초록 ▼

A rotatable-in-place, powered riding vehicle typically may be used as a lawnmower, garden tractor, wheelchair, or warehouse utility truck. Its simplified construction and operator controls facilitate steering maneuverability. Thus the vehicle can be used in tight working places such as narrow aisles

A rotatable-in-place, powered riding vehicle typically may be used as a lawnmower, garden tractor, wheelchair, or warehouse utility truck. Its simplified construction and operator controls facilitate steering maneuverability. Thus the vehicle can be used in tight working places such as narrow aisles, for turning around at the end of rows, and steering around abutments disposed in the travel path, all in forward drive without requiring a reverse gear transmission. This provides more safety and simpler turning than in vehicles requiring a reverse transmission. Also, the vehicle is simplified, quite inexpensive and requires little maintenance and repair. Thus, the set of wheels pivotably mounted and simple control mechanisms provide optimum pivoting in both forward motion and the rotation-in-place steering functions. Two mutually exclusive modes of operation provide for rotation of the vehicle body about a pivot axis without movement away from the pivot site, and a forward travel mode with conventional steering control active. The only necessary manual vehicle control in addition to a steering wheel and accelerator constitutes a mode selection switch or lever. Thus, when the vehicle reaches an abutment, it is changed from forward to rotary mode in which the steering wheel controls the direction of rotation and the speed of rotation to reorient the vehicle for forward travel mode in a different direction. A preferred hydraulically operated four wheel drive embodiment has traction motors on four wheels. Also the body height above the wheels is adjustable.

대표청구항 ▼

A rotatable in place powered riding vehicle comprising in combination: a vehicle body with a set of steering wheels pivotably mounted thereon for steering of the vehicle; driving control means comprising body rotation means, locomotion means and means for steering the path of travel of the vehicle b

A rotatable in place powered riding vehicle comprising in combination: a vehicle body with a set of steering wheels pivotably mounted thereon for steering of the vehicle; driving control means comprising body rotation means, locomotion means and means for steering the path of travel of the vehicle body during locomotion; said locomotion means comprising powered traction means for turning at least one wheel to move the vehicle body along a forward direction of travel; said body rotation means comprising means for pivoting all the wheels of said set of steering wheels for wheel rotation into a tangential orientation about a circle defining a body pivot axis and means for operating the locomotion means to turn the wheels of said set of steering wheels for rotation of the vehicle body with the vehicle body resident in-situ at a pivot axis site; and said steering means further comprising means for pivotably rotating a subset of less than all the wheels in said set of steering wheels to steer the direction of forward travel of the vehicle.