Patent Publication Number: US-7214119-B2

Title: Inflatable remote control vehicle

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Technical Field 
   The subject invention relates generally to the field of toy vehicles, and, more particularly, to an inflatable remote control toy vehicle. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   Conventional remote control toy vehicles have typically been formed from hard plastic molded materials. There are difficulties associated with forming such remote control vehicles out of a hard plastic material. For instance, the hard plastic bodies of conventional remote control toy vehicles are breakable and can crack upon impact with a hard surface. Once the hard plastic bodies of the toy vehicles become cracked, the performance of the toy vehicle can be impacted and even render the toy vehicle unusable. 
   There have been attempts to provide remote control vehicles that are not constructed out of a hard plastic material. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,837 issued to Lieberman discloses an inflatable radio control car having an inflatable body with a cavity formed in its bottom surface that is situated over a remotely controlled drive unit. The inflatable radio control car of U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,837 is designed to be used as a promotional display, such that it possesses non-functional, inflatable wheels formed as part of the inflatable body that are intended to provide an overall appearance simulating the appearance of a real car. The remotely controlled drive unit is hidden underneath the inflatable body and allows the promotional display to be moved around. While the toy car disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,837 avoids some of the problems associated with hard plastic remote control vehicles, it possesses a number of other deficiencies that limit its effectiveness as being utilized as a remote control toy vehicle as opposed to merely an promotional display. Initially, by positioning the inflatable wheels of the inflatable body very close to the ground such that they assume the appearance of real wheels, the functionality of the toy car in U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,837 is limited as it has a very low clearance and must be used on a flat, level surfaces to keep the inflatable wheels from engaging the ground surface. Moreover, the inflatable front and rear wheels of the inflatable body do not move or rotate, thus rendering a rather unrealistic effect of making the toy car in U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,837 seem to float or hover when the drive unit moving the object cannot be seen by a viewer. Still further, the remotely controlled drive unit is located in a rectangular housing positioned in the center of the device, thus limiting the functionality and performance of the toy car in the &#39;837 patent by having the movement and steering of the device limited to very center of the device in attempting to hide the drive unit from sight. 
   SUMMARY 
   The following is a summary of various aspects and advantages realizable according to various embodiments of the inflatable remote control vehicle according to the present invention. It is provided as an introduction to assist those skilled in the art to more rapidly assimilate the detailed discussion of the invention that ensues and does not and is not intended in any way to limit the scope of the claims that are appended hereto. 
   The various embodiments described below relate to an inflatable remote control vehicle having a wheel-less inflatable vehicle body attached to a remotely controlled base unit having a plurality of visually functional wheels. The inflatable vehicle body includes a plurality of wheel well areas for accommodating the functional wheels of the base unit and allowing the functionality of wheels to be seen by a viewer. The remote control vehicle preferably includes a rigid support structure connected to a bottom surface of the inflatable vehicle body, where the rigid support structure is then attached to the remotely controlled base unit. 
   By utilizing an inflatable vehicle body, a much more durable remote control vehicle can be produced in accordance with the present invention than previously attainable with breakable hard plastic frame bodies. The performance and functionality of the remote control vehicle is enhanced by lightweight nature of the inflatable vehicle body. The inflatable vehicle body of the remote control vehicle further allows vehicles having varying dimensions to be produced by simply varying the size of the inflatable vehicle body. Since the inflatable vehicle body is formed without wheels, the inflatable vehicle body does not obscure the visibility of the functionality of the wheels, thereby adding to the realistic effect of the remote control vehicle simulating a real vehicle by allowing a viewer to see the wheels actually turning and driving the vehicle. The remote control vehicle further possesses an increased performance through use of a remote control base unit comprising a fully functional chassis having functional wheels whose function is not inhibited by the wheel-less inflatable body attached to the base unit. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The features of the present invention, which are believed to be novel, are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further advantages, may best be understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which the reference numerals designate like parts throughout the figures thereof and wherein: 
       FIGS. 1A and 1B  are perspective views of preferred embodiments of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 2A  is an exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 2B  is a bottom perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 3  is a bottom view of a preferred embodiment of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 4A  is a bottom view of a preferred embodiment of an inflatable vehicle body of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 4B  is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of an inflatable vehicle body of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 5A  is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a base unit of the inflatable remote control vehicle; 
       FIG. 5B  is a side view of a preferred embodiment of a base unit of the inflatable remote control vehicle; and 
       FIG. 6  is a block schematic view of a preferred embodiment of a base unit of the inflatable remote control vehicle. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   The following description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the invention and sets forth the best modes contemplated by the inventors of carrying out their invention. Various modifications, however, will remain readily apparent to those skilled in the art, since the general principles of the present invention have been defined herein specifically to provide an inflatable remote control vehicle. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 1A and 1B , a perspective view of two preferred embodiments of a toy inflatable remote control vehicle  10  are illustrated. The remote control vehicle  10  includes an inflatable vehicle body  12  attached to a remotely controlled base unit  14  that includes a plurality of operable and functional wheels  16 . The base unit  14  and its functional wheels  16  essentially form the chassis of the remote control vehicle  10 . The inflatable vehicle body  12  is formed without wheels and includes a plurality of wheel well areas  18  for accommodating the functional wheels  16  of the base unit  14 . The inflatable vehicle body  12  is formed such that, when attached to the base unit  14 , the functionality of wheels  16  can be seen by a viewer and the inflatable vehicle body  12  does not hinder their movement or functionality. A viewer could see the wheels  16  rotating to propel the remote control vehicle  10  or turning to steer the remote control vehicle  10 . 
