WO2021040620A1

WO2021040620A1 - Stackable ride-on vehicle

Info

Publication number: WO2021040620A1
Application number: PCT/SG2020/050491
Authority: WO
Inventors: Oliver James MCDERMOTT; Mathew Peter Mowbray
Original assignee: Zuru (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
Priority date: 2019-08-23
Filing date: 2020-08-21
Publication date: 2021-03-04

Abstract

A stackable ride-on vehicle capable of at least partially nesting with a like or identical ride-on vehicle to form a stack of vehicles. The vehicle has a chassis comprising; a top region comprising a seat; a forward region at and a back region opposite the forward region; and a bottom region, opposite the top region, comprising at least one underside receiving region. At least three wheels are dependent from the chassis. The underside receiving region is adapted to receive at least part of the top region of a like or identical shaped below vehicle from below the vehicle to partially nest.

Description

STACKABLE RIDE-ON VEHICLE

The present invention relates to a stackable ride-on toy vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Stackable ride-on vehicles are generally known and can be seen for example in US8459664. US8459664 discloses a stackable ride-on vehicle that has like vehicles directly stacked on top of one another. The bottom of the vehicle is open and permits stacking and nesting of multiple vehicle above. This is an advantage in relation to storage and transportation of a plurality of such toys. The vehicle is a ride-on toy that children are able to sit on. Ride-on vehicles generally have a seat and handle bars or grips to help give the child stability. The child is able to propel the vehicle by pushing themselves and the vehicle via their feet on the ground. Directional control is via a child pushing their feet, and hence vehicle, in particular directions. The vehicle may have one or more castor wheels that aid in turning of the vehicle.

Some toy vehicles in the market have weaknesses in their wheel regions which may cause wheels to become loose with respect to the main body. The same and/or other toy vehicles in the market may have wheels that are small and may get trapped or slowed by cracks or bumps on the ground which may cause a quick reduction in speed of the vehicle potentially causing the rider to come off the vehicle. Larger wheels and more reinforcing may compromise the degree of nesting that can be achieved in a stack of ride-on vehicles.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a stackable ride-on toy which overcomes or at least partially ameliorates some of the abovementioned disadvantages or which at least provides the public with a useful choice.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In a first aspect the present invention may be said to be a stackable ride-on vehicle capable of at least partially nesting with a like or identical vehicle to form a stack of vehicles, the vehicle comprising, a. a chassis comprising; a top region comprising a seat and where preferably a hand grip is presented; a forward region at and a back region opposite the forward region; and a bottom region, opposite the top region, comprising at least one underside receiving region; and b. at least three wheels dependent from the chassis, each wheel having a rotational axis, there being at least one wheel at the front, and wherein the underside receiving region is adapted to receive at least part of the top region of a like or identical shaped below vehicle from below the vehicle, where the below vehicle is to be oriented facing forwards in a direction opposite to the forward facing direction of the vehicle.

Preferably the vehicle is nestable with a like or identical shaped below vehicle.

Preferably the underside receiving region is shaped to receive one or more of at least a portion of the chassis, seat and grips from a below vehicle.

Preferably the chassis comprises an upperside receiving region adapted to receive a portion of a like or identical shaped vehicle from above the vehicle, where the above vehicle is oriented facing in a forward direction that is opposite to the forward direction of the vehicle.

Preferably the upperside receiving region is shaped to receive at least one or more wheels from an above adjacently stacked vehicle.

Preferably the upperside receiving region is located at one of the forward region and back region, and the portion of a like or identical shaped vehicle is at the opposite of said one of the forward region and back region.

Preferably the chassis and underside and/or upperside receiving regions are configured so that the vehicle wheels vertically overlap with the wheels of at least one other like or identical shaped vehicle adjacently stacked.

Preferably the wheels vertically overlap by at least VA of the diameter of the wheel.

Preferably where the front wheels on each side of the vehicle are laterally aligned with respective the rear wheels.

Preferably the front wheels are laterally aligned with the respective (right/left) rear wheels.

Preferably the axis of rotation of the front wheels of the vehicle are within a distance of a diameter of a wheel in the longitudinal direction of another like and adjacent vehicle stacked upon the vehicle.

Preferably in a stack of three said vehicles at least partially nested together, a notational zig-zag line can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering the array of wheels at end and one side of the stack looking side on, and the zig zag has a notional wave length.

Preferably the wave-length of the zig-zag is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than one diameter of the wheel.

