AU2003101027A4 - A toy weaving set - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INNOVATION PATENT A TOY WEAVING SET The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: A TOY WEAVING SET.

This innovation relates to improvements in one type of educational toy.

Toys for pre-teen kids, that are fun and also a challenge, and requiring both physical and mental application, have been with us for quite Some time. Children are interested in a wide variety of play things; toys, which encourages the child to assemble and erect shapes and structures, from a toy-set, usually made of plastic and in kit form and often accompanied with instructions, is the focus of this innovation.

One popular example of a toy in the category just mentioned, would be a toy-set made up of several batches of small plastic pieces with predetermined connecting areas. Youngster are encouraged to generally stack one piece on top of another in order to compose for example, a model dolls house.

Another type could have more flexible pieces, and its predetermined joining areas would allow one piece to clasp onto another with releasable tension, removing the need for the pieces to depend on the building-blocks approach but instead, utilized more like connecting links or struts.

This Innovation is a toy-set like that just described. A toy-set, made up of a few hundred identicalpieces of flexible plastic. Each piece, roughly rectangular in area, have enlarged semicircular ends that has various contours, extensions and cavities (and looking somewhat like a small dog-boned shaped pocket-size comb with broad sparse teeth), designed to clasp-join with releasable tension, to another piece infive distinct ways. four out of the five joining methods, has the added option to vary the angle between the axis' of the two pieces in fixed increments of 30 degrees. With the fifth joining method, the angle between the axis' of two joining pieces could be altered in 90 degree increments only. The preferential use of30, 60 and degree angles between pieces, encourages the child to use universal structural elements such as equilateral triangles, squares and hexagons, along with other shapes to erect free-standing objects, that would have a woven skeletal appearance.

Furthermore, situated on the broad side of each piece are two apertures; one is designed to grip (with releasable pressure) a cylindrical shaft, like a common lead pencil for example, and the other will accommodate a similar shaft, but remain loose enough for the toy piece to swivel freely on it. With the potential to add a 'spindle' to a composite of toy pieces, this innovation offers a child the possibility to erect a structure and add moving parts, for instance a spinning wheel, which could also be a composite of the same toy pieces.

Add to this, two conical indents specifically located in the center of the edge of either long side of each piece; this offers apivotalpoint on which a shape (made up of toy pieces) could spin on for example. A carousel, or an over-sized top, turning on a base (which could be a pencil held upright by other toy pieces) are a few of many ideas for the amusement and development of a child's imagination.

In the toy-set proposed above, the five different methods that enables any two pieces to connect with each other, will now be described in more details.

One method for the toy piece to clasp together with another would be, edge to edge, and in the same plane, by way of several male/female dove-tail-like contours and cavities, which lie on the pieces' edges; they are designed to match with other corresponding areas on the same piece.

The pieces then are able to interlock and be separated with a press in/pull-apart action, aided by the flexibility of the plastic and the right tolerance between the male/female connecting areas.

Another method would be, where edge joins to edge, but with their axis' at right angles to one another. The pieces would snap on to each other, with releasable pressure, through narrow slots located on the edges, which lead into slightly larger square holes, that are located on the broad side of each piece. To elaborate further, when each piece's edge is pressed against the other, while both slots are facing directly opposite, and at right angles to one another, the slots on the flexible plastic pieces will opens slightly, to accommodate the thickness of the toy pieces (which has the same width as the width of the square holes that lies at the end of the slots). The open end of the square holes (like two not-completely-closed square links ofa chain) will coincide and connect with each other with releasable tension.

The third method where pieces from the toy-set will connect with each other, would be: broad side- end over- lapping and clasping with broad side- end; broadside end over lapping and clasping with broadside- center or broadside- center over lapping and clasping with broad side- center. All the joints in method three, take place in one plane only. Now to be more specific. Located on both broadsides of the piece, are three groups of extensions and cavitiesone at the center and two on either ends. Each group consisting of ten identical square holes and two identical nipple-like extension all equally spaced around a circle and at 30 degree intervals. (the extensions are situated opposite each other in the circle, and have similar dimensions to the square holes). As the broadsides of two pieces are overlapped, and the centers of any of the three groups line up so that the extensions coincides with and penetrates the square holes, the two pieces will lock together with releasable pressure; this is due to a filletedgrove, which runs across the face of each nipple-like extension, accommodating a filleted threshold-like ridge, situated across the inside of one side of each square hole.

the forth method of two pieces joining together would be the edge on either end of one piece to connect to the broadside (of either end, or center) of another piece. Each toy piece has on both broad semicircular ends, 8 identical and equally- spaced protruding area that look like tackheads, radiating out from a common central point. Anypair of these adjacent protruding 'tackheads', will snap into various larger holes (two round and one octagonal, also situated on the broad side) as well as rectangular elongated slots; all have in some areas, threshold-like ridges running along the middle of its inside edges.

The fifth method of two pieces joining together, would be for the edge of the long side of one piece to join via the broad- center of another, with their planes at right angles to each other.

The angle between the axis of the two joining pieces could be parallel or at right angles to one another. This joining method involves two larger rectangular slots at right angles to each other and situated exactly in the center of the broadsides of the piece; they share the same center point as the octagonal hole. furthermore, each piece has also on the edges of either long side, a pertruded (roughly oblong) central area with the same dimensions as the two rectangular slots just mentioned; This oblong contour, will snap (with releasable pressure) into either of the two larger rectangular slots just described.

In Another form of the innovation, the male/female dove-tail-like contours can be of an alternate design. The elongated slots could have sloped approaches rather than the threshold-like ridges running across its opening.

