Patent Publication Number: US-2010127844-A1

Title: Seat alignment sensing and safeguarding mechanism of an electric scooter cart

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS 
     Not applicable. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable. 
     NAMES OF PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT 
     Not applicable. 
     REFERENCE TO AN APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON COMPACT DISC 
     Not applicable. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to an electric scooter cart, and more particularly to an innovative scooter cart with an alignment sensing and safeguarding mechanism for the seat. 
     2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98. 
     The existing electric scooter cart is structurally assembled in such a manner that the seat is generally provided with rotary angles in order to make the physically disabled or aged drivers get on/off the cart more conveniently. When a driver is intended for getting on/off the cart, the seat could be rotated 90° for facing laterally, or when a driver is intended for driving the cart, the seat could be readjusted and realigned to make the driver face the front of the cart and control correctly the driving direction. 
     However, due to the delayed reaction of the physically disabled or aged drivers, it is possible for them to trigger the throttle&#39;s deflector rod and activate the electric scooter cart by mistake when the seat is not yet realigned. Alternatively, any consequence or unexpected accident may occur due to their oblique gesture in sitting. 
     Thus, to overcome the aforementioned problems of the prior art, it would be an advancement in the art to provide an improved structure that can significantly improve efficacy. 
     Therefore, the inventor has provided the present invention of practicability after deliberate design and evaluation based on years of experiences in the production, development and design of related products. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Based on the unique structure of the present invention, the seat alignment sensing and safeguarding mechanism of electric scooter cart permits first and second sensors to be arranged correspondingly between the top of the column and the chassis of the seat. The first sensor is electrically connected with a controller, which can control the on/off state of the drive motor of the electric scooter cart according to the sensing signal of the first sensor. As compared with the prior art, when the seat of the electric scooter cart of the present invention is not realigned, the electric scooter cart cannot be activated, helping to prevent any unexpected hazard, and further improving the operational safety of the electric scooter cart with better applicability. 
     Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of the present invention, showing the seat separated from the column. 
         FIG. 2  shows a partial perspective view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  shows a schematic view of the present invention, showing the controller, magnetic reed switch and drive motor as electrically connected. 
         FIG. 4  shows a top plan view of the present invention, showing the seat in an aligned state. 
         FIG. 5  shows a top plan view of the present invention, showing the seat in a mis-aligned state. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The features and the advantages of the present inventionwill be more readily understood upon a thoughtful deliberation of the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       FIGS. 1-3  depict preferred embodiments of seat alignment sensing and safeguarding mechanism of an electric scooter cart of the present invention. The embodiments are only provided for explanatory purposes with respect to the patent claims. 
     The seat  10  of electric scooter cart A is assembled rotatably via the chassis  11  onto the top of a column  30  on the main body  20  of the electric scooter cart A. A first sensor  41  and a second sensor  42  are arranged correspondingly between the top of column  30  and the chassis  11  of the seat  10 . The first sensor  41  on the top of column  30  is electrically connected with a controller  50 , so as to transmit signals to the controller  50  according to the sensing state. Meanwhile, the controller  50  can control on/off state of the drive motor  60  of the electric scooter cart A (shown in  FIG. 3 ) according to the sensing signal of the first sensor  41 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the first sensor  41  is made of a magnetic reed switch  410 , and the second sensor  42  is made of an induced magnet  420 . The controller  50  (shown in  FIG. 3 ) is provided with a signal contact  51  and earthing end  52 , such that the magnetic reed switch  410  is wired to the signal contact  51  and earthing end  52  of the controller  50 . 
     Based on the aforementioned structures, the seat alignment sensing and safeguarding mechanism of electric scooter cart A of the present invention is operated as shown in  FIG. 4 . When the seat  10  of the electric scooter cart A is under a preset positive angle (i.e. facing the cart head), the magnetic reed switch  410  is aligned with the induced magnet  420 , and then induced by the magnet into an open-circuit state. In such case, the electronic signal of the controller  50  is high, representing normal starting state of the electric scooter cart A. When the seat  10  is deviated (shown in  FIG. 5 ), the magnetic reed switch  410  is misaligned with the induced magnet  420 , so the magnetic reed switch  410  is under a closed circuit state, and the signal of the controller  50  turns from high to low. Furthermore, the drive motor  60  is turned off to disable the electric scooter cart A. If users intend to resume the normal driving state, it is required to realign the seat  10  and reset the drive motor  60  without need of turning-on the power switch. 
     The deviation angle of the seat  10  is set as 15°. If this angle is exceeded, the motor control system will be cut off automatically, so that the motor of electric scooter cart A will be turned off immediately to avoid error triggering of the throttle. When the seat is realigned, the driver is allowed for normal operation with the throttle.