Preferably where there are wheels of different diameters at said one side of the stack (namely two wheels each of a diameter D1 and a wheel of a diameter D2, the rotational axis forming the nodes of a zig zag), the wave-length of the zig-zag is greater or equal to D1 and less than the sum of the diameter D1 and diameter D2. Preferably the wheels of an adjacently stacked vehicle touch.

Preferably the portion is a handgrip.

Preferably the vehicle is symmetrical about a vertical plane running down a longitudinal axis of the vehicle..

Preferably the front wheel(s) are laterally offset with the rear wheels.

Preferably there are two front wheels and two rear wheels, the spacing between the two front wheels being different to the spacing between the two rear wheels.

Preferably the underside and/or upperside receiving region upperside receiving region receives the handgrip of a like or identical shaped vehicle.

Preferably the front wheels have rotational axes parallel to and preferably on the same plane as the rotational axes of the rear wheels.

Preferably the front wheels have rotational axes parallel to and preferably on the same plane as the rotational axes of the rear wheels of another like or identical shaped and adjacent vehicle stacked upon the vehicle.

Preferably the vehicle has three wheels, two wheels at the back region, and one wheel at the forward region.

Preferably the vehicle is a trike.

Preferably the vehicle comprises a second receiving region at the forward region configured for receiving the front wheel of a like or identical shaped vehicle.

In a further aspect the present invention may broadly be said to be a stack of stackable ride-on vehicles, the stack comprising two or more vehicles, each vehicle identical to one another and each comprising a seat to configured to support a user and at least three wheels extending from a chassis, wherein a first vehicle is supported on a supporting surface, and a second vehicle is supported on the first vehicle, wherein the wheels of the second vehicle vertically and/or horizontally overlap with the wheels of the first vehicle.

Preferably the vehicle comprises a grip configured to be gripped by a user.

Preferably the first vehicle and second vehicle face 180 degrees away one another.

Preferably the rear wheels of the first vehicle, are adjacent the front wheels of the second vehicle and/or vice versa.

Preferably the wave-length of the zig-zag is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than one diameter of the wheel. Preferably where there are wheels of different diameters at said one side of the stack (namely two wheels each of a diameter D1 and a wheel of a diameter D2, the rotational axis forming the nodes of a zig zag), the wave-length of the zig-zag is greater or equal to D1 and less than the sum of the diameter D1 and diameter D2.

Preferably the first vehicle and second vehicle are one repeating assembly configuration of a stack.

Preferably the stack comprises one or more repeating assemblies of the first vehicle and second vehicle, on top of the second vehicle.

Preferably a repeating assembly is located longitudinally and laterally the same as the first vehicle and second vehicle, but vertically higher.

Preferably the height of a repeating assembly is less than the combined height of the first vehicle and second vehicle when not stacked upon each other to form a repeating assembly.

Preferably the height of a repeating assembly is 25% less than the combined height of the first vehicle and second vehicle when not stacked upon each other to form a repeating assembly.

Preferably at least one of the wheels are castor wheels.

Preferably the wheels have a rotational axis fixed relative the chassis.

Preferably the vehicle comprises a receiving region configured to receive a receivable portion of an adjacently stacked vehicle.

Preferably the receiving region is an upperside receiving region, and is shaped to receive at least a wheel of an above adjacently stacked vehicle.

Preferably the receiving region is an underside receiving region, and is shaped to receive one or more of grips, seat and chassis of a below adjacently stacked vehicle.

Preferably the receiving region is formed from or defined by the chassis.

Preferably the chassis and receiving region is configured so that the vehicle wheels vertically overlap with the wheels of another like or identical shaped and adjacent vehicle when stacked upon the vehicle.

Preferably the wheels of a second vehicle vertically overlap by at least VA of the radius of the a with the wheels of a first vehicle.

Preferably the wheels of a second vehicle vertically overlap by Vi of the diameter of the radius of a wheel with the wheels of a first vehicle.

Preferably the wheels vertically overlap by 60mm.

Preferably the wheels on one side of each vehicle at one edge of the stack are vertically coplanar with each other and the wheels on other side of each vehicle at one edge of the stack are vertically coplanar with each other.

Preferably the rear wheels of the first vehicle, are in contact with the front wheels of the second vehicle. Preferably the wheels of the first vehicle contact the wheels adjacent first vehicle of the adjacent repeating assembly.

Preferably the vehicle wheels at each edge of the stack form a notional vertical zig zag configuration.

Preferably the wheels of the first vehicles of each assembly are directly above each other.

Preferably the wheels of the second vehicles of each assembly are directly above each other.

