U.S. patent application number 10/164333 was filed with the patent office on 2002-10-17 for trailer for balancing vehicle.
Invention is credited to Field, J. Douglas, Heinzmann, John David.
Application Number | 20020149172 10/164333 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24055333 |
Filed Date | 2002-10-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020149172 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Field, J. Douglas ; et
al. |
October 17, 2002 |
Trailer for balancing vehicle
Abstract
A trailer for a dynamically balanced transporter that allows
leaning of the transporter such as for control of the combination
of transporter and trailer. The trailer has a platform and an arm
with two ends, one of which ends is coupled to the platform and the
other of which is pivotally coupled about a horizontal axis to the
transporter. The trailer has a ground-contacting member that may be
a wheel, or a ski or a skid. A locking mechanism may lock the pivot
in response to a fault condition. The platform of the trailer may
support a rider in a seated or standing position and may have a
characteristic transverse linear dimension comparable to the
shoulder width of the rider.
Inventors: |
Field, J. Douglas; (Bedford,
NH) ; Heinzmann, John David; (Manchester,
NH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BROMBERG & SUNSTEIN LLP
125 SUMMER STREET
BOSTON
MA
02110-1618
US
|
Family ID: |
24055333 |
Appl. No.: |
10/164333 |
Filed: |
June 5, 2002 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10164333 |
Jun 5, 2002 |
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09516384 |
Mar 1, 2000 |
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6435535 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
280/446.1 ;
180/218 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62D 51/02 20130101;
B62D 53/02 20130101; B62D 63/067 20130101; B62D 51/008 20130101;
B62K 11/007 20161101 |
Class at
Publication: |
280/446.1 ;
180/218 |
International
Class: |
B60D 001/00; B62D
061/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1) A method for governing motion of a combination of a dynamically
balanced transporter and a trailer, the method comprising: a)
coupling the trailer to the dynamically balanced transporter with a
pivot; b) tilting the transporter in a direction of desired motion;
and c) governing motion of the combination of transporter and
trailer in response to the tilt of the transporter.
2) A method according to claim 1, wherein the trailer is a second
transporter.
3) A method according to claim 1, further including: d) coupling an
additional trailer to the trailer.
4) A method according to claim 3 wherein at least one of the
trailer and the additional trailer is a transporter.
5) A method for towing a trailer with a transporter, the method
comprising: a) coupling the trailer to the transporter; b)
propelling the transporter by actuation of a ground-contacting
element; c) sensing a tilt of the transporter; and d) maintaining
the transporter in a dynamically stable position during locomotion
of the transporter and the trailer by applying a torque to the
ground-contacting element based at least in part on the tilt of the
transporter.
Description
[0001] The present application is a divisional application of
copending application Ser. No. 09/516,384, Attorney's Docket No.
1062/C24, "Trailer for a Balancing Vehicle," filed Mar. 1, 2000,
which is incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention pertains to trailers that may be
attached to a balancing vehicle, and more particularly, to an
attachment mechanism that permits tilting action of the balancing
vehicle.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] Vehicles for transportation of individual persons may
provide stabilization in one or both of the fore-aft or left-right
planes, such as when no more than two wheels are in ground contact
at a time. Vehicles of this sort may be operated in a mode in which
motion of the vehicle, including acceleration (both linear and
turning), is controlled partially or entirely by leaning of the
vehicle as caused by a subject riding the vehicle. Vehicles whose
stability with respect to fore-aft overturning is substantially
affected by the orientation of the user on the vehicle will be
referred to as "dynamically balanced" vehicles for purposes of this
description and any appended claims. One such vehicle is shown in
FIG. 1, while various other such vehicles are described in U.S.
Pat. No. 5,971,091, and U.S. application Ser. No. 09/325,976, which
patent and application are both incorporated herein by
reference.
[0004] FIG. 1 shows a prior art personal transporter, designated
generally by numeral 18, that lacks static stability and that
balances during the course of ordinary operation. A subject 10
stands on a support platform 12 and holds a grip 14 on a handle 16
attached to the platform 12, so that vehicle 18 may be operated in
a manner analogous to a scooter. A control loop may be provided so
that leaning of the subject results in the application of torque to
wheel 20 about axle 22 thereby causing an acceleration of the
vehicle. Vehicle 18 may have one or more yaw controls 28, such as a
thumbwheel or thumb dial, for example, to enable subject 10 to
steer the vehicle about a vertical axis z perpendicular to the
plane defined by the direction of motion x and a transverse axis
y.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In accordance with preferred embodiments of the present
invention, there is provided a trailer for a dynamically balanced
transporter that has a support and an attachment housing coupled to
the support. The trailer has a platform and an arm with two ends,
one of which ends is coupled to the platform and the other of which
is pivotally coupled about a horizontal axis to the attachment
housing. Finally, the trailer has a ground-contacting member
coupled to the platform.
