Mechanism for rolling a toy vehicle

Abstract: A rolling mechanism for a radio-controlled toy car causes a rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around a longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels. The rolling mechanism comprises the following elements. At least a rotation arm (10) is provided, which extends to have a vertical component to the longitudinal direction. The rotation arm (10) has a free end and a pivotally fixed end, around which the rotation arm (10) rotates, so that the free end defines a circle in a vertical plane to the longitudinal direction, where the circle completely encompasses the radio-controlled toy car in view of the vertical plane. A rotation mechanism is provided to be mechanically connected to the pivotally fixed end for forcibly rotating the rotation arm (10) around the pivotally fixed end so as to cause the rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around the longitudinal direction.

Description: The present invention relates to a radio-controlled toy car, and more particularly to a rolling mechanism for causing a radio-controlled toy car to roll around a longitudinal centre axis extending along a travelling direction of the toy car. In recent years, the design of the radio-controlled toy car has become complicated in accordance with the recent tendency to pursue various and complex motions in order to attract a great deal of user's attentions. This tendency is to cause surprise motions such as rapid turning motions and up and down motions during the normal travel of the radio-controlled toy car so as to seek unique and attractive motions thereof. A toy vehicle having a rolling mechanism is described in GB-533428 where a mechanism including a clockwork motor and gear system provides forward motion for the vehicle, the gear system including a so-called mutilated gear which is in intermittent driving engagement with a driven gear and which itself drives a rotation arm providing a reactionary force with the floor on which the vehicle stands so that the vehicle is rolled on an intermittent basis when the two gears are engaged during part of their rotation. Thus, the known vehicle is rolled regularly and intermittently as it is driven forwardly along the ground and the rolling motion is entirely dependent upon the driving motion for the vehicle, it being impossible to select a moment when the vehicle may be rolled. In the above circumstances, the inventors conceived quite novel and unique surprising motions which are rapidly and unexpectedly caused during the normal travelling of the radio-controlled toy car to attract a possible great deal of user's attention without, however, raising problems with increase in the manufacturing cost and in the difficulty for even children to operate the toy car. Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a radio-controlled toy car capable of showing surprising and attractive motions rapidly and unexpectedly during the normal travelling of the radio-controlled toy car to attract a possible great deal of user's attention. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a radio-controlled toy car with a possible simple structure for prevention of any unnecessary increase in the manufacturing cost. It is a further more object of the present invention to provide a radio-controlled toy car which is easily operable to children for amusing and attracting them. It is another object of the present invention to provide a rolling mechanism for causing a surprising and attractive rolling motion rapidly and unexpectedly during the normal travelling of the radio-controlled toy car to attract a possible great deal of user's attention. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a rolling mechanism for causing a surprising and attractive rolling motion for a radio-controlled toy car with a possible simple structure for prevention of any unnecessary increase in the manufacturing cost. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a rolling mechanism for causing a surprising and attractive rolling motion for a radio-controlled toy car which is easily operable to children for amusing and attracting them. The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent form the following descriptions. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a mechanism for rolling a toy vehicle about its longitudinal axis, the mechanism comprising: a driving motor transmission for transmitting a motive force to drive the vehicle; a rotation arm having a free end extending beyond a peripheral extent of the toy vehicle projected on a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, and a pivotable fixed end around which said rotation arm rotates; and a shaft connected to said fixed end for rotating said rotation arm; characterised by a first gear movable along said shaft and for rotating said shaft; a second gear engageable drivingly with the first gear and connected to said driving motor transmission for rotation thereby; means normally retaining said first and second gears out of driving engagement; and independent drive means for placing the first and gears in driving engagement, whereby the motive force from said driving motor transmission drives said rotation arm to roll the toy vehicle about its longitudinal axis. Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic view illustrative of a radio-controlled toy car provided with a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm extending from a rear portion for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 2 is a view illustrative of a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 3 is a view illustrative of a driving force transmission mechanism for transmitting a driving force of a motor not only to rear tyres but also to a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control unit of a radio-controlled toy car provided with a rolling mechanism in accordance with the present invention. FIGS. 5A trough 5F are rear views illustrative of radio-controlled toy cars being on a rolling motion caused by a rotation of a rotation arm of a rolling mechanism. FIG. 6 is a view illustrative of a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm for causing the radio-controlled toy car to roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. The present invention provides a rolling mechanism for a radio-controlled toy car to cause a rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around a longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels. The rolling mechanism comprises the following elements. At least a rotation arm is provided, which extends to have a vertical component to the longitudinal direction. The rotation arm has a free end and a pivotally fixed end, around which the rotation arm rotates, so that the free end defines a circle in a vertical plane to the longitudinal direction, where the circle completely encompasses the radio-controlled toy car in view of the vertical plane. A rotation mechanism is provided to be mechanically connected to the pivotally fixed end for forcibly rotating the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end so as to cause the rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around the longitudinal direction. The rotating mechanism may optionally include a driving force transmission mechanism which is mechanically connected to a driving power transmission system transmitting a driving power of a driving motor radio-controlled into tires of the radio-controlled toy car to travel the radio-controlled toy car. The driving force transmission mechanism is capable of transmitting a part of the driving power into the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm at a time when the driving power is transmitted to the tires so as to forcibly rotate the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end during the traveling of the radio-controlled toy car. The driving force transmission mechanism may advantageously comprise the following elements. A shaft is mechanically connected to the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm. A flat gear is provided on the shaft. The flat gear is movable along the shaft. A worm gear is mechanically connected to the driving power transmission system. A spring member is provided to apply the shaft with a spring force in a first direction along the flat gear. A movable rod is provided, which has a pivotally fixed end and a free end being positioned in contact with the flat gear at an opposite side to the side at which the spring member is provided. The movable rod rotates around the pivotally fixed end to have the free end move along the shaft. A shifter is provided for shifting the movable rod so as to have the movable rod rotate around the pivotally fixed end. The shifter renders the free end move in a second direction along the shaft against the spring force until the flat gear becomes engaged with the worm gear so that the driving power of the driving motor is transmitted via the worm gear and the flat gear to the shaft whereby the shaft and the rotation arm rotate. The shifter may optionally comprise a solenoid electromagnet having a magnetism when applied with a current and including an inner space, and a movable permanent magnet being movable in a horizontal direction in parallel to the shaft. The movable permanent magnet is connected via a link rod to the movable rod at its position between the pivotally fixed end and the free end in contact with the flat gear. The movable permanent magnet moves into the inner space of the solenoid electromagnet by an attraction force of the solenoid electromagnet when applied with the current, whilst the movable permanent magnet moves out from the inner space of the solenoid electromagnet by the spring force of the spring member transmitted via the flat gear and the movable rod. Alternatively, the shifter may also comprise an auxiliary motor generating a rotation force, an auxiliary transmission gear mechanism being engaged with the auxiliary motor, and a crank gear being engaged with the transmission gear mechanism for receiving the rotation force transmitted from the auxiliary motor via the auxiliary transmission gear mechanism. The crank gear is mechanically connected at its eccentric position with a supporting rod being connected to the movable rod at its position between the pivotally fixed end and the free end in contact with the flat gear to thereby have the supporting rod move reciprocally by rotation of the crank gear. It is available to further provide a disk-like member being fixed to the shaft at an opposite end to the end connected with the rotation arm, and an additional spring member being connected with the disk-like member at its eccentric position for applying an additional spring force to the disk-like member so that the eccentric position of the disk-like member is forced to be positioned at its highest level whereby the rotation arm remains positioned to extend upwardly. Alternatively, the rotating mechanism may include the following elements. An additional motor is provided for generating a rotation force. The additional motor is radio-controlled independently from a driving motor generating a driving power by which the radio-controlled toy car travels. A rotation force transmission mechanism is provided to be mechanically connected to the additional motor for transmitting the rotation force of the additional motor into the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm to forcibly rotate the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end independently from the traveling of the radio-controlled toy car. It is preferable that the rotation arm is made of a material which have a large resistivity to friction and a small friction coefficient. It is also preferable that the rotation arm is made of a material selected from the group consisting of polycarbonate and nylon to obtain a large resistivity to the friction