GB2210279A

GB2210279A - Toy vehicle

Info

Publication number: GB2210279A
Application number: GB8722989A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Arthur Wong
Original assignee: WATERTOWN ENTERPRISES Ltd
Current assignee: WATERTOWN ENTERPRISES Ltd
Priority date: 1987-09-30
Filing date: 1987-09-30
Publication date: 1989-06-07
Also published as: GB8722989D0

Abstract

Forward motion of a toy vehicle causes firing of a gun mounted on the vehicle. A cam 112 acts through a member 90 to cause spring-loaded hammer 80 to fire a gunpowder ring 36. Ring 36 and a cylinder 30 are indexed by pointed member 160, which is pivotally mounted on member 90. Reverse motion of the vehicle results in disengagement of a pawl mechanism (not shown) so that cam 112 is not driven. <IMAGE>

Description

TOY VEHICLE The present invention relates in general to a toy vehicle and in particular to a gun firing toy vehicle adapted to simulate gun firing when the vehicle is being driven in a forward direction.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a toy vehicle which is capable of simulating gun firing when driven in a forward direction.

According to the present invention, there is provided a toy vehicle comprising a frame, front and rear wheels secured to respective axles which are mounted on the frame, a drive gear train mounted on the frame for transferring rotary motion of an electric motor to the front and rear wheels, and a gun firing unit mounted on the frame and operatively coupled to the drive gear train whereby gun firing is triggered when the vehicle is being driven in a forward direction.

The drive gear train comprises a first worm gear mounted on a front axle and in engagement with a front worm, and a second worm gear mounted on a rear axle and in engagement with a rear worm. The front and rear worms are mounted respectively on the front and rear end of a drive shaft which is driven by the motor via a spur gear.

The gun firing unit comprises a cylinder rotatably and removably mounted on a cylinder guiding means, a hammer means, and means drivingly connected to said drive gear train for cocking and releasing the hammer means.

The cylinder guiding means is connected to and disposed underneath a cover means which is hingedly connected to the frame of the vehicle at one end thereof and is adapted to swing open when a retrievable pin disposed at the other end thereof is retrieved into the cylinder guiding means.

The gun firing unit further comprises a cam gear, a cam coaxially mounted to the cam gear for rotation therewith, a connecting member having a first arm portion and a second arm portion which is pivotally connected to the frame and operatively connecting the cam and the hammer means, and a spring means for biasing the connecting member in a first position, whereby when the vehicle is driven in a forward direction, the cam is adapted to rotate and urge upon the first arm portion at the free end thereof such that the hammer is cocked by means of the second arm portion of the connecting member and eventually released to effect hammering.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure la and ib are side elevations of a toy vehicle and a hand-held controller respectively in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 is a side elevation of the toy vehicle similar to that in Figure la, showing a cover being swung open, and a cylinder and a gunpowder ring in an exploded position; Figure 3a and 3b are plan views of the toy vehicle and the hand-held controller respectively as shown in Figure la and lb; Figure 4 is a cutaway view of the toy vehicle depicting a drive gear train and a gun firing unit in a first position; Figure 5 is a cutaway view similar to that in Figure 4, showing the drive gear train and the gun firing unit in a second position;; Figure 6 is an enlarged partial plan view of the drive gear train and the gun firing unit of the toy vehicle; Figure 7 is an enlarged view of a cam gear and an associating cam of the gun firing unit; Figure 8 is an enlarged view of a connecting member of the gun firing unit; Figure 9 is an enlarged view of a hammer of the gun firing unit; and Figure 10 is an enlarged view of a pushing click of the gun firing unit.

Referring now in more detail to the drawing, in which like reference numerals represent like parts throughout the several views, Figure la shows a toy vehicle designated generally by reference numeral 10. Vehicle 10 consists of a chassis member 12, a vehicle body 14, two front wheels and two rear wheels collectively identified by reference numerals 16 and 18 respectively.

An electric motor 20 is used to drive the wheels 16 and 18 of the vehicle 10. Figure ib is a side elevation of a hand-held controller 22 which is, according to the preferred embodiment, adopted to control the movement of the vehicle 10 via electric wire means 24. Remote control of the vehicle 10 is also made feasible.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure la showing a cover means 26 in a swung open position. The cover means 26 is hingedly connected to the chassis member 12 of the vehicle 10 by means of a hinge member 40. A cylinder guiding means 28 is attached to the cover means 26 and is positioned in a spaced relationship with the cover means 26 for receiving and guiding the rotating motion of a cylinder 30.

