AU621159B2 - A toy building element with elements for providing positional information - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1952 62 F rm COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

(ORIGINAL)

FOR OFFICE USE Short Title: Int. Cl: Application Number: Lodged: Complete Specification-Lodged: Accepted: Lapsed: Published: Priority: 04 0 Related Art: TO BE COMPLETED BY APPLICANT O 0 $r a 00 Name of Applicant: Address of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for Service: INTERLEGO A.G.

SIHLBRUGGSTRASSE 3 CH-6340 BAAR

SWITZERLAND

00 9 o 01 0 GRIFFITH HACK CO., 601 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia.

Complete Specification for the invention entitled: A TOY BUILDING ELEMENT WITH ELEMENTS FOR PROVIDING POSITIONAL INFORMATION The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to me:- 1

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9 00 9 9 900 0900 0 c 9000 0090 9009 9 a5 0099 a09 9 900)0)n 0 00~ ~9 0, 9 9 -2- A TOY BUILDING ELEMENT WITH ELEMENTS FOR PROVIDING POSITIONAL INFORMATION The invention concerns a toy building set with elements 'for providing positional information by detection of radiated, reflected energy, such as light. This invention is divided from Australian patent 592,853.

The object of the invention is to provide a toy building set with improved means with respect to the prior art for providing positional information.

According to the present invention there is provided a toy building set with elements for providing positional information, the elements comprising an energy radiating source and an energy receiving detector adapted for receiving energy reflected from the energy radiating source, said elements having means for mechanical coupling of one element with another element belonging to the building set, characterised in that the set comprises code elements adapted for interconnection with other elements of the system and provided with a pre-selected code for interchangeable reflective coupling of the energy radiating source and the energy receiving detector.

The light source may be a laser, thus making it possible to perform a highly sensitive detection. For example, the oscillations of a membrane can be registered by means of coherent light, and in particular in such a detection it is important that the structure is mechanically stable and geometrically well-defined. When coherent light is used, variations in the reflective power of the energy reflecting means may be obtained.

The examples, which will be described more fully later, indicate various situations where special advantages are obtained by positioning both the light source and the light receiver in a housing having mechanical coupling means, which involve pre-determined positioning of both the transmitter and the receiver with respect to other energy reflecting building elements of the toy building set.

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^*CV~I~-*UI~YC~^"II~~~IIIY~WX~ ~i ii~~ iii. 3 The invention will be explained more fully by the following description of some embodiments with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a known element from a toy building set, Figures 2 and 3 schematically show the parts of an embodiment of the toy building set disclosed in Australian patent 592853, Figure 4 schematically shows a use of the toy building set of the invention, *tic'Figure 5 schematically shows another use of the toy building set of the invention, .9*1 Figures 6 to 8 show in more detail an embodiment of the building set, seen from below, from the side, and from 990* the top, respectively, and SFigure 9 is a section along the line XI-XI in Figure 7.

Figure 1 shows a known building element comprising a hollow body 1 having on its upper side a plurality of ,coupling studs 2 and on its underside complementary coupling means for connection with the coupling studs on an adjacent element. The embodiments of the building element ti, described below are adapted to cooperate with the building VE ct element in Figure i, but it will be appreciated that the building set of the invention may be arranged to cooperate with other known forms of interconnectible toy elements.

Figures 2 and 3 schematically show the main Scomponents of an embodiment of the building element of the invention disclosed in the parent Australian Patent No.

592853. Thus, Figure 2 shows a hollow box 3 having four coupling studs 2 on its upper side, two of the coupling studs from Figure 1 being replaced by a pair of through holes 4 for reception of an electric plug. Further, the housing 3 has two holes, partly a large hole 5 and a small hole 6. Figure 3 shows an insert generally designated by 7 and comprising a plate 8 whose base is formed with the complementary coupling means mentioned in connection with Figure 1 (see also Figures 6 and The plate 8 is -4contiguous partly with a bushing 9 and a holder 10 adapted to retain an electric circuit board 11,. which, in addition to electronic circuits, comprises a combined light source and light detector 12 as well as two electric coupling bushings 13 for cocperation with the plug pins which can extend through the holes 4 in Figure 2.

It will be appreciated that the insert 7 may be received in the housing 3 so that the through hole in the bushing 9 is flush with the hole 5 (and an aligned hole in opposite side of the housing and so that the light element 12 is flush with the hole 6.

