AU445552B2 - Didactic apparatus - Google Patents

Description

17,403/70 This invention relates primarily to didactic constructional apparatus more particularly for teaching

the basic principles of arithmetic and solid and plane

geometry, and has for its principal object to provide means whereby teachers and students will be enabled to

assemble units, e.g. cubes and cuboid forms, so as to

demonstrate for example 'breadth x width x height'

formulae in relation to assemblies of concrete units of

uniform size.

Constructional apparatus according to the invention, and in one embodiment, comprises a plurality of uniformly shaped and dimensioned units each having on one face a 41 spigot projection and~eF an opposite parallel face a

corresponding recess or socket whereby said units may be

frictionally connected one to the other to form rods

incorporating any required number of units; a reticular sheet or sheets of relatively stiff material each formed

with uniformly arranged interstices spaced apart in

accordance with the dimensions of said units and

corresponding in size and adapted to receive the spigots

thereof; and a plurality of friction fit caps for fitting to the spigots of individual units. The thickness of said apertured sheets and said caps is less than the

depth of a spigot. Said apertured sheets are herein- after usually referred to as 'reticules'.

Said units may be composed of any suitable material, for example one of the so-called plastics compositions, a

hard rubber or rubber-like composition, wood, or the like.

Said reticules and caps may be formed of a plastics

material, metal, stout paper, or any other suitable

-2 445552

17,403/70 material. In use, a required number of said units are laid in a juxtaposed row or rows on a flat surface, with their spigots uppermost, so as to form a rectangle of desired size. This array of units may represent, for example, a particular area, L units in length by B units in breadth, or the base of a dube or a duboid form. A reticule of appropriate size, or a series of smaller overlapped reticles, is or are placed over said units so that the spigots of the latter project through the interstices of the reticule whereby the units are held together as in a matrix. By means of their sockets or recesses, a second layer or course of units, and so on may be superposed on and be joined to the first formed layer or course of units thereby to form a cuboidal shape having a length L, breadth B and a height H corresponding respectively to the number of units in each row, the number of rows of units, and the number of layers of units superposed one upon the other. Reticules may be interposed wherever necessary to achieve stability .of the formed shape, and an upper or terminal reticule can be held in place by friction caps fitted to the spigots of the uppermost (or a single) layer or course of units. Thus, the units are readily connectible one with the other vertically by means of their spigots and sockets, and are connectible in side-by-side contiguous relationship by the reticules. The resultant forms or shapes may as readily be dismantled and the units repeatedly re-used.

445552

17,403/70 The invention is further described with the aid of

the accompanying drawings which illustrate by way of.

example only, one embodiment.

In said drawings:-

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an assembly of units according to the invention with some of said

units shown in phantom and with parts broken away thereby

to show their construction and the method of connection.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of an assembly of connected units.

Referring to said drawings, each unit 10 is in the shape of a dube consisting in this instance of a hollow

plastics moulding about three-quarters of an inch square

and one face whereof is open thereby to constitute a

recess or socket 11. The opposite face is formed with a medial rectangular spigot projection 12 of dimensions

such as to be a friction fit as shown in the socket 11

of a fellow unit 10. Said spigots 12 are about three sixteenths of an inch in depth and preferably formed

with a central aperture 13.

Reticules 20 for connecting said units 10, as shown, may also be moulded from a plastics material, or

blanked out from a sheet of plastics material, and are

generally rectangular in shape being formed with rows of

rectangular interstices 21 dimensioned and arranged as

shown so as to receive the spigots 12 of an array of

units 10 when arranged in contiguous rows. Said reticules 20 are of a thickness such as to provide for

the frictional interlocking of superposed layers or

courses of units 10 one with the other. Said reticules

445552

17,403/70 may be of any desired size adapted to receive any

number of said units 10. In a basic form which has

been found convenient, said reticules 20 comprise ten

rows of ten interstices 21. Small reticules can

readily be cut from such a sheet.

Friction fit caps 30 are provided for engagement

with the spigots 12 of individual units 10 said caps each comprising an open rectangular (square) frame the

sides whereof are of a depth less than the depth of the

spigots 12. Said caps 30 may be used to hold the

units 10 of a two-dimensional array in place within the

interstices of a reticule 20, or to square off the top

of a three dimensional assembly.

It will be seen that constructional apparatus

according to the invention, and comprising an assemblage

of interlocking units 10, complementary reticules 20 and

friction caps 30 provides a means whereby teachers and

students are enabled to form practical concrete examples

of areas and three-dimensional solids, thereby to form

analogues demonstrating the concepts and elements

essential to the introduction, examination, and operation

of the principles employed with multi-based arithmetic.

It is envisaged that constructional apparatus

according to the invention may be used for heuristic

purposes in the building of structures generally.

5- 445552

Claims (12)

17,403/70 The claims defining the invention are as follows:

1. Didactic constructional apparatus, comprising a plurality of uniformly shaped and dimensioned units,

each unit having on one face a spigot projection and In an opposite parallel face a corresponding socket whereby said units may be frictionally connected one to the other to form rods incorporating any required number of units; one or more reticular sheets formed with uniformly spaced interstices spaced apart in accordance

with the dimensions of said units and corresponding in size and adapted to receive the spigots of said units whereby said units may be connected in side-by-side

relationship; and a plurality of friction fit caps for fitting to the spigots of individual units: and the thickness of the or each reticular sheet and of each cap being less than the depth of a spigot.

2. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said units each are of hollow cuboidal shape one face whereof is open to form a square socket and the opposite face comprises a square spigot projection

having a central aperture.

3. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in Claim 2, wherein said reticular sheets are generally rectangular

in shape being formed with rows of rectangular inter-

stices dinmensioned and arranged so as to receive the spigot projections of an array of units when arranged

in a contiguous row or rows.

4. Constructional apparatus, as claimcd in Claim 2

6 445552

17,403/70 or Claim 3, wherein said friction fit caps are in the form of square open frames dimensioned so as to be friction fit upon the spigot projections of said units.

Didactic constructional apparatus, substantially as hereinbefore.described and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

ated thi 8th day of July 1 PHILOGRAPH PUBLICATIONS LIMITED

EDWS WATERS SONF PATENT ATTORNEYS MELBOURNE

0 -7- 445552

17,403170

12 30 -12 12

.112- 12- -12 *1L-

\CLj h)I-

__-I11 11 F IG 2--