Patent ID: 6092615
Filing Date: 2000-07-25
Classification: A61G,B60K,B60Y,Y10S

Abstract:
A power assisted manually propelled vehicle comprising:a chassis;a power assisted wheel assembly, which includes:stationary wheel support coupled to the chassis,a rotatable wheel rotatably mounted to the stationary wheel support, andan electric motor having a moving part and a stationary part, the stationary part being coupled to the stationary wheel support and the moving part being coupled to the rotatable wheel, the moving part being concentrically situated over the stationary part with a gap therebetween,wherein the rotatable wheel is freely rotatable relative to the stationarywheel support when the electric motor is not powered; anda control system for selectively activating the motor,wherein the moving part comprises a rotor having rotor magnets and the stationary part comprises a stator having stator windings,wherein the stationary wheel support includes a first annular well and a second annular well concentric with and around the first annular well, the first annular well being adapted to house a power supply and the control system, and the second well housing the stator,wherein the stationary wheel support comprises an axially extending hub, a first portion extending radially from one end of the hub, and a second portion extending axially from an outer end of the first portion toward the other end of the hub, a pair of radially extending sections extending radially from the second portion, the first annular well being formed between the hub and the second portion and the second annular well being formed between the radially extending sections, andwherein the rotatable wheel comprises an outer rim and an inner ring, the outer rim being connected to the inner ring by support members, the inner ring being rotatably mounted to the radially extending sections, the rotor being connected to the inner ring, concentrically over the stator with a gap therebetween.