and a small friction coefficient. It is also preferable that the rotation arm includes piano wires to increase in strength thereof. The present invention provides a radio-controlled toy car comprising the following elements. A body is provided over a chassis. A driving motor is provided on the chassis for generating a driving power and being radio-controlled. A transmission system is provided on the chassis for transmitting a driving power of a driving motor radio-controlled into tires. A rolling mechanism is provided on the chassis for causing a rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around a longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels. The rolling mechanism comprises the following elements. A rotation arm is provided, which extends to have a vertical component to the longitudinal direction. The rotation arm has a free end and a pivotally fixed end, around which the rotation arm rotates, so that the free end defines a circle in a vertical plane to the longitudinal direction, where the circle completely encompasses the radio-controlled toy car in view of the vertical plane. A rotating mechanism is provided to be mechanically connected to the pivotally fixed end for forcibly rotating the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end so as to cause the rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around the longitudinal direction. The rotating mechanism may optionally include a driving force transmission mechanism being mechanically connected to the transmission system for transmitting a part of the driving power into the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm at a time when the driving power is transmitted to the tires so as to forcibly rotate the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end during the traveling of the radio-controlled toy car. The driving force transmission mechanism may advantageously comprise the following elements. A shaft is provided to be mechanically connected to the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm. A flat gear is provided on the shaft. The flat gear is movable along the shaft. A worm gear is provided to be mechanically connected to the driving power transmission system. A spring member is provided to apply the shaft with a spring force in a first direction along the flat gear. A movable rod is provided, which has a pivotally fixed end and a free end which is positioned in contact with the flat gear at an opposite side to the side at which the spring member is provided. The movable rod rotates around the pivotally fixed end to have the free end move along the shaft. A shifter is provided for shifting the movable rod so as to have the movable rod rotate around the pivotally fixed end and to have the free end move in a second direction along the shaft against the spring force until the flat gear becomes engaged with the worm gear so that the driving power of the driving motor is transmitted via the worm gear and the flat gear to the shaft whereby the shaft and the rotation arm rotate. The shifter may advantageously comprise a solenoid electromagnet having a magnetism when applied with a current and having an inner space, and a movable permanent magnet being movable in a horizontal direction in parallel to the shaft. The movable permanent magnet is connected via a link rod to the movable rod at its position between the pivotally fixed end and the free end in contact with the flat gear. The movable permanent magnet moves into the inner space of the solenoid electromagnet by an attraction force of the solenoid electromagnet when applied with the current. The movable permanent magnet moves out from the inner space of the solenoid electromagnet by the spring force of the spring member transmitted via the flat gear and the movable rod. Alternatively, the shifter may comprise an auxiliary motor generating a rotation force, an auxiliary transmission gear mechanism being engaged with the auxiliary motor, and a crank gear being engaged with the transmission gear mechanism for receiving the rotation force transmitted from the auxiliary motor via the auxiliary transmission gear mechanism. The crank gear is mechanically connected at its eccentric position with a supporting rod being connected to the movable rod at its position between the pivotally fixed end and the free end in contact with the flat gear to thereby have the supporting rod move reciprocally by rotation of the crank gear. It is available to further provide a disk-like member being fixed to the shaft at an opposite end to the end connected with the rotation arm, and an additional spring member being connected with the disk-like member at its eccentric position for applying an additional spring force to the disk-like member, so that the eccentric position of the disk-like member is forced to be positioned at its highest level whereby the rotation arm remains positioned to extend upwardly. Alternatively, the rotating mechanism may optionally include the following elements. An additional motor is provided for generating a rotation force. The additional motor is radio-controlled independently from the driving motor generating the driving power by which the radio-controlled toy car travels. A rotation force transmission mechanism is mechanically connected to the additional motor for transmitting the rotation force of the additional motor into the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm to forcibly rotate the rotation arm around the pivotally fixed end independently from the traveling of the radio-controlled toy car. It is preferable that the rotation arm is made of a material which have a large resistivity to friction and a small friction coefficient. It is also preferable that the rotation arm is made of a material selected from the group consisting of polycarbonate and nylon to obtain a large resistivity to the friction and a small friction coefficient. It is also preferable that the rotation arm includes