Skip to content
  • About
  • Services
    • Phone Interview
    • Initial Meeting
    • Invention Analysis
    • Plan of Action
    • Invention Design
    • 2D/3D Illustrations
    • Invention Engineering
    • Patent Protection
    • Market Research
    • Manufacturers Search
    • Invention Brochures
    • Licensing & Royalties
  • Submit
  • Benefits
  • Blog
  • Contact
Menu
  • About
  • Services
    • Phone Interview
    • Initial Meeting
    • Invention Analysis
    • Plan of Action
    • Invention Design
    • 2D/3D Illustrations
    • Invention Engineering
    • Patent Protection
    • Market Research
    • Manufacturers Search
    • Invention Brochures
    • Licensing & Royalties
  • Submit
  • Benefits
  • Blog
  • Contact

972-402-0000

Irving, Texas

  • About
  • Services
    • Phone Interview
    • Initial Meeting
    • Invention Analysis
    • Plan of Action
    • Invention Design
    • 2D/3D Illustrations
    • Invention Engineering
    • Patent Protection
    • Market Research
    • Manufacturers Search
    • Invention Brochures
    • Licensing & Royalties
  • Submit
  • Benefits
  • Blog
  • Contact
Menu
  • About
  • Services
    • Phone Interview
    • Initial Meeting
    • Invention Analysis
    • Plan of Action
    • Invention Design
    • 2D/3D Illustrations
    • Invention Engineering
    • Patent Protection
    • Market Research
    • Manufacturers Search
    • Invention Brochures
    • Licensing & Royalties
  • Submit
  • Benefits
  • Blog
  • Contact
Free Invention Analysis

Toyota Takes Big Step Closer to Making a Flying Car

  • September 18, 2015

For those wishing they could fly over traffic congestion, you might just get your wish in the not too distant future. Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., has filed a patent for a stackable wing for an aerocar.

Inventors Umesh N. Gandhi and Robert W. Roe describe in the patent a “vehicle that can be flown as a fixed wing aircraft and driven as a land vehicle.” Toyota filed for the patent on March 2, 2014, and it was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on September 3, 2015.

As the above image from the patent application shows, the stackable wings system would fold or retract toward the body of the aerocar until it is deployed. Although the inventors aren’t specific in naming the source of propulsion that would deploy and retract the wings, they mention such options as, a turbofan, pusher propeller, open rotor, or other power sources used in airplanes that can be adapted for an on the road vehicle.

The patent application schematic shows how the wings would collapse into a carrier on top of the car, so they don’t interfere with a driver’s view when not in use. When deployed, the wings would extend upward from the roof. And by being stackable, the wings can vary positions for takeoff, cruising, and landing.

The odds of Toyota moving ahead with its flying car concept are pretty good. Back in June 2014, Toyota official Hiroyoshi Yoshiki said the company’s advanced research and development area was studying the concept of a vehicle that would hover a bit above the road, similar to a hovercraft.

But Toyota isn’t the first car manufacturer to ponder the idea of a flying car. That credit goes to American industrialist and founder of Ford Motor Company Henry Ford. He designed a sky car, which he coined the “sky flivver” that had plane flaps for an upward lift in small spaces and a rear wheel for driving on the road.

After abandoning the project following a fatal crash of a prototype, the auto magnate proclaimed, “Mark my words: a combination airplane and motorcar is coming. You may smile, but it will come.”

Ford’s inkling came to fruition. In 1954, aeronautical engineer and inventor Moulton Taylor developed the Aerocar, a flying car prototype with detachable wings that could fly and drive on roads. However, it required removing the flight system, folding back the wings, and towing the fuselage behind the car.

In 1956, Ford Motor Company took another crack at a flying car, designing a 3/8 scale model of a flying vehicle and naming it the Volante Tri-Athodyne. It used ducted fans to give the car liftoff from the ground.

More recently, a group of graduates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) started testing their own flying car concept. Their company, Terrafugia, is creating two types of flying vehicles. The first, called Transition, is a light aircraft with wings that fold down so it can be driven on the road. The second, called TF-X, looks more like a space-age car and has a fixed wing design for taking off and landing vertically.

