Invention Grant
- Patent Title: Dual-mode vehicle with wheel rotors
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Application No.: US15453566Application Date: 2017-03-08
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Publication No.: US10675932B2Publication Date: 2020-06-09
- Inventor: Taewoo Nam , Yasuo Uehara
- Applicant: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
- Applicant Address: US TX Plano
- Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
- Current Assignee: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.
- Current Assignee Address: US TX Plano
- Agency: Darrow Mustafa PC
- Agent Christopher G. Darrow
- Main IPC: B60F5/02
- IPC: B60F5/02 ; B64C37/00 ; B64C11/28 ; B60F5/00 ; A63H27/00 ; B64C25/36

Abstract:
A dual-mode vehicle, wheels for the vehicle, and a method of transitioning the vehicle from a land mode to a flight mode. In the land mode, the method includes rotating a pair of spaced wheel arms about a central pivot to lower a body of the dual-mode vehicle to a ground surface. Each wheel arm extends from the central pivot to a wheel. The method also includes rotating the central pivot about a longitudinal vehicle axis to raise the wheel arms and the wheels above the ground surface. After raising the wheel arms and wheels above the ground surface, the method includes rotating the wheel arms about the central pivot to position the wheels for use as rotors in the flight mode. In the flight mode, the method includes rotating the wheels in order to extract rotor blades positioned within the wheels to extend beyond the wheels.
Public/Granted literature
- US20180257447A1 DUAL-MODE VEHICLE WITH WHEEL ROTORS Public/Granted day:2018-09-13
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