Abstract:
A toy for motivating unpowered miniature toy vehicles along a roadway wherein a pivoted cocking arm mounted in a housing is manually moved to pull a vehicle accelerating assembly, against a predetermined biasing force, along a rising track until an assembly carried latch pin rests in a shallow notch of a housing mounted cam surface to hold the assembly in a cocked position with its front portion extending downwardly toward the roadway. A vehicle moving along the roadway will contact this portion causing it to rise and free the latch pin from the hollow notch thereby releasing the accelerating assembly and allowing it to be rapidly moved along the track by the biasing force. The assembly includes a lower extending cushioned portion which contacts and pushes the rear end of the triggering vehicle and accelerates it along the roadway in a stable condition.
Abstract:
A PIN JOINT FOR AN ARTICULATED TOY TO JOIN TWO BODY MEMBERS, INCLUDING A PIN WITH A SHARPENED TIP RIGIDLY SUPPORTED BY ONE BODY MEMBER, AND A DISC, DEFINING A CONE-SHAPED CAVITY, SUPPORTED BY THE OTHER BODY MEMBER. A TORSION SPRING, CONNECTED TO THE TWO BODY MEMBERS,A SPRING BIASES THE PIN INTO THE CAVITY WITH THE PIN''S TIP IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CONE''S VERTEX. THE TORSION SPRING IS USED TO PROVIDE PIVOTAL AND/OR ROTATIONAL RESTORING FORCES TO THE FIRST MEMBER, TO REPOSITIOIN IT IN ITS QUIESCENT POSITION, AFTER ITS POSITION IS DISTURBED BY FORCE APPLIED BY A PLAYING CHILD.