[0006] In accordance with alternate embodiments of the invention,
the ground-contacting member may be a wheel or a ski or a skid. The
trailer may further have a locking mechanism for locking the pivot
in response to a stabilization fault condition.
[0007] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a rider support trailer for a dynamically balanced
transporter having a support and an attachment coupled to the
support. The rider support trailer has a base having a bottom side
and a top side and a pivot coupled to the base for permitting
motion of the base about a horizontal axis with respect to the
support of the transporter. The rider support trailer also has a
ground-contacting member coupled to the bottom side of the base and
a substantially vertical support column coupled to the top surface
of the base, and a rider support that may be a seat coupled to the
support column.
[0008] In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, the
platform of a trailer for supporting a user in a standing position
may have a characteristic transverse linear dimension substantially
comparable to the shoulder width of the user.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The invention will be more readily understood by reference
to the following description, taken with the accompanying drawings,
in which:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a side view of a prior art dynamically balancing
vehicle of the type in which an embodiment of the invention may be
advantageously employed;
[0011] FIG. 2 is a side view of a trailer pivotably coupled to a
dynamically balancing vehicle in accordance with an embodiment of
the present invention;
[0012] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the trailer of FIG. 2;
[0013] FIG. 4 shows a side view of a trailer coupled to a
dynamically balancing vehicle by means of a pivot disposed rearward
of the support platform of the vehicle in accordance with other
embodiments of the invention; and
[0014] FIGS. 5a and 5b show bottom views of a trailer coupled to a
dynamically balancing vehicle by means of a scissors linkage
enabling the trailer to follow the balancing vehicle in a tight
turn, in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;
[0015] FIG. 6a is a top view of a two-wheeled trailer coupled to a
dynamically balancing vehicle at a ball joint;
[0016] FIG. 6b is a top view of a one-wheeled trailer coupled to a
dynamically balancing vehicle at a universal joint; and
[0017] FIG. 6c shows a schematic view of multiple trailers drawn by
a single dynamically balancing vehicle.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS
[0018] Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, a side and perspective view
are shown, respectively, of one embodiment of a trailer, designated
generally by the numeral 30, that may be attached to a dynamically
balanced personal transporter, designated generally by numeral 32.
Trailer 30 is coupled to transporter 32 at an attachment housing 34
that is, in turn, fixedly coupled to support 12 of the
transporter.
[0019] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, trailer 30 has an
arm 36 pivotally attached, at pivot end 37, to the attachment
housing 34 and capable of rotating about a pivot axis 38 which is
horizontal and perpendicular to the fore/aft-vertical plane (i.e.,
the plane of the paper in FIG. 2). In the embodiment shown in FIG.
2, arm 36 is shaped to avoid contact with support 12 when the rear
edge 40 of the support is rotated upward in response to the rider
leaning forward on the transporter. The opposite end, referred to
herein as the `container end` 42, of arm 36 is attached to a
container 44. Container 44 may be as simple as a flat surface
capable of supporting one or more packages or bundles. In a
preferred embodiment, container 44 also has walls defining an
enclosed space where packages or bundles that may be of odd shapes
can be secured and protected from the environment during
transportation by transporter 32.
[0020] In another embodiment of the invention, container 44 also
includes a cover 50 (shown in FIG. 3) that covers the enclosed
space of the container. The cover 50 may be completely detectable
from container 44, or, alternatively, the cover may be hinged to a
wall of the container. In a further embodiment, cover 50 may be
locked to provide additional security for the contents of the
container. FIG. 3 shows an embodiment wherein the container
comprises two enclosed and covered spaces.
[0021] Container 44 is supported by at least one ground contacting
member 46. In a preferred embodiment, the ground contacting member
is a wheel. In a further embodiment, wheel 46 can swivel about a
vertical axis 48 in response to turns made by the transporter 32.
In yet another embodiment, the ground contacting member may be a
ski.
[0022] Referring now to FIG. 4, a side view is shown of another
embodiment of the invention wherein the relative placement and
ordering of the trailer components differ from those of the
embodiment depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3. In the embodiment of FIG. 4,
attachment housing 48 is coupled at the rear of support 12.
Attachment housing 34 extends beyond the rear edge of support 12
and is pivotally connected to the trailer base 60 at a pivot 62.
Base 62 is supported by a ground-contacting member 46 which, in a
preferred embodiment, is a wheel capable of swiveling about
vertical axis 48. A support column 64 is fixedly attached to base
60 and supports a seat 66 that may support a passenger in a seated
position while minimizing the effect of the trailer 30 on the
leaning or tilting of the transporter 32. In a further embodiment
of the present invention, support column 64 may also support
containers or other payloads.
[0023] During normal operation, the pivot 62 remains free to pivot
in the fore/aft-vertical plane. Pivot 62 allows transporter 32 to
retain the control characteristics of a two-wheeled dynamically
stabilized vehicle even though the transporter/trailer combination
may be statically stable. In a fault condition where transporter 32
loses the ability to maintain dynamic stability, pivot 62 may be
locked, by actuation of a solenoid, for example, in such a manner
as to prevent trailer 30 from tipping forward and transporter 32
from tipping backward. The lock mechanism may be activated, in
accordance with various embodiments of the invention, by a control
signal or by power failure. The implementation of the pivot lock
and activation of the lock is well known to one of ordinary skill
in the mechanical art.
[0024] Alternate embodiments of the invention employ a scissors
linkage as depicted in the bottom view shown in FIGS. 5a and 5b.
Referring first to FIG. 5a, trailer 30 is, again, coupled to
transporter 32, where transporter 32 is preferably a dynamically
balancing vehicle. Coupling to transporter 32 may be by means of
hitch 70 which pivots about horizontal (pitch) axis 72 to allow
leaning of the transporter. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5a and
5b, trailer 30 rides on a single trailer wheel 74, however trailers
with additional wheels or other ground-contacting elements, such as
skids, for example, are within the scope of the present invention.
Trailer wheel 74 pivots about a vertical (yaw) axis 76 to allow it
to track as the transporter executes turns. Scissor linkage 78
provides for steering of wheel 74 to allow for tight turns of the
coupled system 80 of transporter and trailer. In fact, as depicted
in FIG. 5b, coupled system 80 of transporter 32 and trailer 30 may
be rotated in place, as shown by arrows 82, to the degree that
wheel 74 is perpendicular to line 84 connecting the center 86 of
rotation axis 88 of transporter 32 to vertical axis 76 of
steerability of wheel 74, at which point coupled system 80 may turn
in place.
[0025] Referring now to FIG. 6a, a bottom view is shown of a
further embodiment of the invention in which trailer 90 has two
non-castering wheels 92 and trailer 90 is coupled to transporter 32
at ball joint 94, allowing rotation about all axes. In an alternate
embodiment shown in FIG. 6b, trailer 96 is supported above the
ground by a single non-castering wheel 98 and is coupled to
transporter 32 at universal joint 100, permitting rotation about
both pitch and yaw axes. Both of the embodiments of FIGS. 6a and 6b
effectively decouple trailers 90 and 96, respectively, from
fore/aft leaning of the transporter 32, which, as described above,
may be used for control of the motion of the coupled systems. A
further feature of the embodiments described is that trailers 90
and 96 and, more particularly, their platforms 60 (indicated in
FIG. 4) may be size to accommodate a person in either a standing or
a seated position. In preferred embodiments of the invention, the
platforms have a characteristic transverse linear dimension
substantially comparable to the shoulder width of a user. Since the
leaning of the respective trailer and transporter components are
effectively decoupled, a passenger standing on the trailer need
merely hold onto the driver of the transporter in order to maintain
balance. Additionally, by exerting force on the driver of the
transporter, it is possible for the passenger conveyed on the
trailer to drive the coupled system.
[0026] In accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention
depicted schematically in FIG. 6c, multiple trailers 102 may be
attached to each other in series and drawn by a single transporter
32.
[0027] The described embodiments of the invention are intended to
be merely exemplary and numerous variations and modifications will
be apparent to those skilled in the art. All such variations and
modifications are intended to be within the scope of the present
invention as defined in the appended claims.
* * * * *