The nipple-like extensions could be mushroom-like, with no filleted grove running across its length and it could fit into just slots (the same width as the toy piece), instead of slots that lead into square holes.

The toy pieces could be made out of a suitable material other than flexible plastic, such as rubber.

To assists with further understanding the innovation, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which shows one example of the innovation.

In the drawings.

Fig. 1 shows one example of a single piece from a Toy-weaving set made up of identical pieces, according to this innovation.

Fig. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, demonstrates thefive methods of combining the toy pieces together.

Fig. 7 shows one possible combination of identical toy pieces to produce a spherical shape.

Referring back to Fig. 1, It can be seen that each piece has all along its edges various contours, slots and cavities; its broad surfaces have three large holes, two round and one octagonal. Also situated around these large holes and sharing the same center point, are groups made up of lO identical square holes d and 2 cylindrical nipple-like extensions e all placed in a circle; The "nipples" have a filleted grove running across its length, lie at opposite ends to each other and all are equally spaced apart at 30 degree intervals. There are also several elongated vertical and horizontal rectangular slotsj. This configuration is identical on both broadsides of each piece and share the same centerlines. Continuing with Fig. 1, there are located along the middle area of both long edges, two pairs of spade-like smaller extension a designed to slot into the blind cavities b when two identical pieces are pressed together long edge to long edge. furthermore, it can be seen that the pair of extensions c can slots into either of the two larger round and one octagonal holes of another identical piece -far end to broadside (the second piece k shown in a side view). Still in Fig.l, Each piece has on its broad surfaces, two specially designed apertures fand g, that either grips or allows the piece to swivel on an 8 mm shaft (like a common lead pencil for example); this would enable other pieces from the set to either spin on or remain fixed to a "spindle" with releasable tension. Also each piece has two conical indentations ht, centered on either long edge; these indents provide apivotalpoint, that could accommodate the lead tip of a pencil once again. In this way a shaft with a tip (a pencil) could be held upright by other pieces combined, to act as a pedestal on which a "top" or a "carousel", also made up of pieces from the toy-set, could balance and revolve on. Amidst the countless number of shapes possible from joining identical pieces together, this toy claims to having the potential to assemble a complete spherical shape, for example, utilizing 90 pieces; It would look like an over-sized soccer ball with its hexagonal- pentagon structure clearly visible (Fig The spherical shape can then be extended to other ideas, but always using 30-60-90 degree angles formed (by default) between the axis of the pieces.

Fig. 2 Shows one method ofjoining two identical pieces together Edge to Edge and in the same plane. A three-pronged extension 1 located in the middle of the long edge of the RED piece, couples with the paired extension 2 ofthe Blue piece.

Similarly the three-pronged extension 3 of the BLUE piece, will connect with paired extension 4 of the RED piece. Both pieces have the option to only connect at a single point. For example if the outer paired extension 4 of the RED only joins with the middle three-pronged extension 3 of the BLUE, allowing both pieces to vary the angle that its axis (x-x y-y) forms with the other piece in fixed increments of 30 degrees.

Fig. 3 shows the second method ofjoining two identical pieces together, Edge to Edge, but with their axis' at right angles to each other. Located along the edges of the Toy pieces are slots, which lead into square holes 1, 2, 3, 4 These cavities will link up with releasable tension onto corresponding cavities 5 6 7 of another piece, when they are placed at right angles to one another. Both pieces can vary the angle its axis (x-x forms with the other, by increments of 30 degrees.

Fig. 4 shows the third method of joining two pieces together, where one piece overlaps another: broad side end on broad side- end; broad side- center on broad side- center or broad side- end on Broad side- Center. On either broad sides of the piece, there are nipple-like cylindrical extensions 1 and 2, grouped together with square holes 3 4 that lie in a circles 6. There are two other identical groups 7 and 8 located on both broadsides of the piece. More specifically around each circle there are 10 identical square holes and two identical 'nipples' (each nipple lie on opposite ends of the circle) and all are equally spaced 30 degrees apart. If one piece was placed over another broadside to broadside and the 'nipples' 1 and 2 were to line up and penetrate any pair of corresponding square holes that lie in circle 6, the two pieces would remain clasped together with releasable pressure; this as a result of each extension, which has afilleted grove, situated across its length, accommodating afilleted threshold-like ridge running across the inside of the square hole (better demonstrated in fig.l). This coupling method works only in one plane. The angle between the axis' of the two connecting pieces can be varied by 30 degree, increments.

Fig. 5 Shows the forth method of joining two pieces together- outer Edge to Broad Side. The pair of extensions 1 on the BLUE piece will snap into holes 2 or 3 or 4 of the RED piece and also into the horizontal rectangle slots 5 or 6. There is the option to alter the angle formed by the axis' of the two pieces in 30 degree increments and this can be done in the vertical and horizontal planes x-x y-y. When the BLUE piece is in the upright position (YELLOW), it can snap into holes 2. 3. 4 and also vertical rectangular slots 7. 8. 9. Fig. 6 Shows the fifth Method of joining two pieces together- the oblong central area of the Long Edge of one piece to the Broad Center of another. The three-pronged extension 1 of the BLUE piece, snaps into the centered vertical rectangle slot 2 of the RED piece and at the same time the pair of extensions 3 can snap into the round hole 4 of the third YELLOW piece. There is the option to change vertical axis x-x to horizontal y-y so that the three-pronged extension 1 b, snaps into centered horizontal slot 5, while each pair of extensions 6 and 7, can snap into corresponding holes 8 and 9 of the RED piece.