piano wires to increase in strength thereof. It is also preferable that the body is provided with a plurality of convex portions which are made of a material having a large resistivity to friction but a small friction coefficient to protect the body from a damage due to a strong friction when the radio-controlled toy car turns upside down. It is also preferable that the convex portions are made of a material selected from the group consisting of metals, polycarbonate and nylon. It is also preferable that the tiers are provided on these outside surfaces with guard rings made of a material having a large resistivity to friction but a small friction coefficient so that the guard rings extend outwardly to protect the tires from a damage due to a strong friction when the radio-controlled toy car turns over and lies on its side. It is also preferable that the guard rings are made of a material selected from the group consisting of metals, polycarbonate and nylon. A first embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A radio-controlled toy car is provided, which has a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm which both extends in a vertical direction to a horizontal and longitudinal center axis of the radio-controlled toy car and rotates in a plane vertical to the horizontal and longitudinal center axis where the rotation arm has such a length that a free end of the rotation arm is always positioned outside the body of the radio-controlled toy car in view of the vertical plane. FIG. 1 is illustrative of a radio-controlled toy car provided with a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm extending from a rear portion for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in this embodiment in accordance with the present invention. A radio-controlled toy car has a chassis 1 and a body 2 which is provided over the chassis 1 and further front and rear tires 3 and 4 are provided. On the rear tires, guard rings 7 are provided to extend outwardly. The body has a plurality of convex portions 6, At the rear end of the chassis 1, a rotation arm 10 is provided, which extends in a vertical direction to a longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels. The rotation arm 10 has a free end and a pivotally fixed end, around which the rotation arm rotates so that the above free end defines a circle in a vertical plane to the above longitudinal direction, wherein this circle completely encompasses the radio-controlled toy car including the tiers 3 and 4 in view of the above vertical plane. The rolling mechanism of the radio-controlled toy car comprises the rotation arm 10 and a rotation force transmission mechanism not illustrated in FIG. 1 for forcibly rotating the rotation arm 10 around the pivotally fixed end so as to cause the rolling motion of the radio-controlled toy car around the longitudinal direction. In this embodiment, as described below in detail, the rotation force transmission mechanism is mechanically connected to a transmission system for transmitting a part of the driving power, by which the radio-controlled toy car travels, into the pivotally fixed end of the above rotation arm 10 at a time when the driving power is transmitted to the rear tires 4 so as to forcibly rotate the rotation arm 10 around the above pivotally fixed end during the traveling of the radio-controlled toy car. This means that the radio-controlled toy car rapidly turns over and lies on its side or turns upside down even during the travel of the radio-controlled toy car, for which reason the body 2 is required to have a certain resistivity to friction to road or ground. It is preferable that the body 2 is made of a material having a possible large resistivity to the friction but a possible small friction coefficient. Nevertheless, in this embodiment, the body 2 is provided with a plurality of the convex portions 6 which are made of a material having a large resistivity to the friction but a small friction coefficient, such as metals, for example, iron, alternatively polycarbonate or nylon to protect the body 2 from a damage due to a strong friction when the radio-controlled toy car turns upside down. The guard rings 7 are provided on the outside surfaces of the rear tiers 4 so that the guard rings 7 extend outwardly to protect the tires 3 and 4 made of rubber from a damage due to a strong friction when the radio-controlled toy car turns over and lies on its side. The guard rings 7 may be made of the same material as the convex portions 6 such as metals, for example, iron, alternatively polycarbonate or nylon. Needless to say, it is preferable that the guard rings 7 are provided not only on the rear tiers 4 but also on the front tiers 3. If the rotation arm 10 rotates to force the radio-controlled toy car to actively roll around the longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels, then the free end of the rotation arm 10 violently hit the road or ground during the travel of the radio-controlled toy car whereby the free end of the rotation arm 10 is forced to receive a remarkably violent friction and receive instantaneously a remarkably large force in an opposite direction to the rotation direction along which the rotation arm 10 rotates. For which reasons, the rotation arm 10 is required to be made of a material which have a large resistivity to the friction and a small friction coefficient as well as a large strength. It is therefore preferable that the rotation arm 10 is made of polycarbonate or nylon to obtain a large resistivity to the friction and a small friction coefficient and further includes piano wires to increase in strength thereof. FIG. 2 is a view illustrative of a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 3 is a view illustrative of a driving force transmission mechanism for transmitting a driving force of a motor not only to rear tires but also to a rolling mechanism having a rotation arm for rendering the radio-controlled toy car roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, a driving motor 11 is provided for generating a driving power by which the rear tiers 4 rotate so that the radio-controlled toy car travels. The driving motor 11 has a rotary shaft which is connected to a gear 13. The gear 13 is engaged with a flat gear 14 having a diameter much larger than a diameter of the gear 13. The flat gear 14 is connected at its center with a rotary shaft 12 which connects the rear tiers 4. The flat gear 14 is provided at a left side of the longitudinal axis of the chassis 1 in FIG. 3. At the center portion of the rotary shaft 12, a worm gear 15 is provided. It may be possible that an additional gear is provided between the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to adjust the gear ratio between them. When the driving motor 11 is driven, the rotation power is transmitted through the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to the rotary shaft 12 whereby the rear tiers 4 rotate. Another flat gear 34 is further provided on the chassis 1. The flat gear 34 is fixed at its center with a hexagonal shaft 33 extending in a horizontal direction but vertical to the rotary shaft 12 connecting the rear tiers 4. The hexagonal shaft 33 is supported by first and second gearing 31 and 32 which are provided at opposite ends thereof. The flat gear 34 is movable on the hexagonal shaft 33 in a direction along the hexagonal shaft 33. A spiral spring member 35 generating an extension force is provided between the first bearing 31 and the flat gear 34 so that the flat gear 34 is normally forced toward the second bearing 32. The hexagonal shaft 33 is projected from the rear end portion of the chassis 1. A rear end of the hexagonal shaft 33 is fixed with the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm 10 which extends in a vertical direction to the longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels, wherein the free end of the rotation arm 10 is positioned above the top of the body 2 of the radio-controlled toy car. A front end of the hexagonal shaft 33 is provided with a disk like member 36 which is further provided at its eccentric portion with a projection 37. A solenoid electromagnet 41 is securely fixed over the chassis 1 Another spiral spring member 38 is provided, which has a first end connected with the projection 37 of the disk like member 36 and a second end connected with the solenoid electromagnet 41 so that the projection 37 of the disk like member 36 is forced upwardly whereby the projection 37 is forced to be positioned at an upper portion of the disk like member 36. If the projection 37 is positioned at an upper portion of the disk like member 36, then the rotation arm 10 is positioned to extend upwardly. This means that if no force other than the spring force of the spiral spring member 38 is applied to the hexagonal shaft 33, then the rotation arm 10 is positioned to extend upwardly. In the solenoid electromagnet 41, a movable permanent magnet core 43 is provided to be movable in a horizontal direction in parallel to the hexagonal shaft 33. The movable permanent magnet core 43 moves by an attractive force toward a fixed magnet core of the solenoid electromagnet 41. The movable permanent magnet core 43 is provided with a supporting shaft 48 extending in a horizontal direction. An end portion 47 of the supporting shaft 48 is pivotally fixed to a rod 44 which has a top end 46 and a bottom end which is in contact with the flat gear 34 but at an opposite side to the side at which the spiral spring member 35 is provided. The rod 44 is allowed to rotate at a small angle around the top end 46 of the rod 44. If the movable permanent magnet core 43 moves out from an inner space of the solenoid electromagnet 41, then the bottom end of the rod 44 moves apart from the flat gear 34. If, however, the movable permanent magnet core 43 moves into the inner space of the solenoid electromagnet 41, then the bottom end of the rod 44 moves toward the flat gear 34 to push the same against the extension force of the spiral spring member 35. If the solenoid electromagnet 41 is applied with an current by which the fixed magnetic core has a magnetism, then the movable permanent magnet core 43 is attracted toward the fixed magnetic core of the solenoid electromagnet 41. As a result, the bottom end of the rod 44 moves toward the flat gear 34 to push the same against the extension force of the spiral spring member 35 until the flat gear 34 moves into a position under the worm gear 15 so that the flat gear 34 is engaged with the worm gear 15 whereby the rotation of the worm gear 15 is transmitted through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33. As a result, if the current is applied to the solenoid electromagnet 41, then the driving power of the driving motor 11 is transmitted to the hexagonal shaft 33 whereby the rotation arm 10 rotates to have the radio-controlled toy car roll around the longitudinal direction in which the radio-controlled toy car travels. If the current application to the solenoid electromagnet 41 is discontinued, then the movable permanent magnet core 43 moves out from the internal space of the fixed magnetic core in the solenoid electromagnet 41. As a result, the bottom end of the rod 44 moves apart from the flat gear 34 so that the flat gear 34 moves out from the position under the worm gear 15 and disengaged from the worm gear 15 whereby the transmission of the rotation of the worm gear 15 through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33 is discontinued. As a result, if no current is applied to the solenoid electromagnet 41, then the driving power of the driving motor 11 is not transmitted to the hexagonal shaft 33 whereby the rotation arm 10 remains positioned to extend upwardly and the radio-controlled toy car travels at the normal position. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control unit of the radio-controlled toy car provided with the above rolling mechanism in accordance with the present invention. The control unit is provided on the chassis 1. The control unit is supplied with a power from a battery 51 and comprises the following elements or units. A super reproduction receiver circuit 53 is provided to be electrically connected to an antenna 52 which receives control signals transmitted from a radio transmitter for fetching control signals received by the antenna 52. A control IC 54 is provided to be electrically connected to the super reproduction receiver circuit 53 for receiving the fetched control signals and supplying a steering control signal, a driving motor control signal and a solenoid electromagnet control signal. A steering driving amplifier 55 is provided to be electrically connected to the control IC 54 for receiving the steering control signal from the control IC 54 and amplifying the steering control signal. A magnetic steering unit 56 is provided to be electrically connected to the steering driving amplifier 55 for receiving the amplified steering control signal from the steering driving amplifier 55 so that the magnetic steering unit 56 operates in accordance with the steering control signal. A motor driving amplifier 57 is provided to be electrically connected to the control IC 54 for receiving the driving motor control signal from the control IC 54 and amplifying the same. The driving motor 11 is electrically connected to the motor driving amplifier 57 for receiving the driving motor control signal and operates in accordance with the driving motor control signal. A solenoid driving amplifier 59 is provided to be electrically connected to the control IC 54 for receiving the solenoid electromagnet control signal from the control IC 54 and amplifying the same. The solenoid electromagnet 41 is electrically connected to the solenoid driving amplifier 59 for receiving the amplified solenoid electromagnet control signal and operating so that the movable permanent magnet core 43 moves out from or into the inner space of the fixed magnetic core of the solenoid electromagnet 41. The operations of the roll mechanism described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A through SF which are illustrative of radio-controlled toy cars being on a rolling motion caused by a rotation of a rotation arm of a rolling mechanism. If the control IC 54 supplies the solenoid electromagnet control signal via the solenoid driving amplifier 59 to the solenoid electromagnet 41, then the solenoid electromagnet 41 is applied with an current by which the fixed magnetic core has a magnetism and the movable permanent magnet core 43 is attracted toward the fixed magnetic core of the solenoid electromagnet 41. As a result, the bottom end of the rod 44 moves toward the flat gear 34 to push the same against the extension force of the spiral spring member 35 until the flat gear 34 moves into a position under the worm gear 15 so that the flat gear 34 is engaged with the worm gear 15 whereby the rotation of the worm gear 15 is transmitted through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33. As a result, the rotation arm 10 rotates in a clockwise direction. The free end of the rotation arm 10 actively hits and pushes down the road or ground so that the right side of the radio-controlled toy car is first lifted up powerfully and subsequently the left side of the radio-controlled toy car is also lifted up whereby the radio-controlled toy car tilted toward the left side, wherein the right half of the radio-controlled toy car is positioned above the left half thereof as illustrated in FIG. 5B. Since the rotation arm 10 further remains to rotate in the clockwise direction, the radio-controlled toy car terns over and lies on its left side. The rotation arm 10 still further remains to rotate in the clockwise direction so that the top of the body of the radio-controlled toy car becomes to face the left-down as illustrated in FIG. 5C. Subsequently, the rotation arm 10 is kept to rotate so that the left front and left rear tires 3 and 4 are lifted up and the radio-controlled toy car turns upside down, wherein the top of the body 2 is floated from the road or ground as illustrated in FIG. 5D. The rotation arm 10 is still kept to rotate so that the top of the body of the radio-controlled toy car becomes to face the right-down as illustrated in FIG. 5E. The rotation arm 10 is still further kept to rotate so that the radio-controlled toy car terns over and lies on its right side as illustrated in FIG. 5F. The rotation arm 10 is further more kept to rotate so that the radio-controlled toy car returns into the normal position at which the radio-controlled toy car travels as illustrated in FIG. 5A. As described above, the radio-controlled toy car shows quite novel and unique rolling motions which are rapidly and unexpectedly cased even during the normal traveling of the radio-controlled toy car to attract a possible great deal of user's attention without, however, increasing the manufacturing cost and a difficulty for even children to operate the toy car. If the transmission of the solenoid electromagnet control signal via the solenoid driving amplifier 59 to the solenoid electromagnet 41 is discontinued, then the current application to the solenoid electromagnet 41 is discontinued. As a result, the movable permanent magnet core 43 moves out from the internal space of the fixed magnetic core in the solenoid electromagnet 41. Then, the bottom end of the rod 44 moves apart from the flat gear 34 so that the flat gear 34 moves out from the position under the worm gear 15 by the extension force of the spiral spring member 35 and disengaged from the worm gear 15 whereby the transmission of the rotation of the worm gear 15 through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33 is discontinued. As a result, the driving power of the driving motor 11 is not transmitted to the hexagonal shaft 33 whereby the rotation arm 10 becomes positioned to extend