Spherical steering toy

A spherical steering toy including a spherical housing, a mounting plate mounted inside the spherical housing and having wheels maintained perpendicularly in touch with the inside wall of the spherical housing, a servo-motor having an output shaft fastened to the center of the mounting plate by a screw, a driving mechanism coupled to the servo-motor at one side opposite to the crossed frame, which driving mechanism including a reversible motor, a transmission gear train, and a wheel coupled to the reversible motor through the transmission gear train and rotated by it against the inside wall of the spherical housing, and a control circuit controlled by a remote controller to operate the servo-motor and the reversible motor, wherein starting the reversible motor causes the spherical housing to rotate forwards and backwards on a flat surface; starting the servo-motor causes the spherical housing to change the steering direction.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a spherical steering toy which is 
controlled by a remote controller to move on flat surface. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
A variety of TV game machines and motor-driven toys have been disclosed for 
children to play with, and have appeared on the market. However, regular 
motor-driven toys can only be controlled to move the moving parts in a 
pre-determined course repeatedly. Therefore, these toys do not interest 
children for long. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a spherical steering toy. 
The present invention has been accomplished to provide a spherical steering 
toy which can be controlled to steer on a flat surface through the control 
of a remote controller. According to the present invention, the spherical 
steering toy comprises a spherical housing, a mounting plate mounted 
inside the spherical housing and having wheels maintained perpendicularly 
in touch with the inside wall of the spherical housing, a servo-motor 
having an output shaft fastened the center of the mounting plate by a 
screw, a driving mechanism coupled to the servo-motor at one side opposite 
to the crossed frame, which driving mechanism comprising a reversible 
motor, a transmission gear train, and a wheel coupled to the reversible 
motor through the transmission gear train and rotated by it against the 
inside wall of the spherical housing, and a control circuit controlled by 
a remote controller to operate the servo-motor and the reversible motor, 
wherein starting the reversible motor causes the spherical housing to 
rotate forwards and backwards on a flat surface; starting the servo-motor 
causes the spherical housing to change the steering direction. 
Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and in part 
hereinafter pointed out. 
The invention accordingly consists of features of constructions and method, 
combination of elements, arrangement of parts and steps of the method 
which will be exemplified in the constructions and method hereinafter 
disclosed, the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the 
claims following.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
For purpose to promoting an understanding of the principles of the 
invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the 
drawings. Specific language will be used to describe same. It will, 
nevertheless, be understood that no limitation of the scope of the 
invention is thereby intended, such alternations and further modifications 
in the illustrated device, and such further applications of the principles 
of the invention as illustrated herein being contemplated as would 
normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a spherical steering toy in accordance with the 
present invention comprises a spherical housing 1 consisting of a first 
semi-spherical shell 11, which has an outer thread 111 around the 
periphery, and a second semi-spherical shell 12, which has an inner thread 
121 around the periphery screwed up with the outer thread 111 of the first 
semi-spherical shell 11. A mounting plate 2 is mounted inside the 
spherical housing 1 and retained between the first semi-spherical she11 11 
and the second semi-spherical shell 12, having a plurality of crossed 
slots 21 around the periphery for mounting a respective wheel 22 
perpendicularly. The wheel 22 has a springy wheel axle 221 fastened to one 
crossed slot 21. The springy wheel axle 221 is so installed that the 
respective wheel 22 is maintained closely attached to the inside wall of 
the spherical housing 1 between the first semi-spherical shell 11 and the 
second semi-spherical shell 12. 
The aforesaid mounting plate 2 is made of circular shape. As an alternate 
form of the present invention, the mounting plate can be made of 
triangular shape. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the mounting plate 2A is made 
of triangular shape having three wheel holders 80 at each angle 
respectively and perpendicularly stopped against the inside wall of the 
spherical housing 1. Each wheel holder 80 comprises two parallel through 
holes 81. A substantially U-shaped springy wheel axle 82 is fastened to 
each wheel holder 80 to hold a respective wheel 22. The wheel axle 82 has 
two opposite ends respectively inserted through a respective coiled spring 
83, then into each through hole 81, and then fastened with a respective 
end cap 84. FIGS. 8A and 8B show another alternate form of the mounting 
plate. As illustrated in FIG. 8A, the mounting plate 2B is a substantially 
I-shaped frame having two smoothly curved cross bars 85 at two opposite 
ends, and two pairs of wheels 22 respectively mounted on two opposite ends 
of each cross bar 85 and fixed in place by clamps 86. The mounting plate 
2B is molded from resilient plastics. When installed, the wheels 22 are 
springily maintained in touch with the inside wall of the spherical 
housing 1 (see FIG. 8B). 
