EP0539911B1

EP0539911B1 - A jointed plaything, for example in the form of a small animal or doll

Info

Publication number: EP0539911B1
Application number: EP92118305A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Pietro Ferrero
Original assignee: Ferrero OHG; Ferrero SpA; Soremartec SA
Current assignee: Ferrero OHG; Ferrero SpA; Soremartec SA
Priority date: 1991-10-31
Filing date: 1992-10-27
Publication date: 1996-04-24
Anticipated expiration: 2012-10-27
Also published as: ES2086612T3; CZ280309B6; YU95592A; MY108290A; HU9203397D0; NZ244861A; FI924917A0; LT3068B; CZ326792A3; SK278594B6; FI924917A; CA2081151A1; BR9204227A; CN1039882C; SK326792A3; PL296429A1; MX9206240A; SI9200282A; CA2081151C; FI98790C

Description

The present invention relates to playthings and has been developed with particular regard to its possible use for the manufacture of toys in the form of small animals or dolls which can, for example, be associated with food products as gifts or "surprises" inserted in hollow food products such as chocolate eggs.
In this field there is a need to give the presents or surprises an ever more marked play component: here one is dealing with a requirement which is rather difficult to satisfy with conventional playthings formed in a single piece. For this reason a solution already used in the past, for example for surprises in chocolate eggs, has been to provide toys or playthings in several parts: in this way the consumer (typically a child) takes the toy from the egg (usually inserted in a protective container) and must then assemble it, thereby following a play activity. Specifically, the present invention relates to a plaything having the features called for in the pre-characterising portion of Claim 1, which is known, e.g., from US-A-3 277 602.
The object of the present invention is to provide a plaything which is improved particularly with regard to the possibility of providing a small animal or doll which can assume various selected poses at the pleasure of the user.
According to the present invention, this object is achieved by means of a plaything having the further characteristics claimed specifically in the characterising portion of Claim 1.
The invention will now be described, purely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

Figures 1 and 2 are general perspective views of a plaything according to the invention illustrated in two different positions of use, and
Figure 3 is a sectional view of the plaything of Figures 1 and 2, intended to illustrate its internal structure.

In the drawings a plaything is generally indicated 1 and, in the embodiment illustrated, is in the form of a small animal such as, for example, a cow or buffalo. Naturally this choice of characterisation is entirely open and may extend in general for example to various personages of an anthropomorphic and/or zoomorphic character. Furthermore the invention lends itself readily to the realisation of entirely different playthings (for example vehicles, etc).
In the embodiment illustrated, the toy 1 is composed essentially of three parts, that is to say:

a central spherical body 2 with a diametral through-hole 3,
a front body 4 which generally can be seen to have an outer surface 5 which defines anthropomorphic and/or zoomorphic features and an inner surface 6 of spherical cup shape, and
a rear body 7 which, like the front body 4, can be seen to have an outer surface 8 which reproduces anthropomorphic and/or zoomorphic features as well as an inner surface 9 of spherical cup shape.

Naturally, the attributions "front" and "rear" applied to the bodies 4 and 7 refer to the portions of the personage reproduced by the toy: it should be said that this connotation is entirely indicative and of open interpretation and hence does not have any limiting character.
In the assembled device, the auxiliary bodies 4 and 7 are fitted to the spherical body 2 so as to bring the cup-shaped surfaces 6 and 9 into contact with the spherical body 2, in particular with the two polar zones thereof into which the ends of the through-hole 3 open.
Couplings are thus formed between each auxiliary body 4, 7 and the main body 2 which enable their relative orientation along a spherical surface identified, in the embodiment illustrated, by the outer surface of the body 2 to which the two cup shapes 6 and 9 conform.
The auxiliary bodies 4 and 7 also have complementary formations 10 and 11 together arranged to define a ball joint with a joint centre, indicated P, practically coincident with the centre of the spherical surface of the body 2.
In the embodiment illustrated, the joint part 10 is constituted by a shaft 12 which projects radially from the inner cup surface 6 of the body 4 in a direction radially thereof and carries a ball head or core 13 at its free end.
The complementary joint part 11 is also constituted by a shaft 14 which projects radially from the inner cup surface 9 of the body and carries a cup formation 15 at its free end defining a cup or seat for receiving the ball 13.
Preferably the parts 10 and 11 and also the bodies 2, 4 and 7 are moulded entirely from plastics material. Consequently the cup 15 is able to yield radially to a certain extent (increased by any notches present in the mouth portion) which allows its snap engagement with the ball head 13.
Naturally, the joint combination illustrated here is purely exemplary and may be replaced by a functionally equivalent joint configuration.
In order to optimise the invention however it is important that the joint point P be coincident, or at least substantially coincident, with the centre of the surface of the spherical body 2.
It should however be appreciated that it is not necessary for this body to have a spherical structure over its entire development (although this solution appears preferable for many reasons and for constructional simplicity): it in fact suffices for those parts intended to cooperate with the cups defined by the inner surfaces 6 and 9 of the auxiliary bodies 4 and 7 to have a spherical conformation.
It should also be noted that it is not necessary for the toy to include two auxiliary bodies: for the purposes of carrying out the invention it in fact suffices for there to be only one of these bodies. Again it is important to note that it is not essential for the surfaces 6 and 9 to have a spherical development complementary to that of the body 2 in order for the auxiliary bodies 4, 7 to bear against a spherical surface of the main body. For this purpose, the spherical cup surfaces (even though they are a preferred solution) could be replaced by non-spherical cups intended to remain spaced from the surface of the body 2 except around their peripheral circular regions.
From the above it will be apparent that the structure of the plaything described lends itself ideally to the formation of toys in the form of small animals or dolls which can take up different poses easily, such as those illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 by way of example, simply as a result of the different orientations of the auxiliary bodies 4 and 7 relative to the main body 2, and hence the different relative orientations of the bodies 4 and 7.
For example, Figure 1 illustrates a pose in which the animal represented by the toy 1 is essentially straight while the pose illustrated in Figure 2 is of the same animal turned entirely to one side. Clearly the same structure enables the personage represented by the device to be turned into positions in which it is lying down or erect etc., at the choice of the user.
As already stated, the application to the realisation of personages such as dolls or animals, although preferred, is not binding with regard to the use of the jointed toy of the invention which can also be used for different purposes.

Claims

A jointed plaything, including:
- a generally spherical first body (2), and

- two auxiliary bodies (4, 7), each of which is coupled to said first body (2) so as to be orientable relative thereto along a circular path on a spherical surface (2, 6, 9) formed by said first body characterised in that said first body (2) constitutes the main body of the plaything and in that said two auxiliary bodies (4, 7) carry joint coupling means (10, 11) of ball type extending through said main body (2) and defining a joint centre substantially coincident with the common centre of said path and of said spherical surface (2, 6, 9).
A plaything according to Claim 1 characterised in that the auxiliary bodies (4, 7) have respective outer surfaces (5, 8) which reproduce anthropomorphic and/or zoomorphic parts.
A plaything according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterised in that the joint means comprise essentially:
- a core (13) carried by one (4) of the auxiliary bodies, and

- a cup-shaped part (15) carried by the other of the auxiliary bodies (7), which houses the core (13).
A plaything according to Claim 3, characterised in that the core (13) and the cup-shaped part (15) are carried by respective shafts (12, 14) extending generally radially of the said spherical surface (2, 6, 9).
A plaything according to Claim 4, characterised in that the cup-shaped part (15) is overall of yielding material so as to enable it to receive the core (13) within it generally by snap-engagement.