GB2204806A

GB2204806A - Toy drive mechanism

Info

Publication number: GB2204806A
Application number: GB08811450A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Sunao Konno; Satoshi Shimizu
Original assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co Ltd
Priority date: 1987-05-19
Filing date: 1988-05-13
Publication date: 1988-11-23
Anticipated expiration: 2008-05-13
Also published as: JPS63184099U; JPH0639758Y2; GB2204806B; GB8811450D0; HK58095A

Abstract

The electric circuit of a motor 9 is broken and gearing is disengaged when a lever 47 is placed in a first position. The toy can then be pushed along without damaging the motor or gearing. In other positions of the lever 47, a cam 49 moves shaft 23 against spring 21 to engage a gear (27/35 or 25/33) and the motor circuit is made. One lever position may give a reverse drive. <IMAGE>

Description

A TOY AND A DRIVE MECHANISM THEREFOR It is known to propel a toy using an electric motor which drives running wheels of the toy by way of a geared transmission. A lever on the toy is used to switch the motor on and off.

In the known toy, the motor has remained drivably connected with the wheels when the motor is switched off and there is a risk, particularly when the toy is used by younger children, that it will be pushed along and the gearing and/or motor damaged by the rotational force imparted to them from the wheels.

To overcome this problem there is provided a toy including an electric motor, drive wheels and gearing for driving the wheels from the motor, said gearing including a gear which is movable axially into and out of mesh with a further gear, and an operating lever for displacing said gear as aforesaid, the operating lever serving to break an electric circuit to the motor when said gear is out of mesh.

The invention also provides an operating mechanism for a toy including an electric motor and gearing for transmitting drive from the motor, said gearing including a gear which is carried on an axially displaceable shaft whereby.the gear is movable axially into and out of mesh with a further gear, and an operating lever having a cam surface bearing on the end of the shaft for displacing said gear as aforesaid, spring means being provided for biasing the shaft into contact with the cam surface, the operating lever being provided with contact means through which the electric motor is capable of being energised, the lever serving to break the electric circuit to the motor when said gear is out of mesh.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section through a toy embodying the invention taken on the section line shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 is a cross-section to a larger scale through the toy taken on the section line 2-2 in Figure 1, and Figure 3 shows to an enlarged scale part of the operating mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, a toy vehicle is in the form of a locomotive or street car and includes a hollow body 1 mounted on a chassis 3 provided with wheels which run on a trackway 61.

Mounted on the chassis within one end of the body is a housing 7 for drive mechanism for one pair of wheels 45 which project through slots 5a in the underside of the chassis. An end wall of the housing is provided with a contact 53 for a terminal of a cell 59 housed within the other end of the body 1. The cell is held in place and an electrical circuit completed by means of a sprung contact 57 projecting upwards from a conductive member secured to the chassis and extending into the housing 7.

Motive power for driving the pair of wheels 45 is provided by a motor 9 mounted within the housing 7. The contact 57 is connected direct to the motor while the contact 53 is connected to the motor by way of a switch to be described shortly. An output shaft from the motor carries a pinion 11 which meshes with a crown gear 13 on a shaft 17 journalled in side walls 71, 72 of the housing 7. The shart 17 also carcies a gear wheel 15 which is sufficiently wide to be permanently in mesh with a gear wheel 19 on an axially movable shaft 23 also provided with large and small diameter gear wheels 25 and 27, respectively. The shaft 23 is supported in side wall 71 of the housing 7 and a bulkhead 73.

The wheels 45 are mounted on a shaft 41 provided with a gear wheel 43. A gear wheel 39 on a shaft 37 meshes with the gear wheel 43 and a gear wheel 31 on a lay shaft 29.

The shafts 29, 37 and 41 are all mounted for rotation in the sidewalls of the housing 7. The shaft 23 is movable axially between three positions, namely a neutral position in which the gear wheels 25 and 27 are out of mesh, a relatively low gear ratio position in which the gear wheel 27 meshes with a gear wheel 35 on shaft 29, and a relatively high gear ratio position in which the gear wheel 25 meshes with the gear wheel 33, the latter position being that shown in Figure 2. A helical compression spring 21 which encircles the shaft 23 and abuts the gear wheel 19 and the side wall 71 of the housing biases the shaft 23 towards the left as viewed in Figure 2 into the low gear position.

Projecting inwards from the side wall of the housing 7 is a boss 7A through which passes the shaft 17 and on which is mounted a lever 47 projecting through a slot in the upper wall of the housing and a slot 3 in the body 1. An arcuate contact 51 on the lever slidingly engages the contact 53. In the right hand position of the lever shown in full lines, the contact 51 is isolated from a terminal 55 of the motor with the result that power is cut off from the motor 9. In the central position and left hand position of the lever as shown in broken lines, the contact 51 makes contact with both contacts 53 and 55 and the motor is powered.

A sector shaped projection 49 of the lever has a cam surface for contact with the end of the shaft 23. The cam surface has three step portions separated by ramps, namely, portion 49A which is the most pronounced, 49C which is least pronounced, and 49B located at a level between the other two. With the shaft 23 in contact with the cam surface section 49A, the shaft is held in its extreme position in which the gear wheels 25 and 27 are out of mesh with the gear wheels 33 and 35. In this condition, the toy may be pushed freely along without the running wheels tending to drive the motor. When the lever is moved into its intermediate position, gear 27 meshes with gear 35 to provide a relatively low gear ratio and at the same time a circuit is completed to the motor, whereby the toy travels at a slow speed.When the lever is moved into the third position, the circuit is maintained and the gear wheel 25 meshes with the gear wheel 33 to provide a relatively high gear ratio, and the toy travels at a higher speed.

Modifications may be made to the arrangement shown in the drawing. Thus, the invention may be employed in a toy having a single gear ratio, or in which the movable shaft may be positioned to drive the vehicle forwards and in reverse, either by reversing polarity or by the use of appropriate gearing. The drive mechanism may be used in toys other than vehicles in which a motor or gearing is in risk of being damaged by force applied to the toy.

The lever may be arranged to pivot about an axis normal to the axis of the shaft 23 provided a suitable coupling is provided. The contacts and/or the cam surface may be provided on a link articulated to the lever rather than on the lever itself. The gears 25 and 27 may be splined to and movable axially on a fixed shaft. Resilient means other than a helical spring may be provided for biasing the shaft 23 into contact with the lever.

Claims

1. A toy including an electric motor, drive wheels and gearing for driving the wheels from the motor, said gearing including a gear which is movable axially into and out of mesh with a further gear, and an operating lever for displacing said gear as aforesaid, the operating lever serving to break an electric circuit to the motor when said gear is out of mesh.

2. A toy as claimed in claim 1, in which said gear is carried by a shaft which is spring biased into contact with an abutment surface on the lever, the lever being angularly movable about an axis parallel to said shaft.

3. A toy as claimed in claim 2, wherein said shaft is provided with a pair of gear wheels selectively movable into mesh with gear wheels on a lay shaft.

4. A toy as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, in which the lever has a segment provided with three abutment surfaces.

5. An operating mechanism for a toy including an electric motor and gearing for transmitting drive from the motor, said gearing including a gear which is carried on an axially displaceable shaft whereby the gear is movable axially into and out of mesh with a further gear, and an operating lever having a cam surface bearing on the end of the shaft for displacing said gear as aforesaid, spring means being provided for biasing the shaft into contact with the cam surface, the operating lever being provided with contact means through which the electric motor is capable of being energised, the lever serving to break the electric circuit to the motor when said gear is out of mesh.

6. A toy or an operating mechanism therefor substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.