US3496671A - Toy airplane - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 24, 1970 1 A. KOR-ONA 'I'OY AIRPLANE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 9, 1968 INVENTOR. THEODORE moaoun BY v Feb. 24,1910 "1. A. KbRONA TOY AIRPLANE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 9, 1968 United States Patent 3,496,671 TOY AIRPLANE Theodore A. Korona, 2144 E. Harrison Ave., Latrobe, Pa. 15650 Filed Feb. 9, 1968, Ser. No. 704,331 Int. Cl. A63h 27/14, 33/22; F41b 7/08 U.S. CI. 46-81 10 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Toy airplane arrangement which includes a catapult device from which the airplane is projected and wherein the airplane includes an ejection seat which is operated automatically when the airplane is a predetermined distance away from the catapult by a cord connected at one end to the catapult and connected at its other end to a latch member on the airplane which is withdrawn from the airplane by the cord so that the ejection seat will operation while the airplane continues in fllght.

This invention relates to a toy airplane arrangement and is particularly concerned with such an arrangement in which a plane is driven into flight from a catapult.

A particular object of the present invention is the provision of a toy airplane and a catapult therefor in which the plane can be strongly catalpulted so as to have a fairly long flight but in which the mechanism is simple and safe to use.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a top airplane having an ejection seat which operates auto matically when the catapulted airplane reaches a certain distance from the end of the catapult.

Still another object is the provision of a toy airplane, especially adapted for being catapulted into flight, in which the plane is so constructed that it is not easily damaged in case it flies against an obstruction or lands improperly.

Still another object of this invention is the provision of a toy airplane of the nature referred to which is relatively inexpensive to construct.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a toy airplane, and a catapult therefor, in which the airplane can readily be guided by manipulation of the catapult.

The several objects referred to above, as well as other objects referred to above, as well as other objects and advantages of the present invention, will become more apparent upon reference to the following detailed specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing the catapult according to the present invention in full lines, and showing the airplane to be catapulted thereby in dot-dash outline;

FIGURE 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through the catapult with the center portion broken away to permit the catapult to be drawn at increased scale and also showing a portion of the airplane in dot-dash outline;

FIGURE 3 is a view looking in from the left end of FIGURE 2 as indicated by the arrow III thereon;

FIGURE 4 is a side view, partly broken away, of the airplane showing the ejection seat and also showing the manner in which the wing of the airplane is releasablyconnected thereto;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view showing the pusher member on the bottom of the airplane which cooperates with a pusher element in the catapult;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view showing details in connection with the ejection seat of the airplane;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a modified arrangement of the ejection seat; and

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FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary view showing how the lid or cover for the compartment containing the ejection seat could be arranged to hinge back into a recess formed in the top of the fuselage of the airplane.

Referring to the drawings somewhat more in detail, FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 will show that the catapult comprises an elongated slide member 10 which, as will be best seen in FIGURE 3, might be described as a U-shaped member with the upper edges of the legs thereof turned inwardly, as at 12, to form opposed guiding rails. Slide member 10 has a handle 14 attached to one end thereof so that the catapult can be held in the hand and pointed in the desired direction.

Slidable along slide member 10 on the rails 12 is a pusher member or pusher block 16 which has grooves 18 extending along opposite sides thereof and into which grooves 18 the opposed rails 12 are loosely received. Block 16 is thus freely reciprocable along the slide member 10 in order to catapult the airplane therefrom.

A pair of elongated springs 20 may extend along opposite sides of member 10 and have their rear ends connected to a U-shaped wire 22 extending through block 16 and their front ends connected to another U-shaped wire 23 held in a clip 24 which is secured to the underneath side of the outer end of the catapult by a screw 26. Screw 26 may also be used for retaining a rubber bumper block 28 in place in the outer end of the slide member 10. Block 28 forms a stop for the pusher block 16 at the end of its movement in catapulting direction.

Metal clip 24 may also be availed of for connection to one end of tether cord 30 described more in detail hereinafter.

On the underside of block 16 is an element 32 engageable in a notch 34- in the upper end of trigger 36 which is pivoted at 38 on handle 14. A spring 40 connected to the trigger at one end and to a portion on slide member 10 at the other end biases the trigger toward its FIGURE 2 position with such thrust that when block 16 is pulled backwardly in the catapult to stress spring 20 and element 32 engages notch 34, the bias of spring 20 will not be sufficient to overcome spring 40. Block 16 can only be released from engagement with notch 34 by manually pulling trigger 36 backwardly about pivot 38.

