US2846993A - Toy engine starter with replaceable pull cord - Google Patents

Description

1 958 E. BACCUS ETAL 2,846,993

TOY ENGINE STARTER WITH REPLACEABLE PULL CORD Filed Sept. 4, 1956 INVENTORS.

United States Patent TOY ENGINE STARTER WITH REPLAQEABLE PULL CORD Eddy L. Baccus, Culver City, and John W. Mclioslrey,

West Los Angeles, Caliil, assignors to Wen-Mac Corporation, Les Augeles, alif., a corporation of Caii= fornia Application September 4, 1956, Serial No. 607,692

1 Claim. (Cl. 123-479) The present invention relates generally to toy engine starters of the type utilizing a pull cord, and is more particularly concerned with a unique construction which will facilitate the placement of the pull cord, when it becomes broken or frayed.

Miniature engine starters of the above type are of necessity extremely small, and present construction and operational problems which do not occur in connection with devices of larger size. These miniature starters, in order to fit into confined spaces and operate in connection with the miniature engines have heretofore been constructed with their component parts so arranged that it was difiicult to replace the starter pull cord by utilization of ordinary skill and with the tools usually available. it was therefore necessary to return the engine to the builder, whenever a pull cord became frayed or broken. Such procedure was inconvenient and required loss of time and was not always a satisfactory procedure. In order to reduce the loss of time and inconvenience, it was the common practice of the builder to return an exchange engine and starter unit which could be promptly replaced in the aircraft, or other vehicle utilizing the miniature engine.

With the foregoing in mind, the presentinvention contemplates an improved starter construction which will permit the user to quickly and easily replace a starting pull cord in a comparatively short time, and which does not require the use of more than ordinary skill.

It is a further object to provide unique and improved anchor means for securing the inner end of the pull cord to the winding drum, and in which wear and chafing of the anchored end of the pull cord will be reduced to a minimum, thus assuring longer operating cord life.

Another object is to provide an improved small engine starter having a replaceable starter pull cord, and which may be utilized with engines of toy or model aircraft as well as toy boats, toy automobiles, and the like.

Further objects of the invention will be brought out in the following part of the specification, wherein detailed description is for the purpose of fully disclosing the invention without placing limitations thereon. Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a toy airplane having an engine starter mounted therein, this starter embodying the features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the forward end of the fuselage of the toy aircraft, showing'the starter mounted therein, parts being broken away and sectioned to disclose the cooperative relationship of the starter components;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view showing the details of mounting and manner in which the pull cord is brought out; taken substantially on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view showing details of the clutch mechanism and the manner of anchoring the inner end of the pull cord taken substantially on line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Patented. Aug. 12, 1958 Fig. 5 is a plan view showing details of the starter construction and the location of the access opening to the winding drum; and

Fig. 6 is a view of a manually operable crank member for moving the starter components into cord replacing position.

Referring now generally to the drawings, there is illustrated in Fig. l, a toy or miniature aircraft embodying the features of the present invention, this aircraft comprising a fuselage body 10 having wings 12 and 13 and tail structure 14 at one end of the fuselage. The other end of the fuselage is of hollow construction and provides an engine compartment, this end of the fuselage being streamlined and associated with a forward spinner 15. The power plant as generally indicated at 16 is mounted in the engine compartment and has a driving connection with a propeller 17. Fuel control 18 is brought out through an opening 19 in the fuselage of the engine compartment, while a flexible pull cord 20 is brought out through an elongate slot opening 21 in the Wall of the fuselage, the openings 19 and 21 being positioned rearwardly of the propeller 17.

The starter mechanism will be subsequently described in detail, but is generally of a construction which has a one way clutching mechanism for starting the motor or engine in a driving direction by pulling upon the pul? cord 29. Placing the pull cord rearwardly of the propeller provides a safety feature which is of great portance in small aircraft of this type in that the air stream from the propeller acts to blow the pull cord away from the propeller so that it may be rewound without becoming entangled so as to create an unsafe hazard for the young people who usually fly this type of plane.

Major problems in the construction of a starting mechanism for engines in miniature or model devices reside in the provision of a practical structure which is of sufficiently small size and weight to enable use with and fit within the confined spaces in which it becomes necessary to mount the engine and starter, and which is so constructed as to operate successfully at all times and not be rendered inoperative by the gummy engine fuel getting on the starter parts. Such conditions are especially apparent in the engine compartment of model aircraft, and as the starters were heretofore constructed, the replacement of a broken or frayed pull cord became a major operation which necessitated return of the engine to the builder. The starter of the present invention is so constructed with respect to its component parts that pull cord replacements may be readily made in the field with the exercise of ordinary skill. The details of the starter construction will now be described, having particular reference to Fig. 2 of the drawings.