Preferably the wheels at the each edge of a stack are vertically coplanar.

Preferably the rear wheels are laterally offset from the front wheel or wheels.

Preferably the rear wheels of the second vehicle are closer to the centreline of the vehicle than the front wheels of the first vehicle vice versa.

Preferably the vehicle has three wheels.

Preferably the front wheel of the second vehicle is at least partially intermediate of and midline of the rear wheels of the first vehicle.

Preferably the chassis comprises a rearwardly extending swing arm having the underside receiving portion intermediate the swing arm, the lower receiving portion configured to receive at least a front wheel of a below adjacently stacked vehicle.

Preferably the grip is located on a forked handlebar extending from the chassis, the handlebar comprising a receptacle to receive the front wheel of an above stacked vehicle.

Preferably the upperside receiving region upperside receiving region is formed shaped from a fork region of the chassis.

Preferably the fork supports the rear wheels.

Preferably the adjacently stacked vehicle above, has front wheels that extend downwards intermediate the fork.

Preferably a first vehicle has lateral misalignment of its front and rear wheels, and the second vehicle in the stack is displaced fore or aft more of the first vehicle.

In relation to any of the above aspects of the invention, wherein:

Preferably the wheels are larger than 60 mm in diameter.

Preferably the wheels are 120mm in diameter.

Preferable the front and rear wheels are the same diameter.

Alternatively, the front and rear wheels have different diameters to each other.

Preferably the chassis has a length longer than 500 mm.

Preferably the chassis has a length longer than 600 mm.

Preferably the vehicle has a width of at least 200m.

Preferably the vehicle has a width of at least 350mm.

Preferably the vehicle has a width of at least 470mm. Preferably a stack of six vehicles fits within a notional box of at least 700mm (length) x at least 500mm (width) x at least 725 mm (height).

Preferably over 1000 vehicles can fit within a 20 foot shipping container.

Preferably over 2000 vehicles can fit within a 40 foot shipping container.

Alternatively, over 3600 vehicles can fit within a 40 foot shipping container.

Preferably the vehicle comprises two laterally spaced apart rear wheels and two laterally spaced apart front wheels.

Preferably the front wheels on each side laterally line up with the respective rear wheels.

Preferably the chassis is shell formation.

Preferably the chassis is composed of one or more selected from plastics or wood.

Preferably the chassis is injection molded.

Preferably vehicle comprises a steering mechanism.

Other aspects of the invention may become apparent from the following description which is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As used herein the term "and/or" means "and" or "or", or both.

As used herein "(s)" following a noun means the plural and/or singular forms of the noun.

The term "comprising" as used in this specification [and claims] means "consisting at least in part of". When interpreting statements in this specification [and claims] which include that term, the features, prefaced by that term in each statement, all need to be present but other features can also be present. Related terms such as "comprise" and "comprised" are to be interpreted in the same manner.

In this specification, where reference has been made to external sources of information, including patent specifications and other documents, this is generally for the purpose of providing a context for discussing the features of the present invention.

Unless stated otherwise, reference to such sources of information is not to be construed, in any jurisdiction, as an admission that such sources of information are prior art or form part of the common general knowledge in the art.

For the purposes of this specification, the term "plastic" shall be construed to mean a general term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products, and generally consisting of a hydrocarbon-based polymer. For the purpose of this specification, where method steps are described in sequence, the sequence does not necessarily mean that the steps are to be chronologically ordered in that sequence, unless there is no other logical manner of interpreting the sequence.

This invention may also be said broadly to consist in the parts, elements and features referred to or indicated in the specification of the application, individually or collectively, and any or all combinations of any two or more of said parts, elements or features, and where specific integers are mentioned herein which have known equivalents in the art to which this invention relates, such known equivalents are deemed to be incorporated herein as if individually set forth.)

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

The invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the drawings in which:

Figure 1: shows a front top perspective view of a stackable ride on vehicle of the 1^st embodiment.

Figure 2: shows a top perspective view of a stack of vehicles of the 1^st embodiment.

Figure 3A: shows a top perspective view of two vehicles of the 1^st embodiment stacked.

Figure 3B: shows a top perspective view of a vehicle of the 1^st embodiment, highlighting the upper receiving region.

Figure 3C: shows a top perspective view of a vehicle of the 1^st embodiment, highlighting the underside receiving region.

Figure 4: shows a side cross sectional view of Figure 3.

Figure 5: shows a front view of a stack of vehicles of the 1^st embodiment, Figure 6: shows a right side view of a stack of vehicles of the 1^st embodiment, Figure 7: shows a top perspective view of a stack of vehicles of a 2^nd embodiment.

