US1526974A - Wheeled toy - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 17.19225. 152mm G. w. GQMBER WHEELED Toy Filed sept. 22, 1921 2 Sheets-Shee'a l WITNESSES @wwf-MM lo EY L @JW/ ATT Cl Fx? N EY Feb. 17. 1925.

INVENTOR wrrNEssEs i Mm ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 17, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE W. GOMBER, OF CONYNGHAM, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO A. W. DRAKE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF HAZLETON, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF, PENNSYLVANIA.

WHEELED TOY.

Application filed September 22, 1921. Serial No. 502,341.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W'. Gemeen, a citizen of the United States, residing at Conyngham, in the county of Luzerne and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful lVheeled Toy, of which the fol lowing is a specification. Y

rIhis invention relates to toys, and particularly to that class known as wheeled toys, wherein a figure is mounted upon a wheel or wheels which, by their revolution, impart certain motions in simulation of the natural movements of the said figure, when the device is moved alo-ng.

The object is to provide such a wheeled toy which may be easily and cheaply manufactured out of stock material, there being no intricate special parts Vsuch as expensive castings, etc., used in the structure, the said figure, which may be in the form of a horse or any other animal, being preferably formed of thin, cheap wood or wood substitute, suitably ornamented or painted and having forwardly and rearwardly extending stiff wire connections formed at their terminals into spirally wound bearings for the front and rear axles carrying spaced pairs of wheels, the front wheels being concentrically mounted thereon while the rear wheels are mounted eccentrically in the rear bearing to impart an up and down movementto the rear part of the animal.

Ay full and complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying dra-wings forming a part of this specification; it being understood that while the drawings show practical forms of the invention, the latter is not to be confined to strict conformity therewith, but may be changed or modiiied so long as such changes or modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invention, as specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures Fig. l is a side elevation of a toy constructed in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a topA plan view of the same.

F ig. 3 is a side elevation of a modiied forni of the invention.

Fig. t is a top plan view of the samt- Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the front standard or support having the integrally formed hub or bearing for the front axle.

As illustrated in the drawings, the figure l is in the form of a horse in the act of running, the same being formed of some thin wood, or bea-ver board or other wood substitute, sawed out in appropriate shape and suitably painted or otherwise decorated, to bring out the details thereof, though it will of course be understood that any other tigure may be used to represent some animal in movement. In Figure l of the drawing the horse l is shown as having a rider, while in Figure 3 the rider is omitted, and many other deviations may be resorted to in outlining the figure to be operated.

Identical front-and rear standards or supports 2 are formed of lengths of stout wire, each being bent, at one terminal, to form an eye 3, which is secured to one side of the iigureby a screw 4f. The said standards extend to the front and to the rear respectively, in an inclined position, and are prevented from swinging about the screws by additional fasteners in the form of staples 5 located near the leg portions of the iigure, as shown in Figure l of the drawing.

Instead of the terminal eyes 3, the ends of the standards 2 may be formed U-shape by being returned as at 3a in Figure 3, when a staple o may be utilized to hold each portion of the U-shape bend to effectually prevent any movement of the standards with relation to the figure.

Each standard 2 has an offset portion con-- sisting of a transverse bend (i extending under the body or leg portion of the figure` as clearly shown in Figures 2 and 1i, and reaching considerably to one side of the center line thereof, where the standard is again bent longitudinally, as at 7, to extend parallel to the upper portion thereof, and thence formed into a coiied hearing 8 or bearing sleeve, arranged at right angles to the bent portion 7, and extending an equal distance to the right and the left. of the figure; The openings through these bearings S are of a diameter to freely admit the front and rear axles of the toy. llthe terminal of the front bearing- S is extended forwardly and inwardly to :form a pulling arm 9, having at its end an eye l0 located immediately in advance and exactly in the center et il'r lill) lll) ligure 1, for the purpose of attaching a cord by means of which the toy may be drawn along the ground.

