Patent Publication Number: US-6906254-B2

Title: Solar-powered mobile

Description:
FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to the field of mobiles, such as first developed by Alexander Calder, and in particular to a new and useful solar-powered, motivated mobile for providing an entertaining display to amuse viewers. 
     The artist Alexander Calder is perhaps best known as the inventor of displays of beams and depending objects, balanced with each other and connected to move freely in air currents, commonly called mobiles. The mobiles created by Calder generally comprise a main horizontal beam suspended from a ceiling or other elevated support, which main beam in turn supports several depending horizontal beams and connected ornamental objects in a balanced arrangement. The point of connection between beams, length of the beams and the position and weight of the individual objects forming the mobile are all factors that can be used to balance the mobile. Most Calder mobiles utilize wire strands to connect the beams and objects. 
     Calder and others who have built mobiles design their mobiles to move in response to air currents surrounding the mobiles, or sometimes, pulling and pushing of the mobile elements by children. That is, the mobiles are not self-motivating, and rely on external forces acting on the mobile elements to cause movement. 
     Mobiles are a popular ornamental entertainment device, as the pattern of movement by the elements making up the mobile is unlikely to repeat exactly within a noticeable period. Similar to fish tanks, people enjoy looking at mobiles for relaxation or amusement. 
     Mobiles are often provided near babies cribs because they usually incorporate elements with a variety of different shapes and colors. In combination with the ability to move inherent in mobiles, these features make them useful tools for amusing and stimulating the minds of babies. Traditional Calder mobiles may be hung near a crib, out of reach of the baby, so that it is only seen and cannot be touched. In such cases, the mobile is not likely to move when the air in the room is still. 
     A motionless mobile is clearly less entertaining than a moving mobile. But, it may not be possible or advisable to create a draft in the room of a baby or child. Thus, mobiles have been developed with motors to cause the mobile elements to move. These mobiles generally have a different structure from traditional Calder mobiles resulting from the difficulty of connecting a motor to each traditional mobile element unless they are centrally attached. Thus, motorized mobiles usually have one or more beams supporting an ornamental object at one end and connected at their other end to a single, center axle which is driven by a motor. 
     Many patents disclose mobiles of this type. U.S. Pat. No. 6,113,455, for example, teaches a mobile having a vertically oriented central motor and axle with several horizontally extending arms connected between the axle and a decorative shape supported at the far end. The mobile is designed to be mounted on a crib over the head of an infant, so that the decorative shapes are rotated around the axle. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,068,535 discloses a motorized mobile with a central motor and axle and several detachable elements. When some mobile elements are detached, the remaining elements can be balanced by sliding balancing weights along the support arms to offset the weight of the missing element. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,951,360 to Fearon et al. teaches a motorized mobile having a CD player as part of the mobile. The mobile elements are turned in synchronization to the music played. 
     As can be understood, these types of mobiles are less traditional in that the several beams are not connected to each other, but to a center axle. These mobiles do not balance or move in alternating patterns the same way as a traditional Calder mobile. 
     Since the time Calder invented the mobile, he and others have balanced a variety of stationary objects to create ornamental designs. A particularly interesting mobile of traditional construction having interconnected elements that each include a light source is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,775. The elements are connected to each other to balance the weight of the light sources mounted in each. The light sources are oriented facing upwardly, so that as the mobile elements rotate relative to each other, different light patterns are produced by the light sources. A conductive wire carries power to each light source. The wire runs through connecting posts between mobile elements and within the mobile elements. In one embodiment, disc-shaped fins for catching air are connected to each element to cause the mobile elements to spin. The fins may be connected to the portion of the element carrying the light source by a hollow tube. 
     Toys having a center support for a beam, and a simulative flying machine at one end of the beam are also known. Many of these toys are intended to simulate airplanes, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,827,775. The patent teaches a toy airplane mounted on a rotating, counter-balanced arm connected to a support post. The airplane has a propeller driven by a wound spring. When the propeller and spring are released, the airplane begins to rotate the arm about the support post, and the airplane rises into the air as the counter-balance weight on the arm becomes equal to the weight of the moving airplane. The counter-balance weight can be a simulative dirigible or airplane. 
