Abstract:
A three wheeled electrically driven scooter having a front wheel drive. The scooter consists of three main components including a steering column having a front wheel attached at its bottom, a platform assembly and a seat assembly having a seat thereon. The front wheel drive includes a planetary speed reducing gear. The steering column is movably attached to the platform in such a manner so that the steering column can be adjusted in various positions relative to a vertical line and relative to the platform assembly. The seat assembly is mounted on the platform assembly so that the seat assembly can swing from a position where a person can sit on the seat on the seat assembly to an inactive position enabling the person to stand on a platform of the platform assembly.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     none 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FED SPONSORED R &amp; D 
     none 
     REFERENCE TO MICROFICHE APPENDIX 
     none 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention pertains to a motorized three-wheeled scooter for use by adults as well as teen-agers that are limited in their bodily movement. The limited movement is either caused by an accident or through a birth defect. The scooter is also designed and constructed for when a person&#39;s disability is such that the person can stand for awhile but then easily fatigues and must sit down. This scooter can accommodate both of these instances. The scooter of the invention also shows its versatility when operating the same in a crowded environment where the operation of a motorized scooter can be dangerous because a person sitting down has limited view or visibility. With the motorized scooter of the invention a person operating in this crowded environment has a choice of either standing up or sitting down when operating the scooter. When standing up, the person has an excellent view over the crowd because of the platform on the scooter, on which the person is standing. The person, when standing up has a steady support by simply grasping the handle bars of the steering column of the scooter. The person is somewhat elevated above the crowd and can therefore plot the way to go. This versatility from standup to sit-down can be accomplished within seconds without any tools or other major operations. The scooter itself consists of only three major components which can easily be disassembled and stored in the trunk or the back seat of a car. Scooters are known in the prior art either from patents or from sales brochures. 
     U.S. Des. Pat. No. 430,063 shows a three-wheeled electric scooter apparently having a front wheel drive. The structure of the front wheel drive cannot be gleaned from the drawings and/or description. The illustrated scooter has a standup platform only. 
     U.S. Des. Pat. No. 414,220 illustrates a three-wheeled scooter that also has a standup platform only. The scooter appears to be driven by the rear wheels. 
     U.S. Des. Pat. No. 428,365 illustrates a three wheeled scooter. It is not clear if there is a power drive and where. The seat assembly cannot be adapted to move from an active position to an inactive position. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,189 shows a scooter that is not motorized. It is not three-wheeled and has a very large front wheel. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,755 discloses a three wheeled scooter having a rear wheel drive. The seat cannot swing from an active position where a person can sit on a seat to an inactive position where the person can assume a standing position. This is a disadvantage in that the scooter dimensions have to be increased considerably especially in its length which will impact on its maneuverability. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,337 shows a three wheeled scooter having a rear wheel drive and the seat is not described as being swingable from an active position where a person can sit on the seat to an inactive position where a person can stand on the platform of the scooter. The sales brochure by “Lifestyle Mobility Aids” illustrates a three-wheeled scooter “Minitraveler™” having a rear wheel drive including a seat. It is not designed and constructed to be used as a sitdown or a standup scooter. 
     The sales brochure by “Lark of America” shows a three-wheeled scooter under the name of “Lark 3”. The scooter shown has a rear wheel drive and a sitdown chair. It is believed that both scooters shown in the above brochures cannot be used for any standup operation unless the seats are removed altogether first. 
     SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
     One of the objects of the invention is to construct and to present a three-wheeled scooter that is very versatile in that it can be used alternately in a standup or sitdown mode without requiring any tools or major operations such as assembly or disassembly. This is simply accomplished by manually moving the chair from a use to a non-use position on the scooter. Another object is to provide a front wheel drive which is very sure-footed by using a gear drive. Another object is to design a steering column or driving tiller which is adjustable in height and into various vertical positions. The scooter consists of three components which can easily be disassembled and again assembled without the use of any tools which components can easily be stored in the trunk or the back seat of a car. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective and exploded view of the overall scooter; 
     FIG. 2 shows the mounting of the steering column on the main frame of the scooter; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates the movable seat relative to the main frame; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross section through the front wheel planetary gear drive; 
     FIG. 5 shows a different way of accommodating a swinging movement of the seat assembly. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1 shows the three basic components of the scooter in a perspective as well as in an exploded view. The three basic components consist of the steering column or tiller  1 , the main frame  2  with the standup platform  4  and the seat assembly  3  with the seat  3   a.  Each of the three components will now be described in detail. With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are shown the connecting parts that connect the steering column  1  to the main frame  2 . To this end the main frame has a support plate  5  attached thereto at about its top midpoint. The support plate  5  has two eye bolts  6  and  7  attached thereto. The eye bolts  6  and  7  are adjustable relative to the support plate  5 . This is accomplished by two nuts  6   a  and  6   b  on eye bolt  6  and two nuts  7   a  and  7   b  on eye bolt  7 . It is clear now that once the bolts  6  and  7  are passed through the respective holes in the support plate  5 , both bolts can be adjusted at different distances from the support plate  5  by threading the respective nuts  6   a  and  6   b , respectively,  7   a  and  7   b  at different distances from the support plate  5 . The relative positions will be explained below. The eyes  6   c  and  7   c  of the eye bolts  6  and  7 , respectively, have gimbal bearings  6   d  and  7   d  received therein, which can tilt freely relative to their respective eye bolts. The steering support column  1  has two support tangs  8  and  9  attached thereto. The lower tang  8  has located thereon at the outer end a cylindrical mandrel  10 , which is reduced at its upper end  11 , which serves as a guide when the gimbal bearing  6   d  of eye bolt  6  is passed over the same. The upper support tang  9  has a threaded mandrel  12  located at its outer end. The lower part (not shown) of mandrel  12  is cylindrical to receive the gimbal bearing  7   d of eye bolt  7  thereon, while the upper part of mandrel  12  is threaded to receive the lock nut or thumb nut  13  thereon to prevent the eye bolt  7  to escape from the mandrel  12  once it is received thereon. 
