Toy vehicle and energizer-launcher

• US 5,643,036 A
• Filed: 11/18/1994
• Issued: 07/01/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LCD International, LLC
• Original Assignee: LCD International, LLC
• Inventors: Liu, Dexter Chih-Teh, Melville, Douglas Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hafer, Robert A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MUIR, DAVID N
• Application Number:
  US08/342,294
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• Field of Search: 180/165, 464/16, 464/30, 464/37, 464/38, 464/147, 464/154, 446/22, 446/23, 446/429, 446/430, 446/435, 446/440, 446/457, 446/461, 446/462, 446/463, 446/465, 446/486
• US Class Current: 446/23
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 17/00 Toy vehicles, e.g. with self-drive; convertible into other toys A63H33/003; Cranes, winches or the like; Accessories therefor traffic games with figures moved by players A63F9/14
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 29/20 Flywheel driving mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 29/24 Details or accessories for drive mechanisms, e.g. means for winding-up or starting toy engines

Abstract

A toy vehicle has a drive wheel and a flywheel that are coupled together by a slip clutch which includes a flexible pawl extended from the drive wheel to the surface of the flywheel so that the drive wheel may be grasped and brought to an immediate stop without injury. The toy vehicle cooperates with the energizer-launcher so that the toy vehicle is spring catapulted therefrom upon release thereof. The energizer-launcher has a pistol grip handle with trigger for one-handed aiming and launching of the vehicle and a pull cord for accelerating the flywheel and drive wheel while the launcher is being held by the pistol grip handle. A tachometer may be provided on the energizer-launcher. The toy vehicle further may have a spark generator on the drive wheel which is activated by the rotation of the drive wheel after the vehicle is launched.

Claims

1. A toy vehicle comprising:

(a) a rotatably mounted axle;

(b) at least one drive wheel mounted on said axle for rotation;

(c) a flywheel mounted on said axle for rotation and disposed within said one drive wheel;

(d) only one of the drive wheel and the flywheel being fixed to the axle so as to rotate as one with the axle; and

(e) a slip clutch drivingly coupling together the drive wheel and the flywheel, the slip clutch including a flexible pawl on one of the drive wheel and the flywheel extending from the one of the drive wheel and the flywheel to and being biased against a remaining one of the drive wheel and the flywheel and a surface of the remaining one of the drive wheel and the flywheel extending generally radially with respect to the axle, the surface being fixed with a remainder of the remaining one of the drive wheel and the flywheel, the surface being contacted by the biased, flexible pawl and being engaged by contact with the biased, flexible pawl to releasably drivingly couple together the flywheel and the drive wheel.

2. The toy vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the at least one flexible arm and the textured surface are selected so that the clutch member serves as a sonorous device as the flexible arm sweeps across the textured surface.

3. The toy vehicle according to claim 1 wherein the at least one clutch member is fixedly coupled to the drive wheel.

4. The toy vehicle according to claim 3 wherein the flywheel is fixedly coupled with the axle.

5. The toy vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said drive wheel is connected to said axle by a hub which is also connected to said flexible clutch arm.

6. The toy vehicle according to claim 1 further comprising a wheel having an abrasive outer surface and fixed to the axle and a second pivotable arm having one end biased against the abrasive surface and a material at the one end that produces a spark when engaged by the abrasive surface.

7. The toy vehicle according to claim 1 wherein the surface is textured sufficiently to be drivingly engaged by the flexible pawl when a torque of a sufficiently low magnitude is transmitted between the pawl and textured surface and to allow the pawl to slip over the textured surface when a torque of sufficiently great magnitude is transmitted from one of the flexible pawl and the textured surface to the remaining one of the flexible pawl and the textured surface.

8. A mechanical clutch rotatably connecting and disconnecting an associated flywheel and drive wheel on a toy vehicle, the mechanical clutch comprising:

a flexible pawl on one of the drive wheel and the flywheel extending from the one of the drive wheel and the flywheel to and biased against the remaining one of the drive wheel and the flywheel; and

an at least generally radially extending surface at least fixedly coupled with a remainder of the remaining one of the drive wheel and the flywheel, the surface being textured sufficiently to be drivingly engaged by the biased, flexible pawl when a torque of a sufficiently low magnitude is transmitted between the pawl and the textured surface and to allow the pawl to slip over the textured surface when a torque of a sufficiently great magnitude is transmitted from one of the flexible pawl and the textured surface to the remaining one of the flexible pawl and the textured surface.

9. The clutch according to claim 8 wherein the drive wheel is rotatably mounted on an axle and wherein the flywheel is fixedly secured to the axle and is located within the drive wheel.

10. The clutch according to claim 8 wherein the flywheel bears the textured surface.