GB2055594A - Toy wheeled vehicle and signal sound generator - Google Patents

Abstract

A toy vehicle has a caster wheel arrangement at one end and a driven axle with a pair of wheels at the other end, and means for declutching one wheel of said pair from the axle and braking that wheel to cause a change in the running direction of the vehicle in response to a wire-less control signal received by receiving means. The receiving means may comprise a microphone, or may be light-sensitive. A signal sound generator, comprises a vibrating or click disc mounted in the throat of a trumpet or horn, a lever for causing flexure of said disc from a rest position to which it returns when the lever is released, to produce a burst of sound during such flexure and during such return, and a push button which protrudes from a holder portion of said generator, and which contacts the lever within the holder. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Toy wheeled vehicle and signal sound generator The present invention relates to a toy wheeled vehicle which is controllable buy a wire-less signal (for example a sound signal) in such manner that the vehicle can be made to change its running direction while running, by wire-less operation of a signal emitted from a signal generator separate from the vehicle, and to a signal sound generator for controlling such a vehicle controllable by a sound signal.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a toy, comprising a car or other wheeled vehicle and a signal sound generator, which is amusing and attractive for children to play with.

There are many car toys which can have their running direction changed while running, but there is none like the toy car hereinafter described which can be made to change its running direction at will by wire-less operation of a signal sound.

According to an embodiment of the present invention hereinafter described, two different toys, namely a car and a signal sound generator, constitute one new toy. The car is constructed with a chassis and a body shell, and is provided with two pairs of wheels (front and rear) and a microphone. The signal sound generator is trumpet-shaped. The chassis has a caster-type pedestal mounted on the front portion, a cell box mounted on the middle portion and a mechanism frame mounted on the rear portion.Said pedestal is constructed in ractangular form such that a base block and connecting beam are substantially equal in length and are located at the opposite sides by planting a pair of headed pivotal posts at respective ends of the base block, by pivoting respectively a pair of supporting arms at said posts by ends of said arms, by planting respectively a pair of axial pins at the other ends of said arms and by bridging said connecting beam between said arms with insertion of said pins in two end holes of said beam, and the base block is fastened to the chassis. The arrangement is such that the supporting arms are adapted to swivel laterally to the same extent about the respective posts. Each said supporting arm has a side hole in the middle portion of it and has the corresponding front wheel fixed to it by insertion of an axle ofthe front wheel in said side hole.Therefore, the front wheels will turn in the same direction as the eupporting arms. The mechanism frame has a motor, a transmission gearing and a axle ofthe rear wheels installed in it. One ofthe rear wheels is fixed to the axle and the other of the rear wheel is idly mounted on said axle. The idle rear wheel has a brake disc fixed to the inside face of it and is constantly pushed towards one end ofthe rear axle by a coiled spring wound around said axle which has a washer.

Both the rear wheels may rotate together by rotation ofthe rear axle in a normal condition so as to cause the toy car to run straight. An electromagnet is mounted on the chassis and confronts the brake disc with magnet poles. The microphone is mounted in the ceiling of the body shell fixed to the chassis and is connected electrically to a signal amplifying means fixed to the cell box. The signal sound generator is constituted with a trumpet, a holder, a vibrating plate, a lever plate and a push button. The vibrating plate is fixed to the upper portion in the recess of the trumpet by one end of the said plate with one end of the lever plate, and the other end of the vibrating plate is received loosely in the lower portion in the recess of the trumpet. The lever plate is located at the rear of the vibrating plate and has a free end portion which contacts the push button.The push button is inserted in an aperture at the rear side of the holder and may be pushed by hand while the sound generator is held by said holder.

The construction and arrangement of the parts of the signal sound generator are such that, when the push button is pushed in, the end portion of the lever plate is pushed forward by said button and instantaneously the middle portion of the vibrating plate is made to curve forwards from the back so that said vibrating plate emits a burst of sound with a click.

When the button is released, the vibrating plate returns to the first condition so as to curve backwards by its spring action and emits a similar burst of sound.

Therefore, one operation of the button causes emission of signal sound twice. If the button is repeatedly pushed, signal sound may be successively transmitted to the microphone. When the microphone receives the signal sound, it changes said signal sound into electric current which is amplified and flows through a switching circuit with one shot to the electromagnet. Said magnet acts for a definite time to attract the brake disc by the magnet poles.

The rear wheel having the brake disc is thereby withdrawn from the adjacent extremity of the rear axle and is freed from the rear axle to stop its rotation and only the rear wheel fixed to the rear axle may rotate while turning about the centre ofthe rear wheel idle to the rear axle. Since the front wheels are mounted on the caster-type pedestal, the car is made to turn towards the side of the idle rear wheel. The running direction of the car may be changed at will by repeatedly pushing the button.

