EP0703813A1

EP0703813A1 - Multi-purpose set of means

Info

Publication number: EP0703813A1
Application number: EP94919800A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Tibor Pocsai
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1993-06-15
Filing date: 1994-06-10
Publication date: 1996-04-03
Also published as: HUT71425A; HU214481B; WO1994028987A1; HU9401492D0; HU265U; AU7081794A

Abstract

The invention relates to a multi-purpose set of means that includes one or more connecting block and supporting means holding the said connecting block at least temporarily, being the said connecting block provided with head part, bottom part and interconnection segment e.g. neck part of smaller section, the latter forming a dent that fits between said parts, and at least one receiving hole provided with connection flange is arranged in the supporting means. The characteristic feature of the invention is, that at least one of the head part (41), neck part (42) and bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is designed as a toy-piece (110) - e.g. toy-figure of a boarded toy -, the head part (41) and/or the bottom part (43) is connected either by means of interconnection parts to the neck part (42) or formed directly as the elongation of the neck part (42) of the connecting block (4), the head part (41) of the connecting block (4) is arranged on the one side, while the bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is arranged on the other side of the supporting means; the neck part (42) of the connecting block (4) fits into the receiving hole (2a), thus connecting the said connecting block (4) to the supporting means in a temporary manner, removably and restorably.

Description

Multi-purpose set of means

The invention relates to a multi-purpose set of means that includes one or more connecting block and supporting means holding the said connecting block at least temporarily, being the sard connecting block provided with head part, bottom part and an interconnection segment e.g. neck part of smaller section, the latter forming a dent that fits between said parts, and at least one receiving hole provided with connection flange is arranged in the supporting means.

Entertainment and play are part of the everyday life of people. Playthings also include -the boarded toys in which the ensemble of toy-pieces and boards forms the plaything.

In a significant part of boarded toys, the toy-pieces are fastened in some way to the play-field.

A solution for holding the play-board and toy-pieces together by means of magnetic connection is described in the publication document No. 3438151 issued in the German Federal Republic and in the USA patent specification of registration No 4.299.389.

The solution using magnetic forces has the disadvantage that the production costs of both the play-board and the toy-pieces are higher; in addition, any possible drop-out of magnetic part arranged in the play- board or fixed in the toy-pieces makes playing more difficult, failing any cohesive force between the parts.

Contrary to the previous patent specifications, the USA patent specification of registration No. 4.699.385 describes a solution in which the chess-board is built with square-shaped tear-lock elements of different colour, while the chess-pieces are also provided with tear-lock elements at the bottom. This solution has the disadvantage that, after long-lasting use, the material of tear-lock will be contaminated and deteriorated, thus making the connection between the chess pieces and the chess-board uncertain; which may result in the displacement and drop-out of chess pieces - particularly during storage between the games. A further disadvantage is, that the production cost of chess-boards made of tear-locks is rather high.

Other sets of playthings use bushing and pin to connect the play-field and toy-pieces together, as described in the publication No. 4000409 issued in the German Federal Republic as well as in the USA patent specification of registration No. 4.703.934.

Their disadvantage is, that the design of both toy-pieces and play-field is more complicated, thus necessitating cost intensive production technology. It is also unfavourable, that the pins of toy-pieces may break in the holes arranged on the play-field, thus making both the toy-pieces and play-field unable to be used.

A further disadvantage is that, in the case of playthings with bushing and pin connection, the packaging is also indispensable, similarly to the solutions described above.

In addition to the solutions described here, the other known sets of boarded toys have also the common disadvantage that a packaging carton is required to hold the play-board and the toy-pieces together. In fact, the packaging serves for storage of the accessories necessary for playing in an assembly; however, both the production costs and space requirement of playthings will also be increased.

A number of methods and technologic procedures are in common use relating to the packaging of toys and other products as well at present. In the case of goods of smaller size and less sensitive or insensible to shock and vibration - e.g. toys, clothes and office supplies etc. - the packaging is simple. In general, cartons or, recently, supporting paper plates and so-called "vacuum-formed sheet" attached to the supporting plate are used.

In both cases, however, especially in the case of paper plate and vacuum-formed sheet adapted to the shape of product, the implementation of an aesthetic sealing that holds the parts of packaging together causes problems. For this purpose, staples of different shape made usually of metal or, possibly, snaps composed of several elements are used.

The former solution has the disadvantage that it is less aesthetic. In addition, the staple ends may cause surface damages on the neighbouring package in the batch delivered together. Or even, in extreme cases, staples fastened improperly may result in damages in the customers' clothes as well.

The snaps have the advantage that they are of aesthetic appearance and, in addition, offer a solution free of any risk of damages and accidents. However, they have the disadvantage that both the mounting and fastening of connection pieces consisting of several parts on the packaging elements are labour intensive operations that cannot be easily mechanized.