upwardly and the radio-controlled toy car travels at the normal position. A second embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A radio-controlled toy car is provided, which has a rolling mechanism which is structurally different from that thereof in the first embodiment. The following descriptions will focus on structural differences of this embodiment from the first embodiment. The structural differences of this embodiment from the first embodiment are well illustrated in FIG. 6 of another rolling mechanism for causing the radio-controlled toy car to roll around a longitudinal axis thereof in accordance with the present invention. In this embodiment, in place of the solenoid electromagnet 41 illustrated in FIG. 2, an auxiliary motor and a gear transmission system as well as a crank are used. A driving motor 11 is provided for generating a driving power by which the rear tiers 4 rotate so that the radio-controlled toy car travels. The driving motor 11 has a rotary shaft which is connected to a gear 13. The gear 13 is engaged with a flat gear 14 having a diameter much larger than a diameter of the gear 13. The flat gear 14 is connected at its center with a rotary shaft 12 which connects the rear tiers 4. The flat gear 14 is provided at a left side of the longitudinal axis of the chassis 1. At the center portion of the rotary shaft 12, a worm gear 15 is provided. It may be possible that an additional gear is provided between the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to adjust the gear ratio between them. When the driving motor 11 is driven, the rotation power is transmitted through the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to the rotary shaft 12 whereby the rear tiers 4 rotate. Another flat gear 34 is further provided on the chassis 1. The flat gear 34 is fixed at its center with a hexagonal shaft 33 extending in a horizontal direction but vertical to the rotary shaft 12 connecting the rear tiers 4. The hexagonal shaft 33 is supported by first and second gearing 31 and 32 which are provided at opposite ends thereof. The flat gear 34 is movable on the hexagonal shaft 33 in a direction along the hexagonal shaft 33. A spiral spring member 35 generating an extension force is provided between the first bearing 31 and the flat gear 34 so that the flat gear 34 is normally forced toward the second bearing 32. The hexagonal shaft 33 is projected from the rear end portion of the chassis 1. A rear end of the hexagonal shaft 33 is fixed with the pivotally fixed end of the rotation arm 10 which extends in a vertical direction to the longitudinal direction along which the radio-controlled toy car travels, wherein the free end of the rotation arm 10 is positioned above the top of the body 2 of the radio-controlled toy car. A front end of the hexagonal shaft 33 is provided with a disk like member 36 which is further provided at its eccentric portion with a projection 37. In place of the solenoid electromagnet 41, a crank unit is provided over the chassis 1. Another spiral spring member 38 is provided, which has a first end connected with the projection 37 of the disk like member 36 and a second end connected with the solenoid electromagnet 41 so that the projection 37 of the disk like member 36 is forced upwardly whereby the projection 37 is forced to be positioned at an upper portion of the disk like member 36. If the projection 37 is positioned at an upper portion of the disk like member 36, then the rotation arm 10 is positioned to extend upwardly. This means that if no force other than the spring force of the spiral spring member 38 is applied to the hexagonal shaft 33, then the rotation arm 10 is positioned to extend upwardly. With reference to FIG. 6, in the crank unit, an auxiliary motor 61 is provided. A first gear 62 is provided to be mechanically connected to a rotary shaft of the auxiliary motor 61. A second gear 63 is provided to be engaged with the first gear 62. The second gear 63 has a diameter much larger than that of the first gear 62. A third gear is provided to be engaged with the second gear 63. The driving force of the auxiliary motor 61 is transmitted via the first and second gears 61 and 62 into the third gear 64. The third gear 64 is connected on its one side face at an eccentric position to a first end of a link rod 66 to constitute a crank mechanism. A second end of the link rod 66 is pivotally fixed to a rod 44 which has a top end 46 and a bottom end 45 which is in contact with the flat gear 34 but at an opposite side to the side at which the spiral spring member 35 is provided. The rod 44 is allowed to rotate at a small angle around the top end 46 of the rod 44. If the auxiliary motor 61 is driven, then the driving power of the auxiliary motor 61 is transmitted via the first and second gears 62 and 63 to the third gear 64 whereby the link rod 66 moves toward the auxiliary motor 61. As a result, the bottom end of the rod 44 also moves toward the flat gear 34 to push the same against the extension force of the spiral spring member 35 until the flat gear 34 moves into a position under the worm gear 15 so that the flat gear 34 is engaged with the worm gear 15 whereby the rotation of the worm gear 15 is transmitted through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33. As a result, if the auxiliary motor 61 is driven and the link rod 66 moves toward the auxiliary motor 61, then the driving power of the driving motor 11 is transmitted to the hexagonal shaft 33 whereby the rotation arm 10 rotates to have the radio-controlled toy car roll around the longitudinal direction in which the radio-controlled toy car travels. If the auxiliary motor 61 is driven and the link rod 66 moves toward the rod 44, then the bottom end of the rod 44 moves apart from the flat gear 34 so that the flat gear 34 moves out from the position under the worm gear 15 by the extension force of the spiral spring member 35 and disengaged from the worm gear 15 whereby the