Figure 8: shows a top perspective view of a stack of alternative vehicles of a

2^nd embodiment.

Figure 9: shows a top perspective view of a stack of alternative vehicles of a

2^nd embodiment.

Figure 10: shows a side cross sectional view of 2 vehicles, of Figure 7, stacked upon each other.

Figure 11: shows an end view of a stack of vehicles, of Figure 7.

RECTIFICATION SHEET RULE 91 Figure 12: shows a side view of a stack of vehicles, of Figure 7.

Figure 13: shows a top perspective view of a stack of trike vehicles.

Figure 14: shows a top perspective view of a stack of alternative trike vehicles.

Figure 15: shows a top perspective view of a stack of vehicles of a 3^rd embodiment.

Figure 16: shows a side view of a stack of vehicles where a notational zig-zag line is drawn between wheel axles axes.

Figure 17: shows a side schematic view of a stack of vehicles where a notational zig-zag line is drawn between wheel axles axes.

Figure 18: shows a side schematic view of a stack of vehicles where a notational zig-zag line is drawn between wheel axles axes.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to the above drawings, in which similar features are generally indicated by similar numerals, a vehicle according to a first aspect of the invention is generally indicated by the numeral 100. And subsequently stacked like or identical shaped vehicles numbered 200, 300, 400 et cetera. A stack of these vehicles 100, 200, 300, 400 is referenced by the numeral 1000. Each vehicle 100 in a stack is preferably identical to each other and has like features which follow a similar reference scheme. A repeating assembly is two adjacently stacked vehicles, i.e. vehicle 100 and vehicle 200.

In one embodiment now described, there is a stackable child's vehicle as shown in Figure 1. The vehicle is a ride-on vehicle that a child is able to sit on and aid in transporting themselves. The vehicle generally comprises a chassis 1 that supports or forms a seat 2, grips 3, and front wheels 6 and rear wheels 7. A child is able to sit on the seat 2 whilst gripping grips 3. A child can propel themselves and the vehicle 100 via their feet on the surface that supports the vehicle 100.

A child may turn the vehicle to the left or to the right by their feet pushing on the supporting surface to the right or to the left respectively. The vehicle may have wheels that are able to turn as a result of a steering input such as from the grips 3 acting also as a steering wheel. The wheels 6 and/or 7 may be castor wheels to aid in turning (as shown in Figure 1). The Figure 1 embodiment shows that the wheels 6 and 7 are castor wheels. In other embodiments as shown in Figures 7-9, the two front wheels 6 are joined together via an axle. Alternatively they each have their own independent axle. Likewise for the back wheels 7. The front wheels 6 may be steerable to control the direction of movement of the vehicle. The vehicle 300 may be stacked upon another like or identical vehicle (e.g. 100, 200 etc.) in spaced apart yet compact horizontal and/or vertical spaced manner. A compact stack 1000 of vehicles provides for efficient transportation of the vehicle 100 and can help keep freighting costs down (i.e. in a shipping container). A compact stack 1000 is also useful at where the vehicles are stored. For example the vehicles may be stored on a shop floor or warehouse or used in an amusement centre of a shopping mall, and when not in use, they can be stacked in a compact manner.

To achieve a more compact stack 1000 (whether the stack direction extends horizontally or vertically for example), it is preferable that vehicles of the stack 1000 are able to partially nest with each other. Nesting with each other lowers the overall stack length (e.g. height if the stack extends vertically) compared to if no nesting of the stacked vehicles occurs. A factor in achieving a low stack height for the present invention is that the wheels (and optionally also the axles and handle bars, if provided) of adjacent vehicles in the stack have reduced or no interference with each other.

A stack 1000 of vehicles 100, 200, 300 and 400 in a first embodiment is shown in Figure 2. This vehicle 100, in the first embodiment, is a four wheeled vehicle, it has two front wheels 6 and two rear wheels 7. Each vehicle (e.g. 200) is stacked on another like vehicle (e.g. 100), and rotated by 180 degrees on a substantially horizontal plane (when the stack extends vertically) to the below supporting vehicle (e.g. 100). The vehicles are stacked upon each other in an alternating fashion, one vehicle facing forwards in one direction and another vehicle adjacent facing forwards in a 180 degree opposite direction to the immediately adjacent vehicle.

This alternating stacking aspect of the invention is preferably present in all of the vehicle embodiments disclosed in this specification.