As illustrated in Figures 1 'and 2, thel front axle 11 which traverses and revolves in the front bearing 8, has mounted on its ends a pair of relatively small wheels 12 which, as shown, are `formed of wooden discs and are concentric to said axle so that in its rotation no movement to the ligure 1 is imparted thereby.

ln order to prevent any lateral movement of the front axle 11 in its bearings S, short coils in the form of sleeves 11a preferably of smaller vgage wire, are interposed between the inner faces of the front wheels 12 and the outer ends of the bearing S and surrounding the axle 11, thus maintaining the ligure 1 centrally between the front wheels.

he rear axle 13 which, preferably, is slightly longer than the front axle, has conccntrically mounted on its ends a pair of wheels 1+i similarly formed of wood, and somewhat greater in diameter than the front wheels, and is provided with a central crank portion 15 traversing the rear bearing 8 of the standard. lt will be seen that when the toy is drawn forwardly along the ground, the said crank will cause the rear end of the ligure 1 to rise and' fall while moving forwardly, thus giving the ligure the appearance of a galloping or running horse.

The slightly modified form of the invention illustrated in Figures 3 and et hassubstantially the same form of standards as the first described form, with the exception of the upper terminal U-shaped bends 3a as before described.

The front axle 11 traverses the front bearing 8, as in the first form, and carries a pair of spacing` sleeves 13, which may be short lengthsv of tubing, to prevent lateral play of the axle, and the latter, immediately beyond the outer ends of the sleeves or collars 13, is bent at right angles to form a spoke 15, at the outer end of which the wire is bent into a circular form to comprise a wheel rim 1G concentric with the axle, and the terminals of the wire are bent inwardly towards the center of the wheels to abut against the spokes 15, to which they are secured by surrounding sleeves 17, thus providing a one-piece struct-ure including the front axle and wheels.

lhe rear axle 18 likewise traverses t-he adjacent bearing 8 and has the spacing sleeves 13a mounted thereon in the same finer, the end portions of the wire com- "ing the rear axle being then bent at right angles to form relatively short spokes 19, and then bent circularly to form wheel rims 20, whose centers are in alinement with 'each other but somewhat offset from theaxle 18. as clearly shown in Figure 3, so that when the device is drawn forwardly, the rear wheels,

wheels will impart an up and down motion to the ligure 1, as will be clearly understood.

In each form of the device, the rear -wheels actuat-e the rear end of the ligure which rocks, through the medium of the front standard 2, about the front axle, and a motion is given thereby to the ligure greatly resembling the actual movements of a horse or other animal .in action.

The particular novel feature of the invention resides in the construction of the standards 2. In a. copending application, l have shown the same standard in connection with a dilferent type of wheeled toy, and l wish the claims of this application to be eonstrued as generic to said other application.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that a simple and cheaply manufactured toy has been provided which may be sold at a low cost, that the same has no complicated parts to become deranged or broken, the ligure being susceptible of embellishment which together with the natural movement imparted to the same by the operation of the toy, will form entertainment for a child.

`What is claimed is 1. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles and vsupporting wheels, one of said axles having a crank portion a ligure, and standards connecting the front-and rear of said figure to said axles, said standardseach consisting of a rigid part attached tothefigure and an offset part extending beneath the figure, and a Atransversely disposed coiled bearing receiving the axle, the crank portion of one of said axles being titted in the bearing of oneof said standards, and said standards serving as the sole connections between the ligure and the axles.

2. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles having supporting wheels, one of said axles havin@l a crank portion, a ligure, and standards connecting the front and rear of said ligure to the axles, each standard consisting of an attaching portion secured to the side of the ligure, an offset portion arranged beneath the ligure, and a coiled bearing to receive lthe axles, the crank portion of one of said axles being fitted in the bearing of one of said standards, said standards thereby serving as a means of transmitting the motion of the cranked axle tosaid` figure, and sleeves mounted on the other axle, at each side of the coiled bearing, for spacing the latter on the axle.

3. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles each having supporting a, figure, and a standard for connecting the ligure to one of said axles, and serving as the sole connecting means for supporting one end of the ligure above the axle, said standard being formed of a single piece vand consist-ing of an attaching portion for securing the same to the ligure, an offset portion extending beneath the ligure,

lll() liu and a transversely arranged coiled bearing to receive the axle.

