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United States Patent Application	20060211329
Kind Code	A1
Chang; Tien Jhen	September 21, 2006

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Foreign Application Data

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Date	Code	Application Number
Mar 17, 2005	TW	094204136

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Claims

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1. A flashing windmill toy, comprising: a windmill blade set having a plurality of blades; an upper edge of a front side of one blade of the plurality of blades being installed with a first illuminated component and a lower edge of another blade being installed with a second illuminated components; each of the first and second illuminated components being connected to a capacitor and a diode at a backside of a respective diode; each of the first and second illuminated components being connected to a coil through a conductive wire; a coil wound around an axial ring groove of a rotor ring seat made of non-iron material, a magnet with N and S poles being placed within said axial ring groove and thus every single coil of coil device enclosing the magnet with the S and N poles; whereby said coil will be induced with an electric current that will be rectified by said diodes and stored by said electric capacitors; a pair of axle tubes mounted within said central ring aperture of said rotor ring seat; said axle tube being rotatable; the magnet locked by said axle tubes, said magnet being provided with axle mats on both ends for preventing a relative movement between said rotor ring seat and said magnet; and a support shaft passing through a shaft stopping knob, said windmill blade set, said rotor ring seat and said magnet, said support shaft being secured with a stopping knob, a tail section of said support shaft going through an aperture of a holding rod and being fixed by glue therein.

2. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein said windmill blade set drives said rotor ring seat to co-rotate by restricting said rotor ring seat on two sides using a pair of plastic screws and bolt seats.

3. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein conducting wires connected to the coil are attached onto said inner surfaces of said blades and therefore co-rotate with said rotor ring seat.

4. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein said coil is an annular body wound around a groove formed on said rotor ring seat.

5. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein the brightness of said illuminated components can be increased by paralleling other illuminated components.

6. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein said electric capacitors are chargeable for prolonging the light emission of said illuminated components.

7. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein peripheries of said bolt seats are respectively of hexagonal cross section for the insertion into said hexagonal through holes of said blades.

8. The flashing windmill toy of claim 1 wherein said rotor ring seat is made of a selective plastic material.

9. A flashing windmill toy, comprising: a blade set; a plurality of light emitting elements which are arranged linearly; a coil wound around an annular seat of a rotor; the coil being electrically coupled to a bridge rectified diode; the capacitor being charged by a coil and is electrically coupled to at IC so as to supply power to the IC; the IC is further electrically coupled to the light emitting elements so as to control the illumination of the light emitting elements.

10. The flashing windmill toy as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the blade set rotates, the IC will control the light emitting elements to light up to display characters and graph.

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Description

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FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to windmill toys, more particularly to a flashing windmill toy comprising a non-metallic rotor seat attached with a coil and a stationary magnet erecting upright within the rotor ring seat. As the windmill is rotating, the magnet is fixed on a support shaft, and the rotor ring seat is co-rotating with the windmill, whereby current is induced in the coil thereon. The electricity sent out by the wires attached on the blades of the windmill is first rectified by a diode and then stored in nearby capacitors, which can light up a light emitting device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Referring to FIG. 1, a flashing windmill toy of the prior art comprises a windmill 1, being driven by wind power. It is a disadvantage that the conventional windmill toy cannot be displayed in night time. To be able to see at nights, lights must be added. The lights must be lit up by an electric power battery, which will either make the toy more complicated and thus not practical or causes additional drag to the windmill 1. The addition of an electric power battery to a windmill toy will add up too much weight, which is only suitable to windmills of larger scale, not to small windmills. It is therefore significant to install a small, light emitter to a windmill without using a battery. Other prior arts about the windmill toy can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,082 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,782,431, but it is suitable for larger scale windmill, not for small windmill toy.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a flashing windmill toy comprising a non-metallic rotor seat attached with a coil and a stationary magnet erecting upright within the rotor ring seat. As the windmill is rotating, the magnet is fixed on a support shaft, and the rotor ring seat is co-rotating with the windmill, whereby current is induced in the coil thereon.

[0004] The electricity sent out by the wires attached on the blades of the windmill is first rectified by a diode and then stored in nearby capacitors, which can light up a light emitting device.

[0005] The secondary objective of the present invention is to provide a flashing windmill toy whose blades are equipped with a light emitting diode, a capacitor and a diode.

[0006] It is a further objective of the present invention that the front, and rear bolt seats are each provided with a through hole of hexagonal cross section for retaining a hexagonal object.

[0007] Further, the wiring of the flashing windmill toy is attached onto the inner sides of the blade set and is co-coating with the windmill.

[0008] Further, the rotor ring seat of the flashing windmill toy is made of a plastic material that cannot be attracted by a magnet, whereby the ring seat will rotate around the stationary magnet.

[0009] The various objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a windmill toy of the prior art.

[0011] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a flashing windmill toy according to the present invention.

[0012] FIG. 3 illustrates the circuitry of the present invention.

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates the coil configuration of the present invention.

[0014] FIG. 5 illustrates the assembly act 1 of the present invention.

[0015] FIG. 6 illustrates the assembly act 2 of the present invention.

[0016] FIG. 7 illustrates the assembly act 3 of the present invention.