     The method of connecting the steering column  1  to the main frame  2  is as follows: One hand of a user will grasp the steering column  1  while the other hand grasps the main frame  2 . It is merely up to the person, assembling the two components, to guide the gimbal bearing in eye bolt  6  over the reduced portion  11  of the mandrel  10  first, which acts as a pilot, and then to line up the other gimbal bearing in eye bolt  7  over the threaded mandrel  12  and thereafter to let both components drop into their respective positions. By applying the lock nut onto the threaded mandrel  12 , the connection is now locked into place. It is noted that no tools are required to accomplish the above noted task. 
     The adjustability of the steering column  1  relative to the support plate  5  on the main frame  2  will now be explained. Once the connection between the steering column  1  and the main frame  2  via the support plate  5  has been made, the nuts  6   a  and  6   b  or the eye bolt  6  are loosened and so are the nuts  7   a  and  7   b  on the eye bolt  7 . Both eye bolts  6  and  7  can now be moved in or out of the support plate  5 . If the support column  1  should take on a more vertical position, the eye bolt  7  is moved farther out of the support plate  5  and the other or lower eye bolt  6  is moved farther in relative to the support plate  5 , whereby the steering column will assume a more vertical position or orientation. The lock nuts  6   a  and  6   b  and the lock nuts  7   a  and  7   b  are now fastened. If an orientation away from the vertical is desired, the reverse adjustment would have to be made. In FIG. 3 there is shown, by way of example, an angle A to indicate the range of movement of the steering column. Still referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a rubber grommet  14  for passing the electric wiring there through. Also there is shown a battery box  15  including a battery receptacle  15   a  having a lid  16  thereon to protect the battery located therein from the elements. The two hooks  55  can be used for hanging a basket thereon. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 3, there is shown the movable seat assembly arrangement. The seat assembly  3  consists of a U-shaped seat frame  17  with the U being inverted whereby at the top of the U a seat  3   a  is attached. At each end of the U-shaped frame there is each a stabilizer bar  18  and  19  attached in a rigid configuration. At the other end of each stabilizer bar, wheels  18   a  and  19   a , respectively, are attached which will be explained below. On the platform  4  on each side, there are two upstanding support plates  4   a  and  4   b  attached. On each of the support plates  4   a  and  4   b  there are two bearing places for the legs of the seat frame  17  provided. In the upstanding support plate  4   b  there is shown a hole  4   c.  There is also a hole in the other upstanding support plate  4   a  (not shown). The purpose of these holes is to receive the locking pegs  20  and  21  therein so that the frame assembly  17  can swing there around. When the frame assembly is to be installed in these holes, the two legs of the U-shape have to be squeezed together to be able to enter the holes  4   c.  Once the locking pegs  20  and  21  are received in the holes  4   c , the squeeze of the U-shape can be relaxed and the locking pegs  20  and  21  will firmly lock between the two upstanding support plates  4   a  and  4   b  while still being able to rotate around the same. On each of the stabilizer bars  18  and  19  two stabilizer pins  20   a  and  21   a  are attached. When the seat frame  17  is rotated around the holes  4   c  (on each side) to a seating or an active position, both of the stabilizer pins  20   a  and  21   a  will seat in the recesses  4   d  and  4   e  in the upstanding plates  4   a  and  4   b , respectively. This will assure a stable support for the seat assembly. The stabilizer wheels  18   a  and  19   a  are added so that the whole platform assembly may be stabilized when the person sitting on the seat leans back too far to thereby shift the weight too far past the rear wheels  27  to thereby upset the balanced weight of the seat assembly. When this happens the two wheels will touch ground to thereby remedy the above noted problem. It is now clear that the seat assembly disclosed can easily be converted to a person&#39;s standup or sitdown mode merely by swinging the seat assembly around the locking pegs  20  and  21  in their respective holes  4   c . Further shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 are footrests  25 . There is further shown a brake pedal  26  which pivots around the pivot pin  26   a.  When stepping on the brake pedal, the brake pad  26   b  will engage with one of the rear wheels  27 . On top of the steering column  1  there is provided a console  28  which contains the various control devices to operate the scooter. Thus, there is a steering handle  29  and an accelerator handle  30  which, when rotated as shown by arrow B, controls the speed of the scooter through a rheostat contained in the console  28 . On the console  28  there is further shown an off and on switch  31 , a forward and reverse switch  32 , a fuse  33  and a horn button  34  to activate the horn  35 . 
