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US 5,427,561 AGranted
Battery powered toy train
AssigneeSmall World Toys
InventorsHermann Eichhorn, Hermann R. Eichhorn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A self-propelled toy train engine for pulling a train of wooden railroad cars over a variety of surfaces including a child safe magnetic coupling for connecting the engine to the railroad cars, high traction drive wheels for being propelled over a variety of surfaces, a gear train which disengages from the drive axle given a predetermined force. The train engine is weighted to provide added traction for propelling the train set over smooth surfaces and a low center of gravity for stabilizing the engine when propelling the train set over rough surfaces such as carpeting.
Claims9
A self-propelled toy train engine for propelling wooden railroad cars over a plurality of surfaces, said engine comprising:
- a base including a floor, two end walls and two side walls forming a base cavity;
- a base lid connected above said base for enclosing said cavity;
- a plurality of wheels rotatably connecting to said side walls for movably supporting the base above the plurality of surfaces;
- means for rotatably connecting said wheels to said side walls;
- drive means connected to at least two of said wheel connection means and housed in said base cavity for rotating said respective wheels;
- a coupling mount rigidly affixed to said base and extending perpendicularly away from one of said end walls;
- and
- ball means for movably coupling said engine to said railroad cars rotatably connected to said coupling mount said ball means being two magnetically attractive hemispheres linked together through said coupling mount, one hemisphere on each side of said coupling mount.
5 more elements
A self-propelled toy train engine for pulling wooden train cars over a plurality of surfaces, said engine comprising:
- a rectangular base having a planar floor, a front end wail, a rear end wail, and two side wails forming a propulsion cavity, wheel coupling points formed on the side wails and a railroad car coupling mount formed on the rear end wail;
- a magnetically attracted metal railroad car coupling for connecting railroad cars to said train engine including respective halves of a metal ball bearing, a coupling axle rotatably mounted to said coupling mount and connected at opposite ends to said respective ball bearing halves, whereby said bail bearing halves being magnetically coupled to a railroad car rotate about said axle to adjust the angle of displacement between the railroad car and said train engine;
- a housing lid, forming a generally rectangular horizontal surface configured to enclose the propulsion cavity, having a battery holder formed in an upper surface of said lid, and motor mounts and battery terminal leads extending perpendicularly away from the lid toward said base housing;
- a pair of front end wheels rotatably mounted by rivets at wheel coupling points on respective opposite sides of said base proximate the front end wall;
- a drive motor, positioned in the propulsion cavity and in contact with said motor mounts, having a centrally located rotatable drive shaft and a pair of motor leads electrically connected with said battery terminal leads, said drive shaft having a concentric gear rigidly mounted thereon extending away from said drive motor and said front end such that the position of the axis formed by the drive shaft is aligned with a central axis of said housing running from the front end to the rear end;
- a drive axle positioned proximate to the rear end of the housing and coupled to wheel coupling points proximate the rear end wall on opposing side walls such that opposite ends of said drive axle extend through the propulsion cavity and out of respective opposing side walls, a pair of drive wheels rigidly connect to opposite ends of the drive axle, a drive gear located within the propulsion cavity couples concentrically about the drive shaft, a friction spring couples concentrically about the drive shaft proximate the drive gear, a pair of stops rigidly connect concentrically about the drive shaft on opposite ends of the drive gear and spring for compressing said spring to frictionally maintain said drive gear and spring against said stops whereby a predetermined force applied by said drive axle overcomes the bias of said spring to permit said drive axle to rotate with respect to said drive gear;
- and
- a gear train engages said drive shaft and said drive gear for rotating said drive gear in response to rotation of said drive shaft, whereby a battery connected within said battery holder energizes said motor causing said drive shaft to rotate;
- said gear train, responsive to the rotation of said drive shaft, rotates said drive gear and said drive axle thereby propelling said train.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.