Pin 32 being disposed inside the cylinder guide means 28 is spring biased and is retrievable by pulling member 34 which is disposed at the rear end of the cylinder guide means 28.

Cover 26 is capable of swinging from a close position to an open position or vice versa when the pin 32 is retrieved into the cylinder guide means 28.

A gunpowder ring 36 is fitted to and rotatable with the cylinder 30 at the front end thereof.

Figure 3a depicts a plan view of the toy vehicle 10 and Figure 3b depicts a plan view of the hand-held controller 22 as shown in Figure la and Ib.

Figure 4 is a cutaway view of the toy vehicle 10 showing the drive gear train generally designated by reference numeral 42 and the gun firing unit generally designated by reference numeral 44. The drive gear train 42 and the gun firing unit 44 are generally built in and around the chassis member 12 which serves as a vehicle frame structure as well as a partial closure to conceal and protect the drive gear train 42 and the gun firing unit 44.

Two axles 46 and 48 are mounted in respective bearing cutouts (not shown) formed on the chassis member 12.

Axle 46 is disposed near the front of the chassis member 12 whilst axle 48 is disposed near the rear of the chassis member 12. It is understood that the axles 46 and 48 are two mutually parallel but spaced-apart axles. Front wheels 1.6, 16 are firmly secured to respective ends of the axle 46 and rear wheels 18, 18 are firmly secured to respective ends of the axle 48.

Drive gear train 42 is mounted generally above the chassis floor substantially along the whole length thereof.

Drive gear train 42 serves mainly as a means for connecting and transferring rotary motion of the vehicle motor 20 to the wheels 16, 18 of the vehicle 10. At a certain portion, the drive gear train 42 is drivingly linked with the gun firing unit 44, detail of which will be described later.

Drive gear train 42 comprises a spur gear 56 which is mounted on drive shaft 58 for rotation therewith.

The spur gear 56 is meshed with pinion 60 which is rotated by vehicle motor 20 located in the vehicle body 14 at the front part thereof. Fixedly secured at the ends of the drive shaft 58 are two worms 62 and 64. Disposed below and engaged with these two worms 62 and 64 are respective worm gears 72 and 74.

The worm gears 72 and 74 are firmly secured to axles 46 and 48 respectively and are oriented to rotate about axes common to the axes of wheel rotation. The front and rear wheels 16 and 18 are engaged to their corresponding axles 46 and 48 for simultaneous rotation. Thus each of the worm gears 72 and 74 drives a corresponding pair of wheels.

Positioned inside the body 14 of the vehicle 10 substantially at the rear portion thereof is the gun firing unit 44 which will now be described. The gun firing unit 44 is in operative relation to the drive gear train 42 and is adapted to simulate gun firing when the vehicle 10 is being driven in a forward mode.

The gun firing unit 44 comprises a hammer 80 having pins 82, 82 integrally provided on both side thereof and being pivotally connected to respective collar means (not shown) provided on the inner surface of the chassis member 12. The common axis of the collar means is disposed transverse to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle 10.

Spring 84 is used to bias the hammer 80 in a first position as shown in Figure 4.

A connecting member 90 having a first arm portion 92 and a second arm portion 94 is disposed generally below the hammer 80 and is so oriented that it is adapted to pivot about pivot axis defined by pin 96 which is integrally formed on the chassis member 12. The first arm portion 92 and the second arm portion 94 constitute a generally inverted Lshaped configuration. Integrally provided on the first arm portion 92 of the connecting member 90 is an extended member 98 having a general shape of a triangle and defining a flat surface 100, the function of which will be explained later.

An elongated aperture 102 is provided on the connecting member 90 intermediate the first arm portion 92 and the second arm portion 94. The longitudinal median line of the elongated aperture 102 is in parallel relationship with the longitudinal median line of the second arm portion 94, as depicted in Figure 4. Pin 96 is journalled through the elongated aperture 102 leaving space therein for allowing displacement of the connecting member 90 relative to the pin 96.

The second arm portion 94 of the connecting member 90 is provided with a projection 104 which defines a recessed portion 106 on the second arm portion 94 at its free end thereof. The recessed portion 106 is adapted to receive and couple with a corresponding projection 108 provided integrally on the hammer 80 at a lower end thereof.

A cam gear 110 is disposed coaxially with the rear wheels 18, 18. A cam 112 is fixedly secured to the cam gear 110 on one side thereof for rotation therewith.