   The remotely controlled base unit  14  includes a receiver for receiving control signals transmitted from of a control unit transmitter  20 , such as a hand-held control unit that is conventionally utilized with remote control toy vehicles. The transmitter  20  includes a plurality of operable controls that a user can activate to control the operation of the remote control vehicle  10 . The transmitter  20  and its associated receiver in the base unit  14  can be implemented using any transmitter/receiver pair that has conventionally been used with remote control toy vehicles that are well-known to those skilled in the art. 
   The inflatable vehicle body  12  may be formed to have the appearance of any type of vehicle that the toy remote control vehicle  10  is intended to replicate. For example, the inflatable vehicle body  12  may appear as an automobile, a race car, a truck, a motorcycle, a tank, a snow mobile, or any other type of vehicle. The inflatable vehicle body  12  is also designed to be removably attachable to the base unit  14  such that various designs of the inflatable vehicle body  12  may be interchangeably attached to the base unit  14 . In this manner, a single base unit  14  can be provided along with a plurality of different types of inflatable vehicle bodies  12 , where a particular design of the inflatable vehicle body  12  can be selected to be attached to the base unit  14  from among the plurality of different types of designs to select the particular type of toy remote control vehicle  10  a user wishes to replicate at any given time. For example, the race car remote control vehicle  10  illustrated in  FIG. 1A  and the truck remote control vehicle  10  illustrated in  FIG. 1B  could utilize the same remotely controlled base unit  14  with respective race car and truck designs of the inflatable vehicle bodies  12  being selected to be attachable thereto. In further preferred embodiments of the remote control vehicle  10 , the wheels  16  may also be removably interchangeable with other types of wheels or propulsion devices, where a user of the remote control vehicle can select the particular wheels to be attached from a plurality of possible wheel configurations depending upon the particular type of vehicle the toy remote control vehicle  10  is intended to replicate. 
   The inflatable vehicle body  12  may be formed from any pliable material impermeable to air, such as a flexible plastic sheet material or the like selected from a variety of soft, thin, flexible thermoplastic sheet materials that are substantially air impermeable and preferably thermoplastic, such as polyvinylchlorides, polyolefins and polyesters. The inflatable vehicle body  12  preferably includes a valve (not shown) that allows a user to inflate the inflatable vehicle body  12  with air or other gaseous substance until the inflatable vehicle body  12  forms the shape of its intended design when fully inflated. 
   The inflatable vehicle body  12  may be attached to the remotely controlled base unit  14  in any manner of attachment known to those skilled in the art. In a preferred embodiment, the remote control vehicle  10  includes a rigid support structure  22  that is adhered to a bottom surface of the inflatable vehicle body  12 , where the rigid support structure  22  is then attached to the remotely controlled base unit  14 , as illustrated in an exploded, perspective view in  FIG. 2A  and in an assembled view in  FIG. 2B . The rigid support structure  22  provides a solid, stable surface with which the base unit  14  can be reliably attached. The rigid support structure  22  may comprise a single, unitary structure or may comprise a plurality of rigid support structures attached to respective portions of the inflatable vehicle body  12 . Thus, the inflatable vehicle body  12  may be designed to have any number of points of attachment to the base unit  14 . 
   In one preferred embodiment, a rigid support structure  22  is adhered to at least one of the wheel well areas  18  of the inflatable vehicle body  12 , as illustrated in the unassembled state in  FIG. 2A  and in the assembled state in  FIGS. 2B and 3 . In this arrangement, the rigid support structure  22  provides a hard surface in the wheel well areas  18  to protect the inflatable vehicle body  12  against damage from contact with the moving wheels  16  or from small objects (e.g., rocks, sticks) that could get kicked up by the moving wheels  16 . Furthermore, positioning the rigid support structures  22  in the wheel well areas  18  provides a consistently shaped area for accommodating the wheels  16  to allow them to rotate and turn therein. In order to allow optimal functionality of the wheels  16 , the rigid support structures are preferably semi-circular in shape when positioned in the wheel well areas  18  of the inflatable vehicle body  12 . Without such rigid support structures  22  positioned in the wheel well areas  18 , the inflatable vehicle body  12  could have a tendency to bulge toward the wheels  16  when inflated. Thus, in an alternative embodiment, a least one brace or bar could be positioned in each of the wheel well areas  18  to extend across the wheel well areas  18  and prevent the inflatable vehicle body  12  from bulge toward the wheels  16  when inflated. 
   Aside from their matingly shaped relationship, the base unit  14  may further be attached to the inflatable vehicle body  12  in any manner of attachment known to those skilled in the art to assist in maintaining their connection when the remote control vehicle  10  is in use. The following manners of attachment are provided merely to illustrate some examples of attachment and the present invention is not intended to be limited to these specific examples. The base unit  14  and the rigid support structures  22 , attached to the inflatable vehicle body  12 , could be connected through the use of screws, bolts, snaps, adhesive, Velcro®, frictional engagement or other known means. 
   In another preferred embodiment, the inflatable vehicle body  12  may include a central chamber  25  extending between the wheel well areas  18  for accommodating a portion of the base unit  14  that extends between the wheel well areas  18 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 4A and 4B . This central chamber  25  assists in ensuring that the inflatable vehicle body  12  is properly aligned on the base unit  14 . The central chamber  25  further allows the central portion of the inflatable vehicle body  12  to be situated closer to ground, thus further adding to the realistic effect of simulating an actual vehicle. 
   To further enhance the functionality and performance of the remote control vehicle  10  and to further realistically simulate the performance of an actual vehicle, the base unit  14  in another preferred embodiment may further include axles  24  extending from a drive unit  26  to the wheels  16 . The rigid support structures  22  and the wheel well areas  18  should be shaped to accommodate the axles  24  and drive unit  26  in this embodiment. The wheel well area  18  may comprise a cavity in the inflatable vehicle body  12  that extends across a width of the inflatable vehicle body  12 , as shown in  FIGS. 2A ,  2 B and  3 . 
   Referring now to  FIGS. 5A and 5B , a perspective view and a side view, respectively, of a preferred embodiment of the remotely controlled base unit  14  are illustrated without the inflatable vehicle body  12  attached thereto. The base unit  14  includes at least one contoured area  28  that is shaped to matingly engage a respective portion of the rigid support structure  22 . This provides a simple and efficient manner of consistently aligning and connecting the inflatable vehicle body  12  to the remotely controlled base unit  14 . The contoured area  28  of the base unit  14  and the rigid support structure  22  should be similarly shaped such that they matingly engage one another (e.g., male-female connector relationship). In the embodiment where the rigid support structure  22  is formed to be semi-circular, the contoured area  28  of the base unit  14  should similarly be formed in a semi-circular shape. It is the intention of the inventors of the present invention that the contoured area  28  of the base unit and the rigid support structure  22  may be formed to possess any shape and are not limited to semi-circular designs. 
   A block schematic illustration of the components of the remotely controlled base unit  14  is provided in  FIG. 6 . The block components in  FIG. 6  are shown to be connected by a series of lines representing appropriate electrical wiring between the components. The base unit  14  includes a receiver  30  for receiving control signals transmitted from the control unit transmitter  20 . The control signals are preferably transmitted at normal radio frequencies, such that the vehicle  10  is a radio control toy vehicle. However, it is the intention of the inventors of the present invention that the control signals are capable of being transmitted by any manner of transmission, at any frequency, or by a wired connection between the base unit  14  and transmitter  20 . Further, each individual remote control vehicle  10  may operate at a different frequency or frequency range to allow multiple remote control vehicles  10  to be operated in close proximity to one another without having signal interference between their respective control signals. 