     It should be noted that in toys of this type, unless the simulative flying machine is active, the supporting arm is not balanced about the center support post. Rather, the end of the arm with the simulative object is permitted to fall to the ground, much like a see-saw with only one rider. 
     But, mobiles having a self-contained power source and individually motivated beams are not known. Traditional Calder mobiles and other with balanced beams supporting objects especially are not known to have any self-motivating capability. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide self-motivating elements for balancing in a mobile. 
     Yet another object of the invention is to provide a mobile having elements capable of producing their own movement, unassisted by external forces. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a mobile with self-motivating elements that can interact to change the movement. 
     A still further object of the invention is to provide a light-activated mobile for producing entertaining patterns. 
     Another object of the invention is to create a mobile using discarded computer-related components. 
     Accordingly, mobile elements made from a solar cell, a hollow beam and a motivator electrically connected to the solar cell are provided. The solar cell is mounted to a substrate and connected via wires through the hollow beam to the motivator. The hollow beam supports the substrate at one end and the motivator at the other. The motivator may be a small electric fan or valved gas jet. The substrate is a lightweight panel, such as flat plastic panel, a CD-ROM disc, a section of printed circuit board or a sheet of lightweight plastic. The motivator and substrate with the solar cell are sized so that a balance point, or center of gravity, exists at some point on the hollow beam between them. 
     The mobile elements can be arranged to construct mobiles of varying types. A traditional mobile is provided in which a primary beam supports several of the inventive mobile elements in a balanced configuration. Objects other than the substrates with solar cells and motivators can be balanced on some of the mobile element beams. 
     An alternative mobile configuration has several vertically spaced mobile elements of different lengths arranged with the substrates aligned in a column, one over the other. The mobile elements are mounted to a support and balanced relative to the support so the beams extend horizontal in the absence of any external forces other than gravity. As light strikes each solar cell in turn, power is generated for activating the motivator. The active motivator causes the mobile element to rotate about the axis where the element beam is connected to its support. 
     A mobile of the invention provides environmental benefits as well when the substrates are unused or defective CD-ROM discs and the motivators are old computer CPU cooling fans. The wires used to connect the fans to the solar cells can also be scavenged from old computers. The mobile elements can be made in large part from recycled components having little value otherwise. 
     The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses, reference is made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the drawings: 
         FIG. 1  is a top plan view of a mobile element of the invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a side elevation view of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3A  is a top plan view of an alternative power generation end of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3B  is a top plan view of a second alternative power generation end of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3C  is a top plan view of a third alternative power generation end of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3D  is a top plan view of a fourth alternative power generation end of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4A  is a side elevation view showing an alternate mounting position for the motivator of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4B  is a side elevation view of a second alternative mounting position of the motivator of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5A  is a sectional top plan view of an alternate hollow beam of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5B  is a sectional top plan view of a second alternate hollow beam of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6A  is a partial sectional side elevation view of an alternate mounting configuration for the power generation end of the mobile element of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6B  is a partial sectional side elevation view of the motivator end of the mobile element of  FIG. 6A ; 
         FIG. 7  is a top, side perspective view of a table-top mobile according to the invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a detail view of the support column of the mobile of  FIG. 7 ; 
         FIG. 9  is a top, side perspective view of a hanging mobile according to the invention; 
         FIG. 10  is a detail view of the support column of the mobile of  FIG. 9 ; and 
         FIG. 11  is side elevation view of an alternate hanging mobile according to the invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals are used to refer to the same or similar elements,  FIGS. 1 and 2  show a mobile element  10  having a hollow support beam  15  connecting a substrate  20  and a motivator  30 . Beam  15  includes a mounting hole  13  for connecting the mobile element  10  to other components. The substrate  20  carries a solar cell panel  25 . The solar cell panel  25  is electrically connected to motivator  30  via a pair of wires  40 . Wires  40  extend through the hollow beam  15 . 
