Transformable vehicle
First Claim
1. A transformable vehicle comprising,a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said vehicle is substantially parallelpipedal in said stowed state.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The transformable vehicle comprises a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to the first distal end, and a second wheel assembly mounted to second distal end. A multifunction transformable vehicle comprising at least two configurational states: a stowed state and a transformed state. In the stowed state, the transformable vehicle comprises a compact structure suitable for storage, transport or deployment. During transition from the stowed state to the transformed state, the first and second wheel assemblies move longitudinally outward along the axis to reveal the central chassis assembly.
241 Citations
41 Claims
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1. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said vehicle is substantially parallelpipedal in said stowed state.
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2. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said first wheel assembly comprises a first outer shell assembly adapted to overlap a first portion of said central chassis assembly, and said second wheel assembly comprises a second outer shell assembly adapted to overlap a second portion of said central chassis assembly.
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4. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a drive motor assembly adapted to develop a differential torque between said first wheel assembly and said second wheel assembly.
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11. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a first plurality of spines each having first and second distal ends and being mounted to said first wheel assembly at said first distal end, and a second plurality of spines each having first and second distal ends and being mounted to said second wheel assembly at said first distal end.
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27. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and said central chassis further comprises at least of one of a wireless transmitter and a wireless receiver, sensor and camera.
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29. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said transformable vehicle is adapted to mate with at least one additional transformable vehicle, comparable to said transformable vehicle, to form a single larger vehicle.
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30. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said transformable vehicle is adapted for wireless communication with at least one additional transformable vehicle located at a first location and a base station located at a second location, to enable said base station to communicate wirelessly with said additional transformable vehicle through said transformable vehicle.
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31. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a tail assembly having a first distal end attached to said central chassis assembly and a second distal end adapted for attachment to a tail weight.
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32. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a first spring assembly adapted to engage said first wheel assembly and to bias said first wheel assembly along said axis from said stowed state into said transformed state, and a second spring assembly adapted to engage said second wheel assembly and to bias said second wheel assembly along said axis from said stowed state into said transformed state.
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33. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and control electronics adapted to substantially autonomously control operation of said transformable vehicle.
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34. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having a sensor and having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said first wheel assembly is rotatably mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly, and said second wheel assembly is rotatably mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly, and wherein said central chassis assembly is adapted for rotation about said axis to change an orientation of said sensor.
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35. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, wherein said central chassis is radially symmetric about said axis in a stowed state.
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39. A transformable vehicle comprising,
a central chassis assembly having first and second distal ends with an axis passing therebetween, a first wheel assembly mounted to said first distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, a second wheel assembly mounted to said second distal end of said central chassis assembly and adapted to move along said axis from a stowed state to a transformed state, and a payload bay disposed in said central chassis.
Specification