Amusement ride and method of assembly

Abstract

An amusement ride such as a ferris wheel comprising a wheel rotatable around a central rotation axis and a wheel support structure for rotatably supporting the wheel in a substantially upright position. The wheel has first and second wheel flange arranged near the central rotation axis of the wheel; a peripheral rim configured to support a plurality of passenger capsules; and a plurality of spokes extending radially from the wheel flanges to the peripheral rim. The wheel support structure comprises two masts with individual bearing assemblies each configured to rotatably support one of the wheel flanges. The bearing assemblies are directly connected to the masts and are not connected to each other through a conventional hub.

Claims

1. An amusement ride comprising a wheel rotatable around a central rotation axis and a wheel support structure for rotatably supporting the wheel in a substantially upright position, the wheel comprising: a peripheral rim configured to support a plurality of passenger capsules; a first wheel flange arranged around the central rotation axis of the wheel; a second wheel flange arranged around the central rotation axis of the wheel and spaced from the first wheel flange along the central axis; and a plurality of spokes extending radially from the wheel flanges to the peripheral rim; the wheel support structure comprising: a first mast comprising a first bearing assembly configured to rotatably support the first wheel flange; and a second mast comprising a second bearing assembly configured to rotatably support the second wheel flange, wherein the first and second bearing assemblies are directly connected to the first and second mast respectively.

2. The amusement ride according to claim 1 wherein each of the bearing assemblies is configured to support an axial load in a direction along the central rotation axis.

3. The amusement ride according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the bearing assemblies comprises a slewing bearing.

4. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein the first and second mast each comprise a top portion that is configured to receive the respective bearing assembly, wherein the top portion is configured to absorb the axial forces along the direction of the central rotation axis C.

5. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein no stationary connection having a structural purpose is provided between the first and second masts.

6. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein the wheel further comprises a plurality of connective elements extending from the first wheel flange to the second wheel flange, wherein the plurality of connective elements is configured to space the first and second wheel flanges from each other.

7. The amusement ride according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of connective elements are arranged at a radial distance between 80 cm and 300 cm from the central rotation axis C of the wheel.

8. The amusement ride according to claim 6, wherein the connective elements are pins.

9. The amusement ride according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of connective elements extend from the first wheel flange to the second wheel flange in a direction parallel to the central rotation axis C.

10. The amusement ride according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of connective elements weights less than 50 kg.

11. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral rim comprises two rings interconnected through a plurality of rim connective elements.

12. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein each spoke comprises a first portion extending from the first wheel flange to the peripheral rim and a second portion extending from the second wheel flange to the peripheral rim, and wherein the first and second portion are connected to each other through a plurality of braces.

13. The amusement ride according to claim 12, wherein the braces extend diagonally with respect to the first and second portion.

14. The amusement ride according to claim 12, wherein the wheel further comprises an annular support structure, connecting the spokes to each other, the annular support structure connecting to each spoke at a distance between 40 to 60% of the length of each spoke along its radial direction.

15. The amusement ride according to claim 14, wherein a plurality of diagonal struts are connected to the annular support structure, preferably wherein each spoke comprises two diagonal struts.

16. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral rim inscribes a circle having a diameter of at least 20 m, or at least 50 m.

17. The amusement ride according to claim 1, wherein the amusement ride is transportable.

18. A wheel for an amusement ride according to claim 1.

19. A method for assembling an amusement ride, the method comprising: providing a wheel support structure comprising a first mast having a first bearing assembly and a second mast having a second bearing assembly; installing a wheel in the wheel support structure by connecting a first wheel flange of the wheel to the first bearing assembly and a second wheel flange of the wheel to the second bearing assembly; connecting a plurality of connective members to the wheel flanges to extend between the first and second wheel flanges.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the step of installing the wheel further comprises: connecting a plurality of spokes to the wheel flanges; and unfolding the spokes and providing a plurality of rim connective elements to form a wheel, the wheel configured to rotate around a central rotation axis.

Description

SHORT DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings in which corresponding reference symbols indicate corresponding parts. In the drawings, like numerals designate like elements. Multiple instances of an element may each include separate letters appended to the reference number. For example, two instances of a particular element 20 may be labeled as 20a and 20b. The reference number may be used without an appended letter (e.g. 20) to generally refer to an unspecified instance or to all instances of that element, while the reference number will include an appended letter (e.g. 20a) to refer to a specific instance of the element.

[0028] The present invention will be discussed in more detail below, with reference to the attached drawings, in which

[0029] FIG. 1A schematically shows a front view of a first embodiment of an amusement ride according to the invention.

[0030] FIG. 1B shows a side view of the amusement ride in FIG. 1A.

[0031] FIG. 1C shows a detail of the connection of the wheel to the mast in the amusement ride of FIG. 1A.

[0032] FIG. 2A shows a perspective view of a wheel for an amusement ride.

[0033] FIG. 2B shows a detail of the centre of the wheel in FIG. 2A.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0034] The following is a description of certain embodiments of the invention, given by way of example only and with reference to the figures.

[0035] FIG. 1A schematically shows a front view of a first embodiment of an amusement ride 1. The amusement ride 1 has a wheel 2, a wheel support structure 3, a base 4, a drive mechanism 5, a passenger platform 6, and passenger capsules 7. The wheel 2 is rotatable around the central axis C. The wheel support structure 3 holds the wheel 2 in a substantially upright position while enabling its rotation around the central axis C. The wheel support structure 3 is mounted on the base 4 and driven by the drive mechanism 5 that is arranged near the base 4. The drive mechanism drives rotation of the wheel 2 and can be operated to start and stop to allow passengers on the platform 6 to access the passenger capsules 7 and take a ride.