The engine of the power plant 16 has a crankcase 22 formed with a suitable bearing support for a projecting main shaft 24. At its outer end, the main shaft is fitted with the propeller 17 of conventional construction and is also connected with the spinner 15 which extends over the hub portion of the propeller.

The starter is positioned between the engine crankcase structure and the propeller, and comprises a two part housing as generally indicated at 25. One part of the housing is formed by means of a cupped member 26 which is arranged in concentric relation around the shaft 24 and fixedly secured to the crankcase 22 by suitable conventional means. The periphery of the cupped member is formed by an annular flange 28 so that this cupped member has an open end defined by a rim edge 29.

The other part of the housing is formed by a drive plate 30 centrally provided with a cylindrical hub 31 ar ranged to have a spline or other suitable connection with the shaft for rotation therewith. At its periphery, the

drive plate 30 has an axially extending flange 32, the edge of which registers with the rim edge 29 of the cupped member 26.

Mounted within the housing is a winding drum 33 having a tubular hub 34 surrounding the main shaft 24 and rotatably supporting the winding drum within the housing.

As its periphery, the winding drum 33 is provided with spaced side walls 35a and 35b which extend outwardly from a generally cylindrical surface 36 to form a circumferentially extending groove 37 which is adapted to windingly receive the flexible pull cord 20 therein. As best shown in Fig. 4, the circumferentially extending surface 36 forming the bottom of the groove is provided with a flattened portion 36a. face, in spaced relation thereto, there is positioned a pin 38 having its respective ends mounted in the spaced side walls 35a and 3512. This pin 38 is utilized for anchoring the innermost end of the pull cord 20, and this is accomplished by passing the innermost end of the pull cord under the pin, and then tying a knot 39 in the pull cord which will bear against the pin and thus anchor the pull cord to the winding drum. The use of a pin in this manner is much more effective than, for example, utilizing a small hole through which the inner end of the string or pull cord is passed and then knotted. The pin having rounded surface reduces chafing of the cord and results in extending the useful life of the pull cord. The free end of the pull cord extends through an opening 40 in the flange 28 of the cupped member 26. The exterior portion of the pull cord is provided with an end loop 41 to facilitate manual manipulation by an operator. Inwardly spaced from this looped end, the pull cord may be knotted as indicated at 42 so as to limit the rewind movement of the pull cord.

On one side of the winding drum, there is positioned a coiled spring 43, one end of this spring being connected with the winding drum, while the other end of the spring is connected with the cupped member 26. This spring is spiralled in a proper direction to actuate the winding drum so as to rewind the pull cord automatically.

On the opposite side of the winding drum there is positioned a cam plate 46, this plate being secured to the adjacent end of the tubular hub 34 for rotation therewith. As shown in Fig. 4, the cam plate 46 is provided on diametrically opposite sides with inclined recesses 47, these recesses being formed by an edge 48 and an edge 49 at right angles thereto. The inclined recesses 47, subtend the flange 32 of the drive plate 30, and within each recess there is positioned a disc 59 which is adapted to roll edgewise within the associated recess. As so arranged, when the disc 50 is against the edge 49, the drive plate will be disconnected with respect to the cam plate 46. However, when the pull cord 20 is pulled by grasping the end loop 41, the cam plate will be rotated, but due to the inertia of the disc 50 these discs will tend to remain stationary and will assume a wedging position between the associated edge 48 and the adjacent surface of the flange 32 so as to interconnect the cam plate and drive plate for unitary movement, thereby causing rotation of the crankshaft to start the engine.

As soon as the engine starts, the drive plate movement will overrun, and this action will tend to move the discs 50 to a non-wedging position and permit free operation of the engine. Upon releasing the pull cord, the spring 43 acts to return the pull cord to the winding drum.

In order to replace a pull cord, when it becomes broken or frayed, it will be apparent that it will be necessary to have access to the anchored end of the pull cord. In the construction of the herein described engine starter, access to the winding drum is accomplished by the provision of an elongate notch 51, as shown in Fig. 5, which is cut out of the rim edge 29 of the cupped member 26. While this notch gives access to the pull cord wound on the winding drum, it is still not possible to quickly replace the cord without its being unwound so as to get at its Above this flattened sur- 4 point of anchorage. This problem is overcome by the provision of an additional crank element 52, as shown in Fig. 6. The ends of this crank have oppositely deflected end portions 53 and 54, respectively. The end portion 53 is utilized for temporarily interconnecting certain elements of the starter mechanism, while the end portion 54 serves as a manually engageable handle by which the crank may be motivated to move the interconnected starting elements to proper position for pull cord replacement, in a manner that will now be described in detail.

Referring to Fig. 3, the drive plate 30 is shown as being provided with an axially extending opening 55 which is outwardly spaced from the shaft 24 and is of appropriate diameter to receive endwise therein the end portion 53 of the crank element. Likewise, the cam plate 46 is provided with an opening 56, as shown in Fig. 4, this opening being similarly spaced from the shaft 24 and adapted to register with the opening 55, when the drive plate 30 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3. Also, spaced a similar distance from the shaft 24 is an opening 57 in the cupped member 26, as shown in Fig. 2, this opening being adapted to register with the opening 56, when the cam plate 46 is rotated to the proper position in a counterclockwise direction.

Replacement of a pull cord will now be explained. It will be observed that the opening 55 is ordinarily covered by the propeller so that it is first necessary to remove the propeller in the case of a toy aircraft installation as shown in Fig. 1.

Referring now to Fig. 3, the driving plate 30 is rotated. counterclockwise until the opening 55 registers with the opening 56, whereupon the end portion 53 is inserted endwise through the registered openings, whereby the driving plate and the winding drum are locked together for unitary motion, independently of the clutching mechanism. The crank element 52 will be in the position shown in dotted lines so that it fulcrums over the shaft 24 and places the handle end portion 54 in a position where it may be easily grasped. The crank is now wound in a counterclockwise direction for three or four turns, or until the spring 43 is fully wound. The crank is now backed off by moving it slowly in a clockwise direction until the end portion 53 can be pushed through the opening 57. Since the cupped member is a fixed or stationary member, the winding drum will now be held against the biasing action of the spring 43, and in this position, the pin 38 will be positioned immediately below the notch 51. The remaining portion of the old pull cord may now be removed without difliculty.

A new pull cord is now threaded through the opening 40 and the innermost end thereof passed under the pin 38. A secure knot, as shown at 39, is then tied in this end of the cord about one inch or so from its end. The knot is then pulled up tight against the pin and surplus cord is then removed to leave approximately a one-fourth inch tail extending beyond the knot. A stop knot 40 is then tied in the pull cord, six and one-half inches from the knot 39, and a pulling loop provided approximately three inches beyond the latter knot.

The crank 52 may now be removed to release the drum and driving plate, whereupon the spring 43 will rotate the winding drum in a rewind direction. The cord replacement has thus been accomplished, and upon replacement of the propeller, the air craft is again ready for operation.

Various modifications may suggest themselves to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of our invention, and, hence, we do not wish to be restricted to the specific form or forms shown or uses mentioned, except to the extent indicated in the appended claim.

We claim:

A starting device for a toy engine having a main shaft, comprising: a stationary part having an opening therein; a winding drum concentric of said shaft, said drum having an opening therein adapted to be aligned with the stationary part opening; a flexible starting cord wound on said drum and having its inner end anchored thereto; a spring for actuating the drum in a direction to rewind the starting cord; a member rotatable with said shaft and having an opening therein adapted to be aligned with the drum opening; one Way clutch means connectible between said drum and member for rotating said shaft when a pulling force is exerted on the cord; manually operable crank means having an end portion adapted for insertion endwise through the aligned member opening and drum opening to connect said shaft and drum for unitary movement independently of said clutch means and enable unwinding movement of the drum by the crank means to a position for exposing the anchored-end of the pull cord and for aligning the drum opening with the stationary part opening, whereupon said end portion may be further inserted into the latter opening for holding the drum against the rewind action of said spring while replacing the pull cord.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 14,297 Bootz May 8, 1917 170,605 Tucker Nov. 30, 1875 1,146,054 Curry July 13, 1915 2,135,831 Nilsen Nov. 8, 1938 2,417,587 Damstra Mar. 18, 1947 2,500,076 Honeyman Mar. 7, 1950 2,585,850 Sager Feb. 12, 1952 2,642,698 Fishburne June 23, 1953

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