Referring to FIG. 2 again, the mounting plate 2 has a plurality of through 
holes 23 around the center. A crossed frame 24 is fastened to the through 
holes 23 of the mounting plate 2 at one side by screws 241 to hold a 
servo-motor 3 and a driving mechanism 5. The servo-motor 3 is mounted on 
the driving mechanism 5 at the top, having an upright output shaft 31 
perpendicularly fixed to the center of the crossed frame 24 and the center 
of the mounting plate 2 by a screw 242. The driving mechanism 5 comprises 
a casing 51 having upright mounting rods 51 at the top respectively 
mounted with a respective rubber cushion 32 to hold the servo-motor 3 in 
place, a reversible motor 52 inside the casing 51, a gear train 522, 523, 
524 coupled to the output shaft 521 of the reversible motor 52, and a 
wheel 525 coupled to the gear train 522, 523, 524 and maintained in touch 
with the inside wall of the spherical housing 1, and a control circuit 53 
for controlling the operation of the servo-motor 3 and the reversible 
motor 52, and a battery 54 connected to the control circuit 53 to provide 
the servo-motor 3 and the reversible motor 52 with the necessary working 
voltage. The servo-motor 3 and the reversible motor 52 are arranged at 
right angles. When the servo-motor 3 is rotated, the spherical housing 1 
is forced to rotate in the X-axis (see FIGS. 3 and 4). When the reversible 
motor 52 is controlled to turn the wheel 525 forwards and backwards, the 
spherical housing 1 is forced to rotate in the Y-axis (see FIGS. 3 and 4). 
Referring to FIG. 3, the mounting plate 2 passes the center of the 
spherical housing 1, the wheels 22 and 525 are respectively maintained in 
touch with the inside wall of the spherical housing 1, and the wheel 525 
is disposed in a direction perpendicular to the mounting plate 2. When the 
wheel 525 is rotated, the center of gravity of the whole moving assembly 
of the steering spherical toy is maintained unchanged inside the spherical 
housing 1. Because the wheels 22 are rotated in a direction tangent to the 
periphery of the spherical housing 1, the spherical housing 1 can be moved 
smoothly forwards and backwards by rotating the wheels 22. 
Referring to FIG. 4 and FIG. 3 again, the servo-motor 3 and the reversible 
motor 52 are arranged at right angles, the output shaft 31 of the 
servo-motor 3 is fixed to the center of the mounting plate 2. When the 
servo-motor 3 is started as the wheel 525 is rotated to move the spherical 
housing 1, the mounting plate 2 cannot be rotated because the wheels 22 
are perpendicularly attached to the inside wall of the spherical housing 
1, therefore the servo-motor 3 and the driving mechanism 5 are forced to 
change the angular position relative to the mounting plate 2, causing the 
spherical housing 1 to change the steering direction. During the operation 
of the servo-motor 3 and the reversible motor 52, the rubber cushions 32 
absorb shock waves to keep the wheel 525 rotated smoothly. 
Referring to FIG. 5, through the control of a remote controller 6, the 
control circuit 53 is driven to control the operation of the servo-motor 3 
and the reversible motor 52, and therefore the steering direction of the 
spherical housing 1 is controlled. 
Referring to FIG. 6, two spherical steering toys can be put in a defined 
area and controlled by two players through a respective remote controller 
6 to play a bumping game. When the spherical housing 1 or 1A is expelled 
out of the defined area, the opponent wins the game. 
The invention is naturally not limited in any sense to the particular 
features specified in the forgoing or to the details of the particular 
embodiment which has been chosen in order to illustrate the invention. 
Consideration can be given to all kinds of variants of the particular 
embodiment which has been described by way of example and of its 
constituent elements without thereby departing from the scope of the 
invention. This invention accordingly includes all the means constituting 
technical equivalents of the means described as well as their 
combinations.