Electric swayable toy

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6375536
  • Patent Number
    6,375,536
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, November 1, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, April 23, 2002
    23 years ago
Abstract
An electric swayable toy includes a body, a shoulder swayably and pivotally on an upper portion of the body, a pair of legs swayably and pivotally mounted on a lower portion of the body, a pair of arms swayably mounted on the shoulder, a head swayably mounted on the shoulder, a pair of shoes swayably supporting the pair of legs in an inclined manner, and a base supporting and securing the pair of shoes. By such an arrangement, the body includes a main swayable mechanism mounted therein, the shoulder includes an arm swayable mechanism, the main swayable mechanism includes a motor which is rotated continuously in a signal direction and the speed of the motor is reduced by a speed reduction mechanism to actuate an eccentric wheel and a cam mechanism so that the legs, the body, and the shoulder are swayable while the arms and the head are swayable by actuation of the arm swayable mechanism.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to an electric swayable toy.




2. Description of the Related Art




Taiwan Utility Model Publication No. 334837 entitled “Swayable device of an toy”, discloses a device comprising a motor which actuates sector gears mounted on the joints of a pair of legs of a toy through a gear transmission device. At the same time, an auxiliary tooth track mounted on the other side of the joint of the leg meshes with a tooth track mounted on the back plate of the toy so that the pivot axles of the joints of the legs and the pivot axles of the shoulder construct a four-linkage action so that the two legs and the upper body are oscillated along the different directions.




However, the oscillation of the legs and the body is performed by the gears co-operating with the tooth tracks so that the movement is not smooth. In addition, the shoulder can only be moved in a vertical manner while the head and the two arms are stationary, thereby decreasing the active amusement of the toy.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric swayable toy comprising:




a body;




a shoulder swayably and pivotally on an upper portion of the body;




a pair of legs swayably and pivotally mounted on a lower portion of the body;




a pair of arms swayably mounted on the shoulder;




a head swayably mounted on the shoulder;




a pair of shoes swayably supporting the pair of legs in an inclined manner; and




a base supporting and securing the pair of shoes;




wherein, the body includes a main swayable mechanism mounted therein, the shoulder includes an arm swayable mechanism, the main swayable mechanism includes a motor which is rotated continuously in a signal direction and the speed of the motor is reduced by a speed reduction mechanism to actuate an eccentric wheel and a cam mechanism so that the legs, the body, and the shoulder are swayable while the arms and the head are swayable by actuation of the arm swayable mechanism.




The main swayable mechanism includes a motor secured on a rocking board which is swayably mounted in an inside of the body and has an upper end and a lower end respectively pivoted on the shoulder and a lower portion of the body, a speed reduction mechanism including belt wheels and gear sets for reducing the output rotational speed of the motor and increasing the torque of the motor, an eccentric wheel actuated by the speed reduction mechanism, and a cam defining a cam slot for receiving the eccentric wheel and actuated by the eccentric wheel to move reciprocally.




The arm swayable mechanism includes a pair of symmetrical axle members each pivotally mounted in the shoulder, and a pair of symmetrical push/pull bars each including an upright bar portion secured on a follower element of the axle member, and a horizontal bar portion slidably mounted on a pin which is mounted on the rocking board.




The axle members of the arm swayable mechanism are connected with a pair of cams each of which has a top rested on a wing of a support member of the head, whereby, when the pair of cams are rotated along different directions, the wing is driven to move the head so that the head is pivoted about a pivot axle of a pivot portion.




The distance between the lower portion of the body and a pivot axle of an upper portion of the legs is greater than that between the upper portion of the body and a pivot axle of a lower portion of the shoulder.




An upper arm portion of each of the arms and the axle member of the arm swayable mechanism have a connection portion having a joint which is constructed to be rotatable along a vertical plan and/or a horizontal plane freely, and/or a lower arm portion and an upper arm portion of each of the arms have a connection portion having a joint which is constructed to be rotatable along a vertical plan and/or a horizontal plane freely.




The rocking board has a lower portion having two symmetrical pins each slidably mounted in a guide slot of an arcuate cam formed on an upper portion of each of the arms.




Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after a careful reading of the detailed description with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a front plan view of an electric swayable toy in accordance with the present invention;





FIG. 2

is a rear plan view of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is a side plan cross-sectional view of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 4

is a side plan cross-sectional view of a main swayable mechanism of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 5

is a front plan schematic view of an arm swayable mechanism of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 6A

is a side plan view of the arm swayable mechanism of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 5

;





FIG. 6B

is an operational view of the arm swayable mechanism of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 6A

;





FIG. 6C

is an operational view of the arm swayable mechanism of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 6A

;





FIG. 7

is an operational view of the electric swayable toy as shown in

FIG. 2

; and





FIG. 8

is an operational view of the electric swayable toy as shown in FIG.


