Toy car kit

• US 6,910,939 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2003
• Issued: 06/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P., General Wireless IP Holdings LLC (Retail Ecommerce Ventures LLC), General Wireless Operations Inc. (Retail Ecommerce Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: RadioShack Legacy Corporation
• Inventors: Hui, Wai
• Primary Examiner(s): Banks, Derris H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Francis, Faye
• Application Number:
  US10/720,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20040116043A1
• Time in Patent Office: 582 Days
• Field of Search: 446/26, 446/94, 446/95, 446/90, 446/87, 446/88, 446/91, 446/93, 446/469, 446/465, 206/223, 206/579, 206/457
• US Class Current: 446/93
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 17/262 Chassis; Wheel mountings; Wheels; Axles; Suspensions; Fitting body portions to chassis
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 29/22 Electric drives power supply through track A63H18/12
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 29/24 Details or accessories for drive mechanisms, e.g. means for winding-up or starting toy engines
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 30/04 using wireless transmission

Abstract

A mobile toy is described. The mobile toy includes a wheel assembly having a hubcap for removably engaging a wheel of the wheel assembly. The mobile toy may also include a transmitter having a charging pad for charging of a radio-controlled embodiment of the toy. The transmitter comprises an indicator showing certain states of the toy as well as a storage compartment for housing items associated with the toy. Additional embodiments include an assembly for retaining the toy on the charging pad during charging of the toy. A kit for storing the components of the radio-controlled embodiment of the toy is also described.

Claims

1. A kit, comprising:

a plurality of unassembled components of a radio-controlled toy car, the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components including;

a chassis including a pair of wheels attached to the chassis;

a motor configured to be removably inserted into the chassis;

a pair of hubcaps each configured to be detachably coupled to one of the pair of wheels and including a hubcap removal feature; and

a pair of tires each configured to be detachably coupled to one of the pair of wheels to which one of the pair of hubcaps is coupled, thereby at least partially concealing the hubcap removal feature of the one of the pair of hubcaps; and

a controller configured to wirelessly control operation of the radio-controlled toy car when the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components are assembled to form the radio-controlled toy car.

2. The kit of claim 1 wherein the pairs of wheels, hubcaps and tires are first pairs of wheels, hubcaps and tires, respectively, and wherein the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components further comprises:

an axle configured to be detachably and rotatably coupled to the chassis, the axle including a second pair of wheels fixedly attached to die axle;

a second pair of hubcaps each configured to be detachably coupled to one of the second pair of wheels and including the hubcap removal feature; and

a second pair of tires each configured to be detachably coupled to one of the second pair of wheels to which one of the second pair of hubcaps is coupled, thereby at least partially concealing the hubcap removal feature of the one of the second pair of hubcaps.

3. The kit of claim 2 wherein

each of the first and second pairs of wheels includes a boss configured to be received by a first bore extending through a corresponding one of the first and second pairs of hubcaps;

each of the first pair of wheels includes a second bore extending through the boss;

each of the first pair of wheels is substantially permanently attached to the chassis by a riveted shaft extending through the second bore to a suspension component coupled to the chassis; and

each of the first pair of wheels is rotatable on the corresponding riveted shaft.

4. The kit of claim 3 wherein:

each the first and second pairs of hubcaps is one of a plurality of substantially identical hubcaps each configured to be detachably coupled to any of the first and second pairs of wheels; and

each the first and second pairs of tires is one of a plurality of substantially identical tires each configured to be detachably coupled to any of the first and second pairs of wheels and, thereby, conceal a corresponding hubcap removal feature.

5. The kit of claim 2 wherein:

the axle further includes an axle gear attached to the axle;

the motor includes a drive gear attached to the motor; and

the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components further comprises a transfer gear configured to be detachably mid rotatably coupled to the chassis and, thereby, operably couple the drive gear and the axle gear.

6. The kit of claim 1 wherein the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components further comprises a motor retaining clip configured to be detachably coupled to the chassis to retain the motor in the chassis when the motor is inserted into the chassis and the motor retaining clip is detachably coupled to the chassis.

7. The kit of claim 1 wherein the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components further comprises a body configured to be detachably coupled to the chassis.

