Remote control toy top

• US 7,063,589 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2003
• Issued: 06/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TOMY Company Limited, Xenoid Protodesign Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Takara Co., Ltd. (TOMY Company Limited), Xenoid Protodesign Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Choh, Jintei, Matsukawa, Hiroyuki, Hocho, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KIEN T
• Application Number:
  US10/413,118
• Publication Number:
  US 20030199222A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,163 Days
• Field of Search: 446256-264, 446/175, 446/454, 446/456, 446/233
• US Class Current: 446/256
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 1/04 with string or band winding devices
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 30/04 using wireless transmission

Abstract

A remote control toy top, which is capable of remotely controlling performance characteristics of a toy top spinning on a stadium and freely changing performance characteristics, is provided. The remote control toy top is composed of the toy top and a remote controller device for remotely controlling the performance characteristics of the toy top. The toy top is provided with a motor, and regular and reverse rotation of the motor is controlled by a control signal generated from the remote controller device, and a shaft body of the toy top is rotated in cooperation with a motor shaft of the motor.

Claims

1. A remote control toy top comprising a toy top having a toy main body and a shaft body and a remote controller device for changing performance characteristics of said toy top by means of a remote operation, wherein:

(a) said toy top is provided with a motor having a rotatable motor shaft and said motor shaft of said motor is rotated regularly and reversely by a control signal generated from said remote controller device; and

(b) said shaft body of said toy top is axially supported on a bottom portion of said toy main body so as to be capable of freely rotating and rotates in cooperation with said motor shaft of said motor, wherein said shaft body of said toy top includes a buffer mechanism for absorbing an impact in an up-down direction and permitting the shaft body to move relative to said motor shaft in said up-down direction.

2. The remote control toy top according to claim 1, further comprising a stadium device, said stadium device being formed by curving its upper surface into a concave mirror shape, wherein said toy top competes against other toy tops in said stadium device.

3. The remote control toy according to claim 1, wherein the remote controller device is provided with a starter mechanism for giving an initial spin to said toy top and for releasing the toy top to contact a support surface for rotation.

4. The remote control toy top according to claim 1, wherein said toy top is provided detachably with an attack ring on an upper surface of the toy main body, said attack ring being provided with at least two hangover portions protrusively formed on said attack ring at equal intervals in a peripheral direction.

5. The remote control toy according to claim 1, wherein said buffer mechanism includes a holding member operatively connected to said rotatable motor shaft;

a spring mounted in said holding member and said shaft body movable relative to said holding member and biased to extend away from said holding member by said spring.

6. The remote control toy according to claim 5 further including a shaft support connected to said main body and journally said shaft body to move into and out of said shaft support.

7. A remote control toy top comprising:

a housing member that can be rotated;

a shaft body movably attached to the housing member and providing a contact surface when the housing member is rotating on a supporting surface; and

a driver member connected to the shaft body to move the shaft body independent of a rotation of the housing member, wherein the shaft body is biased to extend from the housing member and is movable towards and away from the housing member to absorb an impact when the housing member is dropped on the supporting surface.

8. The remote control toy top of claim 7 wherein the shaft body is movably attached to rotate in one of a clockwise and a counter-clockwise movement, movement of the shaft body in a direction of rotation that is in the same direction of rotation as the housing member will steer the top in one direction while movement in a direction of rotation that is counter to the direction of rotation of the housing member will steer the housing member in another direction.

9. The remote control toy top of claim 8 where the driver member is an electric motor mounted within the housing member.

10. The remote control toy top of claim 9 further including a rechargeable battery mounted in the housing member and connected to the electric motor.

11. The remote control toy top of claim 10 further including a pair of electrical contacts connected to the rechargeable battery that are accessible from the exterior of the housing member for electrically recharging the rechargeable battery.

12. The remote control toy top of claim 8 further including a receiver circuit mounted in the housing member and operatively connected to the driver member for providing control signals to the driver member from a transmitter circuit unit remote from the toy top.

13. The remote control toy top of claim 12 further including a mechanical unit for manually rotating the housing member independent of the driver member.

14. The remote control toy top of claim 12 further including a controller unit with the transmitter circuit unit and a user input control unit to send control signals to the driver member.

15. The remote control toy top of claim 14 further including a pair of terminals on the controller unit, a pair of electrical contacts on the housing member and a rechargeable battery in the housing member electrically connected to the pair of electrical contacts, wherein the terminals on the controller unit can be removably attached to the electrical contacts to recharge the rechargeable battery.

16. The remote control toy top of claim 14 further including a mechanical unit mounted on the controller unit for manually rotating the housing member.

17. A remote control toy top assembly comprising:

a housing member that can be manually rotated to spin;

a shaft body that can rotate relative to the housing member and can contact and traverse across a corresponding support structure, the shaft body is biased by a buffer mechanism to extend from the housing member and is movable towards and away from the housing member to absorb an impact with the support structure when dropped; and

a driver member mounted in the housing member for operatively rotating the shaft body in one of a clockwise and a counter-clockwise movement independent of the manual rotation of the housing member whereby rotation of the shaft body in a direction of rotation that is counter to any manual rotation of the housing member will steer the housing member in a first direction while rotation in the same direction of any manual rotation will steer the housing member in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

18. The remote control toy top assembly of claim 17 further including a remote controller unit for providing control signals to the driver member to steer the housing member.

19. The remote control toy top assembly of claim 18 wherein the remote controller unit includes a mechanical unit for manually rotating the housing member and releasing the rotating housing member to impact the shaft body with the support structure.

20. The remote control toy top assembly of claim 19 wherein the driver member is a reversible electric motor.