[0017] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the flashing windmill toy according to the present invention.

[0018] FIG. 9 illustrates the use of the flashing windmill toy according to the present invention.

[0019] FIG. 10 illustrates another use of the flashing windmill toy according to the present invention.

[0020] FIG. 11 shows the arrangement of the circuit of the present invention.

[0021] FIG. 12 shows one embodiment of the present invention, where the windmill toy rotates to display characters.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022] Referring to FIGS. 2 to 9, a flashing windmill toy according to the present invention comprises a windmill blade set 2 that is a collection of a blades 20, 21, a pair of illuminated components 3, 4 respectively attached to the blades 20, 21 and accompanied by diodes 31, 41 and electric capacitors 30, 40, a rotor ring seat 5 co-rotating with the blade 21, a magnet 6 rotationally mounted within the rotor ring seat 5 and a holding rod 7 fixed with the support shaft 54.

[0023] The two ends of the windmill blade set 2 are respectively attached by a front ring piece 22 and a rear ring piece 23; there are apertures 220, 230 of hexagonal cross section respectively formed in the rear ring piece 23 and the bolt seat 24. Thereby, a plastic screw 25 will be used to secured a bolt seat 24 passing through the aperture 230 of the rear ring piece 23, and a plastic screw 27 will be used to secured a bolt seat 26 passing through the aperture 220 of the front ring piece 22. The cross sectional areas of the bolt seat 24 and the bolt seat 26 take a hexagonal shape, whereby the apertures 220, 230 can be engaged.

[0024] The illuminated component 3 is inserted on a front edge of the blade 20 and is electrically connected to the electric capacitor 30 and the diode 31 on a rear edge of the blade 20. Conducting wires 32 are drawn from each of the electric capacitor 30 and the diode 31 to connect with the coil 500. Since the conducting wire 32 is attached on to the inner wall of the blade 20, they will be co-rotating the rotor ring seat 5. The illuminated component 4 is inserted on a front edge of the blade 21 and is electrically connected to the electric capacitor 40 and the diode 41 on a rear edge of the blade 21. A conducting wire 42 is drawn from each of the electric capacitor 40 and the diode 41 to connect with the coil 500. Since the conducting wires 42 are attached on to the inner wall of the blade 21, they will be co-rotating the rotor ring seat 5.

[0025] The coil 500 is wound around an axial ring groove 50 of the rotor ring seat 5, whereas the rotor ring seat 5 is provided with a central ring aperture 51. The inner wall of the ring aperture 51 is provided with a left aperture 510 and a right aperture 511 through two axle tubes 52, 53 are inserted respectively.

[0026] The magnet 6 is mounted in the ring aperture 51, with a through hole 60 therein facing the through holes 520, 530. The right terminal and the left terminal of the through hole 60 are respectively provided with axle mats 61, 62 for being mounted within the ring aperture 51, whereby the rotor ring seat 5 can rotate with respect to the magnet 6. A support shaft 54 passes through a shaft stopping knob 55, the windmill blade set 2, the rotor ring seat 5 and the magnet 6 and is then secured with a stopping knob 28. The tail of the support shaft 54 goes through a aperture 70 of the holding rod 7 and fixed by glue therein.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 3, the coil 500 will be rotating with respect to the magnet 6, because the magnet 6 is mounted on the support shaft 54. As the blades 20, 21 are rotating, the plastic screw 25 and the bolt seat 26 will lock the two sides of the rotor ring seat 5, and the conducting wires 32 and 42, attached with the blades 20, 21, will be co-rotating with the rotor ring seat 5. Because of electromagnetic induction, an electric current will be induced in the coil 500. Due to its electric connection to the conducting wires 32 and 42, the coil 500 will supply a current to the diodes 31, 41 through the conducting wires 32 and 42. The other terminals of the conducting wires 32 and 42 are connected to the illuminated components 3, 4 and the associated electric capacitors 30, 40. The present invention utilizes the electric capacitors 30, 40 to store the energy generated within the coil 500, which electric capacitors 30, 40 supply power to the illuminated components 3, 4 to achieve a effect of illumination. The blades 20, 21 can be added to more than one set of illuminated components 3, 4 to enhance the brightness.

[0028] Referring to FIG. 10, the holding rod 7 of the present invention can be attached to the head portion of a bicycle 8 to allow the blades 20, 21 to rotate being urged by the wind and thereby the continuous lightening of the illuminated components 3, 4.

[0029] Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the coil 500 of the rotor ring seat 5 is electrically coupled to a bridge rectified diode 9. It is filtered and charged by a capacitor 90 and is electrically coupled to an IC 91 so as to supply power to the IC 91. The IC 91 is further electrically coupled to the light emitting elements 92, 93, 94, 95, 96 and 97 so as to control the illumination of the light emitting elements 92, 93, 94, 95, 96 and 97. The light emitting elements 92, 93, 94, 95, 96 and 97 are placed linearly in one of the blades 20, 21. When the blade set 2 rotates, the IC 91 will control the light emitting elements 92, 93, 94, 95, 96 and 97 to light up to display characters (HELLO in FIG. 12) and graph.

[0030] The present invention is thus described, and it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. The present invention has the advantage of self-production of power and therefore can be used without a battery. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.

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