     As will be understood, electrical power is generated by solar cell panel  25 , and the power is transmitted via wires  40  to the motivator  30 . The motivator  30  then converts the electrical power to a mechanical motivating force, as further described below. 
     The substrate  20  can be connected to the hollow beam  15  is any known manner. For example, one of the substrate surfaces can be glued to the beam  15 . Or, if the beam  15  has a larger diameter than the thickness of the substrate  20 , a groove could be formed in the end of the beam  15  to receive the edge of the substrate  20 , such as best shown in  FIGS. 3A ,  6 . 
     As seen in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the substrate  20  is preferably a circular panel, such as a CD-ROM disc or a lightweight sheet of plastic such as COROPLAST from Coroplast, Inc. The substrate should be sufficiently self-supporting and rigid so as to remain horizontally planar when solar cell panel  25  is attached. Other preferred materials for the substrate  20  include printed circuit board (PCB), and old credit cards or other plastic sheets. If the substrate  20  and other materials are made weather-proof, a mobile incorporating the elements  10  can be used outdoors. 
       FIGS. 3A-3D  illustrate different shapes of substrates  20  that can alternately be used with the mobile element  10  at the power generation end of the hollow beam  15 . 
     The substrate  20  can be square, triangular or another polygonal shape. The substrate  20  is preferably the same size as the solar cell panel  25  for support. When the substrate  20  is larger than the solar cell panel  25 , space is available for mounting weights  50  used to balance the mobile element  10  at a preferred position along beam  15 . Weights  50  may be glued or otherwise secured to the substrate  20  in different locations to affect the location of the center of gravity of the mobile element  10  along beam  15 . And, when the substrate  20  is the same size as cell panel  25 , the weights could be secured to the bottom of the substrate  20 . As should be understood, the center of gravity of the mobile element  10  is the point where the element  10  has equal weight on each side, so that it can balance about that point. Weights  50  are used to adjust the location of that point, which is preferably along the beam  15 , as desired. 
     In  FIG. 3A , if the substrate  20  is suitable for the purpose, such as when it is a PCB, electrical leads  42  may be etched onto the substrate  20 . The portion  16  of beam  15  forming a groove for holding the substrate covers the terminal ends of the leads  42 . Wires  40  may connect to leads  42  in any known manner. This configuration provides a very neat external appearance to the mobile element  10 . 
     The substrate  20  may be the same size and shape as the solar cell panel  25  as well. 
     If a sufficiently rigid solar cell panel  25  is available, the substrate  20  may be made smaller, or eliminated, such as shown by FIG.  3 D.  FIG. 3D  illustrates a solar cell panel  25  having several solar cells  27  joined together. The solar cell panel  25  preferably produces about 6 volts of electrical energy in total. Each solar cell  27  is preferably of a type which generates about 0.5 volts, so that 12 such cells combined in series will generate 6 volts. The amps generated by the cells  27  will be dependent on the rating of the smallest cell, and so they are preferably sized identically to simplify the electrical circuit and ensure sufficient power is provided to motivator  30 . In full sunlight, the cells  27  can generate between about 200-350 mA. 
     Referring again to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the motivator  30  connected to the other end of hollow beam  15  is preferably a small electric fan, such as a computer CPU cooling fan. The fan is preferably selected so that it will operate when powered with 6 volts. 
     The motivator  30  shown in  FIG. 2 , for example, has fan blades  32  arranged to accelerate air from one side of the fan to the other. Other motivators  30  envisioned for use include an electrically-valved pressurized gas source. 