There are three primary embodiments of vehicles disclosed in this specification, all of these vehicles when stacked adjacent on one another are preferably substantially directed 180 degrees alternating to each other.

In the first embodiment of vehicle, the vehicles are able to stack directly above each other. I.e. the stack 1000 is contained wholly within the footprint of the bottom most supporting vehicle - as shown in Figures 1-6. The general footprint of a vehicle 100 may be defined by the rectangle that marks the periphery of the vehicle 100 in plan view. The vehicles may be of an embodiment that are stacked directly above each other, and may have a lateral misalignment between the front wheel(s) 6 and rear wheel(s) 7 to allow an overlap of the wheels of adjacent vehicles so that the vertical height of the stack 1000 can be reduced by virtue of partial nesting of the vehicles in the stack.

In a second embodiment the vehicles are not stacked directly above one another, and as such the chassis of adjacent vehicles will have a fore and aft misalignment to each other - as shown in Figures 7-12. This fore and aft misalignment allows the front wheels 6 of a stacked vehicle 100 to locate horizontally (yet with some vertical off-set) next to rear wheels 7 of an adjacent stacked like vehicle 200, and vice versa for the opposing wheels. A notational zig-zag line can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering one end of the stack looking side one, where the wave length 1002 of the zig-zags is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than the one diameter of the wheels. The notional zig-zag line 1001 can be seen in Figure 16 and Figure 17.

In a third embodiment, there is be a fore and aft misalignment as well as a lateral misalignment of the wheels - as shown in Figure 15.

Generally the chassis 1 forms an underside receiving region 16 and/or 20 that is able to receive a protruding feature (seat 2, chassis 1, grips 3, or the like) from an adjacently stacked above or below vehicle 100 - this allows the vehicles to at least partially nest with each other. The underside receiving region 16 and/or 20 allows the stack height of a stack 1000 to be lower than it would be if the vehicles could not nest. For ease of description, the vehicle has a forward region 4, towards the grips 3 of the vehicle, in a direction that a user would face when using the vehicle. A back region 5 is at the opposite end of the vehicle to the forward region 4. A bottom region that is located towards the wheels 6 and 7 of the vehicle. A top region 18 is opposite the bottom region towards the seat 2. Generally the underside receiving region 16, is located at the bottom region 17, as it receives portions of like vehicles from below adjacently stacked vehicles. In some embodiments, the underside receiving region 16 can receive portions of vehicles that are not immediately adjacent but still below the vehicle. There may be one or more receiving regions, some of these are labelled as upperside receiving region 20. Generally the upperside receiving region 20 is able to receive the wheels 6 and/or 7 or other near like portions of an above adjacently stacked vehicle, whereas the underside receiving region 16 is configured to receive portions of a below stacked adjacent vehicle. For example, in Figure 2, the upperside receiving region 20 receives the front wheels 6 of an above stacked vehicle, and the underside receiving region 16 receives the grips 3 from a below stacked vehicle. The underside receiving region 16 may also receive a portion of the seat 2 and chassis 1 from a below stacked vehicle. This assumes the vehicles are stacked in an upright condition. Where lateral misalignment between front and rear wheel is described, it is meant that the rear wheels of a vehicle 100 are not in the same vertical plane as the front wheels of a vehicle 100 (where there are an even number of front and rear wheels). For example, in Figures 1-7 the front wheels 6 of the vehicle 100 do not laterally align with the rear wheels 7 of the vehicle 100. Figure 6 shows this clearly, where the rear wheels 7 do not line up in a vertical plane with the front wheels 6. The vertical planes 14 and 15, relating to the front and rear wheels respectively, highlight the lateral misalignment. In this embodiment, the front wheels 6 are more inwards towards the vertical longitudinal plane 13 than the rear wheels 7 are. It is not critical what wheels (front or rear) are more inward or more outward, as long as the desired configuration of the vehicle features are so that they can be stacked on one another according to the invention.

Where the word lateral is used in this specification, it is in reference to the side direction of the vehicle (e.g. left side and right side rather than front and back). The longitudinal axis of a vehicle is located on the vertical longitudinal plane 13 as shown in Figure 5. Lateral misalignment is in reference to a direction perpendicular to this vertical longitudinal plane 13.

In the first embodiment as shown in Figure 1, the vehicle 100 is able to be stacked on a like vehicle or identical vehicle by virtue of the vehicle 100 having a underside receiving region 16 that is able to receive a portion of the below vehicle. A cross-sectional view of a vehicle 100 and 200 through the longitudinal vertical plane is shown in Figure 4. It can be seen that the underside receiving region 16 is able to receive at least the grips 13 of the below vehicle 100.

