The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 11, 2020
Filed:
Oct. 19, 2017
Autonomous, gravity-assisted motorized racer configured to travel through non-straight tube segments
Mieh, Inc., Highland Park, IL (US);
Diane M. Farrell, Northfield, IL (US);
Jason M. Lynch, Lemont, IL (US);
James M. Rasmussen, Chicago, IL (US);
Maxwell B. Rothschild, Northbrook, IL (US);
Wayne H. Rothschild, Northbrook, IL (US);
MIEH, Inc., Highland Park, IL (US);
Abstract
A vehicle configured to move through a network of interconnected tubes includes a body, a motor, a motorized wheel, a biasing assembly, and a first element. The motorized wheel directly engages an inner surface of the tubes. The biasing assembly causes the motorized wheel to maintain continuous contact with the inner surface of the tubes during operation. A waist of the vehicle is constrained by an inner diameter (D) of the curved tube, a radius of curvature (R) of the curved tube, and a length (L) of the wheelbase of the vehicle. The waist of the body is sized such that the vehicle can freely move within any of the tubes without getting stuck therein.