     The motivator  30  can be connected to the hollow beam  15  by hanging it from the bottom edge of the beam  15 . The motivator  30  can be secured by gluing, fusing, bonding or other methods which will rigidly connect the beam  15  and motivator  30 . The motivator  30  is preferably oriented to direct a motivating force perpendicular to both the longitudinal axis B of the beam and a vertical axis S through the solar cell panel  25  and substrate  20 . However, the motivator  30  could be oriented at angles which are oblique to each of the two referenced beam and substrate axes B, S. The majority of the force produced by the motivator  30  is preferably directed perpendicular to each of the beam and substrate axes B, S. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 4A and 4B , the motivator  30  can be mounted to the beam  15  in other positions besides hanging from below.  FIG. 4A  illustrates supporting the motivator  30  on the top surface of the beam  15 , while  FIG. 4B  shows how the beam  15  could extend along the front or back of the motivator  30  to hold it in place. 
       FIG. 4A  shows a balancing weight  50  secured to the motivator  30  to modify the location of the mobile element  10  center of gravity. Weight  50  can be positioned elsewhere on the motivator and have a mass as needed to locate the center of gravity in a specific position on the beam  15 . 
       FIG. 4B  further illustrates a CPU fan motivator  30  having a motor  34  connected to wires  40  for receiving electrical power to drive the fan blades  32 . 
     Wires  40  may extend loose through beam  15  between the motivator  30  and solar cell panel  25 . However, the loose wires  40  may interfere with connecting the mobile element  10  with other elements. 
       FIGS. 5A and 5B  show two alternative configurations of the hollow beam  15  for containing wires  40 . In  FIG. 5A , a smaller diameter sheath  17  surrounds wires  40  along the interior side of the hollow beam  15 . Mounting hole  13  in the bottom of the hollow beam  15  is shown as well. The sheath  17  is preferably rigid, but may be flexible so long as it retains the wires  40  away from the mounting hole  13 . The mounting hole  13  should be kept unobstructed for freely attaching the mobile element  10  with other mobile components. 
     In  FIG. 5B , a sheath  17  is provided having a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the hollow beam  15 . Wires  40  pass through beam  15  in the annular space  18  between the outside of sheath  17  and the inside of beam  15 . A second mounting hole  13   a  in sheath  17  is provided aligned with the mounting hole  13  of hollow beam  15  (not seen in FIG.  5 B). In this arrangement, the wires  40  are held away from and do not interfere with any connecting element passing through the mounting holes  13 ,  13   a  in the beam and sheath  15 ,  17 . 
     Mounting holes  13 ,  13   a  are positioned along hollow beam  15  to be at or very near to the center of gravity of the mobile element  10 . When necessary, weights  50  can be added to the mobile element  10  so that the mounting holes  13 ,  13   a  are aligned with the center of gravity and the mobile element  10  can be balanced around the holes  13 ,  13   a.    
     In a further alternative, if beam  15  is a conducting metal and electrically connected between cell panel  25  and motivator  30 , then only one insulated wire  40  is required to form a circuit. Openings through the beam  15  must be insulated properly to avoid shorting the circuit, and contact with other conductors should be avoided. The beam  15  is preferably formed by a square aluminum tube to assist mounting of the substrate  20  and motivator  30 , such as described further below. 
       FIGS. 6A and 6B  display a preferred construction of the mobile element  10  in which the substrate  20  and motivator  30  can be adjustably positioned relative to the support mounting hole  13 .  FIG. 6A  shows the substrate  20  having a connecting slider  22  in the form of a hollow tube having a shape generally corresponding to that of the hollow beam  15 . The substrate  20  and connecting slider  22  may be connected as described above when the substrate  20  is secured directly to the hollow beam  15 . The connecting slider  22  is then mounted over the hollow beam  15  for longitudinal sliding movement along the beam  15 . A set screw  23  is advantageously provided in an exposed side of the connecting slider  22  for tightening to lock the connecting slider  22  and substrate  20  in a specific position. When the beam  15  and slider  22  are polygonal, such as square, they are more easily oriented. The conducting wire  40  may pass through an opening in the hollow beam  15  and is adjustably lengthened or shortened as needed for the selected position of the substrate  20  as further described below. 