It will be noted that the block 16 cannot be pulled backwardly past the upper end of trigger 36 due to the upstand-' ing portion of the trigger at the rear side of notch 34 while, however, movement of the lower end of trigger back toward the handle will release element 32 from notch 34 and permit springs 20 to drive block 16 in the catapult direction.

The airplane for use with catapult is shown in dot-dash outline in FIGURES l and 2 and in full lines in FIGURE 4 and details thereof are shown in FIGURES 5 and 6.

In FIGURE 4 it will be noted that the airplane is formed of a block 50 of light-weight material which may, advantageously, be foamed polystyrene or the like. The airplane may be formed with an upstanding rudder portion 52 at the rear end which has a slot 54 at the upper end into which the elevator or aeleron member 56 is detachably inserted. On the underside of fuselage 50 there is formed a notch 58 and disposed in the notch is the block-like center portion 60 of the airplane wing 62.

Pins or protrusions 64 on the side of the fuselage of the airplane are availed of for receiving the ends of rubberband 66 which passes under the wing 62 adjacent the block-like center portion 60. A rubber-band 66 on each side of the fuselage will thus retain wing 62 snugly in position on the airplane fuselage. However, upon the airplane landing improperly or striking an obstruction in flight, the rubber-bands will permit movement of wings 62 on the fuselage of the airplane and this tends to prevent damage to the airplane or the airplane wing. For this pur- 3 pose, the ends of notch 58 and of portion 60 could be tapered, if desired.

According to the present invention the airplane is provided on the bottom with a pusher member 70 which may have an upper portion 72 recessed into a notch 74 in the bottom of the fuselage and having a rearwardly extending lower portion 76 with longitudinal grooves 78 in the opposite sides thereof. As may be determined from FIGURE 2, the notches 78 are provided for receiving the edges of the opposed rails 12 so that the airplane can be inserted into the front end of slide member and moved backwardly therealong until the back end of pusher member 70 abuts the front end of block 16. Thereafter, when block 16 is released from its tensioned position, in which it is shown in FIGURE 2, the airplane will be driven rapidly down the length of the catapult and out the front end thereof.

The airplane fuselage according to the present invention has a cockpit, generally designated at 80, therein which may take the form of a bore in the fuselage lined by a plastic liner 82. The bore in the fuselage may extend vertically therein completely to the top of portion 72 of pusher member 70, if so desired. In the bottom of the cavity formed by the bore in the liner 82 is a compression spring 84 which is anchored to the bottom of the cavity. The upper end of spring 84 engages beneath a plate 86 to which the spring is preferably also anchored.

The space in the cockpit above plate 86, when the plate 86 is in its FIGURE 4 position, may receive a folded parachute 88 to which is attached by the usual shroud-like arrangement a weight 90 which may, of course, be in the form of a figurine or the like simulating an airplane pilot or passenger. It will be evident that when plate 86 is released to the influence of spring 84, the parachute and weight 90 will be ejected from the airplane through the upper open end of the cockpit.

The present invention employs a rod 92 fixed to plate 86 and extending downwardly through a hole 94 at the bottom of the fuselage so that the lower end of pin 92 is exposed when spring 84 is compressed. The lower end of pin or rod 92 has an eye 96 therein adapted for loosely receiving a pull-pin 98. Pull-pin 98 extends through a hole 100 in pusher member 70 and at its other end has an eye 102 to which the end of the aforementioned tether cord 30 is connected.

The cockpit may be closed by a cover member 104, if desired, which will be dislodged from the upper end of the cockpit when spring 84 pushes plate 86 upwardly.

As will be seen in FIGURE 8, a cover 106 could be provided for a cockpit 108 with the cover pivoted at 110 so that it could tilt backwardly into a recess 112 provided in the top of the fuselage 114 of the airplane.

FIGURE shows a modification in which a cockpit 120 is so formed that parachute 122 can be disposed behind the figurine 124 representing the pilot. In this modification, plate 126 could eject the figurine in which case the parachute would be pulled out by the shroud lines 128, or the plate could be of such a size that both the figurine and parachute could be ejected at one time by the plate.

The modification of FIGURE 7 permits a larger figurine to be employed and permits better action of the parachute upon ejection because it is unlikely to become fouled with the weight of the figurine as in the case of the FIGURE 4 modification.

In operation, the parachute and figurine or weight are suitably arranged for insertion into the cockpit of the airplane and then are placed into the cockpit and the plate at the bottom of the cockpit pushed downwardly to its lower position. The pull-pin 98 can then be inserted to hold the spring loaded plate down in the cockpit. The catapult is then prepared by pulling block 16 back to the handle end of the catapult and latching it to notch 34 in the upper end of trigger 36. The airplane is then inserted into the catapult till pusher element 76 engages the front end of block 16. The airplane can then be catapulted from the catapult by pulling back on trigger 36.