3


.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




Referring to the drawings and initially to

FIGS. 1-3

, an electric swayable toy in accordance with the present invention comprises a body


1


, a shoulder


2


swayably and pivotally on an upper portion of the body


1


, a pair of legs


3


swayably and pivotally mounted on a lower portion of the body


1


, a pair of arms


4


swayably mounted on the shoulder


2


, a head


5


swayably mounted on the shoulder


2


, a pair of shoes


6


swayably supporting the pair of legs


3


in an inclined manner, and a base


7


supporting and securing the pair of shoes


6


.




A rocking board


8


is swayably mounted in the inside of the body


1


and has an upper end and a lower end respectively pivoted on the shoulder


2


and a lower portion of the body


1


.




The body


5


includes a main swayable mechanism


9


mounted on the rocking board


8


. The shoulder


2


includes an arm swayable mechanism


10


mounted therein. The main swayable mechanism


9


includes a motor M which is rotated continuously in a signal direction, and the speed of the motor M is reduced by a speed reduction mechanism to actuate an eccentric wheel


98


and a cam mechanism so that the legs


3


, the body


1


, and the shoulder


2


are swayable while the arms


4


and the head


5


are swayable by actuation of the arm swayable mechanism


10


.




The body


1


includes a front cover plate


11


corresponding to the chest and abdomen of the toy, a rear cover plate


12


corresponding to the back of the toy, two side plates


13


corresponding to the waist of the toy, and a bottom plate


14


corresponding to the hip of the toy. The body


1


is pivoted on the legs


3


by pivot axles P


1


.




The shoulder


2


includes a front shoulder plate


21


, and a rear shoulder plate


22


, and is pivoted on the body


1


by a pivot axle P


2


.




Each of the legs


3


includes a front half leg


31


, and a rear half leg


32


. Each of the legs


3


has an upper portion connected to the body by the pivot axle P


1


, and a lower portion pivotally mounted on one of the shoes


6


by a pivot axle P


3


.




Each of the arms


4


includes an upper arm portion


41


and a lower arm portion


42


. The upper arm portion


41


of each of the arms


4


and the axle member


10




a


of the arm swayable mechanism


10


have a connection portion having a joint al which is constructed to be rotatable along a vertical plan and/or a horizontal plane freely, and/or the lower arm portion


42


and an upper arm portion


41


of each of the arms


4


have a connection portion having a joint a


2


which is constructed to be rotatable along a vertical plan and/or a horizontal plane freely.




The head


5


includes a neck


51


inserted with a support member


52


which has a lower portion provided with an eye ring


53


which is pivotally mounted on the shoulder


2


by a pivot axle P


4


.




Each of the shoes


6


is inserted into a socket


71


of the base


7


through a pin


61


. The base


7


has a bottom provided with a battery chamber


72


for containing a battery


73


. A switch (not shown) is provided for switching the power supply. The base


7


can be provided with a power receptacle (not shown) for use with an adapter (not shown).




The rocking board


8


is swayably mounted in the inside of the body


1


and has an upper end pivoted on the shoulder


2


, and a lower end pivoted on the bottom plate


14


of the body


1


by a bottom axle S


0


.




The main swayable mechanism


9


as shown in

FIG. 4

includes a motor M mounted on one side of the rocking board


8


and having an output shaft S


1


protruding outward from the rocking board


8


. A small belt wheel


91


is secured on the output shaft S


1


of the motor M. A large belt wheel


92


is rotatably mounted on the rocking board


8


by a shaft S


2


, and is located under the small belt wheel


91


. A belt


93


is mounted between the large belt wheel


91


and the small belt wheel


92


for transmitting the output power of the motor M. A first pinion


94


is mounted on the shaft S


2


to rotate with the large belt wheel


92


. A first large gear


95


is rotatably mounted on a shaft S


3


, and meshes with the first pinion


94


to rotate therewith. A second pinion


96


is integrally formed with the first large gear


95


to rotate therewith. A second large gear


97


is secured on a first end of the bottom shaft S


0


of the rocking board


8


, and meshes with the second pinion


96


to rotate therewith. An eccentric wheel


98


is secured on a second end of the bottom shaft S


0


to rotate with the second large gear


97


, wherein the second end of the bottom shaft S


0


extends through the rocking board


8


and an upright plate


141


of the bottom plate


14


. A cam


99


is mounted on the upright plate


141


of the back of the rocking board


8


, and defines an oblong cam slot


991


for receiving the eccentric shaft


98


.