The building elements shown in Figure 4 might conceivably be incorporated e.g. in a model of a car with o automatic steering gear comprising the beam 21. The beam 15 21 may thus be movable in its longitudinal direction with :00 respect to the chassis of the car, while the holders 29 and o 30 are stationary with respect to the chassis. The detector elements 25 and 26 are the elements 2 of Figures 2 and 3 which are placed on a stationary or on a movable part S€ 200f the car because of the flexible light conductor cables 27 and 28. It will thus be appreciated that, through the i electric information from the detector elements 25 and 26, positional information may be generated for the steering Sgear by scanning the line codes present on the building 22-24. It will be sufficient with a single detector element 25 which may be connected to a control computer coded to interpret the line code information, but V the information may be made more selective by using several detector elements 25, 26. The associated computer may 300ptionally be coded to respond to a pre-determined code pattern, and by mechanically changing the shown line code elements 22-24 or by changing the position of the elements, various control characteristics for the constructed model may be provided with the predetermined interpretation in computer. The detector elements 25,26 may also comprise areas with changing reflection properties provided by elevations and depressions in the surface of the Sbuilding elements.

r Figure 5 schematically shows another use of the building set of the invention, and this use may be related to the steering gear for a car model as explained in connection with Figure 4. The element 31 represents the detector element described previously as elements 25 and 26 which is turned so that the light is transmitted downwardly toward a path 32 provided on a lane and consisting of a solid line and a broken line closely spaced from each other. Since the element 31 is firmly mounted on the car, it may be detected by means of generally known electronic equipment how the vehicle is positioned with respect to the path 32 on the lane. This information may be used for generating a steering signal to the steering gear, which ,may be designed as explained in connection with Figure 4.

i The Code lines 33 across the direction of travel may be placed in order for the steering system to receive information on how far the car has reached along the distance determined by the path 32. Optionally, the code lines 33 may also inform the steering system to steer along o.0 another path 34. It will be understood that the lane 0 'itself could be constructed by means of interconnectible 0°L sbuilding elements of the kind described in connection with Figure 4, i.e. the code lines 33 being dedicated to a separate building element.

It has almost been presupposed in the above explanations that digital signals are generated from the S "detector element. However, it should be noted that nothing prevents detection of an analog signal, since this is just a matter of the design of the electric circuit detecting the current consumption of the light source.

Figures 6 to 9 show some other representations of an embodiment of the detector element 31, the figures showing an element seen from below, from the side, from above and in section along the line XI-XI in Figure 7, respectively. Figures 6 to 9 show the main components of an embodiment of the building element of the invention. 3 is a hollow box having four coupling studs 2 on its upper side, two of the 0 -6coupling studs from Figure 8 being replaced by a pair of through holes 4 for reception of an electric plug.

Further, the housing 3 has two holes, a large hole 5 and a small hole 6. Figure 9 shows a plate 8 whose base is formed with complementary coupling means 35 and 36. The plate 8 is contiguous partly with the bushing 9. It will thus be seen from Figure 6 that the base of the plate 8 is provided with a pair of coupling tubes 35, 36 which constitute the previously mentioned complementary coupling means for coupling studs on an adjacent element. Figure 9 shows some details for the position of an insert in the c" housing 3, it being seen how the bushing 9 at the top engages some stops within the housing 3. It will be appreciated that the embodiment shown just serves as an t+r example.

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Claims (4)

1. 3. Building set according to Claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the code elements comprise areas with changing reflection properties.
2. 4. Building set according to Claim 3, characterised in 0 OOO ~that said changing reflection properties are provided by *oo O 0 elevations and depressions in the surface of the elements. 00 a
3. 5. Building set according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, 000 ooor characterised in that the radiating source and the energy o.o receiving dctector are adapted for transmitting and receiving coherent light, respectively. o 6. Building set according to any one of Claims 1 to 0° 00o especially providing steering information for a vehicle, characterised in that the energy radiating source comprises a source of electromagnetic energy and that energy receiving means comprise an electromagnetic sensor, said code elements being arranged to selectively reflect electromagnetic energy from said source to said detector, as the vehicle moves past a code element. 8
4. 7. A toy building set according to Claim 1 substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 4 to 9 of the accompanying drawings. DATED this 30th day of October 1991. INTERLEGO A.G. By Its Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK CO. Fellows Institute of Patent Attorneys of Australia tel t t IIi it t 'V 1