Their further disadvantage is, that the material surrounding the snaps can be deteriorated or torn after longer period or in the case of frequent use, due to the tensile load that occurs when opening the snap. This, in turn, results in the deterioration of locking means, thus making the packaging unable to be used. It is also unfavourable that the connecting and fastening means used for this purpose cannot be used for other purpose in connection with the given product.

These latter deficiencies described are the most important reasons that the snaps could not be widely popularized in this field.

Snaps are described in the USA patent specification registered under No. 4.805.273 and - although for purposes other that fastening parts used for packaging - the USA patent specification registered under No. 4.704.772.

The present invention is aimed at implementing a set of means for use in several fields and in several ways, that, - due to the properly disconnectable and restorable connection between the play-board and toy-pieces when used for the purpose of toys - enables the packaging to be omitted, on the one hand, and a stable temporary connection between the play-board and toy-pieces to be implemented in a simple manner, on the other hand.

At the same time, it was also aimed at developing a set of packaging means which, while preserving the advantages and eliminating the disadvantages of the known solutions, enables the parts of cover accommodating the product to be protected to be fastened together temporarily, quickly, in a simple and aesthetic manner.

In the development of multi-purpose set of means, another objective was that the connecting blocks will be suitable to be used for other purposes, primarily, as individual toys or toy-pieces of parlour games as well, thus widening the field of their application.

The idea of invention is based on the perception that, by developing a section of specific geometry on a supporting means and also implementing the connecting blocks associated with the supporting means in the form according to special requirements, the tasks can be solved. According to the objective set, the multi-purpose set of means that includes one or more connecting block and supporting means holding the said connecting block at least temporarily, being the said connecting block provided with head part, bottom part and interconnection segment e'.g. neck part of smaller section, the latter forming a dent that fits between said parts, and at least one receiving hole provided with connection flange is arranged in the supporting means, is designed in a manner that at least one of the head part, neck part or bottom part of the connecting block is formed as a toy-piece - e.g. toy-figure of a boarded toy -, the head part and/or the bottom part is connected either by means of interconnection parts to the neck part or formed directly as the elongation of the neck part of the connecting block, the head part of the connecting block is arranged on the one side, while the bottom part of the connecting block is arranged on the other side of the supporting means; the neck part of the connecting block fits into the receiving hole, thus connecting the said connecting block to the supporting means in a temporary manner, removably and restorably.

A further criterion of the multi-purpose set of means according to the invention may be, that the supporting means consists in a play-board and at least one side of the play-board is designed as a play-field.

In another version of solution, the supporting means consists of a cover assembled of covering segments, at least one of the covering segments includes a spatial pattern and the receiving holes of the covering segments are arranged one above the other in the closed state of the covering segments. In respect of the embodiment, it is favourable that the connecting block is fastened by means of its bottom part to the surface of at least one of the covering segments. The bottom part of the connecting block is formed from the material of one of the covering segments.

In an exemplary embodiment, the toy-piece has an that information- carries zone, the said information carrier zone is provided with marking serving for the purpose of distinction of the toy-piece. The connecting block is made from an only one piece of elastic material, e.g. rubber.

In another version, one of the head part and bottom part of connecting block is provided with a connecting piece, while the other of them is provided with recess suitable to receive at least one part of the connecting piece, while being said head part and said bottom part integrated into a single part by fastening the said connecting piece into the recess.

The multi-purpose set of means according to the present invention has the advantage that, due to the new design of supporting means and the specific shape of connecting blocks adapted to it, the toy-pieces can be safely secured and stored in the play-board even when the toy is out of use; thus eliminating the need of packaging material to accommodate .the toy-pieces. Thus, the production costs can be significantly reduced. In addition, with the packaging eliminated, the space requirement of the toy is also reduced and its use is simplified, which facilitates the use during travel.

A further advantage is, that the elongated connection part of special geometric design connected to the bottom of connecting block enables the connection between the play-board and toy-pieces to be established in a simple manner, nevertheless, with proper adhesive force, without using any additional elements. This further decreases the production costs of toy-pieces, thus, those of the set of toys itself. This solution used in packaging also involves a number of advantages- The most important one is that, due to the design of covering segment and connecting blocks that differs from that commonly used, the covering segments can be fastened together in a simple manner and with aesthetic appearance.

A further advantage is, that the connecting block need not to be fastened to the covering segments in advance - which would require an additional operation -; thus, the production costs of packaging material can be significantly reduced.

It is also advantageous, that the connecting blocks can be periodically removed and reinstalled. When removed, they can also be used for other purposes; preferably as self-dependent toy-pieces or playthings as a result of their design.

It is an interesting feature of the multi-purpose set of means that, with a play-field arranged on at least one of the covering segments that form the supporting means, the packaging itself together with the connecting blocks can be used as a set of toys, e.g. parlour game, after removal of the purchased product from the covering segments.

Based on the features described, it can be easily understood that the multi-purpose set of means can be used as both set of toys and set of packaging means. It is built essentially on the same basis, which enables one set to be created from the other one, due to the new special design of component parts.

