Convertible drive train for radio-controlled toy

• US 7,128,634 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2003
• Issued: 10/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Global Franchising Corp., Radioshack Online IPCO LLC
• Original Assignee: RadioShack Legacy Corporation
• Inventors: Ogihara, Nobuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): ACKUN, JACOB K
• Application Number:
  US10/680,944
• Publication Number:
  US 20050079792A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,119 Days
• Field of Search: 446/431, 446/439, 446/443, 446/448, 446/454, 446/456, 446/457, 446/461, 446/469, 446/470, 446/471
• US Class Current: 446/456
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 17/262 Chassis; Wheel mountings; Wheels; Axles; Suspensions; Fitting body portions to chassis
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 30/04 using wireless transmission

Abstract

A radio-controlled car convertible from a two-wheel drive configuration to a four-wheel drive configuration is described. The radio-controlled car includes a chassis, a first drive assembly positioned in a first portion of the chassis, and a modular second drive assembly adapted to be inserted into a second portion of the chassis to modify the radio-controlled car to a four-wheel drive configuration.

Claims

1. A radio-controlled car convertible from a two-wheel drive configuration to a four-wheel drive configuration, comprising a chassis, a first drive assembly positioned in a first portion of the chassis, and a modular second drive assembly adapted to be inserted into a second portion of the chassis to modify the radio-controlled car to a four-wheel drive configuration.

2. The radio-controlled car of claim 1 wherein the first drive assembly is a rear wheel drive assembly and the first portion of the chassis is a rear portion of the chassis.

3. The radio-controlled car of claim 2 wherein the second drive assembly is a front-wheel drive assembly and the second portion of the chassis is a front portion of the chassis.

4. The radio-controlled car of claim 3 further comprising a drive shaft extending from the rear portion of the chassis to the front portion of the chassis, the drive shaft being operatively connected to the rear wheel drive assembly and the front-wheel drive assembly.

5. The radio-controlled car of claim 4 further comprising a motor having a rotatable shaft, the motor being adapted to impart motion to the rear wheel drive assembly.

6. The radio-controlled car of claim 5 wherein the motor is operatively connected to the rear wheel drive assembly via the motor shaft and a gear assembly, the gear assembly comprising a pinion gear, a bevel gear, and an axle gear.

7. The radio-controlled car of claim 6 wherein the pinion gear is formed of brass.

8. The radio-controlled car of claim 4 wherein the motor is adapted to impart rotational motion to the drive shaft.

9. The radio-controlled car of claim 4 wherein the drive shaft is operatively connected to the front-wheel drive assembly via a modular drive shaft gear.

10. The radio-controlled car of claim 3 wherein the front-wheel drive assembly comprises a front gear, a pair of universal joint members coupled to the front gear, a pair of linkage members coupled to the universal joint members, and a pair of knuckle arm assemblies positioned on the linkage members.

11. The radio-controlled car of claim 10 wherein the front-wheel drive assembly further comprises at least one housing member positioned on at least one of the universal joint members.

12. The radio-controlled car of claim 5 further comprising at least one battery for supplying power to the motor.

13. The radio-controlled car of claim 12 wherein the radio-controlled car comprises first and second battery trays, the first battery tray being disposed on a first side of the chassis and the second battery tray being disposed on a second side of the chassis opposing the first side of the chassis.

14. The radio-controlled car of claim 13 wherein the first and second battery trays are longitudinally adjustable along the chassis to adjust the center of gravity of the radio-controlled car.

15. The radio-controlled car of claim 14 wherein the first and second battery trays each comprise a laterally-extending flange, the flange having at least two bores formed therethrough.

16. The radio-controlled car of claim 15 wherein the chassis comprises first and second bosses extending from the chassis, the first boss being located adjacent to the first battery tray and the second boss being located adjacent to the second battery tray.

17. The radio-controlled car of claim 16 wherein the flange bores of the first battery tray are adapted to align with the first boss by longitudinally adjusting the first battery tray relative to the chassis.

18. The radio-controlled car of claim 17 further comprising a screw for securing the first battery tray to the first boss.

19. The radio-controlled car of claim 16 wherein the flange bores of the second battery tray are adapted to align with the second boss by longitudinally adjusting the second battery tray relative to the chassis.

20. The radio-controlled car of claim 19 further comprising a screw for securing the second battery tray to the second boss.

21. A radio-controlled car, comprising means for providing the car with a two-wheel drive configuration, means for converting the car from the two-wheel drive configuration to a four-wheel drive configuration, and means for adjusting the center of gravity of the radio-controlled car to correspond to the two-wheel drive configuration and the four-wheel drive configuration.

22. A radio-controlled car, comprising:

a chassis having a front portion, a middle portion and a rear portion;

a rear wheel drive assembly housed in the rear portion of the chassis;

a motor housed in the middle portion of the chassis, the motor being adapted to impart motion to the rear wheel drive assembly;

a drive shaft operatively connected to the motor, the drive shaft extending from the rear portion of the chassis to the front portion of the chassis;

a modular front-wheel drive assembly adapted to be inserted into the front portion of the chassis, whereby insertion of the modular front-wheel drive assembly operatively engages the front-wheel drive assembly with the drive shaft to convert the radio-controlled car from a two-wheel drive configuration to a four-wheel drive configuration.

23. The radio-controlled car of claim 22 further comprising at least one battery tray slidably engaged with the chassis to adjust the center of gravity of the radio-controlled car.

24. The radio-controlled car of claim 22 further comprising a drive shaft gear for coupling the front-wheel drive assembly to the drive shaft.

