Guided transportation system

Claim 1

A guided transportation system which comprises: A. a substantially flat roadway including both single direction portions and switching portions therealong; B. a guidable vehicle including: 1. vertically aligned wheel means rotatably secured to said vehicle for supporting said vehicle a fixed distance above said roadway and for permitting movement of said vehicle along said roadway; 2. a plurality of guiding wheels; 3. support means for mounting said guiding wheels at the corners of said guidable vehicle, each of said wheels being mounted by said means in a horizontal position in a space between the bottom of said vehicle and said roadway so that at least a portion thereof extends outwardly toward the sides of said vehicle a distance greater than said wheel means; 4. a pair of switch wheels; 5. means for movably mounting said pair of switch wheels on opposite sides of said guidable vehicle, said switch wheels being movable between a switching position, wherein an individual wheel is horizontally located at a position outwardly from and above an associated one of said aligning wheels, and an inactive position displaced from said switching position; 6. operating means for controlling said switching wheels so that only one of said switching wheels is in said switching position at the time; C. a pair of sidewall assemblies extending along the length of opposite sides of edge portions of said roadway, said sidewall assemblies including: 1. vertical supporting portions; 2. aligning wheel engageable means secured to said supporting portions of said pair of sidewall assemblies and extending along the length of said roadway at a position spaced a fixed distance above said roadway, said aligning wheel engageable means for providing a continuous, flat surface over which said aligning wheels may move to locate said guidable vehicle in said roadway; 3. switch wheel engageable means secured to the upper portion of said vertical supporting portions and extending along said roadway at least at said switching portions thereof at a position spaced a fixed distance upwardly from said aligning wheel engageable means, said switch engageable means for providing a continuous, flat surface between said switching wheel and said side of said vehicle which may be engaged by one of said switching wheEls when in its switching position.