Miniature vehicle and set

Abstract

In an aspect, the invention is directed to a set that includes a miniature vehicle that drives one or more wheels with an on-board motor that draws power from an on-board power source. A switch is provided to control the transmission of power from the power source to the motor. A first drive-related magnetically-responsive member is movable between first and second positions to control whether the switch is off or on. A second drive-related magnetically-responsive member is positionable to interact with the first drive-related magnetically responsive member to move the first drive-related magnetically-responsive member to the second position so as to close the switch.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to miniature electrically powered vehicles and sets including guideways on which the vehicles travel.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Currently available play sets with electrically powered miniature vehicles suffer from several problems. Some playsets incorporate a track that has embedded conductive members. The vehicle contains brushes or conductive members that engage conductive members on the track and draws power from a power source through this engagement. While the vehicles are typically capable of reaching high speeds, the tracks for such systems can be expensive. In some playsets, the vehicle has an on-board power source, in the form of a battery. One problem with this is that, in order to obtain strong acceleration and high speeds, one or more relatively expensive batteries may be needed and these batteries can be drained relatively quickly of their charge. Additionally, play patterns with some prior art vehicles an...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0007]In a second aspect, the invention is directed to a miniature vehicle that includes a motor that drives one or more wheels, a battery, and a voltage boosting circuit that is controllable to increase the voltage from the battery voltage for driving the motor.

[0008]In a particular embodiment, the miniature vehicle includes a chassis, a plurality of wheels rotatable with respect to the chassis and a motor, wherein the plurality of wheels includes at least one driven wheel that is drivable by the motor, a battery, a voltage boosting circuit that stores charge from the battery at a higher voltage than the battery voltage and that is selectively connectable to the motor and a switch that is selectively closeable to operatively connect the voltage boosting circuit to the motor.

[0009]In a third aspect, the invention is directed to set including a miniature vehicle that includes a steering linkage that is movable to steer the vehicle left or right via one or more first steering-related magnetically-responsive members. A second steering-related magnetically-responsive member is positionable to interact with the one or more first steering-related magnetically-responsive members to move the steering linkage so as to steer the vehicle in a selected direction.

[0010]In a fourth aspect, the invention is directed to a packaging for a miniature vehicle for use with a guideway including a base and a pair of guide walls. The packaging includes a blister member, and a backing member connected to the blister member. The backing member forms a section in the base of the guideway. The backing member may optionally contain a second drive-related magnetically-responsive member in embodiments where it can interact with a vehicle that has a drive-related switch that is operable via a first drive-related magnetically-responsive member. In other embodiments, the backing member may optionally contain a second steering-related magnetically-responsive member in embodiments in which it can interact with a steering linkage on the vehicle which is movable via one or more first steering-related magnetically-responsive members.

[0011]In a fifth aspect, the invention is directed to a miniature vehicle that is driven by a motor, and that includes a plurality of removable performance-altering members, each of which are removably connectable to a base portion of the vehicle to alter the operation of the motor. In a particular embodiment, the motor is operated for a first non-zero period of time when a first performance-altering member is connected to the base portion, and the motor is operated for a second non-zero period of time when a second performance-altering member is connected to a base portion of the vehicle. A voltage-controlled switch (e.g. a MOSFET) may be provided to control current flow through the motor. A main voltage source is selectively connected to the voltage-controlled switch to control the state of the switch. Each performance-altering member may include a secondary voltage source. When the performance-altering member is connected to the base portion of the vehicle, the secondary voltage source is positioned to control the voltage-controlled switch to keep the voltage-connected switch closed for a selected period of time after disconnection of the main voltage source from the voltage-controlled switch. Preferably, the secondary voltage source is a capacitor that is chargeable by the main voltage source.

Problems solved by technology

Currently available play sets with electrically powered miniature vehicles suffer from several problems.

While the vehicles are typically capable of reaching high speeds, the tracks for such systems can be expensive.

One problem with this is that, in order to obtain strong acceleration and high speeds, one or more relatively expensive batteries may be needed and these batteries can be drained relatively quickly of their charge.

Additionally, play patterns with some prior art vehicles and track systems can be relatively limited, even in situations where the track is reconfigurable.

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