25. The radio-controlled car of claim 22 wherein the front-wheel drive assembly comprises a front gear, a pair of universal joint members coupled to the front gear, a pair of linkage members coupled to the universal joint members, and a pair of knuckle arm assemblies positioned on the linkage members.

26. The radio-controlled car of claim 22 wherein the knuckle arm assemblies each comprise a boss extending therefrom, each boss being adapted to be inserted through a corresponding bore defined through the chassis.

27. The radio-controlled car of claim 26 wherein each boss is further adapted to receive a screw upon insertion through the chassis, thereby securing the front-wheel drive assembly to the chassis.

28. A modular front-wheel drive assembly for insertion into a chassis of a radio-controlled car, comprising:

a rotatable element for operatively engaging a drive shaft of the radio-controlled car;

first and second rod members coupled to and laterally extending from the rotatable element; and

a first knuckle arm assembly fixedly disposed about the first rod member and a second knuckle arm assembly fixedly disposed about the second rod member,

wherein the knuckle arm assemblies are adapted to engage the chassis upon insertion of the front-wheel drive assembly therein.

29. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 28 wherein the rotatable element is a gear.

30. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 28 wherein the first rod member comprises a first universal joint member and a first linkage member coupled to the first universal joint member.

31. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 28 wherein the second rod member comprises a second universal joint member and a second linkage member coupled to the second universal joint member.

32. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 30 wherein the first knuckle arm assembly is fixedly disposed about a substantially distal end of the first linkage member via a bearing.

33. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 31 wherein the second knuckle arm assembly is fixedly disposed about a substantially distal end of the second linkage member via a bearing.

34. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 32 wherein the first knuckle arm assembly comprises a boss extending therefrom for aligning the front-wheel drive assembly for insertion into the chassis.

35. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 33 wherein the second knuckle arm assembly comprises a boss extending therefrom for aligning the front-wheel drive assembly for insertion into the chassis.

36. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 34 wherein the first knuckle arm assembly is secured to the chassis via a screw inserted into the boss.

37. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 35 wherein the second knuckle arm assembly is secured to the chassis via a screw inserted into the boss.

38. The modular front-wheel drive assembly of claim 28 further comprising at least one housing member fixedly disposed about at least one of the rod members, the housing member comprising a threaded receptacle for receiving a screw to aid in securing the front-wheel drive assembly to the chassis.

39. An adjustable battery tray for use with a radio-controlled car, comprising a housing for receiving at least one battery, a flange extending from the housing, the flange having at least two bores defined therethrough, and a connector member adapted to be inserted through one of the at least two bores to secure the battery tray to a chassis of the radio-controlled car, wherein the battery tray is slidable relative to the chassis to adjust the center of gravity of the radio-controlled car.

40. The battery tray of claim 39 further comprising a channel defined longitudinally along the battery tray to slidably engage a lip extending longitudinally along the chassis.

41. A four-wheel drive assembly kit for a radio-controlled toy for reconfiguring the radio-controlled toy for four-wheel drive use, comprising a modular front-wheel drive assembly adapted to be inserted into a chassis of a radio-controlled car and a drive shaft gear adapted to be inserted onto a drive shaft of the radio-controlled car to couple the front-wheel drive assembly to the drive shaft.

42. A motor kit providing a plurality of motors that are adapted for insertion into a radio-controlled toy and are interchangeable by a user, comprising a first motor having a first gear ratio, the first motor being capable of achieving a first RPM, and a second motor having a second gear ratio, the second gear ratio being less than the first gear ratio, and wherein the second motor is capable of achieving the first RPM.

43. The motor kit of claim 42 further comprising an additional motor having a third gear ratio, the third gear ratio being less than the second gear ratio.

44. The motor kit of claim 42 wherein the first and second motors are provided with brass pinion gears.

45. The motor kit of claim 42 further comprising a legend providing specifications that indicate a relationship between each motor and its associated gear ratio and power/speed ratio, wherein the power/speed ratio is depicted as a graphic to indicate the relative amount of power and speed provided by each motor.

46. A method for converting a radio-controlled car from a rear two-wheel drive configuration to a front two-wheel drive configuration, comprising providing a chassis, positioning a first drive assembly in a first portion of the chassis, the first drive assembly comprising a removable rear axle gear, inserting a modular second drive assembly into a second portion of the chassis, and removing the rear axle gear from the first drive assembly.

47. A method for adjusting a drive configuration of a radio-controlled car, comprising:

providing a chassis having a first drive assembly housed within a first portion of the chassis and a drive shaft operatively connected to the first drive assembly, the drive shaft extending from the first portion of the chassis into a second portion of the chassis;

providing a modular second drive assembly;

inserting the second drive assembly into the second portion of the chassis; and

operatively connecting the second drive assembly to the drive shaft.

48. The method of claim 47 further comprising providing a drive shaft gear for attaching to the drive shaft, the drive shaft gear being adapted to engage the second drive assembly to impart rotational movement of the drive shaft to the second drive assembly.

49. The method of claim 47 further comprising providing a pair of adjustable battery trays positioned on each side of the chassis, whereby longitudinal adjustment of the battery trays adjusts the center of gravity of the radio-controlled car to correspond to the four-wheel drive configuration.

50. The method of claim 47 further comprising inserting an alternative motor into the chassis, the alternative motor corresponding to four-wheel drive use.

51. The method of claim 47 further comprising modifying the first drive assembly to remove a rear axle gear associated with the first drive assembly, whereby removal of the rear axle gear adjusts the radio-controlled car to a front-wheel drive configuration.