When the airplane reaches a position where tether line 30 goes taut, pull-pin 98 will be pulled from the airplane and the spring in the cockpit will be released and the contents of the cockpit will he suddenly ejected. The flight of the airplane is not noticeably altered When the tether cord goes taut, because the pull-pin 98 can be dislodged from eye very easily. In this connection it may be of advantage to form the pull-pin out of polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) or some other slippery material so that it can easily be jerked from the airplane by the tether cord without materially modifying the flight pattern of the aircraf The ejected parachute or Weight, or figurine, thereon will be projected upwardly from the cockpit and the parachute will open and the weight and parachute will then drift earthward.

It will be appreciated that rubber block 28 prevents the pusher member 16 from being propelled from the front end of the catapult slide member so that the device can be used in safety, even by fairly small children.

It will be evident that modifications in the structure could be made within the purview of the present invention. For example, the double spring arrangement shown with a spring on each side of the catapult slide member, could be modified by a single spring located inside the catapult slide member.

Furthermore, a compression spring rather than a tension spring could be employed for the purpose of driving the pusher member along the catapult member. Other modifications will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination; a toy airplane and a spring operated catapult launching device therefor, said launching device having handle means for the support thereof and manually operable trigger means for releasing the airplane therefrom, an upwardly opening compartment in said airplane having a moveable bottom, spring means urging said bottom upwardly in the compartment, holding means for holding said bottom in lowered position in the compartment against the bias of said spring means and including a latch element, said latch element being adapted to be withdrawn from the airplane to release said bottom to the influence of said spring means to eject the contents of said compartment from the airplane, and a tether cord having one end connected to said latch element and its other end connected to said launching device whereby upon launching of the airplane from the device the latch element will be withdrawn from the airplane at a predetermined point along the flight path of the airplane to eject the contents of said compartment from the airplane while the airplane will continue in flight after the said ejection.

2. The combination according to claim 1 in which said launching device comprises an elongated slide, said handle means being located at one end of said slide and said trigger means being adjacent said handle means, a catapult member slidable in the slide and adapted for driving engagement with said airplane, a spring acting between the slide and catapult member and urging said catapult member away from said one end of the slide toward the other end thereof, said catapult member including means releasably engageable by said trigger for latching the catapult member in spring biased position adjacent said one end of the slide, and stop means in the slide near said other end thereof to retain the catapult member in the slide upon release of the catapult member from its spring biased position by actuation of said trigger.

3. The combination according to claim 2 in which the contents of said compartment includes a parachute and a weight member connected thereto.

4. The combination according to ciaim 3 in which said compartment is elongated in the longitudinal directon of the airplane to permit placement of the parachute in the compartment aft of said weight member to substantially eliminate fouling of the parachute upon said ejection.

5. The combination according to claim 3 in which said airplane comprises a fuselage portion and a wing portion, and means releasably connecting the wing portion to the fuselage portion to permit ready separation thereof upon the wing portion meeting an obstruction during flight or landing.

6. The combination according to claim 2 in which said holding means includes a rod-like element attached to said bottom and projecting from the lower side of the airplane when the bottom is in lowered position in said compartment, said latch element being releasably engageable with the region of said rod-like element which projects from the airplane when said bottom is in its said lowered position in said compartment, the engagement of said latch element with said rod-like element forming the sole support of said latch element on the airplane whereby it will fall free of the airplane when it is released from said rod-like element.

7. The combination according to claim 6 in which said airplane is formed of a substantially rigid lightweight foamed plastic material.

8. The combination according to claim 2 in which said slide is substantially U-shaped with the ends of the legs thereof formed inwardly toward each other and said catapult member is in the form of a block having grooves on the opposite sides slidably receiving the said inwardly formed legs of the slide.

9. The combination according to claim 8 in which the actuating spring for said catapult member is disposed in the slide and has one end connected to the catapult member and its other end connected to said slide near the said other end thereof.

10. The combination according to claim 8 in which said stop means is in the form of resilient means in the slide near said other end thereof and engageable by said catapult member as it approaches said other end of said slide from said one end of the slide.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,887,337 11/1932 Spotz 46-81 2,089,594 8/1937 Ballwanz 468 1 2,708,431 5/1955 Walker 46-81 2,878,615 3/ 1959 Burgin.

3,068,612 12/1962 Simpson 4681 3,084,477 4/ 1963 Whatley.

3,177,612 4/ 1965 Giossi 468l 3,238,663 3/1966 Barr.

F. BARRY SHAY, Primary Examiner I. W. MITCHELL, Assistant Examiner Us. 01. X3. 46 -456; m -2

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