     Another embodiment of attaching the seat assembly on the platform  4  and to accommodate the same for a swinging movement is shown in FIG.  5 . This alternative embodiment includes the platform  4  and the seat frame  17  depending from the seat assembly. At the lower end of the seat frame  17  are located two depending plates  57  and  58  which are either integral with the leg structure of the seat frame  17  or welded thereto. The space between the plates is traversed by a pin  59 . On the platform  4  again an upstanding plate  56  has been provided which has a forward slot  56   a  provided thereon which slot has a rearward inclination of about 45°. There is a stabilizing bar  55  attached to the seat frame  17  in a horizontal manner. However the rear end  55   a  of the horizontal bar is rearwardly inclined from the horizontal. This inclination allows for the attachment of a much smaller stabilizing wheel  18   a  of about the size of an in-line skate wheel. This alone reduces the size and the weight of the seat assembly. Also on the horizontal bar  55 , a downwardly depending plate  60  is attached for the purpose of stabilizing the horizontal bar  55  once it is attached to the platform  4 . The attachment is as follows: The seat assembly is taken in both hands by a user and placed over the platform  4 . Of course, there are two depending legs on each side of the seat assembly. By slightly tilting the seat assembly forward, the traversing pin  59  between the plates  57  and  58  can now enter the rearwardly inclined slot  56   a  until it seats in the bottom thereof. Thereafter, the horizontal stabilizer bar will rest on the upstanding plate  56  and the depending plate or stop  60  will slip behind the edge  56   b  of the plate  56  and thereafter will prevent any forward movement of the seat assembly in a fully stabilized manner. 
     Turning now to FIGS. 1 and 4, there is shown on the lower section of the steering column a front wheel  40 , having a pneumatic tire  40   a  mounted thereon, which is mounted by way of a yoke  41 . The yoke  41  in turn is attached to the lower end of the steering column  1  by way of a weld. The yoke  41  is mounted to the electric motor  42  by way of a flange plate  43  which is curved to match the outer contour of the circular housing of the electric motor  42 . The flange plate  43  in turn is fastened to the motor  42  by way of two hose clamps  44 . This way the yoke  41  is rigidly and securely fastened to the electric motor  42 . It is noted that the other end of the yoke at  41   a  is free of any other connection in the front wheel drive. The front wheel itself is driven by a planetary gear drive which is contained in the housing  47  which is attached to the motor housing  42  and, therefore, does not rotate. The motor shaft  45  drives the speed reduction planetary gearing  48  which in turn drives the shaft  46  at a reduced speed when compared to the speed of the motor shaft  45 . This type of gearing is well known. What is not known is how the wheel  40  is now driven from the reduction gear shaft  46  according to the invention. To this end, a keyless bushing  49  is fastened to the gear shaft  46 . A keyless bushing consists of three parts: an inner cylindrical and slotted wedge-shaped part is inserted into an outer cylindrical and slotted wedge-shaped part. The two wedge-shaped parts are pulled into each other by a nut on the inner part whereby both parts will expand at the same time. In the application at hand, the inner part will wedge against the shaft  46  passing there through while the outer part will wedge against the inner circumference of an opening in a bell-shaped housing  50 . The keyless bushing has not been shown because it is well known in the art. The housing  50  is welded to the bushing at its bell section while the open end of the bell is fastened to wheel  40  by bolts  51  which are welded to the inturned flange  52 . In case the flange  52  is an outturned flange, the bolts  51  may pass directly through the flange and into the wheel  40 . FIG. 4 further shows the electric wire connections  54  as the wires pass through the steering column  1  into the electric motor  42 . FIG. 1 further shows the electric leads  53  as they lead to the battery (not shown) contained in the battery housing  15 . It is preferred that all three tires be of a pneumatic construction for a smoother ride. The front tire  40   a , being the driving tire, is of a size 4.10/3.50-6 size. The two rear tires are of 2.50-4 size, although other tire sizes for all three tires may used.