Abstract:
A toy model having a chassis, radio control circuitry, shock absorbers, and a swing servo mechanism configured to move left and right wheels of the model up and down. A leaning mechanism in communication with the radio control circuitry and the swing servo is employed, and the leaning mechanism is configured to provide a leaning movement and to shift a center of gravity of the model in a steering direction. Steering knuckles are twisted against steering holders to make a twisted angle with respect to a pivot pin, and the pivot pin enables the simultaneous leaning movement of the model and steering to an inclined side of the model.

Description:
[0001]    RELATED APPLICATION DATA 
         [0002]    This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/762,542 filed on Feb. 8, 2013. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    1. Field of the Technology 
         [0004]    The present invention relates to radio control toy models. More particularly, it relates to a radio control toy model which is capable of maintaining stable attitude with shifted center of gravity by leaning the vehicle body to the left or right and also steering to the left or right simultaneously. 
         [0005]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0006]    In order to maintain stable attitude or to increase steering performance, conventional radio control toy vehicles are generally designed with, for example, contraption on suspension, optional tire material, added differential gear systems on driving wheels, or other methods to increase the friction force (i.e., “grip”) against running surfaces. However, those conventional radio control to vehicles may still turn over or skid on slippery or uneven surfaces due to the limited friction force or the “grip.” Thus, it becomes apparent that there is a need for a system which provides better steering performance and controllability in radio control toy vehicles. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    Conventional radio control toy vehicles are generally positioned horizontally to the running surfaces, but according to one aspect of the present principles, a radio control toy vehicle may shift its center of gravity to the steering direction by leaning the vehicle body by employing a servo mechanism when the vehicle turns to the left or right. In one embodiment, a proprietary steering mechanism may be linked simultaneously with the leaning movement of the vehicle body, so that from wheels are also able to face to the turning direction. 
         [0008]    Centrifugal force is generally produced opposite to the turning direction of vehicle in motion when it is forced to change the direction. Conventional radio control toy vehicles may turn over or skid when the centrifugal force exceeds the gripping force of the vehicles. However, the radio control toy vehicle according to one aspect of the present principles is able to keep a stable attitude when the vehicle turns to the left or right because its center of gravity may be shifted opposite to the centrifugal force by employing a servo mechanism to achieve the leaning movement. Therefore, the present principles are able to provide better steering performance and controllability to the radio control toy vehicles. 
         [0009]    Other aspects and features of the present principles will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purpose of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the present principles, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. It should be further understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    In the drawings wherein like reference numerals denote similar components throughout the views: 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a top view of the interior of the toy model with leaning capability according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is perspective views of the exterior of the toy model with leaning capability according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a schematic view of the inner workings of the steering mechanism of the to model with leaning capability according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability showing the steering and leaning system according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0015]      FIG. 5A  is a top and front cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability in a non-active position according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0016]      FIG. 5B  is a top and front cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability in an active position according to an embodiment of the present principles; 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a three wheeled embodiment of the toy model with leaning capability in a non-active position according to an embodiment of the present principles; and 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the interior of a three wheeled embodiment of the toy model with leaning capability in an active position according to an embodiment of the present principles. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0019]    The radio control toy model which is capable of maintaining stable attitude with shifted center of gravity by leaning the vehicle body to the left or right and also steering to the left or right simultaneously according to the present principles may include a variety of configurations. 
         [0020]    By way of example, and referring initially to  FIG. 1 , a top view of the interior of the to model with leaning capability  100  is illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In accordance with one implementation, the radio control toy vehicle  100  includes tires/wheels  102 ,  103 ,  105 ,  107 , as swing servo  104 , motor/gear assemblies  106 ,  108 , a printed circuit board/receiver (RX PCB)  110 , a battery  112 , and a chassis  114 . The swing servo may activate the steering system in one embodiment. 
         [0021]    The left and right driving motors  106 , 108  may be located at the rear of the chassis  114 . The left motor  108  may drive a left rear wheel  103 , and the right motor  106  may drive a right rear wheel  102 . A servo motor may be located inside the swing servo  104 , which may provide a steering motion either to the left or right for the front wheels  105 ,  107 . The RX PCB  110  may receive a signal from a remote or transmitter (not shown). The RX PCB  110  may control the left and right driving motors  106 ,  108  and the servo motor individually and allows each motor turn either in clockwise, counter-clockwise or stop modes. The user can control the vehicle, and may direct the vehicle to move, for example, forward, backward, left turn, right turn or stop by using various combinations of rotations from the left and right driving motors  106 ,  108  and the steering motor. 
         [0022]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , perspective views of the exterior of the toy model with leaning capability are illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In one embodiment, the swing servo enables the vehicle body lean to the left or right as shown in  206  and  202 , respectively. A top view of the vehicle body shown leaning to the left or right is illustratively depicted in  210  and  208 , respectively. The Swing Servo is also able to activate steering system via linkage mechanism (not shown). The leaning movement of the vehicle is able to shift its center of gravity to the opposite direction of the centrifugal force when the car turns to the left or right, as shown in  202  and  206 . 
