GB2045625A - Stepping device - Google Patents

Abstract

A stepping device, such as a doll includes a link 22, rotatable about a central horizontal axis 25. A pair of legs 21R and 21L spaced apart in the direction of the axis 25 are pivotally secured to the link at points 23R and 23L for rotation relative to the link in planes perpendicular to the axis 25. A mass constituted by the doll's arms 40 and handbag 43 is mounted for pivotal movement about the axis 25. A motor 45 rotates the mass relative to the link 22, thus causing the link to rotate relative to the leg on which the doll is standing and thus the doll to step forward. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Stepping device The present invention relates to stepping devices and in particular to stepping toys, such as dolls.

Stepping toys presently on the market usually employ a set of small wheels sliding along the floor, or forward and rear vibration of a leg of the doll involving small horizontal displacements only. In some toys and legs lift to walk, but a fork-like side support must be fitted to the sides of the shoes to prevent the doll falling over and the foot steps are so limited that the toy cannot step up and down staircases.

According to the present invention a stepping device includes a link rotatable about a central horizontal axis, a pair of legs spaced apart in the direction of the axis and pivotally mounted on the link for rotation relative to it about axes spaced from and parallel to the central axis, a mass mounted for pivotal movement about the central axis and means for rotating the mass with respect to the link to cause the legs to move sequentially in a stepping motion. Preferably each leg has a foot which extends through the plane which passes through the centre of gravity of the device and is perpendicular to the central axis.

In a preferred embodiment the link includes an externally toothed gear wheel and the means for rotating the mass includes a pinion wheel coupled to the mass and driven by a drive means. The drive means may comprise a clockwork motor but preferably comprises an electric motor driven by one or more batteries carried by the device.

Preferably the device includes means for positively retaining the legs in a parallel relationship. Thus in one embodiment each leg is mounted to pivot about the central axis by a crank and is mounted to pivot about a further axis by a second crank so that each leg is secured to the device by a parallelogram linkage. Preferably this embodiment also includes a toothed gear wheel mounted to rotate with each crank, the two gear wheels associated with each leg being constrained to rotate in synchronism by a third gear wheel meshing with both of them.

The invention may be applied to a variety of stepping figures, such as dolls and to other devices. When the device steps, the legs are picked up a considerable distance from the ground by virtue of the rotation of the link, and the device is therefore capable of stepping up or down a flight of stairs.

If the device is standing on two legs and the motor is switched on the pivotal mass or pendulum will be moved forward and the centre of gravity of the device will gradually move forward until it is beneath the point at which the forward leg is secured to the link, at which time there will be no weight on the rear leg. Continued moving of the mass would tend to move the centre of gravity forward of the pivot point of the front leg and this produces a turning moment about the pivot point so the link pivots about this point carrying the rear leg with it. The rear leg is carried upwards and forwards by virtue of the rotation of the link about the pivot point, and then down again until it contacts the ground. The process is then repeated. Thus when the device is standing on one leg the centre of gravity is always directly below the point at which that leg is secured to the link.

Further features and details of the invention will be apparent from the following description of certain specific embodiments which is given by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a somewhat schematic view of a device in accordance with the present invention in three positions on some steps, Fig. 1A being a side view of the device when supported on the leading or forward leg with the tailing leg lifted up from the lower step, Fig.

1 B being a similar, but advanced, side view of the device with the trailing leg of Fig. 1A lifted over the supporting leg of Fig. 1A, to thereby become the leading leg, Fig. 1 C being an underneath view of the shoe or base of each leg in Fig. 1 B, Fig. 1 D being another side view with the device advanced with respect to Fig. 1 B and balanced on the trailing leg whilst the leading leg is about to come to rest on a lower step, and Fig. 1 E being an underneath view of the base of each leg in Fig. 1 D; Figure 2 is a side view of a human figure or doll in accordance with the invention; Figure 3 is a front view of the doll of Fig. 2; Figure 4 is a schematic side view of the doll of Fig. 2 balanced on the trailing leg with the pendulum or swinging mass swung or rotated rearwardly and includes a further schematic view in which the pendulum takes the form of an axe carried by the doll;; Figure 5 is a front view of a portion of a figure showing the pendulum disposed in the lower skirt of the figure; Figure 6 is a side view of an embodiment of the invention in which a human figure is supported by its arms and the head of the figure serves as the pendulum; Figure 7 is a rear view of the figure of Fig.

6; Figure 8 is a perspective view of an other embodiment of the present invention in which the pendulum is located within the torso of the figure; Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of the figure of Fig. 8, with the pendulum omitted; Figure 10 is an exploded perspective view of the pendulum of Fig. 8; and Figure 11 is a schematic side view of the figure of Fig. 8 with the figure supported on the leading leg with the pendulum swung or rotated forwardly.

The basic structure and operation of the device is shown in Fig. 1 in which the device 10 has right and left legs 1 1 R and 1 1 L pivotally connected to a toothed circular gear wheel or link 1 3 at pivot points 1 2R and 1 2L respectively, and maintained in a parallel relationship by gravity. If it is desired to ensure that they remain truly parallel, two auxiliary gears, above or below the main circular gear 1 3 may be used as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 6 to 8. A swinging lever or pendulum 14 is suspended at a pivot point 1 5 on the main gear 1 3 carrying a heavy mass 1 6 at its lower tip so that its centre of gravity is near its lower end.The lever carries a battery 1 7 which powers a motor 1 8 for rotating a small pinion wheel 19, which engages the teeth on the gear 13, in the direction shown by the arrow A to cause the pendulum 1 4 to rotate or pivot with respect to the gear 1 3. With reference to Fig. 1A, when the pendulum 14 has sufficiently pivoted about point 15, the circular gear 1 3 is caused to pivot clockwise in the direction of arrow, B, about point 1 2L to bring the rear or trailing leg 11 R upwardly and forwardly, thereby maintaining the centre of gravity of the device above the area of the base or shoe 20L of the left hand leg and vertically below the pivot point 1 2L.

Fig. 1 B shows how the trailing leg 1 R of Fig. 1A is brought upwardly and forwardly.

The pinion gear 1 9 continues to rotate and thus causes the circular gear 1 3 to continue to pivot clockwise about point 1 2L to maintain the centre of gravity of the device above the base 20L of the leg 11 L acting through the pivot point 1 2L. Fig. 1 C is a view of the shoes 20L and 20R of the supporting legs 11 L and 11 R, respectively, and shows the lateral overlapping by about 1/3 of the combined show width so that the resultant centre of gravity of the device always acts within the area of the supporting shoe or base to ensure lateral stability. Fig. 1 D shows the stepping device in a more advanced position with its centre of gravity still directly below the hinge point 1 2L. In Fig. 1 D, the leg 11 R is about to come to rest, resulting in the device being supported on both legs 11 R and 11 L.With both legs supporting the device, continued driving of pinion 1 9 causes the pendulum 14 to swing (with no pivoting of link 13) until it reaches its extreme forward position as shown in Fig. 1A, which causes the stepping motion to repeat. Between these two steps the centre of gravity of the device moves from a position below the pivot point 1 2L to a point below pivot point 1 2R. Fig. 1 E is a view of the base or shoes 20L and 20R separated by about 1/8 of the combined base or shoe length, to enable the device to step up a height of about 50% of the shoe length.

This stepping device therefore provides a mechanism for supporting on only two legs, or other support members, human-like stepping bodies and other devices, wherein one leg can be lifted as high as the length of its shoe or base, while the other leg supports the device without falling. The device is capable of stepping up and down steps or staircases of a uniform step height of about half the length of the shoe or base. As the device moves or steps, its centre of gravity is controlled to prevent falling by means of an automatic counterbalancing mass or pendulum. When the pendulum is swung behind the rear leg, the device is supported by the rear or trailing leg, maintaining the centre of gravity directly above the supporting shoe area or base. When the pendulum is swung forward of the front leg the device is supported by the front or leading leg.

The stepping device shown in Fig. 1 may be used in association with a toy figure as shown in Figs. 2 to 11. In the construction shown in Figs. 2 to 4, the device 10 is mounted in a doll 20. The stepping device 10 includes two legs 21 R and 21 L which are rotatably mounted to a link assembly 22 at pivot points 23R and 23L, respectively. The link assembly 22 comprises two arms 24 which are fixed in diametrical opposition to a central axis or pin 25, which is rotatably mounted in a frame 26. A gear wheel 27 is fixed to the pin 25.

Means for positively maintaining the legs 21 R and 21 L in parallel relationship is provided in the form of an auxiliary link assembly 30, which includes two diametrically opposed arms 31 fixed to a pin 32. A gear wheel 33 is fixed to the pin 32 and the entire link assembly 30 is rotatably mounted on the frame 26.

The legs 21 R and 21 L are pivotally secured to the auxiliary link assembly 30 at points 34R and 34L, respectively. An intermediate gear wheel 35 is pivotally secured to the frame 26 and meshes with the gears 27 and 33 to maintain the latter in synchronous relationship with the legs 21 R and 21 L.

In the embodiment of Figs. 2 to 4, the pendulum, which is equivalent to the arm 14 and mass 16 in Fig. 1, is constituted by the doll's arms 40 which are mounted to a bracket 41, which is pivotally secured to the frame 26 by the central pin 25. A weight in the form of batteries 42 in a handbag 43 is provided in the hand of the right arm 40.

Means for rotating the pendulum constituted by the arms 40, with respect to link assembly 22 to thereby cause stepping motion, is provided in the form of a motor 45 mounted on the bracket 41, which drives a pinion gear 46 through a drive gear 47 and reducing gears 48, 49 and 50 in a traditional manner. The pinion 46 drives the gear 27 causing the link assembly 22 to rotate about the pin 25 and causing the legs 21R and 21L to step sequentially as they rotate with respect to the link assembly 22 at points 23R and 23L, respectively. Legs 21 R and 21 L are held in a parallel relationship throughout the stepping motion by the intermediate gear 35 which meshes with both the gear 27 and the gear 33.

Another embodiment of the invention is shown partially in Fig. 5 in which an auxiliary crank shaft or link in the form of a wire 52, which is rotatably secured to the body 53 of the figure and fixed to a gear 54. Legs 55R and 55L are rotatably secured to the wire 52.

This arrangement saves space between the two legs so they can be more closely spaced to provide for lateral overlapping of the shoes 56R and 56L without it being necessary to bend the legs inwards as shown in Fig. 3.

Furthermore, the swinging mass or pendulum 57 is located in the body 53 of the figure so that the arms are free to move as desired for more natural movement.

Another embodiment of the invention is shown in Figs. 6 and 7 in which the toy figure 60 walks on its hands. The arms 61 R and 61 L of the figure serve to support it and the head serves as the pendulum. The arms 61 R and 61 L are rotatably mounted at pivot points 62R and 62L, respectively, to a link assembly 63, which comprises two link arms 64 which are diametrically opposed and fixed to a central axis or pin 65, which is rotatably mounted in a frame 66. A main circular gear 67 is fixed with respect of the axis 65 and the link arms 64.

Means to maintain the arms 61 R and 61 L in a parallel relationship is provided in the form of an auxiliary link assembly 68, which includes two diametrically opposed link arms 69 fixed to the shaft 70 which is rotatably mounted in the frame 66. The arms 61L and 61 R are rotatably mounted to the link arms 69 at points 71 L and 71 R, respectively. An intermediate gear 72 is rotatably secured to the frame 66 and meshes with the circular main gear 67 and an auxiliary gear 73, which is fixed to the shaft 70, to maintain the arms 61R and 61L parallel.

The head 75 of the figure serves as the pendulum of the stepping device, equivalent to the arm 14 and weight 1 6 of Fig. 1. The head 75 is mounted on a bracket 76 which is mounted for pivotal movement about the axis 65. Batteries 77 and a motor 78 are mounted on a bracket 76 to serve as a mass at the end of the pendulum constituted by the head 75.

Means comparable to that of Figs. 2 to 4 is provided for swinging the pendulum, i.e. the bracket 76 with the head 75 and batteries 77 and motor 78 connected thereto, with respect to the link assembly 63, to cause a stepping action. Thus, a motor 78 drives a gear 79, which drives reducing gears 80 and 81 and a pinion 82, which meshes with the main circular gear 67. The bracket 76 is thereby caused to rotate with respect to the circular main gear 67, thus causing the head to swing and the arms to step in a manner similar to that previously explained in connection with Fig.