4L. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles each having supporting wheels, a ligure, and a standard for connecting the ligure to one of said axles, and serving as the sole connecting means for supporting one end of the ligure above the axle, said standard being formed of a single piece consisting of an attaching portion for securing the same tothe ligure, an offset portion extending beneath the ligure, and a transversely arranged coiled bearing to receive the axle, and sleeves mounted on the axle at each side of the coiled bearing to space the later on the axle.

5. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles each having supporting wheels, one of said axles having a crank, a ligure, and a wire standard for connecting the ligure to the crank axle, and serving as the sole means of transmitting the motion of the crank axle to the ligure, said standard consisting of an attaching portion for-securing it to the ligure, and a transversely arranged coiled bearing at the lower end of the standard receiving the crank portion of the axle.

6. In a wheeled toy embodying a pair of axles having supporting wheels and aligure, a wire standard for connecting the figure to the axle and serving as the sole connecting means therefor, consisting of an attaching portion, an oll'set bent portion disposed beneath the figure, and a. transversely arranged coiled bearing, all formed of a single piece.

7. In a wheeled toy embodying a pair of axles having supporting wheels and a ligure, a wire standard for connecting the ligure to the axle and serving as the sole connecting means, consisting of an attaching portion, an olfset bent portion disposed beneath the ligure, a transversely arrange-d coiled bearing and a forwardly extending pull bar, all formed of a single piece.

S. In combination with a front axle, a rear axle, a pair of wheels for each axle, a crank provided on the rear` axle, a ligure, means connecting the figure to the said axles and supporting the ligure above the same and out of engagement with the axles, said means comprising front and rear wire standards having means for attaching the same to said figure, the front standard having a bearing to receive the front axle, and means mounted on the said axle to hold the bearing from sliding on the axle but allowing it to turn thereon, the rear axle having a crank to which the lower end of the rear standard is connected to impart to said ligure an up-and-down movement.

9. A wheeled ltoy comprising a body or ligure, front and rear inclined wire standards secured at their upper ends to the body or ligure and serving as the sole connecting means between the gure and the axles, each standard having beneath the body a transverse bend and a longitudinal bend terminating in a horizontal coil forming a bearing arranged transversely of the body and extending equally beyond both sides thereof, and axles traversing the coiled bearings and having wheels at their outer ends, the rear axle having a crank to receive the coiled bearings, whereby the rear end of the body or ligure is caused to alternately rise and fall when the device is drawn forward to rotate the wheels.

10. A wheeled toy comprising a body or ligure, front and rear inclined wire standards secured at their upper ends to the body or figure and serving as the sole connecting means between the ligure and the axles, each standard having beneath the body a transverse bend and a longitudinal bend terminating in a horizontal coil forming a bearing arranged transversely of the body and extending equally beyond both sides thereof, the coil of the front standard terminating in a forwardly extending pull bar, and axles traversing the coiled bearings and having wheels at their outer ends, the rear axle having a crank to receive the coiled bearings, whereby the rear end of the body or ligure is caused to alternately rise and fall when the device is drawn forward to rotate the wheels.

11. In a wheeled toy, the combination with a pair of axles having supporting wheels, one of said axles having a crank, a ligure, and wire standards connecting the front and the rear of said ligure to said axles, and serving as the sole connecting means between the figure and said axles, said standards terminating at their lower ends in a bearing which is longer than the width of said ligure and extends to each side thereof, said bearings receiving said axles, and the crank portion on one of said axles litting the bearing.

l2. A toy, comp-rising two axles, one of which is in the form of a crank shaft, wheels on said axles, a ligure, and standards at each end of the figure lixed thereto, one of said standards being pivoted to the crank of said crank shaft and the other standard terminating in a bearing sleeve which embraces the other axle, said standards constituting the sole connection between the ligure and the axles and dispensing with a separate frame for the toy.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto alxed my signature.

GEORGE W. GOMBER.

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