     The hollow beam  15  may also carry a sliding weight  52 , which is movable along the length of the hollow beam  15 . Movement of the sliding weight  52  will be restricted once a support post  90  is inserted through mounting hole  13 . 
     When the mobile element  10  is joined as part of a mobile by mounting on such a post  90  or other support, fixed bearings  88  can be used to support the mobile element  10  in a specific vertical position on a support post  90 . The fixed bearings  88  are initially slidable along the support post  90  and held in place by a set screw  23  or another mechanism which creates a strong friction between the bearings  88  and post  90 , such as adhesives. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6B , a hollow beam  15  of the mobile element  10  has a sliding adjustable end section  15   a  on which the motivator is mounted. The end section  15   a  can be adjusted longitudinally by sliding in or out of the hollow beam  15 . A set screw  23  is provided for locking the relative position of the beam  15  and end section  15   a.    
     The conducting wire  40  has at least one expansion crimp  44  along its length inside the hollow beam  15  and end section  15   a . When the end section  15   a  is extended from the hollow beam  15 , or when the substrate  20  is slid further toward the opposite end of the hollow beam  15 , the crimp  44  expands to provide additional length to the conducting wire  40 . The expansion crimp  44  thus permits the electrically connected solar panel  25  and motivator  30  to move apart relative to each other while remaining in electrical contact. 
     The sliding movement made possible by the connecting slider  22  and slidable end section  15   a  permits adjustment of the center of gravity balance point on the beam  15 . And, the changeable length further permits different ones of the same basic mobile element  10  to be configured to different lengths to provide a different appearance when they are used in a mobile. The sliding weight  52  permits fine adjustment of the center of gravity for a mobile element  10  set to a specific length. Weights  50  may be used as well to further adjust the center of gravity. 
     The mobile element  10 , in any of the embodiments described above, is preferably combined with several additional elements  10  to make a mobile. Different combinations of the mobile elements  10  are envisioned and the following describes some possible mobiles in greater detail. 
     In  FIG. 7 , a mobile  100  has four mobile elements  10  arranged with their substrates  20  aligned in a vertical column. The mobile elements  10  are supported above a horizontal surface on stand  80  with support post  90 . Post  90  extends through mounting hole  13  in the hollow beam  15  of each mobile element  10  between base  81  and a cap  95 . Cap  95  is removably secured to the post  90 . A cover  85  and spacers  87  enclose post  90  where it is exposed outside the beams  15 . 
     The cover  85  and spacers  87  each have a diameter greater than that of the mounting holes  13  in the hollow beams  15 . As shown in greater detail in  FIG. 8 , the ends of the cover  85  and spacers  87  contact the beams  15  and support the beams  15  for rotational movement about the post  90 . Preferably, the cover  85  and spacers  87  provide a low friction or frictionless connection with the beams  15 , so that a large motivating force is not needed to overcome frictional forces and let the hollow beams  15  rotate. The cover  85  and spacers  87  may rotate with the beams  15  as well, or they may be fixed on the post  90 . The cover  85  and spacers  87  should be locked in position vertically relative to the adjacent beams  15 , however, so that the weight of the beams  15  above is not transferred through the spacers  87  or cover  85  to the lower beams  15 , thereby increasing friction and preventing relatively friction-free rotation. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 7 , it should be appreciated that the distance from the support post  90  to the nearest edge of each motivator  30  must be greater than the distance from the support post  90  to the farthest edge of each substrate  20  that the relevant motivators  30  have a portion lying in the same horizontal plane, so as to avoid collisions between the motivators  30  and substrates  20 . By ensuring the lengths of the hollow beams  15  are sufficient to avoid collisions between mobile elements  10 , the solar powered nature of the mobile  100  permits free movement as long as a light source is present. 
     Some of the motivators  30  of the mobile elements  10  may be arranged to direct a motivating force in the opposing direction to others of the motivators  30 . When this is done, some of the mobile elements  10  will rotate clockwise and others of the mobile elements  10  will rotate counterclockwise. When the cap  95  is removable, the arrangement of mobile elements  10  can be changed to further vary the resulting movement, such as by adding elements  10  or removing them, and changing the direction of rotation of an element  10 . 