8. The kit of claim 1 wherein the controller includes an interface configured to physically and detachably couple the controller and the chassis.

9. The kit of claim 1 wherein the controller is substantially larger in at least one dimension relative to a length of the radio-controlled toy car.

10. The kit of claim 1 further comprising a housing in which each of the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components is removably disposed.

11. The kit of claim 1 further comprising a housing having a plurality of compartments each configured to contain at least one of the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components, wherein each of the plurality of unassembled radio-controlled toy car components is contained within one of the plurality of compartments.

12. The kit of claim 1 wherein

each of the pair of wheels includes a plurality of openings;

and

each of the pair of hubcaps includes a plurality of protrusions each configured to detachably engage one of the plurality of openings.

13. The kit of claim 1 wherein:

each of the pair of wheels includes at least three bores each extending therethrough; and

each of the pair of hubcaps includes at least three cylindrical bosses extending therefrom;

wherein the bores and cylindrical bosses are collectively configured to cooperate to removably attach the pair of hubcaps to the pair of wheels.

14. The kit of claim 1 wherein:

the hubcap removal feature of each of the pair of hubcaps includes a radially extending tab; and

each of the pair of wheels includes a raised perimeter having a slot configured to receive the radially extending tab of one of the pair of hubcaps.

15. The kit of claim 14 wherein the radially extending tab is accessible detach the hubcap from the wheel without the use of tools when the corresponding tire is at least partially decoupled from the wheel.

16. The kit of claim 1 wherein each of the pair of hubcaps includes a substantially concentric bore extending therethrough and configure to receive a hub extending from one of the pair of wheels.

17. The kit of claim 1 wherein an inner surface of each of the pair of tires includes a channeled groove configured to detachably receive a first portion of a perimeter of one of the pair of wheels, wherein the first perimeter portion has a first diameter that is larger than a second diameter of a second portion of the perimeter, and whereby each of the pair of tires is configured to be coupled to and detached from one of the pair of wheels without the use of tools.

18. A kit, comprising:

a housing;

a plurality of components disposed in the housing and including;

a radio-controlled toy car chassis subassembly including a pair of front wheels attached to a chassis;

a radio-controlled toy car motor subassembly including a drive gear attached to a motor, wherein the motor is configured to be removably installed in a compartment or the chassis;

a motor retaining clip configured to be removably attached to the chassis to secure the motor subassembly in the chassis compartment;

a transfer gear configured to be removably attached to the chassis, the transfer gear further configured to mesh with the drive gear when the motor subassembly is removably installed in the chassis compartment and the transfer gear is removably attached to the chassis;

an axle subassembly including;

an axle configured to be removably and rotatably attached to the chassis;

a pair of rear wheels fixedly attached to the axle; and

an axle gear fixedly attached to the axle and configured to mesh with the transfer gear;

a plurality of hubcaps each configured to be removably attached to one of the pairs of front and rear wheels;

a plurality of tires each configured to be removably attached to one of the pairs of front and rear wheels;

a body configured to be removably attached to the chassis; and

a controller configured to control a radio-controlled toy car by radio signals, the radio-controlled toy car including the radio-controlled toy car chassis subassembly, the radio-controlled toy car motor subassembly, the motor retaining clip, the transfer gear, the axle subassembly, the plurality of hubcaps, the plurality of tires, and the body, wherein the controller is substantially larger in at least one dimension relative to a length of the radio-controlled toy car.

19. A kit, comprising:

a radio-controlled toy car wheel;

a hubcap removably attachable to the wheel and including a hubcap removal feature; and

a tire detachably couplable to the wheel wherein;

the tire conceals the hubcap removal feature when the tire is coupled to the wheel; and

the hubcap removal feature is accessible to detach the hubcap from the wheel when the tire is decoupled from the wheel.

20. The kit of claim 19 wherein:

the hubcap removal feature includes a radially extending tab;

the wheel includes a partial rim defining an opening configured to receive the radially extending tab;

the tire conceals the partial rim and the radially extending tab received by the partial rim opening when the tire is coupled to the wheel; and

the radially extending tab is accessible to remove the hubcap from the wheel when the tire is not coupled to the wheel.