Referring now to Figure 7, it is seen that the cam 112 takes the form of a disc segment having a first flat surface 124 and a second flat surface 126. A rounded corner 125 is formed between the first flat surface 124 and the curved surface 128 whilst a relatively sharp corner 127 is formed between the second flat surface 126 and the curved surface 128, as best illustrated in Figure 7. The cam gear 110 and the cam 112 are fittingly suspended by axle 48. As shown in Figure 4, cam gear 110 is meshed with pinion 114 which is operatively coupled to gear 116 for rotation therewith.

Meshed with cam gear 110 is pinion 114 which is firmly attached to axle 122 for rotation therewith. Axle 122 is rotatably mounted on the chassis member 12 and is disposed parallel to and spaced apart from the axle 48 as illustrated in Figure 6.

A resilient pawl means 120 is also firmly attached to axle 122. Gear 116 is appropreiately supported on axle 122 and is held against the pawl means 120 by a collar member 118 which is firmly mounted on axle 122.

Although it is shown that the pawl means 120 is positioned on one side of the gear 116 facing the pinion 114, it is contemplated that the pawl means 120 may be disposed on the other side of the gear 116.

Pawl means 120 has two arm members 130 and 132 which are in flexible engagement with gear 116. Provided on arm members 130 and 132, at their free ends thereof, are respective projections 140 and 142 projecting outwardly towards gear 116 and being adapted to be caught by respective catch holes 134 arranged radially on the gear 116. The projections 140 and 142 have respective tapered portions 136 and 138 rendering unidirectional rotation of the gear 116.

According to the preferred embodiment, the gear 116 is rotatable only in the counterclockwise direction as shown by the arrow in Figure 5. This unidirectional rotation is essential in governing gun firing only when the vehicle 10 is being driven in a forward direction.

Referring to Figure 6, gear 116 is meshed with pinion 144 which is fixedly mounted to axle 48. Pinion 144 is disposed coaxially with worm gear 74 for rotation therewith.

On clockwise rotation of the worm gear 74, the clockwise motion transferred to pinion 144 causes the gear 116 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction. with the projections 140 and 142 being sunk into respective catch holes 134, 134 of the gear 116, the gear 116 drives the pawl means 120 to turn therewith. Since the pawl means 120 is attached to the axle 122, rotation of the gear 116 in the counterclockwise direction renders the axle 122 to rotate likewise. The axle 122 then rotates pinion 114 which is attached thereto. Pinion in turn rotates cam gear 110 and cam 112 in a clockwise direction, as shown by the arrows in Figure 5.

On rotation, cam 112 first urges connecting member 90 to pivot about pin 96 in a direction as shown by the arrow in Figure 5. This pivotal motion causes the recessed portion 106 to exert an upward force against the projection 108 of the hammer 80. This upward motion effectively cocks the hammer 80 until the recessed portion 106 reaches an ultimate point where the projection 108 disengages therewith. The hammer 80 then releases itself from the connecting member 90 and hammer the cylinder 30 under the biasing force of the spring 84. A hammer block 88 preferably in the form of a rod is employed to limit the hammering motion of the hammer 80.

Cam 112 eventually reaches a position where the flat surface 100 of the connecting member 90 rides on the second flat surface 126 of the cam 112. This causes a displacement of the connecting member 90 such that the connecting member 90 returns to a first position as shown in Figure 4. The sharp corner 127 formed between the curved surface 128 and the second surface 126 facilitates the return of the connecting member 90 to the first position. When displacement of the connecting member 90 occurs, the connecting member 90 rides on the pin 96 along its elongated aperture 102. This displacement of the connecting member 90 is further facilitated under the influence of the spring 150 which is adapted to bias the connecting member 90 in a first position as illustrated in Figure 4. The spring 150 is accommodated and oriented by guard means 152 formed on the chassis member 12. The lower end of the spring 150 is seated on and held in position by the projection 104 provided on the second arm portion 94 of the connecting member 90.

The gun firing unit further comprises a pushing click 160 for rotating the cylinder 30 about cylinder guiding means 28. Pushing click 160 is pivotally connected to connecting member 90 by way of pin 162 which is integrally provided on the connecting member 90. The pushing click 160 takes the form of a generally vertically extending member 163 having a sharp pointing end represented by numeral 161 as shown in Figure 10. Movement of the pushing click 160 is guarded by guard means 152. Figure 9 depicts the pushing click 160 in a low position where it is disengaged from the cylinder 30. When the connecting member 90 pivots about pin 96 in a direction indicated by arrow in Figure 5, pushing click 160 moves upwards, engages with the cylinder 30 and eventually rotates it by a predetermined distance.