     Further, if the mobile  100  is originally positioned with the substrates aligned in a tightly spaced vertical column, the mobile elements  10  will not all begin to move at once when exposed to light. The top-most solar cell panel  25  will generate power first, causing the connected motivator  30  to begin producing a motivating force and rotating the mobile element  10 , followed by the solar cell panel  25  of the next mobile element  10  in the stack, and so on. And, as the substrates of upper mobile elements  10  pass over the solar cell panels  25  of the lower mobile elements  10 , the light will be temporarily blocked, stopping power generation for a short time. The interruption of power will cause the mobile elements  10  to rotate in changing patterns as they interact with each other as long as a light source is present. 
       FIGS. 9 and 10  show a second embodiment of the mobile  100  in which the mobile  100  is suspended from a ceiling  82  or other elevated surface. A strand  92  inserted through the mounting holes  13  of the mobile elements  10  supports the mobile  100  from a hook  83  secured to the ceiling  82 . Cap  95  is securely connected to the bottom end of the strand  92 . A cover  85  and spacers  87  are provided over the strand  92 . 
     The cover  85  does not perform any support function in this version of the mobile  100 , and is only to protect the strand  92 . Spacers  87  are the same as for the mobile  100  of FIG.  7 . In the mobile  100  of  FIG. 9 , the cap  95  supports the lower-most mobile element  10 , and preferably provides a relatively frictionless interface with the beam  15 . 
     Strand  92  may be a metal wire, such as piano wire, fishing line, string, yarn or other similar material which can support the weight of the mobile  100  without breaking. Since cover  85  is not needed for support, the use of fishing line or another clear material to support the mobile  100  without the cover  85  can produce the illusion that it is hanging freely in space. 
     It should be noted that while a strand  92  is preferred for use with the mobile  100  of  FIG. 9 , a post  90  such as used with the embodiment of  FIG. 6  may be used in place of strand  92 . 
     In a third embodiment, shown in  FIG. 11 , the mobile  105  has a structure similar to a conventional Calder type mobile. The mobile  105  is suspended from hook  83  or another fastener in ceiling  82 . String  115  supports main beam  110  at a point which is determined to be the center of gravity of the main beam  110  when the mobile  105  is assembled. Each end of the main beam  110  has depending groups of mobile elements  10  balanced against each other. The mobile elements  10  are connected to the main beam  110  directly or by depending from a superior positioned mobile element  10 . The mobile  105  can include other decorative objects  130 , balanced on the hollow beams  15  with the mobile elements  10 . 
     The various mobile elements  10  of mobile  105  will rotate about in changing patterns as the motivators  30  of each mobile element  10  receive power or are interrupted due to shadowing of the connected solar cell panel  25  from adjacent components. As with the other two embodiments of the mobile  100 , the mobile elements  10  may be arranged so that the motivators  30  provide their motivating forces in opposing directions. 
     The mobiles  100 ,  105  of the invention provide an advantage over known mobiles in that they are self-powered, and will always have some movement in the presence of a light source. Each mobile element  10  contains its own power source and provides its own motivating force. The inclusion of a solar power cell  27  and a connected motivator  30  on each mobile element  10  overcomes the difficulty of providing power to each motivator  30 . And, at the same time, the invention allows each mobile element  10  to have forced, or driven, movement without simply having to connect all of the elements of the mobile to a single, central drive axle. 
     The mobile elements  10  are provided in at least one embodiment in which they present a use for difficult to recycle materials, such as defective CD-ROMS, computer CPU fans and even the wires from discarded computers. The mobiles  100 ,  105  of the invention provide a decorative and amusing effect, and will have movement in any sufficiently lighted room or space where sunlight can strike the solar panels  25 , even if there is no outside air current. 
     While a specific embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles.