively coupled to said intermediate potential.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 including a first switch between the emitter of said first transistor and said intermediate potential;

and a second switch between the emitter of said third transistor and said intermediate potential means for opening said first switch when said wheel has been turned about said vertical axis a predetermined angle in one direction and for opening said second switch when said wheel has been turned a predetermined angle about said vertical axis in the opposite direction.