US2575055A - Guided toy vehicle - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 13, 1951 c. O. JAEGER GUIDED TOY VEHICLE 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed April 15, 1949 INVENTOR. CLEMENS o. .JAEGER ,4 77A RNff C. O. JAEGER GUIDED TOY VEHICLE Nov. 13, 1951 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed April 15, 1949 IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII/JV/l I N VEN TOR. CLEMENS O- JAEGER K 0% A1 aka/5i.

Patented Nov. 13, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GUIDED TOY VEHICLE Clemens 0. J aeger, Milwaukee, Wis.

Application April 15, 1949, Serial No. 87,792

Claims.

My invention relates to actuated toys and more particularly to actuated wheel toys that are guided along a pre-determined path during their actuation.

The object of my invention is to provide a wheel toy that is guided by a flexible path in the form of a cable, flexible rod, wire, flat or metal plastic band, or any other pliable guiding means.

Another object of my invention is to provide a toy that is guided by a cable which may be arranged into any shape or contour.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a wheel toy that is portable and is used with a rail or cable that is portable, so that the entire unit, including the toy and the cable, may be easily jransported and stored.

A further object of my invention is to provide a toy that is easy to manipulate, economical to manufacture, diversified in its shape and contour yet eiiicient and serviceable for the purpose for which it is intended.

It is manifest to anyone familiar with the construction of wheel toys that are guided on a track or rail, that it is ofttimes quite cumbersome and inconvenient to assemble the sections of rails and to keep them in engagement with one another. It is also necessary to prepare a particular arrangement of space to accommodate the shape and size of the 'rail'arrangement which is by necessity rigid and covers a pre-determined contour of space.

The device specified and claimed herein is a wheel toy that is guided by a flexible cable which may be placed on a surface to assume any shape, to accommodate the space that is available, and may be folded into a compact space when not in use.

Other and further objects of my invention will become more apparent as the description proceeds when taken in conjunction with the drawings in which Figure 1 is a side view of a wheel toy showing the guide shoe at its forward end for engagement with the upper surface of the cable.

Figure 2 is a top or plan view of an endless cable which may be looped into any position or shape, and showing the wheel toy in position during its operation.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary side view of a portion of the toy, showing the guide shoe in contact with the portion of the cable.

Figure 4 is a front view of the device as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a front view similar to Figure 4 showing a revolving wheel instead of a shoe for contact with the cable.

Figure 6 is a side view similar to Figure 3 showing the wheel arrangement as shown in Figure 5 for contact with the upper half of the peripheral cable.

Figure '7 is a fragmentary side view of the toy showing the sliding shoe in contact with the cable for guiding the path of the toy.

Figure 8 is a similar view as shown in Figure '7 showing the spring actuation of the guide when the toy is in a raised position and the cable follows an uneven or irregular vertical path.

Figure 9 is a top or plan view of the axle and front wheel assembly showing the shoe guide integrally constructed with the axle, and

Figure 10 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the attachment of the shoe guide and axle to the body of the vehicle.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views and referring now to the same, the character III shows a wheel toy in the form of an automobile. This toy however may be a train or a fanciful animal or the like that is mounted on four wheels as shown by the character H. The toy has an outwardly projectingmember I2 which by necessity must extend outward from the axle ll of the toy as shown in Figures 9 and 10 and provided with an aperture H" for supporting the screw ll engaging the body of the toy so that the toy which incidentally may be either electrically actuated or may be actuated by means of a spring motor, will be guided by the service performed by a vertical stem l3 extending vertically through the projecting member [2 and provided with a shoe M at its extreme lower end.

The shoe I4 is shown as slideably contacting the endless cable 20 however the shoe may be replaced with a wheel shown as IS in Figures 5 and 6, which wheel is mounted into a yoke shown as [6 acting as a bearing for the axle I! supporting the wheel l5.

Encircling the vertical stem l3, between the lower face of theoutwardly projecting member l2 and the shoe [4 or the wheel yoke 16, is a resilient member shown as a spring l8, which has a tendency to force the shoe downward from the outwardly projecting member 12, and the upper end of the stem I3 is provided with a pin shown as l9 to arrest the downward movement of the vertical stem l3 against the tension of the spring [8.

