Powered roller skates

[0002] This invention relates to motorized roller skates or the like. More particularly, this invention relates to such skates which upon a voice command may be transformed from a powered skating configuration to a walking configuration.

[0003] Many attempts have been made at powering items such as roller skates, skate boards and the like. Essentially, all such attempts have involved strapping a motor, or even a small combustion engine, to the body of the user, and through some type of drive cable, powering the wheels of the skates. These devices are, for the most part, not only heavy and uncomfortable, but also they involve numerous components which are difficult and costly to produce and assemble. As a result, the costs to the user far outweigh the benefit enjoyed by the utilization of powered skates.

[0004] In addition, in most of the prior art motorized devices, the user had very little, if any, braking or speed control. Of more importance, the skates could not be converted to walking devices at the whim of the user.

[0005] It is thus an object of the present invention to provide roller skates or the like which can be selectively powered at the desire of the user or which can be transformed for walking.

[0006] It is another object of the present invention to provide roller skates, as above, in which a shoe platform is pivotable from a walking configuration to a motorized skating configuration.

[0007] It is a further object of the present invention to provide roller skates, as above, which can be powered by a motor which is voice controlled to start, accelerate, decelerate, stop or convert to the walking configuration.

[0008] It is an additional object of the present invention to provide roller skates, as above, which can be powered without the need for the user to carry heavy motor components and without the need for drive cables.

[0009] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide roller skates, as above, which are constructed of a minimal number of components which are easily assembled and economically affordable for the user.

[0010] These and other objects of the present invention, as well as the advantages thereof over existing prior art forms, which will become apparent from the description to follow, are accomplished by the improvements hereinafter described and claimed.

[0011] In general, a skate made in accordance with one aspect of the present invention includes a base plate which carries drive wheels. A platform plate is pivotally connected to the base plate and has a pad thereon. An aperture is formed in the base plate. A motor is provided to drive the wheels. When the platform plate is adjacent to the base plate, the pad extends through the aperture of the base plate.

[0012] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the motor has a housing with external threads. A collar is provided with threads to engage the threads of the motor housing. When the motor is powered in one direction, the wheels are rotated, and when powered in the other direction, the motor rotates to lower the collar relative to the housing so that the platform plate may pivot relative to the base plate.

[0013] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the wheels are carried by a drive shaft having a gear thereon. The motor has a threaded shaft which engages the gear of the drive shaft. The drive shaft is journalled in unidirectional bearings which allow the drive shaft to turn only in one direction to rotate the wheels when the motor is activated in one direction, and when the motor is activated in the other direction, the platform plate is pivoted relative to the base plate.

[0014] A preferred exemplary powered skate incorporating the concepts of the present invention is shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings without attempting to show all the various forms and modifications in which the invention might be embodied, the invention being measured by the appended claims and not by the details of the specification.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a skate made in accordance with the present invention and being shown in the unpowered walking configuration with a shoe portion thereof being shown in phantom.

[0016] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the components of the skate made in accordance with the present invention.

[0017] FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of the skate shown in the walking configuration of FIG. 1.

[0018] FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of the skate shown in the walking configuration of FIG. 1.

[0019] FIG. 5 is a partially broken away side elevational view of the skate shown in the walking configuration of FIG. 1.

[0020] FIG. 5A is an enlargement of a portion of the skate shown in FIG. 5.

[0021] FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of the skate of FIG. 1 shown in the powered configuration.

[0022] FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view of the skate shown in the powered configuration of FIG. 6.

[0023] FIG. 8 is a rear elevational view of the skate shown in the powered configuration of FIG. 6.

[0024] FIG. 9 is a partially broken away side elevational view of the skate shown in the powered configuration of FIG. 6.

[0025] A skate made in accordance with the present invention is indicated generally by the numeral 10 in the drawings. Skate 10 includes a base plate 11 which is generally in the shape of a sole of a shoe and which carries rotatable front wheels 12. The front or toe of plate 11 carries a portion of a hinge-like assembly 13 so that a shoe platform plate 14 may be connected to plate 11 by a pin 15 of hinge assembly 13 for pivoting movement on pin 15 relative to plate 11. Shoe platform plate 14 is preferably the sole of a shoe 16 shown in phantom only in FIG. 1 for convenience, but it could be a stand alone plate to which any type of shoe of a user could be attached by any conventional means, such as straps or the like.

[0026] Shoe platform plate 14 includes a heel portion 17 which can extend through an aperture 18 formed in base plate 11 to serve as a walking pad when skate 10 is in the walking configuration shown in FIGS. 1 and 3-5. Thus, in the walking configuration, walking pad 17 is in contact with the ground. In this configuration, the larger, powerable, rear drive wheels 19 are off of the ground and inoperable to move skate 10 as will hereinafter be described.