Projection 166 provided on the second arm portion 94 of the connecting member 90 serves to limit rotation of the cylinder 30 by the stop projections 38 which are disposed around the peripheral portion of the front surface of the cylinder 30 and, according to the present embodiment, at an interval of 60 . It is noted from Figure 5 that a cutout portion 50 is formed on the chassis member 12 to allow passage of the projection 166 therethrough.

On counterclockwise rotation of the worm gear 74, the counterclockwise motion transferred to pinion 144 causes the gear 116 to rotates clockwise. On clockwise rotation of the gear 116, resilient arm members 130 and 132 are adapted to disengage with the gear 116 as projections 140 and 142 ride up respective catch holes 134, 134 of the gear 116.

This disengagement is achieved by the presence of the respective tapered portions 136 and 138 provided on projections 140 and 142. Disengagement causes the gear 116 to rotate by itself so that the gun firing unit 44 is operatively disengaged with the drive gear train 42. Hence, the vehicle 10 is adapted to produce gun firing simulation only when the vehicle is driven in a forward direction.

Claims

1. A gun firing toy vehicle comprising a frame, front and rear wheels secured to respective axles which are mounted on said frame, a drive gear train mounted in said frame for transferring rotary motion of a motor to said front and rear wheels, and a gun firing unit mounted in said frame and operatively coupled to said drive gear train, whereby ' gun firing is triggered when the vehicle is being driven in a forward direction.

2. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said drive gear train comprises a first worm gear mounted on a front axle and in engagement with a front worm, a second worm gear mounted on a rear axle and in engagement with a rear worm, said front and rear worms being mounted respectively on the front and rear end of a drive shaft which is driven by the motor via a spur gear, and a pinion mounted coaxially with said second worm gear for drivingly connecting said drive gear train to said gun firing unit.

3. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said gun firing unit comprises a cylinder guiding means, a cylinder rotatably and removably mounted on said cylinder guiding means1 a qunpowder carrying means removably fitted to said cylinder, a hammer means biased by a spring means, and means drivingly connected to said drive gear train for cocking and releasing said hammer means when the vehicle is being driven forwards.

4. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said cylinder guiding means is connected to and disposed underneath a cover means which is hingedly connected to the frame of the vehicle at one end thereof and is adapted to swing open when a pin retrievably connected to said cylinder guiding means is retrieved therein.

5. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said means further comprises a cam gear, a cam coaxially secured to said cam gear for rotation therewith, a connecting member having a first arm portion and a second arm portion, said connecting member being pivotally connected to said frame and operatively connecting said cam and said hammer means, and a spring means for biasing said connecting member in a first position, whereby when the vehicle is driven in a forward direction, said cam is adapted to rotate and urge upon said first arm portion at the free end thereof such that said hammer is cocked by means of said second arm portion of said connecting member and is eventually released to effect hammering.

6. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein an elongated aperture is provided on said connecting member intermediate said first and second arm portions through which a pin is journalled so that displacement of said connecting member relative to said pin can be facilitated.

7. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 6, wherein the longitudinal median line of said elongated aperture is in parallel relationship with the longitudinal median line of said second arm portion of said connecting member.

8. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein said cam gear and said cam are mounted coaxially with one of the wheels of the vehicle.

9. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said gun firing unit further comprises means for rotating said cylinder about said cylinder guiding means.

10. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein said means takes the form of a pushing click pivotally connected to said connecting member whereby wlien said connecting member moves from a first position to a second position said pushing click engages and rotates said cylinder by a predetermined distance.

11. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein said pushing click is pivotally connected to said second arm portion of said connecting member.

12. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein said first arm portion of said connecting member is provided with an extending portion defining a flat surface at the end of said connecting member.

13. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein said cam is in the form of a disc segment defining a curved surface, a first flat surface and a second flat surface, wherein a rounded corner is formed between said curved surface and said first flat surface whilst a generally sharp corner is formed between said curved surface and said second flat surface.

14. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein said second arm portion of said connecting member is provided with a projection which defines a recessed portion adapted to couple with a corresponding projection integrally provided on said hammer means substantially at a lower end thereof.

15. A toy vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said hammer means is pivotally connected to a rod which is integrally formed on said frame of the vehicle and is biased in a first position by a spring biasing means.

16. A toy vehicle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.