Other automakers are exploring flying car concepts, too, including Volkswagen, whose hovercar uses electromagnetic levitation.

Even the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the research agency of the U.S. Department of Defense, is looking into the use of flying vehicles, including a hoverbike, to make it easier to get soldiers, gear, and supplies into battle.

But Toyota’s patent brings a mainstream flying car ever closer to reality. So hang in there, takeoff to get away from traffic may not be far behind!

  • Inventions, Patent Application, Patents
Inventions
Tech

Latest Posts

This device tells you when the stove’s been left on
This device tells you when the stove’s been left on
Are you the type of person who needs to check that the stove is off five times before leaving the ...
WeMo is a smart plug that allows you to control appliances remotely
WeMo is a smart plug that allows you to control appliances remotely
Have you ever left the iron on, only to remember hours later while you're sitting at your desk at work? ...
The pocket-sized Nix Sensor digitizes colors on demand
The pocket-sized Nix Sensor digitizes colors on demand
Assuming that you're in fact not some sort of color wizard, The Nix Mini Color Sensor could be an awesome ...
Sit back, relax, and let this electric bike go 236 miles on one charge
Sit back, relax, and let this electric bike go 236 miles on one charge
E-bike technology isn't exactly new — we've seen multiple scattered across the Internet for a few years now, all claiming ...
Think you can invent a personal jetpack? Boeing could give you $2 million for it
Think you can invent a personal jetpack? Boeing could give you $2 million for it
Boeing really wants to make personal jetpacks a thing, and they’re asking for your help. Boeing is sponsoring the GoFly ...
Use this super smart case to instantly print photos from your phone
Use this super smart case to instantly print photos from your phone
The upside to advanced camera phone technology is super sharp pictures we can’t help but share on just about every ...
Previous
Next
View all Posts

What's on Your Mind?

Submit your Idea for your Free
Patent Search Now.

FREE PATENT SEARCH
  • 972.402.0000
  • [email protected]

What's on Your Mind?

Submit your Idea for your Free
Patent Search Now.

FREE PATENT SEARCH
  • 972.402.0000
  • [email protected]

Give Us a Call

972.402.0000

Evaluate

  • Phone Interview
  • Initial Meeting
  • Invention Analysis
  • Plan of Action

Develop

  • Invention Design
  • 2D/3D Illustrations
  • Invention Engineering
  • Patent Protection

Launch

  • Market Research
  • Manufacturers Search
  • Invention Brochures
  • Licensing & Royalties

Address

6565 N.MacArthur Blvd, Irving, Texas 75039

Phone

972.402.0000

800.962.3032

972.402.0095

Email

[email protected]

Evaluate

  • Phone Interview
  • Office Meeting
  • Invention Analysis
  • Plan of Action

Develop

  • Invention Design
  • 2D/3D Illustrations
  • Invention Engineering
  • Patent Protection

Launch

  • Market Research
  • Manufacturers Search
  • Invention Brochures
  • Licensing & Royalties

Follow Us

Facebook-f Instagram Linkedin-in Pinterest-p Twitter
© 2022, Lonestar Patent Services, Inc.

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use

Free Invention Analysis

×

Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)

This agreement keeps your idea safe between you and Lonestar Patent Services.

I understand that the product idea information I submit cannot be used, disclosed or sold without my express written permission. I also understand that all Lonestar Patent Services employees are required to sign an ethics and confidentiality agreement for my protection. I believe that I am the original inventor of the idea described herein. I authorize Lonestar Patent Services to review my idea and contact me in 3 to 5 business days with the results. I acknowledge that Lonestar Patent Services monitors and records telephone calls for quality assurance. I understand that Lonestar Patent Services does not promise any financial gain from the development of any new product idea.

By clicking the “submit” button below as my electronic signature, I expressly consent to being contacted about Lonestar Patent Services by phone call, auto-dialed phone call including prerecorded voice messages, text messages or email at any number or email address I provide. I understand that my consent is not a requirement for purchase of services.

Fee based service.