Horizontal guide track devices


992


and


142


are mounted between the cam


99


and the upright plate


141


, and the cam


99


has two sides each provided with an extension


994


having a hook


993


hooked on a pin


33


of the upper portion of the leg


3


. An elastic detent


143


is mounted on the upright plate


141


of the bottom plate


14


for retaining the cam


99


to prevent from detachment of the cam


99


. A catch plate


995


is mounted on the cam


99


for preventing the eccentric wheel


98


from being detached from the bottom shaft S


0


. The belt wheels


91


and


92


, and the gear sets


94


and


95


construct the speed reduction gear set


90


. Two tension springs


996


are mounted on the back of the rocking board


8


for facilitating operation of the swayable mechanism.




When the motor M is rotated, the eccentric wheel


98


is rotated with the large gear


97


whose speed is reduced by the speed reduction gear set


90


. The cam


99


is moved by the eccentric wheel


98


co-operating with the cam slot


991


so that the two extensions


994


will push each of the legs


3


to pivot about the pivot axle P


3


by means of the hook


993


co-operating with the pin


33


.




When each of the legs


3


oscillates, the bottom plate


14


pivoted on the legs


3


by the pivot axle P


1


is moved with the legs


3


. The rocking board


8


pivoted on the bottom plate


14


by the bottom shaft S


0


will oscillate due to the resistance of the springs


996


as shown in FIG.


7


.




As shown in

FIGS. 1

,


5


and


6


, the arm swayable mechanism


10


includes a pair of symmetrical axle members


10




a


each pivotally mounted in the bearings


23


and


24


of the shoulder


2


, and a pair of symmetrical push/pull bars


10




b


each including an upright bar portion


121


secured on a U-shaped forked portion


101


of the axle member


10




a,


and a horizontal bar portion


122


slidably mounted on a pin


81


of the rocking board


8


by a transverse slot


123


.




The axle member


10




a


has an inner end provided with an axle end


102


, and an outer end provided with a hollow axle end


104


having an elastic pawl


103


. A cam


105


is located adjacent to the forked portion


101


. The axle member


10




a


is made of two pieces which are integrally coupled by screws


106


.




When the rocking board


8


is rocked with the body


1


in an inclined manner, the heights of the pins


81


are made different from each other. As shown in

FIG. 7

, the higher pin


81


pushes the mating push/pull bar


10




b


upward, and the lower pin


81


pushes the mating push/pull bar


10




b


downward. The two axle members


10




a


are pushed by the two push/pull bars


10




b


through the forked portion


102


to rotate around a circle along the clockwise direction and the counterclockwise direction respectively as shown in

FIGS. 6B and 6C

. in such a manner, the legs


4


connected to the hollow axle portion


104


of the axle member


10




a


are oscillated with the rocking board


8


.




When the axle members


10




a


are rotated by pushing the push/pull bar


10




b,


the cams


105


are rotated simultaneously. Each of the cams


105


has a top rested on a wing


54


of the eye ring


53


which is supported on a support member


52


of the head


5


. In such a manner, when the pair of cams


105


are rotated along different directions, the wing


54


is driven to move the head


5


so that the head


5


is pivoted with the arms


4


about a pivot axle P


4


.




Basically, the distance between the pivot axle P


1


and the pivot axle P


3


is greater than that between the pivot axle P


1


and the pivot axle P


2


. In addition, the distance between the two pivot axles P


1


is equal to that between the two pivot axles P


3


, and is greater than that between the two pivot axles P


2


. In such a manner, P


1


, P


3


, P


3


and P


1


construct a parallelogram, and P


1


, P


2


, P


2


and P


1


construct a trapezoid so that when the legs


3


and the body


1


sway, the shoulder


2


is caused to move upward and downward as shown in phantom lines in FIG.


7


.




The joint a


1


includes a ratchet wheel


43


rotatably mounted in the hollow axle portion


104


and locked by the elastic pawl


103


, an annular element


45


mounted on the other end of the ratchet wheel shaft


43




a


to rotate relative to the upper arm portion


41


by a shaft


44


and having a locking pawl (not shown), and a semi-circular ratchet wheel


46


formed in the upper arm portion


41


and locked by the locking pawl. The joint a


2


includes a plug element


47


secured in the lower arm portion


42


, and a semi-circular ratchet wheel


48


rotatably inserted into the lower arm portion


42


by a shaft


44


a and locked by a locking pawl


49


which is mounted in the lower arm portion


42


.




The rocking board


8


has a lower portion having two symmetrical pins


15


each slidably mounted in a guide slot of an arcuate cam


35


formed on an upper portion of each of the arms


3


.




