US3706153A - Remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system - Google Patents

Abstract

A system whereby a powered toy vehicle is attached to one end of a hand-held control line that slidably passes through a hub member rotatably mounted on a stationary base, the length of the line between the vehicle and the hub being controlled by manual movement of the remainder of the line toward and away from the hub. The system may also include one or more fixed pylons disposed on the playing surface between the vehicle and the hub to temporarily engage the line and thereby shorten the length of the line about which the vehicle pivots.

Description

United States Patent Folson et al.

[ Dec. 19, 1972 [54] REMOTELY CONTROLLED WHEELED TOY VEHICLE SYSTEM [73] Assignee: Mattel, Inc., Hawthorne, Calif.

[22] Filed: March 1, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 230,684

[52] US. Cl. ..46/202, 46/210 [51] Int. Cl. ..A63h 17/36 [58] Field of Search ..46/202, 210, 243 R, 243 LV [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,620,596 12/1952 Abrahamson ..46/210 2,730,837 l/l956 Vaughan ..46/2l0 Primary Examiner-Louis G. Mancene Assistant Examiner-Robert F. Cutting AttorneySeymour A. Scholnick [5 7 ABSTRACT A system whereby a powered toy vehicle is attached to one end of a hand-held control line that slidably passes through a hub member rotatably mounted on a stationary base, the length of the line between the vehicle and the hub being controlled by manual movement of the remainder of the line toward and away from the hub. The system may also include one or more fixed pylons disposed on the playing surface between the vehicle and the hub to temporarily engage the line and thereby shorten the length of the line about which the vehicle pivots.

16 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEU use 19 I972 SHEET 1 OF 3 PATENTED nu: 19 I972 SHEEI 2 0F 3 REMOTELY CONTROLLED WHEELED TOY VEHICLE SYSTEM BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION I The background of the invention will be set forth in two parts.

1. Field of the Invention The present invention pertains generally to the field of toy vehicles and more particularly to powered toy vehicles manually controlled from remote positions.

2. Description of the Prior Art Toy vehicles capable of changing their direction of movement across a running surface may be categorized in one of two general classes. The first class includes toy vehicles that change their direction either on a predetermined timed sequence or upon the meeting of an obstruction. The second class includes toy vehicles that are either controlled in direction by a remotely positioned control mechanism electronically or acoustically coupled through a receiving mechanism in the toy, or by a remotely positoned control mechanism coupled to the vehicle by a control cable. In toys of the former class, there is the disadvantage that no control is provided to an operator and no skill can be developed in connection with their operation.

As to the second classification in the case of cableless remote control, these toys are generally very complex, intricate and delicate and, accordingly are not very rugged and reliable and are very costly and accordingly limited in market appeal.

In the case of prior art devices whereby powered toy vehicles are controlled from a remote position through cabling, satisfactory results are generally obtainable, however, although not as costly as the previously mentioned remote control systems, they are still relatively costly to produce, and therefore not as readily mar ketable as could be desired.

A toy vehicle that can be controlled remotely without the use of a costly control cable and which is relatively simple to construct with no delicate or intricate parts and that has no expensive electronic circuitry would be a significant advancement in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the foregoing factors and conditions characteristic of the prior art, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system not subject to the disadvantages enumerated above.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system wherein the toy vehicle generally pivots about a hub at a distance therefrom controlled by an operator holding a simple control line.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system wherein one or more of the toy vehicles may be caused to pivot about one or more fixed pylons for a controlled number of revolutions before continuing a long a more general path about a common rotating hub.

According to the present invention, a remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system is provided that includes a line attached to a powered wheeled toy vehicle adapted to travel on a playing surface, the line controlling the direction of travel of the vehicle essentially orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the line adjacent the vehicle. The system also includes a base and a hub rotatably supported thereby, the hub including line guide means for guiding the line, the line extending from the vehicle to-a manipulatable end through the line guide means, the length of a first portion of the line between the vehicle and the hub being controlled by movement of the remaining portion of the line toward and away from the hub, whereby the vehicle is capable of traveling around the base at any desired and continuously changeable distance'therefrorn. Additionally, one or more specially designed pylons may befixed to the playing surface at positions between the vehicle and the base to temporarily engage the first portion of the line and thereby cause the vehicle to pivot about the pylon for a controlled number of revolutions.

