Ornamental carousel assembly

Abstract

An ornamental carousel assembly is disclosed which simulates the movements of a full-size carousel by supporting various carousel figures that both reciprocate vertically and revolve around a central vertical support column along with a canopy. The rotating and reciprocating ornaments are supported on a central support assembly by a bearing arrangement which minimizes the friction developed during movement of the ornamental elements so as to permit a miniature wind-up music box mechanism to drive the carousel. The drive assembly from the miniature wind-up music box mechanism includes a gear drive assembly for transferring drive from an output shaft of the miniature wind-up music box mechanism to rotate and reciprocate the various ornamental figures and a spring which is used to impart the necessary rotary drive force to the canopy. The inclusion of the spring serves not only to drive the canopy but also provides a safety feature wherein the canopy is permitted to flex in order to prevent damage of the canopy during transit and handling especially when heavy ceramic canopies are utilized.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.