Patent ID: 7191861

Claim:
A wheeled vehicle, comprising: at least one disk; (N) permanent magnets disposed on said disk with the same magnetic polarity to one side of the disk, wherein (N) is greater than or equal to 2; a frame, wherein said at least one disk is rotatably connected to said frame; a power source; at least one and up to (N-1) electromagnet assemblies disposed on said frame, wherein each of those electromagnet assemblies comprises a first electromagnetic pole and a second electromagnet pole, wherein said first electromagnet pole and said second electromagnet pole are separated by a gap, and wherein the one to (N-1) electromagnet assemblies are disposed on said frame such that each of said (N) permanent magnets sequentially pass through the gap in each of the one to (N-1) electromagnet assemblies as said disk rotates; a control unit disposed on said frame and interconnected with said power source, wherein said control unit is capable of selectively providing power to each of said one to (N-1) electromagnet assemblies; wherein said first electromagnet pole has no magnetic polarity when said electromagnet assembly is not energized, and wherein said first electromagnet pole has a first magnetic polarity when said electromagnet assembly is energized; wherein said second electromagnet pole has said no magnetic polarity when said electromagnet assembly is not energized, and wherein said second electromagnet pole has a second magnetic polarity when said electromagnet assembly is energized; wherein one or more of said one to (N-1) electromagnet assemblies further comprises a first flux guide formed from a ferromagnetic material, wherein said first flux guide is physically and magnetically attached to said first electromagnet pole, and wherein said first flux guide has the said magnetic polarity as said first electromagnet pole.