The vehicle of the first embodiment as shown in Figures 1-6 preferably has a underside receiving region 16 that is able to receive the grips 3 or other portion of a like vehicle. The same embodiment may also have a further upperside receiving region 20 that is able to receive the wheels of an above and adjacently stacked vehicle. This wheel upperside receiving region 20 is clearly shown in Figure 3.

Figure 4 shows how the rear wheels 7 of the upper vehicle 200 are stacked in the upperside receiving region 20 of the lower stacked vehicle 100. A wheel upperside receiving region 20 may typically be required when there is no fore and aft misalignment between adjacent vehicles. I.e. the vehicles 100 and 200 are preferably stacked directly upon one another, in a 180 degree fashion. To achieve a low vertical stack 1000 height, it is preferred that the wheels of adjacent stacked vehicles are overlapped. A notational zig-zag line 1001 can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering one side of the stack looking side one, where the wave-length of the zig-zags is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than the one diameter of the wheels.

In one embodiment, the wave-length 1002 of the zig-zag 1001 is less than twice the diameter of the wheels 6 at that end of the stack and greater than one diameter of the wheel (as shown in Figure 16). In alternative embodiments, where there are wheels of different diameters at said one side of the stack (namely two wheels each of a diameter D1 and a wheel of a diameter D2, the rotational axis forming the nodes of a zig zag), the wave-length 1002 of the zig-zag 1001 is greater or equal to diameter D1 (Figure 17) and less than the sum of the diameter D1 and diameter D2 (Figure 18). This is shown in Figures 17 and 18, where a vehicle 100 has different diameter wheels at the front and rear.

The overlapping of wheels is shown clearly in Figure 6. To achieve this overlapping, there may be a lateral misalignment of the wheels of adjacently stacked vehicles. This lateral misalignment may be achieved by having the rear wheels 7 laterally offset from the front wheels 6 or vice versa. The lateral misalignment is shown in Figure 6, where the front wheels are located on vertical plane 15, and the rear wheels are located on the vertical plane 14. Where vertical plane 15 is more laterally offset from vertical plane 14, in particular with respect to the longitudinal vertical plane 13. The lateral misalignment allows wheels of adjacently stacked vehicles, to share the same vertical space.

It may be that in one embodiment (not shown) there is no overlap between the wheels of adjacently stacked vehicles.

When stacked it is preferred that the vehicles are substantially horizontal to the supporting surface. As such, the rotational axis of the front wheels 6 and rear wheels 7 of a vehicle 100 are preferably horizontally parallel to each other, even when in a stack 1000. However in other embodiments, one as shown in Figure 8, the vehicles are not stacked horizontally parallel to one another. Instead, the stack 1000 of Figure 8 shows the lowermost vehicle horizontal with respect to a horizontal support surface, whilst an adjacent vehicle is stacked upon the lowermost vehicle, at an angle off horizontal - and so forth for each adjacently stacked vehicle. The stack 1000 of Figure 8 has each adjacent and stacked vehicle at an angle facing downwards towards its front wheels. As the stack has alternately facing vehicles, the stacked vehicles generally face downwards towards the ends of the stack. Where the vehicles are not stacked directly above one another, as shown in the embodiments of Figures 7 to 12, then as described previously there is desirably fore and aft misalignment to allow the wheels to overlap, as shown in Figure 12.

The second embodiment of vehicle as shown in Figures 7 - 12 & 15, show vehicles 100-600 that are stacked 180 degrees to one another, and have a fore and aft misalignment between each other. One way of describing this fore and aft misalignment is that the vertical plane 22 that runs through the rotational axis of the front wheels 6 of one vehicle 600 does not line up with the vertical plane 21 running through the axis of the rear wheels 7 of the adjacently stacked vehicle 500. But preferably the two vertical planes 21 and 22 are spaced apart equal or less than one diameter of the wheels, as shown in Figure 12.

E.g. A notational zig-zag line 1001 can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering one side of the stack 1000 looking side on, where the wave-length 1002 of the notational zig-zag line 1001 is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack 1000 and greater than the one diameter of the wheels. This can be clearly seen within Figure 16.

In this second embodiment the left and right wheels respectively of vehicles are located on the same longitudinal vertical plane 14, 15, i.e. there is no lateral misalignment between the front wheels 6 and rear wheels 7 of the vehicle. This carries through to the stack 1000, where the wheels on one side of a stack 1000, are on the same longitudinal vertical plane 14, and likewise for the wheels on the other side of the stack 1000.

In a similar embodiment to the first embodiment, there is a vehicle 100 that has lateral misalignment between its wheels as shown in Figures 13 8i 14. This is similar to the embodiment shown in Figure 1, except the vehicle only has 3 wheels, i.e. it may be a trike/tricycle. It does not matter which end of the trike has two wheels and which end of the trike has a one wheel.

Like the embodiment shown in Figures 1-7, the trike may have a lateral misalignment between its front and rear wheels. Figure 13 shows a stack 1000 of vehicles, were it can be clearly seen that the front wheel 6 of a vehicle 600 locates itself intermediate the rear wheels 7 of an adjacently stacked vehicle 500. In the embodiment shown, the front wheel 6 is able to locate itself intermediate the grips 3 of the adjacently stacked vehicle. The chassis 1 comprises a underside receiving region 16 that is able to receive the grips 3 of an adjacently stacked vehicle.

The vehicle embodiment of Figure 13 and 14 is also able to receive features from vehicles that are more than one vehicle away in a stack 1000. This can be clearly shown in Figures 13 and 14, wherein the grips 3 have a receiving portion 20 able to receive the front wheel 6 of an above vehicle that is not directly adjacently stacked. In this embodiment the underside receiving region 16, located at the rear of the vehicle, is able to receive both the grips 3 from a below adjacently stacked vehicle, and the front wheel 6 from an above adjacently stacked vehicle. The underside receiving region 16 is formed from the chassis 1 in a swing arm type configuration that extends back from the seat 2. The swing arm is fork shaped and supports the rear wheels 7.

The chassis 1 may further comprise an indexing feature 24 that is able to index a portion of vehicle that is stacked upon it. The indexing feature 24 aids in having a stable stack 1000 by a portion of an adjacent vehicle being indexed with the vehicle it is stacked upon. There may be many types of indexing features 24 that are available for a person skilled in the art to use in a vehicle. An indexing feature 24 shown, as a complementary group that is shaped to have a snug fit with the received wheel of a stacked vehicle.

A final embodiment, where an example of a vehicle 100 with a fore and aft misalignment between its front wheels and the rear wheels of an adjacent vehicle when in a stack 1000, as well as lateral misalignment between its front and rear wheels, is shown in Figure 15.

Preferably in a stack 1000 of at least three consecutively stacked vehicles 100, 200 & 300, the intermediately stacked vehicle 200 does not add to the overall height of the stack 1000. The vehicle 200 is partially nested over the vehicle 100 below and within the vehicle 300 above. Preferably the rear wheels 7 of stacked vehicles 100 and 300 contact each other, as well as contacting the front wheel 6 of the intermediate stacked vehicle. The wheels at one end of a stack 1000 alternate upwards in a zigzag type fashion when viewed from the side, as shown in Figure 12 and 16.

The wheels of the first embodiment vehicle, as shown in Figure 5 and 6, do not have such a large overlap compared to the second embodiment vehicle (as shown in Figures 11 and 12). In the first embodiment as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the wheels at one end of a stack 1000, are not close enough to contact each other. However there is still vertical overlap between the intermediately stacked vehicle's 500 wheels with the adjacently stacked vehicle wheel below 400 and above vehicle 600.

In the preferred embodiment, the chassis 1 of the present invention is composed from wood or plastics. Preferably, the chassis 1 is an injection moulded shell type chassis 1, likely formed from two or pieces. The vehicle seat 2 and/or grips 3 may be integrally formed with the chassis 1, or engaged to the chassis 1. A person skilled in the art will realise many different ways of manufacturing and creating this product efficiently.

The vehicles 100 in one or more embodiments comprise through axles 36, 37 (as seen in Figure 10) that rotationally link, and/or support the wheels 6 (and/or 7) at end of a vehicle 100. The through axle provides strength and/or stiffness to the chassis 1, so the chassis 1 may use less material or be less complex due to relying on the axle to provide some overall strength and/or stiffness. In embodiments where castor wheels are used, the chassis 1 needs to be stiffer and/or stronger at the regions that support the castor wheels due to the likely higher operational loads.

To accommodate a through axle 36, 37 as in Figure 10, the vehicle 100 must allow for the through axle 36, 37 to be received above the lower stacked and adjacent vehicle, without substantially interfering with the nesting of the stack. The embodiment of figure 10 shows that the vehicle 100 is configured as a "utility" vehicle, which has a flat deck style back region formed from the chassis 1. This deck region allows the through axle 36 to not interfere with the chassis 1 of the lower stacked adjacent vehicle. The deck region acts as an upperside receiving region but at the aft end of the vehicle. Meanwhile the aft through axle 37 does not interfere with the lower adjacently stacked vehicle because of the fore and aft misalignment, meaning that the aft through axle 37 is not directly above the lower adjacently stacked vehicle.

Where in the foregoing description reference has been made to elements or integers having known equivalents, then such equivalents are included as if they were individually set forth.

Although the invention has been described by way of example and with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that modifications and/or improvements may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A stackable ride-on vehicle capable of at least partially nesting with a like or identical ride-on vehicle to form a stack of vehicles, the vehicle comprising, a. a chassis comprising; a top region comprising a seat and where preferably a hand grip is presented; a forward region at and a back region opposite the forward region; and a bottom region, opposite the top region, comprising at least one underside receiving region; and b. at least three wheels dependent from the chassis, each wheel having a rotational axis, there being at least one wheel at the front, and wherein the underside receiving region is adapted to receive at least part of the top region of a like or identical shaped below vehicle from below the vehicle, where the below vehicle is to be oriented facing forwards in a direction opposite to the forward facing direction of the vehicle.

2. A stackable ride-on vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein the underside receiving region is shaped to receive one or more of at least a portion of the chassis, seat and grips from a below vehicle.

3. A stackable ride-on vehicle as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein the chassis comprises an upperside receiving region adapted to receive a portion of a like or identical shaped above vehicle from above the vehicle, where the above vehicle is oriented facing in a forward direction that is opposite to the forward direction of the vehicle.

4. A stackable ride-on vehicle as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 3 wherein the upperside receiving region is shaped to receive at least one or more wheels from an above adjacently stacked vehicle.

5. A stackable ride-on vehicle as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 4 wherein the upperside receiving region is located at one of the forward region and back region, and the portion of a like or identical shaped vehicle is at the opposite of said one of the forward region and back region.

6. A stackable ride-on vehicle as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 5 wherein the chassis and underside and/or upperside receiving regions are configured so that the vehicle wheels vertically overlap with the wheels of at least one other like or identical shaped vehicle adjacently stacked.

7. A stackable ride-on as claimed in claim 6 wherein the wheels vertically overlap by at least ¼ of the diameter of the wheel.

8. A stackable ride-on as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 7 wherein in a stack of three said vehicles at least partially nested together, a notational zig-zag line can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering the array of wheels at end and one side of the stack looking side on, and the zig zag has a notional wave length.

9. A stackable ride-on as claimed in claim 8 wherein the wave-length of the zig-zag is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than one diameter of the wheel.

10. A stackable ride-on as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 9 wherein the front wheel(s) are laterally offset with the rear wheels.

11. A stackable ride-on as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 10 wherein there are two front wheels and two rear wheels, the spacing between the two front wheels being different to the spacing between the two rear wheels.

12. A stackable ride-on as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 10 wherein the vehicle has three wheels, two wheels at the back region, and one wheel at the forward region.

13. A stack of stackable ride-on vehicles, the stack comprising two or more vehicles, each vehicle identical to one another and each comprising a seat to configured to support a user and at least three wheels extending from a chassis, wherein a first vehicle is supported on a supporting surface, and a second vehicle is supported on the first vehicle, wherein the wheels of the second vehicle vertically and/or horizontally overlap with the wheels of the first vehicle.

14. A stack as claimed in claim 13 wherein each vehicle comprises a grip configured to be gripped by a user.

15. A stack as claimed in 13 or 14 wherein the first vehicle and second vehicle face 180 degrees away one another.

16. A stack as claimed in anyone of claims 13 to 15 wherein the rear wheels of the first vehicle, are adjacent the front wheels of the second vehicle and/or vice versa.

17. A stack as claimed in anyone of claims 13 to 16 wherein in a stack of three said vehicles at least partially nested together, a notational zig-zag line can be drawn between wheel axles axes when considering the array of wheels at end and one side of the stack looking side on, and the zig zag has a notional wave length.

18. A stack as claimed in claim 17 wherein the wave-length of the zig-zag is less than twice the diameter of the wheels at that end of the stack and greater than one diameter of the wheel.

19. A stack as claimed in anyone of claims 13 to 18 wherein a first vehicle has lateral misalignment of its front and rear wheels, and the second vehicle in the stack is displaced fore or aft more of the first vehicle.

20. A stack as claimed in anyone of claims 13 to 19 wherein the wheels are larger than 60 mm in diameter.