   The receiver  30  possesses circuitry and logic to receive the control signals and process the control signals such that their desired control functions are transferred to the respective components in the base unit  14 . The base unit  14  includes a drive unit  26  for controlling the movement and direction of the remote control vehicle  10  through use of a drive motor connected to the wheels  16  (through axles  24  when applicable), as is conventionally known to those skilled in the art of remote control toy vehicles. The drive unit  26  controls the rotation of the wheels  16  to control the speed and direction of movement of the remote control vehicle  10  and further controls the wheels  16  to control the steering or turning of the remote control vehicle  10 . A power source  32 , such as an on-board battery, is connected to the drive unit  26  and the receiver  30  and any other components requiring independent power to operate through either direct or indirect wiring connections. The base unit  14  may further include an audio output device  34 , such as a horn or a speaker to play prerecorded sounds stored on the base unit  14  or to play voice data transmitted from the control unit transmitter (i.e., walkie-talkie functionality). The base unit  14  may still further include a visual output device  36 , such as various lights (e.g., vehicle headlights, taillights), LED displays or other visual displays. Such lights may simulate the functionality of lights on a real vehicle being replicated. 
   The base unit  14  may comprise the entire chassis of the remote control vehicle  10 , as shown in  FIGS. 5A and 5B . The base unit  14  may use the control signals to control one, any, or all of the wheels  16  to drive the remote control vehicle  10 . In alternative preferred embodiment, the remotely controlled base unit  14  may comprise only a portion of the chassis of the remote control vehicle  10  that is attached to the inflatable vehicle body  12  at any point. For example, the entire base unit  14  could be compactly positioned within one of the wheel well areas  18  such that the base unit  14  only controls the wheels  16  located in the same wheel well area  18  as the base unit  14 . 
   The inflatable vehicle body  12  may be formed to be at least partially transparent, or transparent only in certain regions, such that the visual output device  36  (e.g., lights) can be positioned on the base unit  14  and can be seen through the inflatable vehicle body  12 . The inflatable vehicle body  12  may further be configured to possess certain channels extending from the visual output device  36  to an outer surface of the inflatable vehicle body  12  that allow light to be transmitted through the channels to the outside of the inflatable vehicle body  12 . For example, these channels can be used to direct light in a certain direction, such as when the visual output device  36  is used as the headlights of the remote control vehicle  10 . 
   In another preferred embodiment, the remote control vehicle  10  may include repair patches  40 , as shown in  FIG. 1 , that can be adhered to the inflatable vehicle body  12  to cover and seal tears or holes which may form in the inflatable vehicle body  12 . The patches  40  are large enough to cover the hole and to provide an air-tight seal to prevent the inflatable vehicle body  12  from deflating. The patches  40  may be adhered to the inflatable vehicle body  12  in any manner known to those skilled in the art, such as through use of an adhesive or by heating the patch  40  so that it partially melts and bonds with the inflatable vehicle body  12 . The patches  40  may be formed from any suitable material which will remain adhered to the inflatable vehicle body  12 , but are preferably formed from the same flexible, plastic material as the inflatable vehicle body  12 . The patches  40  may further comprise printed designs or decals so as to enhance the appearance of the inflatable vehicle body  12  (e.g., depicting the number “5” of the race car on a decal, as illustrated in  FIG. 1 ). 
   By utilizing an inflatable vehicle body  12 , a more durable remote control vehicle  10  having an improved performance can be produced than previously attainable with hard plastic frame bodies. The performance, functionality and durability of the remote control vehicle  10  is enhanced by its wheel-less inflatable body  12 . The lightweight inflatable vehicle body  12  of the remote control vehicle  10  further allows vehicles having much larger dimensions to be produced. Further, when not in use, the inflatable vehicle body  12  can simply be deflated to allow for compact storage of the remote control vehicle  10 . The inflatable vehicle body  12  is further formed to be wheel-less so as to not obscure the visibility of the functionality of the wheels  16 , thereby adding to the realistic simulation of a real vehicle achieved by the remote control vehicle  10 . Additionally, by utilizing a remotely controlled base unit  14  having a chassis that is very similar to real vehicle chassis with real operating wheels  16  and axles  24 , the performance of the remote control vehicle  10  is improved over conventional remote control toy vehicles. The wheel-less inflatable body further does not inhibit the functionality of the wheels of the base unit or of the clearance of remote control vehicle  10 , which can be especially important when the remote control vehicle  10  is simulating an off-road vehicle. 
   The different structures of the inflatable remote control vehicle of the present invention are described separately in each of the above embodiments. However, it is the full intention of the inventors of the present invention that the separate aspects of each embodiment described herein may be combined with the other embodiments described herein. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various adaptations and modifications of the just described preferred embodiment can be configured without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Therefore, it is to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described herein.