The principle ofthe present invention may be applied to the control of such toy vehicles by other forms of wire-less signal, for example a ray of light, instead of the signal sound. If a photocell is substituted for the microphone and a ray transmitter is substituted for the signal sound generator, the toy car may be made to change its running direction while running, by means of the ray transmitter.

Thus, while claim 1 of the appended claims defines the combination of features possessed by said embodiment, the present invention may be regarded as providing a toy vehicle as defined in claim 2 and also a signal sound generator as defined in claim 5.

An embodiment of the invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure lisa side view of a toy car in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of the car having a body shell thereof removed; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a partially cut away pedestal and a pair of front wheels, one wheel being shown removed from the pedestal.

Figure 4 is a plan view of a pair of rear wheels fixed to an axle (one wheel being shown in cross-section), and electric motor and an electromagnet exemplify ing drive and brake mechanisms thereof; Figure 5 is a circuit diagram illustrating an electric circuit of a signal amplifying means ofthe toy car; and Figure 6 is a side view, partly in cross-section, of a signal sound generator in accordance with the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the car illustrated comprises a chassis 1, a body shell 19, a pair of front wheels 3 and a pair of rear wheels 11 and 12, and is provided with a microphone 18 in the top of said body shell 19.

The body shell 19 has a caster-type pedestal 2 mounted on the front portion, a cell box 20 for electric cells or batteries mounted on the middle portion and a mechanism frame 7 mounted on the rear portion. The pedestal 2 is constructed in a rectangular form with a base block 29, a pair of supporting arms 4 and a connecting beam 6 and these members are rotarily connected by a pair of pivotal posts 5 and a pair of axial pins 30. The pivotal posts 5 are planted on respective ends of the base block 29 and allow the supporting arms 4 to pivot. The axial pins 30 are planted respectively on one end of each of the supporting arms 4. Those ends of the supporting arms 4 are respectively connected with the ends of the con necting beam 6 by insertion of the axial pins 30 in end holes ofthe connecting beam 6.Accordingly, both the supporting arms 4 will swivel laterally to the same extent about the respective pivotal posts 5.

Each of the supporting arms 4 has a hole 31 at the side of the middle portion of it and has a respective one ofthe front wheels 3 fixed to it by inserting an axle of the front wheels 3 in the hole 31. Therefore, the front wheels 3 will turn in the same direction as the supporting arms 4.

The mechanism frame 7 has an electric motor 8, a transmission gearing 9 and a rear axle 10 installed in it. The rear axle 10 is rotated by the motor 8 through the transmission gearing 9. The rear wheel 11 is fixed to the rear axle 10 and the other wheel 12 is idly mounted on the axle 10. The idle rear wheel 12 has a brake disc 15 fixed to its inside face and is constantly pushed towards one end ofthe rear axle 10 by a coiled spring 13 wound around the axle 10 which has a washer 14. Both the rear wheels 11 and 12 rotate together with rotation ofthe rear axle 10 in a normal condition so as to move the toy car straight ahead.

The electromagnet 16 is fixed onto the chassis 1 and confronts the brake disc 15 with magnet poles 17.

The cell box 20 houses dry cells (not shown) and a signal amplifying means 21 is fixed onto the cell box 20. The microphone 18 is mounted in the ceiling of the body shell 19 and connects electrically with the signal amplifying means 21. This signal amplifying means 21 comprises four transistors, six capacitors and seven resistors and connects with the mic rophone 18 and the electromagnet 16 as shown in the circuit diagram of Figure 5.

A signal sound generator 22 is constructed with a trumpet 24 and a holder 32. It houses a vibrating plate 23 and a lever plate 26 and has a push button 27 inserted in an aperture 28 at the rear of the holder 32. The vibrating plate 23 is fixed with its upper end in the upper one of two grooves 25 in the recess of the trumpet 24, with the lever plate 26, and is received loosely in the lower groove 25 in the recess of the trumpet 24. The lever plate 26, which is bent double at one end, grips the upper end of the vibrating plate 23 in the bent portion and has a free end portion which contacts the push button 27. The push button 27 may be pushed by hand while holding the signal sound generator 22.

When the button 27 is pushed, the vibrating plate 23 is instantaneously made to curve forwards from the back in its middle portion and emits a burst of sound with a click. When the button 27 is released, the vibrating plate 23 returns to the first condition so as to curve backwards by its spring action and emits a similar burst of sound. Therefore, one operation of the button 27 causes emission of a sound wave twice. If the button is repeatedly pushed, signal sound may be successively transmitted to the microphone 18.

When the microphone 18 receives the signal sound, it changes it to an electric current which is amplified by the signal amplifying means 21 and flows through a switching circuit with one shot to the electromagnet 16. The magnet 16 acts for a definite shorttime (for example, half a second) to attract the brake disc 15 by the magnet pole 17. The rear wheel 12 is thereby withdrawn from the adjacent extremity ofthe rear axle 10 and is freed from the rear axle 10; thus it stops rotating and only the rearwheel 11 may continue to rotate while turning about the centre of the rear wheel 12. Since the front wheels 3 are mounted on the caster-type pedestal 2, the toy car is made to turn towards the side having the braked rear wheel 12.The running direction of the toy car may be changed towards the side having that rear wheel 12 at will by repeatedly pushing the button 27 of the signal sound generator 22. The turning angle may be about 15"to 30 for one shot of signal sound.

As described above, the present invention is capable of providing a new and amusing toy which may attract children's interest.

While particular embodiments of the present toy car and signal sound generator have been illustrated and described, it is abvious that many modifications and variations ofthe present toy car and signal sound generator are possible in the light of the above teachings. Also, as previously mentioned, the toy car or other wheeled vehicle may be made controllable by other forms of wire-less signal, for example a ray of light, instead of sound signals.

Moreover, the caster wheel arrangement could be at the rear end ofthe vehicle and the driven axle wheel arrangement at the front; and the vehicle could be a three-wheelerwith the caster wheel arrangement comprising a single caster-mounted wheel. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

Claims (7)

1. A toy comprising a car and a signal sound generator separate from the car, characterised in that the car is capable of having its running direction changed while running, by signal sound emitted from the sound generator, wherein said car is constructed with a chassis and a body shell and is provided with two pairs of wheels (front and rear) and a microphone and said signal sound generator is trumpet-shaped, said chassis having a caster-type pedestal mounted on the front portion, a cell box and a signal amplifying means mounted on the middle portion and a mechanism frame and an electromagnet mounted on the rear portion, said castertype pedestal being constructed in rectangular form, with one pair of opposite. sides respectively comprising a base block and a connecting beam and the other pair of opposite sides comprising a pair of supporting arms, and having a pair of pivotal posts and a pair of axial pins at four corners ofthe rectangle, said base block being fastened by a screw to the chassis and having a pair of said pivotal posts planted at respective ends of said block, said supporting arms being adapted to swivel lateraliy in the same direction about the centre of the respective pivotal post, having each axle of the front wheels inserted fixedly in a hole at the side of the middle portion of the arm and each having a respective one of said axial pins planted at the other end, said connecting beam being bridged between the axial pins, which are inserted in respective holes at the ends of the beam said mechanism frame having an electric motor, a transmission gearing and a rear axle installed in it, said motor being adapted to drive the rear axle through the transmission gearing, said rear axle being provided with a pair of rear wheels and having one of two rear wheels fixed to its one end and the other of said rearwheels mounted idly on its other end, said idle rear wheel having a brake disc fixed coaxiallyto its inside face and a coiled spring wound around said axle, which has a washer, so as to push constantly said idle rear wheel towards said other end so that both the rear wheels will be rotated at the same speed in a normal condition, said electromagnet confronting the brake disc with magnet poles so as to attract and brake the idle rearwheel when electric current flows in it, said microphone being mounted in the ceiling of the body shell and connected electrically to a signal amplifying means fixed onto the cell box so as to change a received signal sound into an electric current, said signal sound generator comprising a trumpet and a holder in appearance, said trumpet housing a vibrating plate and a lever plate and said holder being provided with a push button, said vibrating plate being fixed into an upper groove in the recess of the trumpet with the lever plate and being received looseiy into a lower groove in the recess of the trumpet, said lever plate being fixed to the upper groove at the back of the vibrating plate and having a free end portion which contacts the push button so as to push the centre of the vibrating plate from the back and cause itto emit a signal sound, said push button protruding from the rear side of the holder so as to enable the button to be pushed by hand and instantane ouslyto push the free end ofthe lever plate.

2. Atoyvehicle having a caster wheel arrangement at one end and a driven axle with a pair of wheels at the other end, and means for declutching one wheel of said pair from the axle and braking that wheel to cause a change in the running direction of the vehicle in response to a wire-less control signal received by receiving means provided in or on said vehicle and associated with means for causing energisation of the declutching and braking means.

3. A toy vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the receiving means comprises a microphone so that the system is responsive to a sound signal as the wireless control signal.

4. A toy vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the receiving means is light-sensitive so that the system is responsive to a ray of light as the wire-less control signal.

5. A signal sound generator for use with a toy vehicle according to claim 3, said generator comprising a vibrating or click disc mounted in the throat of a trumpet or horn, a lever for causing flexure of said disc from a rest position to which it returns when the lever is released, to produce a burst of sound during such flexure and during such return, and a push button which protrudes from a holder portion of said generator, on which the trumpet or horn is mounted, and which contacts the lever within the holder so that such bursts of sound will be produced when the pushbutton is pushed in and released.

6. A toy vehicle substantially as illustrated in and herein described with reference to Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings.

7. A signal sound generator substantially as illustrated in and herein described with reference to Figure 6 of the accompanying drawings.