1.

It should be noted that the legs 83 are pivotally mounted on a pin 70 to swing freely as shown in chain-dotted lines to add further interest to the toy figure.

A final embodiment of the invention is shown in Figs. 8 and 11, in which a doll has a swinging balancing mass or pendulum 90 disposed between its two legs 91 R and 91 L within a frame 92 suspended from the main circular plane gear 93 by a pin 94 which passes through the rectangular frame 92. Two batteries 95 and a motor 96 are mounted on the swinging balancing mass 90. The motor 96 acts through reducing gears 97, 98 and 99 to drive a pinion gear 100, which drives the main circular gear 93, which in turn drives legs 91 R and 91 L through a link assembly 101, in the manner previously described. The legs 91R and 91L are supported on shoes 102R and 102L, and the resultant centre of gravity of the doll passes through the shoe, thereby preventing the doll falling over forwards and backwards as well as sideways.A pair of swinging arms is hinged at the shoulder. Wire connectors (not shown) connect the legs with the arms so that when the right leg 91 R moves rearwardly the left arm moves forwardly and, similarly, when the left legs 91 L moves rearwardly, the right arm moves forwardly in a natural way corresponding to actual human walking movement. The swinging mass or pendulum has a cavity or indentation 103 to accommodate a shaft 104 when the mass swings forwardly. A switch 105 is mounted on the back cover 106 which can be opened to replace the batteries. An additional weight 107 is provided to add weight to the pendulum 90 and lower its centre of gravity.

The operation of this embodiment is shown in Fig. 11, which shows the swinging movement of pendulum 90 and how it counterbalances the rear leg 91 L when the other leg 91 R moves forwardly to become the supporting leg. For replacing the battery, the swinging mass 90 can be moved into the position shown in dotted lines.

While the foregoing description is primarily with reference to use of the stepping device in accordance with the invention incorporated in a doll or toy human figure, the device can be used in other applications in which a selfsupporting, stepping mechanism is desired.

Such applications may include a remote controlled robot device for use in contaminated (such as radioactive) environments, automatically stepping and advancing welding machines and other applications that require a self-supporting, stepping capability.

Claims (11)

1. A stepping device including a link rotatable about a central horizontal axis, a pair of legs spaced apart in the direction of the axis and pivotally mounted on the link for rotation relative to it about axes spaced from and parallel to the central axis, a mass mounted for pivotal movement about the central axis and means for rotating the mass with respect to the link to cause the legs to move sequentially in a stepping motion.

2. A device as claimed in Claim 1 in which each leg has a foot which extends through the plane which passes through the centre of gravity of the device and is perpendicular to the central axis.

3. A device as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 in which the link includes an externally toothed gear wheel and the means for rotating the mass includes a pinion wheel coupled to the mass and driven by a drive means.

4. A device as claimed in Claim 3 in which the drive means comprises an electric motor driven by one or more batteries carried by the device.

5. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims including means for positively retaining the legs in a parallel relationship.

6. A device as claimed in Claim 5 in which each leg is mounted to pivot about the central axis by a crank and is mounted to pivot about a further axis by a second crank so that each leg is secured to the device by a parallelogram linkage.

7. A device as claimed in Claim 6 including a toothed gear wheel mounted to rotate with each crank, the two gear wheels associated with each leg being constrained to rotate in synchronism by a third gear wheel meshing with both of them.

8. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims which comprises a stepping figure, such as a doll.

9. A device as claimed in Claim 8 in which the rotatable mass comprises one or both arms of the figure.

1 0. A device as claimed in Claim 8 in which the rotatable mass is situated within the body of the figure.

11. A device as claimed in Claim 8 in which the figure steps on its hands and the rotatable mass comprises the head of the figure.

1 2. A device as claimed in any one of Claims 8 to 11 and Claim 4 in which the batteries are carried by the rotatable mass and rotate with it.

1 3. A stepping device substantially as specifically herein described with reference to Fig. 1, Figs. 2 to 4, Fig. 5, Figs. 6 and 7 or Figs. 8 to 11 of the accompanying drawings.