The features of the present invention which are believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by making reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to like components in the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a perspective presentation of the system constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational view, partially in section, of some of the components of the present invention as seen in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial view of a vehicle-control line interconnection arrangement used in the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a pylon construction, in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view of the upper portion of the pylon of FIG. 4 indicating the relative slopes of various control cable engaging edges of the pylon of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a partial view of the pylon of FIG. 4 showing in more detail how the control line wraps about the pylons upper tip area.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system 11 wherein a first portion 13 of a control line 15 is attached at its vehicle engagement end 17 to a powered toy vehicle 19 by means of an attachment arrangement 21. The control line 15 extends between the arrangement 21 and its opposite end 23 through a specially designed hub 25 rotatably mounted on a stationary base member 27. The control lines end 23 may be held by an operator or the line may be wound about a hand-held reel 29 which has provisions for storing unused control line. As can be seen in this figure, the toy vehicle 19 may be controlled to follow any desired path as indicated, for example, by dashed line 31. Thus, as will be explained in more detail later, the toy vehicle may be guided to avoid a fixed obstacle such as can 33 and to engage any number of specially designed stationary pylons 35. It should be understood that any type or style of toy vehicle may be used in the system 11 and that all that is required is that it carry motivation means to propel it along a playing surface 37. Thus, the three-wheeled toy 19 may be replaced by such vehicles as automobiles, motorcycles, trucks, trains, airplanes, rocket ships, to name but a few.

With reference to FIG. 2, it can be seen more clearly that the control line passes down through an inner aperture 39 in one of the hubs radially extending arms 41 and exits through an end aperture 43 at the arms extremity 45. Each arm 41 may be provided with this type aperture guiding means in the hub 25. v

The base 27, in this embodiment, is circular in crosssection and happens to somewhat resemble a wheel. But the design of the base is arbitrary and any configuration may be utilized. The base 27 is here shown to have an outer wall 51, a bottom portion 53, and an upper planar center portion 55, in which a vertical bushing member 57 is centrally disposed. A centrally positioned axle portion 59 of the hub extends downwardly into and is rotatably held by the bushing member 57 whereby the hub 25 and its arms 41 symmetrically rotate about an axis of rotation 61. The

material used to fabricate the base 27 may be heavy enough to resist being pulled along the playing surface 37 by the action of the toy 19, but additional ballast is preferably provided. Such ballast may be in the form of water 63 poured through an opening 65 in the top portion 55 of the base. In this case, the bushing 57 is held ina sleeve 67 having outer threads 69 engaging matching threads 71 in a flange portion 73 extending downwardly from the opening 65.

The base hub assembly may be fabricated from any material generally considered suitable for this type of application. For example, plastic material may be injection, vacuum or otherwise molded to provide these components as well as the coupling assembly21 and the reel 29. Thus in molding the hub 25 and the sleeve 67, a snap-on depending circular flange 75 may be provided for the hub to slidably extend over a horizontal flange portion 77 at the upper end of the sleeve 67 so as to allow rotation of the hub but to prevent the latter from being pulled from the base 27.

FIG. 2 also illustrates more clearly the attachment arrangement 21 whereby the control line end 17 is removably attached to the vehicle 19 through a coupling plug 81 and a slotted, vehicle attachment bracket 83. The plug 81, as can be viewed in FIG. 3,.ineludes an elongated rod portion 85 with a pair of spaced discs 87 and 89 fixed thereon, the latter discs being at the outer end 91 and has a frustoconical end tip portion 93. A cross bar 95 is fixed or molded as an integral part of the other end of the rod portion 85 so that the lines end 17 may be easily attached. Of course, the cross bar 95 may have other configurations such as a ring, for example.

In order to allow the plug 81 to also act as a swivel to prevent undue twisting of the line, the spacing between the discs 87 and 89 is slightly greater than the thickness dimension of a vertical portion 97 of the bracket 83. The portion 97 includes an elongated horizontal slot 99 which is larger than the diameter of the plugs rod portion 85 and has, in this embodiment, an enlarged diameter opening 101 at a forward end 103 to frictionally accept the disc 89 therethrough. In larger scale embodiments, opening 101 may be deleted. A horizontal portion 105 of the bracket is shown extending and attaching to the underbody portion 107 of the vehicle 19 such that the plug 81 is located at or behind the vehicles center of mass to ensure that there is always an outward force component to keep the control line taut for control and also to keep the vehicle s path basically circular. Further, the plug 81 should preferably be located at a height whereby a-line extending from the control line immediately adjacent the vehicle, will pass as close as possible to the center of mass so that the vehicle will tend to remain level and not tip over.

