Toy vehicle having rolling oscillatory motion

• US 5,482,494 A
• Filed: 05/26/1994
• Issued: 01/09/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nikko Company (Toy State Industrial Ltd)
• Original Assignee: Nikko Company (Toy State Industrial Ltd)
• Inventors: Ishimoto, Zenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hafer, Robert A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ONEILL, MICHAEL W
• Application Number:
  US08/249,729
• Time in Patent Office: 593 Days
• Field of Search: 446/456, 446/437, 446/470, 446/428, 446/462, 446/466, 298/18, 298/17.6, 298/17.7, 298/18
• US Class Current: 446/456
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 17/004 Stunt-cars, e.g. lifting front wheels, roll-over or invertible cars

Abstract

The invention provides a novel toy vehicle comprising a body, a chassis at least having an upper surface and a rolling oscillation generating unit provided on the upper surface of the chassis for permitting the body to exhibit a rolling oscillation motion around a horizontal axis. The rolling oscillation generating unit comprises a plate mounted to an internal surface of the body, a plurality of connection rods for mechanically and movably connecting the plate to the upper surface of the chassis, and at least a pushing up member mechanically connected to the chassis and having at least two contacting portions for contacting on a flat bottom surface of the plate at least at its two symmetrical positions spaced along a vertical direction to the horizontal axis so as to permit either of the two contacting portions to pushing up the bottom surface of the plate. The two contacting portions alternatively and continuously push up the bottom surface of the movable plate to permit both the movable plate and the body to show a rolling oscillation motion around the horizontal axis.

Claims

1. A toy vehicle comprising:

a body;

a chassis at least having an upper surface; and

means provided on said upper surface of said chassis for permitting said body to exhibit a rolling oscillation motion around a horizontal axis, said means comprising;

a plate mounted on an internal surface of said body;

a plurality of connection rods for mechanically and movably connecting said plate to said upper surface of said chassis; and

at least a pushing up member mechanically connected to said chassis and having at least two contacting portions for contacting on a flat bottom surface of said plate at least at two symmetrical positions on opposite sides of a vertical plane containing said horizontal axis so as to permit either of said two contacting portions to push up said bottom surface of said plate wherein said two contacting portions alternatively and continuously push up said bottom surface of said movable plate to permit both said movable plate and said body to show a rolling oscillation motion around said horizontal axis, wherein said pushing up member comprises a V-shaped lever including a base portion pivotally connected to said chassis and two top pushing up portions spaced from each other on opposite sides of said plane.

2. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said V-shaped lever is mechanically connected through a shaft to a rotator which is controllable to exhibit a rotational oscillation motion in a range of a rotational angle at a time period.

3. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 2, wherein said V-shaped lever is further mechanically connected through a shaft to a rotation angle detector electrically connected to a controller electrically connected to a rotator so as to permit said rotational angle detector to detect a rotational angle of said V-shaped lever so that when a rotational angle detected by said detector reaches a predetermined critical angle, said detector outputs a critical angle signal to be transmitted to said controller and subsequently said controller supplies an inversion signal to said rotator whereby the direction of the rotation of said rotator is reversed.

4. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said rotator comprises a servomotor.

5. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said connection rods comprise:

a first connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its first side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its second side and said first connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle;

a second connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its second side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its first side, said second connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said second connection rod also being parallel to and adjacent to said first connection rod;

a third connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its first side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its second side, said third connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said third connection rod being spaced from said first and second connection rods along said longitudinal axis; and

a fourth connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its second side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its first side, said fourth connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said fourth connection rod also being parallel to and adjacent to said third connection rod.

6. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein each of said first to fourth connection rods is provided at its opposite ends with brackets fixed to said upper surface of said chassis or said bottom surface of said movable plate.

7. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

at least two pairs of tires so provided through shafts to said chassis as to permit tires to freely rotate;

at least an antenna for receiving radio wave signals from a transmitter and subsequently converting said radio wave signals into electrical signals;

a driving motor mechanically connected through said shafts to said tires;

a steering unit mechanically connected to at least one of said shafts mechanically connected to said tires; and

a control unit electrically connected to both said driving motor and said steering control unit for receiving said electrical signals and subsequent controlling of said driving motor and further controlling of said steering unit.

8. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 7, wherein a motion of said pushing up member is placed under a radio control carried out according to said radio wave signals from said transmitter.

9. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein a motion of said pushing up member is placed under a hand control carried out by switching a hand switch.

10. A radio controlled toy traveling vehicle comprising:

a body;

a chassis at least having an upper surface; and

means provided on said upper surface of said chassis for permitting said body to exhibit a rolling oscillation motion around a horizontal axis, said means comprising;

at least two pairs of tires so mounted on shafts to said chassis as to permit said tires to freely rotate;

at least an antenna for receiving radio wave signals from a transmitter and subsequently converting said radio wave signals into electrical signals;

a driving motor mechanically connected through said shafts to said tires;

a steering unit mechanically connected to at least one of said shafts mechanically connected to said tires;

a control unit electrically connected to both said driving motor and said steering control unit for receiving said electrical signals and subsequently controlling said driving motor and further controlling said steering unit;

a plate mounted on an internal surface of said body;

a plurality of connection rods for mechanically and movable connecting said plate to said upper surface of said chassis; and

at least a pushing up member mechanically connected to said chassis and having at least two contacting portions for contacting on a flat bottom surface of said plate at least at two symmetrical positions on opposite sides of a vertical plane containing said horizontal axis so as to permit either of said two contacting portions to push up said bottom surface of said plate wherein said two contacting portions alternatively and continuously push up said bottom surface of said movable plate to permit both said movable plate and said body to show a rolling oscillation motion around said horizontal axis.

11. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein said pushing up member comprises a V-shaped lever including a base portion pivotally connected to said chassis and two top pushing up portions spaced from each other on opposite sides of said plane.

12. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein said V-shaped lever is mechanically connected through a shaft to a rotator which is controllable to exhibit a rotational oscillation motion in a range of a rotational angle at a time period.

13. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 12, wherein said V-shaped lever is further mechanically connected through a shaft to a rotational angle detector electrically connected to a controller electrically connected to a rotator so as to permit said rotational angle detector to detect a rotational angle of said V-shaped lever so that when a rotational angle detected by said detector reaches a predetermined critical angle, said detector outputs a critical angle signal to be transmitted to said controller and subsequently said controller supplies an inversion signal to said rotator whereby the direction of the rotation of said rotator is reversed.

14. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 13, wherein said rotator comprises a servomotor.

15. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein said connection rods comprise:

a first connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its first side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its second side and said first connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle;

a second connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its second side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its first side, said second connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said second connection rod also being parallel to and adjacent to said first connection rod;

a third connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its first side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its second side, said third connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said third connection rod being spaced from said first and second connection rods along said longitudinal axis; and

a fourth connection rod having one end pivotally connected with said upper surface of said chassis at its second side and the opposite end pivotally connected with said bottom surface of said movable plate at its first side, said fourth connection rod extending across said longitudinal axis of said vehicle and said fourth connection rod also being parallel to and adjacent to said third connection rod.

16. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein each of said first to fourth connection rods is provided at its opposite ends with brackets fixed to said upper surface of said chassis or said bottom surface of said movable plate.

17. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein a motion of said pushing up member is placed under a radio control carried out according to said radio wave signals from said transmitter.

18. The toy vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein a motion of said pushing up member is placed under a hand control carried out by switching a hand switch.