[0027] Wheels 19 are carried on a drive shaft 20 which is journalled in unidirectional bearings 21 which are positioned in the opposed upright branches 22 of a U-shaped frame generally indicated by the numeral 23 and carried by base plate 11. As is known to one skilled in the art, unidirectional bearings 21 will permit the rotation of drive shaft 20 in only one direction, in this instance, the forward direction, but will prohibit rotation in the other, backward, direction. U-shaped frame 23 also includes a base member 24 which interconnects the bottoms of upright branches 22 and carries a lower bearing support 25 for a shaft 26 of an electric motor 27 (FIG. 2). The upper end of motor shaft 26 is carried by an upper bearing support 28 formed in an arch 29 which is connected to the top of branches 22, as by screws 30. Bearing supports 25 and 28 thus prevent vertical movement of motor 27. A portion of motor shaft 26 is threaded to form a worm 31 which, as will hereinafter be more fully discussed, drives a wormgear 32 formed on drive shaft 20. The worm/wormgear is designed with a low lead angle to resist any tendency of the wormgear 32 to turn the worm 31.

[0028] A motor housing 33 is received over motor 27 and attached thereto by fasteners (not shown) which extend through apertures 34 on the top of housing 33 and into apertures 35 (FIG. 2) on the top of motor 27. The external surface of housing 33 is provided with threads 36 for engagement with internal threads 37 (FIG. 2) on a collar 38. It should be appreciated that threads 36 could be formed directly on the exterior of motor 27, but it is preferred that a separate housing 33 be provided. Collar 38 is formed at the top of opposed branches 39 of a U-shaped frame generally indicated by the numeral 40. Frame 40 includes a base member 41 which interconnects the bottom of branches 39. Base member 41 includes a tab 42 extending laterally therefrom. As probably best shown in FIG. 5A, tab 42 underlies the heel end of shoe platform plate 14 and, as will hereinafter be described, assists in the lifting of plate 14 to pivot it from the FIG. 1 to the FIG. 6 position and to thereafter hold it in the FIG. 6 position. The top of each branch 39 of frame 40 is provided with an ear 43. The opposed ears 43 are adapted to engage spring loaded ball detents 44 formed in branches 22 of frame 23 at various times during the operation of motor 27 as will hereinafter be described.

[0029] Electric motor 27 may be battery powered with the batteries conveniently carried by the user, as on his shin guards or the like. In addition, it is preferred that motor 27 be voice activated by means of a conventional voice control module associated with motor 27. Thus, as one skilled in the art would appreciate, the module can be programmed to recognize such words as “start,” “stop,” “faster,” “slower” and the like so that the user can control motor 27 accordingly.

[0030] When the pivoting plate 14 is in the lower position shown in FIGS. 1 and 3-5, the user may walk with skates 10, pad 17 engaging the ground and maintaining wheels 19 off of the ground. Plate 14 is assisted in being maintained in the lower position by virtue of the fact that detents 44 are positioned just above ears 43 of frame 40, as shown in FIG. 4. When plate 14 is in the upper position, as shown in FIGS. 6-9, pad 17 is off of the ground and wheels 19 are on the ground, allowing the user to move by means of the power provided by motor 27 to wheels 19. Detents 44 assist in maintaining this position in that they are now positioned just below ears 43 of frame 40 as shown in FIG. 8.

[0031] When the user is moving on skates 10, threaded worm 31 of motor shaft 26 acts on wormgear 32 so that shaft 20 is rotating in the forward direction permitted by unidirectional bearings 21. When the command is given to stop, motor 27 momentarily reverses direction, but because bearings 21 will not allow shaft 20 to rotate in the reverse direction, motor 27 and its threaded housing 33 will actually rotate one revolution causing collar 38 to overcome detents 44 and move downwardly to lower pivoting plate 14 to position pad 17 on the ground.

[0032] When the voice command is given to start motor 27, housing 33 will rotate when some friction is exerted on wheels 19, as by the user leaning forward and/or tilting the skate to either side to pivot plate 14 relative to plate 11 and to raise pad 17 so that at least one of the wheels 19 touches the ground. In addition, the initial rotation of motor 27 overcomes the retention force of detents 44, with the motor 27 and housing 33 rotating within collar 38 to move collar 38 upwardly to the FIG. 8 position.

[0033] It should thus be evident that a powered skate constructed as described herein accomplishes the objects of the present invention and otherwise substantially improves the art.