         [0023]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , schematic view of the inner workings of the steering mechanism of the toy model with leaning capability  300  is illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In one embodiment, the proprietary steering system on the chassis includes a swing servo  302 , one or more upper arms  304 , a swing plate  306 , one or more steering links  308 , “Pin A”  310 , one or more steering knuckles  312 , one or more knuckle holders  314 , one or more screw shafts  316 , one or more lower arms  318 , and one or more shock absorbers  320 . 
         [0024]    Referring now to  FIG. 4 , a cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability showing the steering and leaning system  400  is illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In one embodiment, the proprietary steering system on the chassis  416  includes “Pin A”  402 , one or more steering, links  404 ,  405 , a swing plate  406 , one or more shock absorbers  408 , one or more upper arms  410 , one or more knuckle holders  412 , one or more lower arms  414 ,  418 , and one or more steering knuckles  420 . 
         [0025]    In one embodiment according to the present principles, the leaning movement of the vehicle may be controlled by the swing servo, and the proprietary steering system may be linked with the leaning movement of the vehicle and may enable the vehicle steer either to the left or right simultaneously with the leaning movement. 
         [0026]    The swing plate  404  may be moved by a servo motor inside the Swing Servo mounted on the chassis  414  via gear reduction. The top of each shock absorber  406  may be connected to the swing plate  404 , and the bottom of each shock absorber  406  may be connected to the left and right lower arms  412 ,  418 . The shock absorbers  406  are able to change rotary motion of the swing servo to vertical motion, and the vertical motion may he transmitted to the lower arms  412 ,  418  and all suspension related mechanisms. The leaning movement of the vehicle can be controlled by the above-mentioned multiple linked mechanism. 
         [0027]    In one embodiment, during the execution of the leaning movement, the shock absorbers  408  are not compressed and are able to maintain normal stroke even during the leaning movement, so the shock absorbers  408  are able to provide the same shock absorbing effect as when the vehicle is in horizontal position even when the vehicle turns to the left or right and/or is leaning. The left and right steering links  404 ,  405  may be connected to the chassis  414  and each side of the steering knuckles  420 , and the steering knuckles  420  surrounded by the knuckle holders  410  may be connected to each side of the lower arms  412 ,  418  and the upper arms  410 ,  411 , which may also be connected to the chassis  414 . 
         [0028]    Referring now to  FIG. 5A  and  FIG. 5B , a top and front cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability in a non-active position  500  and a top and front cross sectional view of the toy model with leaning capability in an active position  510 , respectively, are illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles 
         [0029]    In one embodiment, only one side of the lower arms  508 , the upper arms  506 , and the steering links  512  is connected to the chassis  501 . When the vehicle leans either to the left or right by the swing servo, the steering knuckles  514  may be twisted against the steering holders  516  and may form a “twisted angle”  503 ,  505  with respect to the pivoting of “Pin A”  509  because the length of the lower arms  506  and the upper arms  508  are different from the length of the steering links  512  The steering knuckles  514  may be connected to the front wheels and may determine the steering direction of the vehicle. The present principles may enable the leaning movement of the vehicle and may also enable the vehicle to steer to the inclined side of the vehicle simultaneously. 
         [0030]    In another embodiment, to enable the steering and leaning mechanism to be more efficient, the leaning movement enabled by the swing servo may be added to the rear suspension as well as the front suspension. It is noted, however, that the leaning movement only added to the front suspension is also an efficient mechanism. It is further noted that while a vehicle with two (2) driving motors in the rear of the chassis with a conventional front steering system is discussed above as an exemplary embodiment, it is to be understood that the present principles may be applied to any sorts of vehicles (e.g., front drive vehicles, 4-wheel drive vehicles, 3-wheel vehicles, etc.). 
         [0031]    It is further noted that while the above example shows a pickup truck mounted on a low profile chassis, it is contemplated that not only the pickup truck or buggy style body (not shown) mounted on the low profile chassis may be employed, but any other sorts of vehicles may be employed according to the present principles (e.g., vehicles with a higher profile chassis such as monster truck, which can he more efficient for the present principles because the center of gravity can be placed in higher location). 
         [0032]    Referring now to  FIG. 6 , a perspective view of a three wheeled embodiment of the toy model with leaning capability in a non-active position  600  is illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In one embodiment, the toy model includes a swing servo  602 , an RX PCB  604 , a battery  606 , a chassis  608 , a motor/gear assembly,  610 , and tires/wheels  612 . 
         [0033]    Referring now to  FIG. 7 , a perspective view of a three wheeled embodiment of the toy model with leaning capability in an active position  700  is illustratively depicted according to an embodiment of the present principles. In one embodiment, the toy model includes a swing servo,  702 , an RX PCB  704 , a battery  706 , a chassis  708 , a motor/gear assembly  710 , and tires/wheels  712 . 
         [0034]    While there have been shown, described and pointed out fundamental novel features of the present principles, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details of the methods described and devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the same. For example, it is expressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or method steps which perform substantially the same function in substantially the same way to achieve the same results are within the scope of the present principles. Moreover, it should be recognized that structures and/or elements and/or method steps shown and/or described in connection with any disclosed form or implementation of the present principles may be incorporated in any other disclosed, described or suggested form or implementation as a general matter of design choice. It is the intention, therefore, to he limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto.