Abstract:
A vehicle is in the general shape of a land vehicle, such as a car, but has a plurality of rotors so the vehicle is capable of flight in the manner of a VTOL or a helicopter. The vehicle has foot pedals and steering that can be operated in the manner similar to that of a car.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to the general art of motor vehicles, and to the particular field of flying vehicles. 
     2. Discussion of the Related Art 
     As anyone who has driven on roadways near any major city in the world will attest, people of today are very mobile and the number of land vehicles on the roads, both major roads and secondary roads, is increasing at nearly alarming rates. Roads are becoming more and more congested with each passing day. The roadways are shared by commuters, police and fire departments, rescue squads, as well as the military. This adds still further to the congestion on the roadways. The congestion is not only frustrating to those trapped in it, it is wasteful of time and energy. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a mode of personal transportation that will bypass the congestion on roadways. 
     In order to be most efficient, any mode of personal transportation should be as agile as possible and as maneuverable as possible. This will permit the user to move into all of the areas now accessed by automobiles and also to maneuver near congested areas as well. 
     Many land vehicles that are used by civilians can also be very useful to the military as well as civilian defense. For this reason, these vehicles also should be as agile and as maneuverable as well. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle. 
     One alternative to land vehicle transportation is air vehicle transportation. This form of transportation has, historically, included airplanes as well as helicopters. While this form of transportation has been fairly efficient, it generally requires a user to depart and arrive at specific locations that are designed to accommodate aircraft. These areas vary from airports to special landing pads. This requirement may add to vehicular congestion as people travel to and from the designated landing and takeoff areas, generally by land vehicle. Often this type of transportation is very expensive in addition to being somewhat inconvenient in both time and logistics. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle that is capable of flight. 
     As with any product that is marketed to the public, the easier such a vehicle is to operate, the more successful it will be. One problem with many flying vehicles, such as helicopters or the like, is that they are difficult and complicated to operate. Thus, the public will be slow to accept such vehicles. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle that is capable of flight and is easy to operate. 
     As mentioned above, not only are those in the public interested in alternative modes of transportation, those in the military and civil defense, as well as those in the rescue and fire industries, are also interested in avoiding the congested roadways that they now have to use. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a vehicle that can be used not only by the public for general transportation but also by the military as well as the civil defense and rescue industries to meet their needs as well. 
     PRINCIPAL OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
     It is a main object of the present invention to provide a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle which is capable of flight. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle and which is extremely versatile. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a highly maneuverable and agile transportation vehicle and which is extremely versatile and which is easy to operate. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     These, and other, objects are achieved by a personal vehicle that has a general appearance of a land vehicle but which is driven by rotors in the manner of a helicopter so the vehicle will fly. The vehicle has two horizontally oriented rotors as well as a vertically oriented rotor and is controlled by a compound steering wheel. The vehicle also includes brakes and the like that resemble the equipment associated with cars so a driver can operate the flying vehicle in the manner of a car with which he or she is familiar. 
     The vehicle can thus be operated in the manner of a car, but will have flight capability in the manner of a Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) vehicle, and thus will be useful in avoiding and relieving congestion on the roadways. The vehicle is designed to be easy to operate so it will be attractive to the general public. The vehicle will be as agile and as maneuverable as a small helicopter so the vehicle can be maneuvered and operated in congested areas while still being safe. The vehicle will not be subject to the congestion associated with land vehicles and thus will provide significant advantages to an operator. Since the vehicle is agile and maneuverable, it will be attractive to the military as well as to others such as police, fire, rescue and civil defense personnel. 
     The vehicle can also be used by the airline industry as a shuttle between airports, or even between locations in a single airport. This will relieve much pressure on present airline traffic routes as well as providing an important new product for both the airline manufacturers and the land vehicle manufacturers. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
     FIG. 1 is a front and top perspective view of a vehicle embodying the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a front elevational view thereof. 
     FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view thereof. 
     FIG. 4 is a bottom view thereof. 
     FIG. 5 shows the rotors of the vehicle embodying the present invention. 
     FIG. 6 shows the rotors in place on the vehicle. 
     FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of an alternative form of the vehicle. 
     FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a compound steering wheel used in the vehicle embodying the present invention. 
     FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of the steering wheel. 
     FIG. 10 is a schematic of the steering wheel. 
     FIG. 11 is a side elevational view of the steering wheel illustrating one method of controlling the vehicle using the steering wheel. 
     FIG. 12 shows a connection to one of the rotors of the vehicle. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. 
     Referring to the figures, it can be understood that the present invention is embodied in a motor vehicle  10  that operates in the manner of a VTOL type aircraft but is sized and designed to be a personal vehicle. Motor vehicle  10  comprises a main body  12  that is in the shape of a land vehicle car and which has a front end  14 , a rear end  16  and a longitudinal axis  18  which extends between the front end  14  and the rear end  16 . The main body  12  further includes a first side  20 , a second side  22 , and a transverse axis  24  which extends between the first side  20  and the second side  22 . The main body  12  further includes a top  26 , a bottom  28 , and a height dimension  30  which extends between the top  26  and the bottom  28 . A windshield  32  and doors  34  can also be included so the vehicle  10  further resembles a car. A front vent area  36  and a rear vent area  38  are also defined in the main body  12 . 
     A front rotor  40  is mounted on the main body  12  near the front end  14  of the main body  12  and is oriented to rotate in a horizontal plane to produce lift to the vehicle  10 . The front rotor  40  includes at least one rotor blade  42  that includes a longitudinal axis  44  and which is mounted to move in a roll motion, indicated by double-headed arrow  46  in FIG. 5, about the longitudinal axis  44  of the rotor blade  42  of the front rotor  40 . Rotor blade  42  is moved by collective sleeve swash plate and scissor assembly  48  which includes lever arms, such as lever arm  50 , pivots, such as pivot  52  and collective control tubes  54 . 
     A rear rotor  60  is mounted on the main body  12  near the rear end  16  of the main body  12  and oriented to rotate in a horizontal plane to produce lift to the vehicle  10 . The rear rotor  60  includes at least one rotor blade  62  that includes a longitudinal axis  64 . Rotor blade  62  is mounted to move in a roll motion about the longitudinal axis  64  of the rotor blade  62  of the rear rotor  60  as indicated by the double-headed arrow  66  shown in FIG.  5 . Rotor blade  62  is moved by mechanism  68  which includes lever arms, such as lever arm  70  and pivots, such as pivot  72 . 
     The front rotor  40  is set lower than the rear rotor  60  to provide greater viewing area for the driver of the vehicle  10 . 
     A power plant  90  is mounted on the main body  12  between the front end  14  of the main body  12  and the rear end  16  of the main body  12 . The power plant  90  can be an internal combustion engine or any other engine suitable for vehicle  10 . The power plant  90  is set to the lowest possible position to provide for a low center of gravity and to maintain a stabilized aerodynamic integrity. The power plant  90  is connected to the rotors by drive shafts, such as drive shaft  91  and gear systems such as gear system  91 ′ to transfer power from the power plant  90  to the rotors  40 ,  60 . 
     A front rotor connection system  92  couples the power plant  90  to the front rotor  40  and includes a suitable gear mechanism  94  to translate motion associated with the power plant  90  into motion suitable for use by the front rotor  40 . 
     A rear rotor connection system  96  couples the power plant  90  to the rear rotor  60  and includes a suitable gear mechanism  98  to translate motion associated with the power plant  90  into motion suitable for use by the rear rotor  60 . The rear rotor connection system  96  is similar to the just-described connection system  92  associated with the front rotor  40  and includes a drive shaft and appropriate gearing to transfer motion of the drive shaft to the rear rotor  60 . 
     A tail rotor  100  is mounted on the rear end  16  of the main body  12  and is oriented to rotate in a vertical plane and provides thrust propulsion to the main body  12  in the direction of the longitudinal axis  18  of the main body  12 . The tail rotor  100  has at least one rotor blade  102  that includes a longitudinal axis  104 . Rotor blade  102  is mounted to rotate in a roll direction about the longitudinal axis  104  of the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100  as indicated by double-headed arrow  106  in FIG. 6 to have a positive pitch, a negative pitch and a neutral pitch. 
     A tail rotor connection system  110  couples the tail rotor  100  to the power plant  90  and includes suitable gear mechanisms  112  and  113  to translate motion associated with the power plant  90  into motion suitable for use by the tail rotor  100 . Rotor blade  102  is moved by mechanism  114  which includes lever arms, such as lever arm  116  and pivots, such as pivot  118 . The tail rotor connection system  110  is similar to the just-described connection system associated with the front rotor  40  and includes a drive shaft and appropriate gearing to transfer motion of the drive shaft to the tail rotor  100 . 
     A driver&#39;s seat  120  is mounted on the main body  12  between the front rotor  40  and the rear rotor  60 . A passenger seat  122  is mounted on the main body  12  adjacent to the driver&#39;s seat  120 . Further passenger seats can be included as desired. 
     A steering mechanism  130  is mounted on the main body  12  and is shown in FIGS. 8,  9  and  10 . The steering mechanism  130  includes a compound steering wheel  132  which is mounted on the main body  12  adjacent to the driver&#39;s seat  120 . The compound steering wheel  132  includes an outer steering wheel  134  and an inner steering wheel  136 . The outer steering wheel  134  and the inner steering wheel  136  are rotatable in directions indicated by double-headed arrows  138  and  140 . 
     A steering connection  142 , which can include levers  148  and  150  connected together by a pivot  152  and includes a portion  142 ′ which connects the outer steering wheel  134  to the front rotor  40  and a portion  142 ″ which connects the inner steering wheel  136  to the rear rotor  60 . 
     The steering wheel  132  is movably mounted on the main body  12  by a pivot  155  to be movable in the direction of the longitudinal axis  18  of the main body  12  between a forward orientation and a rearward orientation as indicated by the double-headed arrows  160  and  162  in FIG.  11 . 
     When steering column  156  is pulled toward the driver or pilot, this action pushes collective control  157  activating pivot cam  154  upwardly forcing the collective control lever  150  to apply positive pitch to blade grips  158  causing lift. The control rods are connected to a swash plate and the swash plate is connected to the collective sleeve assembly  48 . When the steering column  156  is pushed away from the pilot, this action pulls the collective controls  157  and reverses the process and decreases the applied pitch back to a neutral pitch. This action reduces lift causing the craft to lower its altitude. 
     The outer steering wheel  134  controls the cyclic articulation of the front main rotor system. If the wheel  134  is turned clockwise, this activates a cable and pulley system  163  that connects to a swash plate and scissor assembly causing the rotor blades to tilt to the right. If the steering wheel  134  is turned counter-clockwise, then the rotor blades are tilted to the left. Tilting the rotor blades to the right or left causes the thrust vector to shift to the opposite direction providing thrust to turn the vehicle  10  in the direction of steering. The inner steering wheel  136  controls the cyclic articulation of the rear main rotor system using a cable and pulley system  163 ′. This control is the same as is utilized for the outer steering wheel  134 , only providing right and left tilt to the blades  62  of the rear rotor  60 . 
     The separation of the cyclic articulation of the front and rear rotor systems allows for precision turning. The vehicle may turn utilizing the front rotor  40  causing the nose of the vehicle  10  to lead in the direction of steering. The vehicle may turn utilizing the rear rotor  60 , causing the tail end of the vehicle  10  to swing in the direction of steering which, in effect, causes the nose to turn in the opposite direction of steering. Turning both wheels  134 ,  136  in the same direction causes the craft  10  to strafe sideways in the direction of steering. Turning both wheels  134 ,  136  in opposite directions causes the vehicle  10  to spin at the central fulcrum of the front and rear rotors  40 ,  60  allowing for 180° turns in place. This provide agility and maneuverability to the vehicle  10 . 
     A brake mechanism  170  is mounted on the main body  12  in front of the driver&#39;s seat  120 . The brake mechanism  170  includes a brake pedal  172  located in front of the driver&#39;s seat  120  and a brake connection  174  connecting the brake pedal  172  to the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100  to move the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100  in accordance with the position of the brake pedal  172  between a positive pitch position, a negative pitch position, and a neutral pitch position of the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100 . 
     An accelerator mechanism  180  is mounted on the main body  12  and includes an accelerator pedal  182  mounted on the main body  12  adjacent to the driver&#39;s seat  120  and an accelerator mechanism  184  connecting the accelerator pedal  182  to the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100  to vary the pitch of the rotor blade  102  of the tail rotor  100  between a positive pitch, a negative pitch, and a neutral pitch in accordance with the position of the accelerator pedal  182  and to vary the power supplied to the tail rotor  100  in accordance with the position of the accelerator pedal  182 . An adjustable throttle  185  controls the power plant  90  to maintain a constant RPM and power ratio in order to maintain flight or lift. If more power is needed, the throttle  185  is adjusted to increase the power output independently of the accelerator pedal  182 . The accelerator pedal  182  is also connected to the front rotor  40  via a mechanism  194  and to the rear rotor  60  via a mechanism  196 . 
     When the accelerator pedal is depressed, a tail rotor sprocket and a forward control sprocket  200  are actuated. This adds collective pitch to the tail rotor blades  102  causing forward thrust and causes the main rotors  40 ,  60  to tilt forward causing forward thrust to push the vehicle  10  forward. When the brake pedal  172  is depressed, this reverses the action to neutral and if pressed further causes negative collective pitch to be applied to the tail rotor  100  and causes a reverse control sprocket  202  on the main rotors  40 ,  60  to tilt the rotors backwards causing reverse thrust thus slowing the vehicle  10  and then flying in reverse. 
     One form of the vehicle  10  includes landing skids  300  mounted on the bottom  28  of the vehicle  10  as shown in FIG.  7 . The landing gear  300  should be mounted at the same point as the main rotor assemblies and should be centered and balanced so as not to affect the in-flight aerodynamics. The landing gear  300  is constructed of a light weight but durable material to withstand the stress of landing and should be designed to deflect in order to absorb the shock encountered when landing. 
     It is understood that while certain forms of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements of parts described and shown.