There is a pliable cable 20 which may be either endless or may have open ends, this pliable cable 29 may be placed onto a level surface such as a floor or the like, and may be shaped to any form or contour due to its pliable nature.

The operation of the device is quite obvious inasmuch as when the toy is caused to move, due to the actuating force either electricity or a spring wound motor, it will have its forward end contacting the cable with either a shoe or a wheel as illustrated, this contact will cause the toy to follow the path of the pliable cable due to the swivel mounting of the axle I I on the body I ll by means of: the screw II. The cable may be placed in any shape or form and the object of the resilient member I8 is to constantly keep the shoe [4 or the wheel I 5 in contact with the upper half of the periphery of the cable, when the cable is placed over uneven surfaces suchas is shown in Figure 8, where an obstruction '2l--showsthe toy l0 raised above the low point'ofthe'cableand showing the cable forming a downwardly disposed angle at 22. Obviously the reverse is true when the cable is in a raised path and whether --the device is guided by a shoe or awheel, the stem l3 will be able to revolve and: follow any curve in the cable asit is placed on the floor, and the wheel toy will be guided accordingtozthe shape. or contour'ofthe cable asit is placed on the floor.

The device lends sitself to an arrangement whereby the necessity of a 'fixed or rigid track is entirely eliminated and the pliable cablemay be folded into a compactlspaceto take'up very little space in the storing and tiansportingof the entire unit.

Obviously there maybe many changes in the form andlconfiguration. of the :cable or the toy, and although I have shown a particulararrangementcf the componentpartsconstituting the device, I do not wish to limit myself to the specific structure shown, for many changesimay bemade without affecting the operativeness of thedevice,

and I reserve the right to make such changes without departing from the spiritof my invention or the scope of :the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire 'to secure by Letters Patent in the UnitedStates is:

l. Adevice of the character described-comprising in combination, a wheel toy and a pliable cable, said toy 'provided'with a forwardly-rpmjectingmember fixed to the pivotedfront :axle

of said toy, a vertical stem ,jslideably engaging the forward end of said projectingmember, a contact shoe attached to the lower end of-said cable, said toy provided with a forwardly projecting member fixed to the pivoted front axle of said toy, a vertical stem member slideably and pivotally journaled within the forward end of said'proiecting member, a contact shoe attached to the lower end of said vertical stem member,

ingrmember fixed to the'pivoted front axle of said toy, a vertical stem member slideably and pivotally journaled within the end of said forwardly projecting member, a wheel mounting on ssaid-stem, a contact wheel rotatably mounted in the lower end of said wheel mounting and extendingdownward therefrom, said wheel having an .engagingsurface for contact with said cable. a resilient member, said resilient member disposed between said forwardly projecting member and said wheel mounting for urging said wheel -into contact with the upper half of theperipheral .surfaceof said pliable cable.

14. A device .of the character described comprising in combination, a wheel toy and a pliable cable, said toy provided with a forwardly projectingmember fixed to the pivoted front axle of :said-toy, a vertical stem slideably engaging the forward end of said projecting member, a wheel mounting on said stem, a contact wheel rotatably mounted in the lower end of said wheel mounting and extendingtherebelow, said wheel having an engaging surface for contact with said cable when said cable is disposed on a flat surface, a

:resilientmember, said resilient member disposed between said forwardly projecting member and said wheel mounting for urging said wheel into contact with theupper half of the peripheral surface of said pliable cable.

5. A device of the character described comprising in combination, a wheel toy and a pliable cable, said toy provided with a forwardly projecting member fixed to the pivoted front axle of said toy, a vertical stem member slideably and pivotally journaled within the end of said forwardly projecting member, a contact shoe attached to the lower end of said vertical member,

saidrshoe having an engaging surface for contact with said cable, a resilient member, said resilient member disposed between said forwardly extending member and said sliding shoe for urging said shoe into contact with the upper half of the peripheral surface of said pliable cable.

CLEMENS O. JAEGER.

REFERENCES CITED The'following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 287,886 Terras Nov. 6, 1883 419,594 Morgan Jan. 14, 1890 2,120,251 Johnson June 14, 1938 "FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 102,385 England Mar. 29, 1917

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