transmission of the rotation of the worm gear 15 through the flat gear 34 to the hexagonal shaft 33 is discontinued. As a result, the driving power of the driving motor 11 is not transmitted to the hexagonal shaft 33 whereby the rotation arm 10 remains positioned to extend upwardly and the radio-controlled toy car travels at the normal position. The operations of the roll mechanism described above are the same as described with reference to FIGS. 5A through 5F in the first embodiment. A third embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A radio-controlled toy car is provided, which has a rolling mechanism which is structurally different from that thereof in the first embodiment. The following descriptions will focus on structural differences of this embodiment from the first embodiment. The structural difference of this embodiment from the first embodiment is in that an auxiliary motor is directly connected to a hexagonal shaft. A driving motor 11 is provided for generating a driving power by which the rear tiers 4 rotate so that the radio-controlled toy car travels. The driving motor 11 has a rotary shaft which is connected to a gear 13. The gear 13 is engaged with a flat gear 14 having a diameter much larger than a diameter of the gear 13. The flat gear 14 is connected at its center with a rotary shaft 12 which connects the rear tiers 4. The flat gear 14 is provided at a left side of the longitudinal axis of the chassis 1. At the center portion of the rotary shaft 12, a worm gear 15 is provided. It may be possible that an additional gear is provided between the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to adjust the gear ratio between them. When the driving motor 11 is driven, the rotation power is transmitted through the gear 13 and the flat gear 14 to the rotary shaft 12 whereby the rear tiers 4 rotate. An auxiliary motor is directly connected to a hexagonal shaft 33 is projected from the rear end portion of the chassis 1 for directly rotate the rotation arm 10. A fourth embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A radio-controlled toy car is provided, which has a rolling mechanism which is structurally different from that thereof in the first embodiment. The following descriptions will focus on structural differences of this embodiment from the first embodiment The structural difference of this embodiment from the first embodiment is in that two separate driving motors are provided or respective left and right rear tiers 4 whereby no special steering system is needed. This reduces the weight of the radio-controlled toy car. Whereas any further modifications of the present invention will be apparent to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to which the invention pertains, it is to be understood that embodiments as shown and described by way of illustrations are by no means intended to be considered in a limiting sense. Accordingly, it is to be intended to cover by claims all modifications which fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims: A mechanism for rolling a toy vehicle about its longitudinal axis, the mechanism comprising: a driving motor transmission (11, 12, 13, 14) for transmitting a motive force to drive the vehicle; a rotation arm (10) having a free end extending beyond a peripheral extent of the toy vehicle projected on a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, and a pivotable fixed end around which said rotation arm (10) rotates; and a shaft (33) connected to said fixed end for rotating said rotation arm (10); characterised by a first gear (34) movable along said shaft (33) and for rotating said shaft (33); a second gear (15) engageable drivingly with the first gear (34) and connected to said driving motor transmission (11, 12, 13, 14) for rotation thereby; means (35) normally retaining said first and second gears (34, 15) out of driving engagement; and independent drive means (41, 43, 44, 61, 62, 63, 64) for placing the first and second gears (34, 15) in driving engagement, whereby the motive force from said driving motor transmission (11, 12, 13, 14) drives said shaft (33) and rotation arm (10) to roll the toy vehicle about its longitudinal axis. The mechanism of Claim 1, wherein said first gear (34) is a flat gear, said second gear (15) is a worm gear, said retaining means (35) is a spring member for urging the flat gear (34) along the shaft (33) away from the worm gear (15), and the means (44) for placing the flat and worm gears in a driving engagement includes further means (41 43, 48) for moving a pivotable rod (44) against the force of the spring member (35) thus selectively to engage the flat and worm gears (34, 15) when the toy vehicle is required to be rolled. The mechanism of Claim 1, wherein said means for placing the first and second gears in driving engagement comprises a solenoid electromagnet (41) with a movable permanent magnet (43) which moves responsive to application of a current to said solenoid electromagnet, said permanent magnet being connected to a pivotable rod (44) to engage said first gear (34) with said second gear (15) upon application of the current to said solenoid electromagnet (41). The mechanism of Claim 1, wherein said means for placing the first and second gears in driving engagement, comprises an auxiliary motor (61) connected via a transmission gear system (62, 63, 64, 66) to a pivotable rod (44) to engage said first gear (34) with said second gear (15). The mechanism of any one of Claims 1 to 4, further comprising a disk member (36) connected to said shaft (33) and a spring (38) connected in an eccentric position (37) to said disk member (36) for urging said shaft (33) to a position at which said rotation arm (10) is extended upwardly of the toy vehicle.

Inventors: ISHIMOTO ZENICHI, STUBENFOLL LEONARD, ISHIMOTO, ZENICHI, STUBENFOLL, LEONARD
Applicants: NIKKO KK, NIKKO CO., LTD.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: A63H17
IPC codes: A63H30, A63H17