US2439143A - Toy helicopter - Google Patents

Description

April 6; 1948..

s. P. NEMETH TOY HELICOPTER Filed March 7, 1944 Elma/whom STEPHA'N PAUL NEMETl-l FIG. \2

Patented Apr. 6, 1948 Stephan Paul Nemeth, Chicago, Ill.

Application March 7, 1944, Serial No. 525,404

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a toy helicopter. The invented article is an inexpensive stable toy helicopter, one which preserves the horizontal direction of its fuselage and the Vertical position of its mast, executes a steady forward motion, and lands gently. The toy does all this without requiring complicated mechanisms or precision. parts which could not be manufactured inexpensivly.

This is accomplished by stabilizing and damp ening a one piece sustaining propeller by a coun ter-rotating dampening and stabilizmg vane member, the vanes being or special shape. I have discovered that counter-rotating pronouncedly angularly bent vanes, mounted in proper position, impart stability and steadiness of flight to a toy helicopter which without such vanes files in an unstable and unsteady manner.

It is thus the object of the present invention to provide a toy helicopter sustained by a driven one-piece propeller and stabilized by counter-rotating vanes of particular shape and position.

These and other desirable objects and advantages of the present invention will be illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the specification, a certain preferred embodiment of the invention being disclosed by way of illustration only, for, since the underlying principles may be incorporated in other specific devices it is not intended to be limited to the one here shown, except as such limitations are clearly imposed by the appended claims.

In the drawings like numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views, of which Fig. 1 represents a toy helicopter in plan view,

Fig. 2 represents the same helicopter in elevation, partly in section, and

Fig. 3 represents an elevational section through the lower end of the mast.

The toy helicopter represented in the drawings consists of a body or fuselage l I, a mast or standard I2, a rotor or sustaining propeller l3, counter-rotating vane arms 16 holding stabilizing vanes l1, and motor means arranged to drive the propeller relative to the vane arms.

Body H is preferably made of a stiff paper,

bent and joined to any shape suggesting the fu- The upwardly extending mast i2 is formed of a tube, for instance a paper tube or a. light Wooden tube. The mast l2 extends through suit able perforations of the body, wide enough to permit easy rotation of the body relative to and around the mast. During the flight, the weight of the body rests on the washer 2! of the mast. Pin it penetrates the mast crosswise, near its lower end, and washer 2i rests against pin 20.

Propeller i3 is preferably bent of one piece of Celluloid sheeting. It is mounted rotatably on top of the mast, the axis of rotation coinciding with the mast axis. Part M, fixed to the propeller, combines the functions of a clamp holding the propeller, of a shaft, driving the propeller, of a journal revolving in the top portion of the mast. the same acting as a bearing, and of a hook receiving the driving means.

A rubber band [5 Within the hollow mast is fastened at its lower end to the mast, being slung around pin 20. At its upper end it is fastened to said hook l4, and thus mediately to the propeller. motor for driving the propeller l3 and the mast 12 in opposite directions.

Vanes I! are each made of a rectangular piece of stiff paper. The paper is bent to a pronounced dihedral angle about the edge l9 parallel to and midway between two parallel sides of the rectangle. The vanes have thus the shape of a stiff book cover being partly opened, or of a plain able roof.

A rod It extending crosswise to the mast is fastened thereto. The angularly bent vanes I! are punched at two points l8 on both sides of the edge [9, and are mounted on the two ends of rod It. The rod passes through the holes I8 and the vanes are glued to the rod.

The vanes are mounted on the rod in such angular position that edge 19 extends at right angles to the rod is and is inclined relative to the plane of its motion. The toy is illustrated in the drawing as provided with a right hand propeller. The propeller is turned by the rubber motor in flight anti-clockwise as seen from top. The arms is with the vanes ll will then be turned clockwise as seen from above. When thus rotating, edges iii are in forward relation to the vanes l1. Thus, in Fig. 1, the vanes I! as drawn indicate the direction of rotation of the vane arm l6 as if they represented arrow heads. Edge I9 is accordingly inclined upwardly and in the direction of its own turning motion,

The vanes are thus similar and in similar arrangement and motion as airfoils having a very It constitutes in a well known manner a pronounced dihedral and having a positive angle of attack or incidence. I have obtained the best results by folding the vanes to a dihedral about edge [9 of about 90 degrees, and. by inclining edge [9 upwardly and in the direction of their rotation by 30 degrees to 45 degrees.

When playing with the toy helicopter, the lower part of the mast is held by one hand, the propeller is wound clockwise by the other hand, and the toy is released with its mast vertical, It will gently soar upwardly and will return to the ground as the tension of the rubber band decreases, having enough parachute eifect and residual motor effect to protect the toy from excessive shocks when making contact with the ground.

I claim:

1. In a toy helicopter the combination of a sustaining propeller and of at least one counterrotating vane below the propeller made of two plane surfaces forming a dihedral angle and, the

vane being set to positive dihedral and to positive incidence angle.

2. A toy helicopter having a mast, a one-piece sustaining propeller mounted rotatably on top of said mast, vane members each made of two plane surfaces forming a dihedral angle and fastened to the mast, motor means adapted and arranged to rotate the mast and the propeller in opposite directions, and a fuselage supported by and freely rotatable about the mast.

3. A toy helicopter having a mast, a sustaining propeller mounted rotatably on top of the mast, vanes each made of two plane surfaces forming a dihedral angle and connected to the mast, motor means adapted and arranged to rotate the mast and the propeller in opposite directions, and a fuselage supported by and freely rotatable about the mast, said vanes being mounted to positive and pronounced dihedral and to positive incidence angle.

4. A toy helicopter having a hollow mast, a sustaining propeller mounted on top of the mast rotatable thereabout, vanes each made of two plane surfaces forming a dihedral angle and connected to the mast, a rubber cord within the mast connecting the propeller with a point of the mast near its bottom end, a fuselage supported by and freely rotatable about the mast, torque transmitting means between the rubber cord and the mast, and torque transmitting means between the rubber cord and the propeller.

STEPI-IAN PAUL NEMETH.

REFERENCES CITED.

The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENT Number Name Date 1,729,007 Nelson Sept. 24, 1929 1,803,636 Nelson May 5, 1931 2,138,168 Horak Nov. 29, 1938 2,357,134 Robins Aug. 29, 1944

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