[0036] The wheel 2 has a plurality of spokes 8 and a peripheral rim 10. The spokes 8 extend radially outward from the central axis C toward the peripheral rim 10 to provide the wheel 2 with stability. The rim 10 supports the capsules 7. The rim 10 is approximately circular and is formed by a regular polygon having 45 edges. The height of the wheel (i.e., the diameter of the wheel inscribed by the polygon) is approximately 70 meters. The wheel 2 is therefore particularly suited for use on fairs and in theme parks.

[0037] FIG. 1B schematically shows a side view of the amusement ride 1 in FIG. 1A. For the sake of clarity, the capsules 7 have been omitted. The rim 10 has two identical rings 11a, 11b and a plurality of rim connective elements 12 that connect the two rings 11. Each of the rings 11a and 11b define a wheel face 9a and 9b. The spokes 8 provide a large number of connections between the two wheel faces 9 to provide stability to the wheel 2.

[0038] The wheel support structure 3 comprises two masts 31a, 31b arranged adjacent to the wheel faces 9a, 9b. The masts 31 extend between the base 4 and the rotation axis C. Specific according to the invention is that the masts 31 are not connected through a hub, shaft, axle, or other type of structure that directly connects the first mast 31a to the second mast 31b. Instead the wheel 2 is configured to take up all forces developed when the wheel 2 is rotated.

[0039] FIG. 1C shows a detail of the connection of the wheel 2 to the two masts 31a, 31b. Each mast 31 has a body 33, top portion 34, and a bearing assembly 32. The bearing assembly 32 comprises a slewing bearing. A slewing bearing can typically support a heavy, yet slowly-oscillating load and is therefore particularly suited for the application in the amusement ride. Due the lack of a central hub in the wheel, the axial loads are typically significantly larger than in traditional wheels with a hub and therefore this different type of bearing is applied.

[0040] Each bearing assembly 32 is in direct contact with a connection surface of the top portion 34 of the respective masts 31. The top portions 34 comprises a cone shape, extending from the mast body 32. The cone shape provides additional strength to absorb the axial loads and torque from the wheel 2.

[0041] Each wheel face 9a, 9b is provided with a circular flange 21a, 21b. The bearing assembly 32 is configured to receive the circular flange 21. The spokes 8 are placed under tension and extend radially outward from the circular flange 21 towards the peripheral rim 10. Between the spokes 8 in the first wheel face 9a and in the second wheel face 9b, a plurality of connective elements 24 extend. The connective elements 24 are cylindrical pins that extend substantially parallel to the central rotation axis C and can take up pressure forces developed in the wheel 2. The structure of the wheel 2 near its center will be discussed in more detail in relation to FIG. 2B below.

[0042] The connective elements 24 can be made of steel. It will be clear that any other suitable constructing material is conceivable to make the connective elements 24. Each connective element is approximately 225 cm long and has a diameter of 6 cm. In this specific embodiment, one connective element 24 is provided for each spoke 8. Alternatively, fewer or more connective elements 24 may be used. In addition, the connective elements 24 not necessarily need to be straight nor need to be parallel to the central axis. The connective elements 24 are in this embodiment connected to the spokes 8, but may alternatively directly be connected to the flange 21.

[0043] Advantageous to this construction with connective elements 24 is the relatively light weight of the ferris wheel. The total construction of the ferris wheel is approximately 350 T kg. The fifteen connective elements 24 together weigh only 250 kg. For comparison, in a conventional amusement ride, a hub arranged in the central axis of the wheel have would have weighted approximately 15000 kilograms. Consequently heavy equipment is typically required to arrange the hub in position at the center of the ferris wheel. Moreover, the hub is a single heavy component, whereas the weight in the hubless amusement ride according to the invention is distributed over the plurality of connective elements 24.

[0044] FIG. 2A shows a perspective view of the wheel 2. Each spoke 8 has two portions 13a, 13b extending from the center of the wheel to the peripheral rim 10. The portions 13 are connected to each other through a plurality of diagonal braces 14. The braces 14 provide lateral stability to the wheel 2. In addition, three annular support structures 15, 16, 17 are arranged in the wheel. Each annular support structure connects subsequent spokes 8 to each other. In this specific embodiment, the annular support structures are provided in the wheel faces. Nevertheless, it will be understood that alternatively also beams can be considered extend from one wheel face to another that cross each other.

[0045] FIG. 2B shows a detail of the wheel 2 around the central axis C. As explained above, there is no axle connecting the first wheel face 9a with the second wheel face 9b. Instead the circular flanges 21 can be connected to the masts 31 through the bearing assembly 32 as discussed in relation to FIG. 1A above.

[0046] The circular flange 21 has an annular body 22 protruding outward form the wheel faces 9 and configured to be received in the bearing assembly 32. The annular body can thereby transfer the axial loads from the wheel to the bearing assembly 32. The circular flange 21 further comprises an attachment ring 23 extending from an outer circumference of the annular body 22. The connective elements 24 extend between the attachment rings 23 of the first and second wheel flanges 21. In this specific embodiment, the connective elements are not directly connected to the attachment ring 23, but are instead connected to the spokes 8. Alternatively, the connective elements 24 may also be connected to the attachment rings 23 directly.