In operation, referring to

FIGS. 7 and 8

, when the motor M is rotated, the torque of the motor M is transmitted through the belt wheel


91


, the belt


93


, the belt wheel


92


, the gears


94


,


95


,


96


and


97


, and the shaft S


0


to the eccentric wheel


98


which is eccentrically rotated in the cam slot


991


of the cam


99


so as to push the cam


99


to move in the guide track devices


992


and


142


reciprocally. The legs


3


are pushed and pulled by the two extensions


994


of the cam


99


to oscillate about the pivot axle


3


in an inclined manner. The two side plates


13


are pivoted about the pivot axle P


1


to oscillate in the other direction. The bottom plate


14


pivoted on the pivot axle P


1


, the rocking board


8


pivoted on the bottom shaft S


0


, the front cover plate


11


mounted on the front side of the rocking board


8


, and the rear cover plate


12


mounted on the rear side of the rocking board


8


are oscillated in the same direction while the shoulder


2


pivoted on the two side plates


13


and the rocking board


8


by the pivot axles P


2


and P


5


is also oscillated therewith. At the same time, the two arms


4


are also oscillated by actuation of the arm swayable mechanism


10


while the head


5


is moved by the cam


105


of the arm swayable mechanism


10


to pivot about the pivot axle P


4


along a direction different from that of the shoulder


2


.




In such a manner, when the legs and the waist of the toy are oscillated, the shoulder, the arms and the head can also be oscillated at the same time, thereby increasing the active amusement of the toy.




It should be clear to those skilled in the art that further embodiments may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.



Claims
  • 1. An electric swayable toy comprising:a body, a shoulder swayably and pivotally mounted on an upper portion of said body, a pair of legs swayably and pivotally mounted on a lower portion of said body, a pair of arms swayably mounted on said shoulder, a head swayably mounted on said shoulder, a pair of shoes swayably supporting said pair of legs, a base supporting and securing said pair of shoes, a main swaying mechanism mounted in said body, and an arm swaying mechanism mounted in said shoulder; wherein said main swaying mechanism comprises a motor secured on a rocking board which is swayably mounted in an interior of said body and has an upper end and a lower end pivoted on said shoulder and a lower portion of said body respectively, said motor comprises a speed reduction mechanism to reduce a speed of said motor, said speed reduction mechanism comprising belt wheels and gear sets to reduce an output rotational speed of said motor and to increase torque generated by said motor, said main swaying mechanism further comprising an eccentric wheel actuated by said speed reduction mechanism, and a cam with a cam slot therein to receive said eccentric wheel, said cam being actuated by said eccentric wheel to move reciprocally so that said legs, said body, and said shoulder sway, and wherein said arm swaying mechanism comprises a pair of symmetrical axle members each pivotally mounted in said shoulder, said axle members being in communication with said rocking board via a pair of symmetrical bars each including a vertical bar portion secured to said axle members, and a horizontal bar portion slidably mounted on a pin which is mounted on said rocking board, said axle members being connected to a pair of cams, each said cam having a top that rests on a wing of a support member of said head, such that when said pair of cams are rotated in different directions, said wing is driven to move said head so that said head is pivoted about a pivot axle of a pivot portion.
  • 2. An electric swayable toy comprising:a body, a shoulder swayably and pivotally mounted on an upper portion of said body, a pair of legs swayably and pivotally mounted on a lower portion of said body, a pair of arms swayably mounted on said shoulder, a head swayably mounted on said shoulder, a pair of shoes swayably supporting said pair of legs, a base supporting and securing said pair of shoes, a main swaying mechanism mounted in said body, and an arm swaying mechanism mounted in said shoulder; wherein said main swaying mechanism comprises a motor secured on a rocking board which is swayably mounted in an interior of said body and has an upper end and a lower end pivoted on said shoulder and a lower portion of said body respectively, said motor comprises a speed reduction mechanism to reduce a speed of said motor, said speed reduction mechanism comprising belt wheels and gear sets to reduce an output rotational speed of said motor and to increase torque generated by said motor, said main swaying mechanism further comprising an eccentric wheel actuated by said speed reduction mechanism, and a cam with a cam slot therein to receive said eccentric wheel, said cam being actuated by said eccentric wheel to move reciprocally so that said legs, said body, and said shoulder sway, and wherein said rocking board has a lower portion having two symmetrical pins each slidably mounted in a guide slot of an arcuate cam formed on an upper portion of each of said legs.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Number Name Date Kind
5176560 Wetherell Jan 1993 A
5911617 Chou Jun 1999 A
6071170 How Jun 2000 A
6200191 Chou Mar 2001 B1
6244925 Chou Jun 2001 B1