Another feature shown in FIG. 2 is a shock absorber 111. This element tends to reduce vehicle direction instability when abrupt changes occur in the control line tension, as may occur when the control line disengages from a pylon, for example. In a simple form, the shock absorber 1 1 1 may be a rubber band serially attached in the first portion 13 of the control line 15.

As an aid to store any length of the control line 15 that is not needed in the operation of the toy system 1 1 and for storage of the line when the system is not in use, the system as noted previously, may include the annular disclike reel hand unit 29. The reel is provided with a central opening to accommodate the fingers of a hand, for example, and also has an outer periphery'l17 with a relatively broad circumferential groove 119 therein where the line 15 is wound. in order to prevent the line from uncontrollably unwinding from the reel 29, a resilient circular segment element or keeper 121, with a bent tab or handle 123, is provided in the groove I 119 (see FIG. 2). To wind in the control line, the handie 123 is moved in the direction indicated by arrow 125 while holding the body portion of the reel stationa- Referring now to FIG. 4, an enlarged view of the typical pylon 35 is illustrated. The pylon includes a base portion 151 and an upstanding portion 153 perpendicular thereto. The portion 153 is provided with an initial contact straight edge 155 inclined from the vertical by approximately 3, as shown in FIG. 5. This edge, at a lower curve portion 157, smoothly and gradually joins an upper straight edge 159 which lies approximately 30 above the horizontal. At an upper curve portion 161, the upper end of the edge 159 and a relatively short abutment edge 163 are joined, and at the lower extremity of the latter edge, there is an abrupt meeting at a junction 165 with a relatively long major sloping edge 167 inclined in the opposite direction at approximately 40 with respect to the horizontal. FIG. 5 also indicates that the junction 165 is somewhat higher than the upper end of the edge 155.

In operation, a desired length of control line 15 is pulled from the reel 29 by holding the handle 125 while pulling on the line. The plug 81 is inserted in the opening 101, and the plug is moved in a direction indicated by arrows 171 in FIG. 3 so that the discs 87 and 89 are on opposite sides of the vertical portion 97 of the bracket 83. The control line is now securely coupled to the toy vehicle 19 while allowing the line to untwist whenever slack in the line reduces frictional forces between the plug 81 and the bracket 83. The vehicle may then be activated to proceed in the direction 109 about the base 27 The path 31 taken by the vehicle may now be controlled from a remote position by a person simply pulling or releasing the control line as shown by the arrows 173 in FIG. 2. This action causes the line's first portion 13 to respectively lessen and lengthen as indicated by arrows 175. Thus, obstacles such as the can 33 may be avoided by pulling the hand unit-29 away from the base,'while the hub 25 rotates with the movement of the vehicle 19 thereabout. As noted previously, the vehicle may. have any desired appearance, and in this embodiment, is a tri-wheeled vehicle having a front wheel 181, a body 183 with a simulated steering yoke 185, and a pair of driven wheels 187.

To increase the interest of the users of the-present system 11, one or more pylons 35 maybe attached by any convenient means, such'as tape, for example, to the playing surface 37. In the case of a single pylon 35A (FIG. 1), the first portion 13 of the control line 15 will come into contact with the pylons initial contact edge 155 at A, causing the vehicle to now pivot about this Less tension in the line, upon the line encountering a pylon, will allow the line at the initial engaging edge 155 to slip over the curve portion 157 and the upper edge 159 with only one revolution of the vehicle. However, the vehicle may conversely be controlled to make three or'more revolutions about a pylon by simply applying mo re tension in the control line 15. This addi- Even more-interesting layouts may be provided by positioning a pair of pylons 35B and 35C as shown in FIG. 1. In this situation, the vehicle 19 traveling along the path 31 will first encounter the pylon 35B and pivot thereabout until the control line adjacent the vehicle further contacts the second pylon 35C. Now, the vehicle will circle the latter pylon for one or more revolutions, depending upon the control line tension, and

' then be free to move outwardly and take up the slack in was formerly at B, has progressed to the junction 165.

This progression is illustrated in FIG. 1 by dashed line outlines 13A through 13D and arrows 193A through 193D.

With only a slight amount of tension on the control line 15, on the first rotation about the pylon 35A by the vehicle 19, the portion 13 will move up to a point C ,(just below the curve 157) while the toy vehicle pivots.

about the junction 165. Since the height of the vehicles bracket 83 is less than the height of the aperture 43 in the hubs arm 41, the line between the pylon and the vehiclewill pass under the control line between the pylon and the hub and again contact points A and B. This time, as the line slips up the sloping edge 187 it will cause the line now at point A to move up and push the control .line from C, and both portions of theline will slide over the curve 157 in the upper edge 159 and thus disengage from the pylon. Release of the line portion 13 from the pylon 35A will allow the vehicle to move outwardly to take up the slack in the line between itself and the hub 25.

It will be noted from FIG. 4, that an edge 201 of the pylons base portion 151 is provided at an angle of approximately 22 with respect to the plane of the pylons upstanding portion 153. This is an aid in obtaining the most desirable orientation of this plane with regard to the position of the base. Accordingly, in originally positioning the pylons on the playing surface 37, the edge 201 is lined up visually with the center of the base 27 (axis of rotation 61), before the base portion 151 is anchored to the surface. This particular orientation, although not necessary for operation of the system, adds to its desirability since it tends to cause the vehicle to steer slightly outwardly when the line portion 13 disengages from the pylon so that uncontrolled operation during the time the control line is slack is significantly decreased. Thus, by holding slight tension in the control line 15 the operator can cause the vehicle to circle twice about the pylon 35A, as illustrated in FIG. 1.

the first line portion 13. Of course, any desired number of pylons and combinations of pylons may be utilized to develop and test the skill of the individuals controlling the movement of the toy vehicles 19.

From the foregoing, it should be evident that there has been described anew and improved remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system free of many of the disadvantages of the prior art and which willprovide a highly interesting and challenging toy that rewards the development of skill in its operation. I

As noted previously, the materials and processes used in fabricating the invention are not critical and any material and process which is generally considered suitable for a'particular application may be utilized.

Although only a limited number of embodiments of the invention have beendescribed in detail it should be understood that the invention is. acceptable to other embodiments and variations within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, this disclosure should only be considered as illustrative of the principles of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system,

comprising:

a powered wheeled toy vehicle adapted to travel on a playing surface;

a line attached to said vehicle controlling the direction of travel of said vehicle essentially orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of said line adjacent said vehicle;

a stationary base; and

a hub rotatably supported by said base, said hub including line guide means for guiding said line, said line extending from said vehicle to a manipulatable end through said line guide means, the length of a first portion of said line between said vehicle and said hub being controlled by movement of the remaining portion of said line toward and away from said hub, whereby said vehicle is capable of traveling around said base at any desired and continuously changeable distance therefrom.

2. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein said line guide means includes guides in said hub disposed to guide said line in a radial direction with respect to the rotational axis of said hub. 3. The toy vehicle system according to claim 2,

wherein-said guides include an aperturein said hub adjacent said axis of rotation and also includes an aperture adjacent an outer radial extremity of said hub through which said first portion passes. 4. The toy vvehicle system according to claim3, whereinsaid base includes a vertical bushing and wherein-said hub includes an upper horizontal portion and a downwardly-extending axle portion coaxial with said axis of rotation- V 5. The toy system according to claim 4, wherein said horizontal portion of said hub includes a plurality of radially extending arms, each of said arms including said line guide means.

' .6. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein said first portion of saidline includes a swivel member.

7. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1,

wherein said first portion, of said line includes a shock absorber element.

8. The toy vehicle according to'claim 1, also comprising line attachment means including a slotted bracket attached to said vehicle and a coupling plug attached to the extremity of said first portion of said line for allowing said plug to be removably and pivotally engaged in the slot in said bracket.

9. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, also comprising a hand-held unit to which said manipulatable end is attached. r

10. The toy vehicle system according to claim 9,

wherein said hand-held unit includes a circular line take-up reel with a relatively broad circumferential groove in which said line may be wound. 11. The toy vehicle system according to claim 10, wherein said hand-held unit also includes a resilient circular segment member movably disposed in said groove to adjustably capture line wound on said groove.

12. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, also comprising at least one pylon member attachable to said playing surface between said vehicle and said base, said pylon member including line control means for disengagably contacting said first portion of said line to shorten that length of said first portion about which said vehicle pivots. 1 l

13. The toy vehicle system according to claim 12, wherein said pylon member includes a base portion and wherein said line control means includes an upstanding control member supported by said base portion.

14. The toy vehicle system according to claim 13, wherein said control means isessentially planar and includes a relatively slightly sloping first edge, an opposi'tely disposed-relatively major sloping second edge inclined upwardly toward said first edge, a relatively short abutment edge at the top of said second edge and an intermediately sloping upper edge between said first and abutment edges, said second edge being inclined generally oppositely said other edges, said pylon member being oriented such that said first edge. first wherein said base portion includes orientation means for properly orienting said pylon member with respect to said base.

16. A remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system for use with self-powered toy vehicles, comprismg:

means for attaching acontrol line to a self-powered wheeled 'toy vehicle so that the direction of travel of the vehicle on a playing surface is controlled to be essentially orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the line adjacent the vehicle,

a stationary base;

a hub rotatably supported by said base, said hub including line guide means for guiding said line, said line extending from said vehicle to a manipulatable end through said line guide means, the length of a first portion of said line between said vehicle and said hub being controllable by movement of the remaining portion of said line toward and away from said hub,'whereby said vehicle is capable of traveling around said base at any desired and continuously changeable distance therefrom.

Claims (16)

1. A remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system, comprising: a powered wheeled toy vehicle adapted to travel on a playing surface; a line attached to said vehicle controlling the direction of travel of said vehicle essentially orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of said line adjacent said vehicle; a stationary base; and a hub rotatably supported by said base, said hub including line guide means for guiding said line, said line extending from said vehicle to a manipulatable end through said line guide means, the length of a first portion of said line between said vehicle and said hub being controlled by movement of the remaining portion of said line toward and away from said hub, whereby said vehicle is capable of traveling around said base at any desired and continuously changeable distance therefrom.

2. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein said line guide means includes guides in said hub disposed to guide said line in a radial direction with respect to the rotational axis of said hub.

3. The toy vehicle system according to claim 2, wherein said guides include an aperture in said hub adjacent said axis of rotation and also includes an aperture adjacent an outer radial extremity of said hub through which said first portion passes.

4. The toy vehicle system according to claim 3, wherein said base includes a vertical bushing and wherein said hub includes an upper horizontal portion and a downwardly extending axle portion coaxial with said axis of rotation.

5. The toy system according to claim 4, wherein said horizontal portion of said hub includes a plurality of radially extending arms, each of said arms including said line guide means.

6. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein said first portion of said line includes a swivel member.

7. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein said first portion of said line includes a shock absorber element.

8. The toy vehicle according to claim 1, also comprising line attachment means including a slotted bracket attached to said vehicle and a coupling plug attached to the extremity of said first portion of said line for allowing said plug to be removably and pivotally engaged in the slot in said bracket.

9. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, also comprising a hand-held unit to which said manipulatable end is attached.

10. The toy vehicle system according to claim 9, wherein said hand-held unit includes a circular line take-up reel with a relatively broad circumferential groove in which said line may be wound.

11. The toy vehicle system according to claim 10, wherein said hand-held unit also includes a resilient circular segment member movably disposed in said groove to adjustably capture line wound on said groove.

12. The toy vehicle system according to claim 1, also comprising at least one pylon member attachable to said playing surface between said vehicle and said base, said pylon member including line control means for disengagably contacting said first portion of said line to shorten that length of said first portion about which said vehicle pivots.

13. The toy vehicle system according to claim 12, wherein said pylon member includes a base portion and wherein said line control means includes an upstanding control member supported by said base portion.

14. The toy vehicle system according to claim 13, wherein said control means is essentially planar and includes a relatively slightly Sloping first edge, an oppositely disposed relatively major sloping second edge inclined upwardly toward said first edge, a relatively short abutment edge at the top of said second edge and an intermediately sloping upper edge between said first and abutment edges, said second edge being inclined generally oppositely said other edges, said pylon member being oriented such that said first edge first contacts said line as it is moved by said vehicle.

15. The toy vehicle system according to claim 12, wherein said base portion includes orientation means for properly orienting said pylon member with respect to said base.

16. A remotely controlled wheeled toy vehicle system for use with self-powered toy vehicles, comprising: means for attaching a control line to a self-powered wheeled toy vehicle so that the direction of travel of the vehicle on a playing surface is controlled to be essentially orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the line adjacent the vehicle; a stationary base; a hub rotatably supported by said base, said hub including line guide means for guiding said line, said line extending from said vehicle to a manipulatable end through said line guide means, the length of a first portion of said line between said vehicle and said hub being controllable by movement of the remaining portion of said line toward and away from said hub, whereby said vehicle is capable of traveling around said base at any desired and continuously changeable distance therefrom.

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