The solutions according to the invention will be described in detail in connection with exemplary embodiments, based on drawings as follows:

Fig. 1 shows the view of a version of the multi-purpose set of means used as set of toys. Fig. 2 shows the front view of the connecting blocks associated with the set of toys (partly in section).

Fig. 3 shows the front view of an exemplary embodiment of multi¬ purpose set of means used as packaging means.

Fig. 4 is the same as Fig. 3 as viewed from the direction IV.

Fig. 5 is the same as Fig. 3 as viewed from the direction V.

Fig. 6 shows the lateral view of a connecting block (partly in section).

Fig. 7 is the same as Fig. 6 as viewed from the direction VII.

Fig. 8 shows another exemplary embodiment of the multi-purpos set of means.

Fig. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of the multi-purpose set of means according to the invention. It can be shown that, in the version presented, the supporting means consists of a play-board 100 made of card-board commonly used in toys, which holds the play-field 101 , with receiving holes 103 arranged on the free surface 102 of the play-board 100. In the receiving holes 103, the connecting blocks 4 that hold the toy- pieces 110 can be fastened when the plaything is out of use. However, it should be noted that the receiving holes 103 can also form part of the play-field 101.

In the exemplary embodiment, the connecting elements 4_. are made of one piece and form toy-pieces 110 completely, namely, plastic toy- figures. They are made of material capable for elastic deformation - e.g. rubber or plastic material.

Due to their shape, colour or other characteristic in that they differ from each other, the toy-pieces 1 10 are capable of marking the players. It can be shown that each of the connecting blocks 4 is provided with head part 41 , bottom part 43 and a neck part 42 of smaller cross section arranged between the head part and bottom part and designed as an interconnection element.

Fig. 2 shows the surroundings of one of receiving holes 103 of the play- board 100, in a magnified view. The connection elongation 45 connected through the interconnection segment 44 to the bottom part 43 of connecting blocks 4 and being in contact with the play-field 101 of play- board 100 can be well shown.

Fig 2. also shows the method of fastening of the connecting block 4 in the receiving hole 103 of play-field 101. The neck part 42 of connecting block 4 is arranged in the receiving hole 103, which, in the present design of the connecting block 4, is completely identical to the neck part of a figure representing a dog, designed completely as a toy-piece 110.

Another connecting block shown in Fig. 2 is of bunny form. In fact, in this version of the set of toys, the marking suitable for distinction is carried by the shape of toy-pieces 110. Of course, any other attribute - e.g. colour or other feature - can also be used for distinction.

It shall also be noted here that the connecting blocks 4 can be inserted into the receiving holes 103 of play-board 100 not only by means of the neck part 42 arranged between the head part 41 and bottom part 43; instead, in the case of connecting blocks 4 shown in Fig. 2, the interconnecting segment 44 connecting the bottom part 43 and connection elongation 45 together can also be used for this purpose.

In the multi-purpose set of means used as plaything, the connecting blocks 4 will be removed from the receiving hole 103, by exercising slight pressure on the head part 41 or bottom part 43, . and placed on the play- field 101 of play-board 100. Figs. 3 and 4 show an embodiment according to the present invention, used as packaging means. It is clearly shown that this set of packaging means includes one covering segment 1 made of card-board and one covering segment 2 made of transparent sheet. The covering segment 2 made by means of vacuum technology follows the shape of the product 8. In the surface 1c of covering segment 1 , the receiving holes 1a, while in the surface 2c of covering segment 2, the receiving holes 2a are arranged.

In this exemplary embodiment, both the receiving holes 1a and those 2a are of circular shape and are arranged one below the another, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. It should be noted here that the receiving holes 1a and 2a are not necessarily of circular shape; they can have arbitrary contour; nevertheless, receiving holes 1a and 2a of circular shape are suitable to be produced in a most simple way. The covering segment 1 is fastened by means of the connecting blocks 4 led through the receiving holes 1a and 2a and, at the same time, connecting the connection flanges 1 b and 2b arranged in the surroundings of receiving holes 1a and 2a together, respectively, to the covering segment 2.

Thus, the covering segment 1 and the covering segment 2 arranged as described above enclose the product 8.

The way of fastening the covering segments 1 and 2 together as well as an exemplary version of connecting block 4 are shown in Fig. 5. The connecting block 4 consists of the head part 42, the bottom part 42 and the connecting piece 10 that integrates said parts into a single unit.

In this version, the connecting piece 10 consists in a cylindrical stub protruding from the bottom part 43 and provided with the fixing clamp 10a at its end. The connecting piece 10 fits in the recess 11 arranged in the head part 41 and adapted to the shape and size of fixing clamp 10a, so as to leave part of the connecting piece 10 free. Of course, the connecting part 10 and the recess 11 can also be arranged in a reverse manner; thus, the connecting piece 10 may form part of the head part 41 and the recess 1 1 can also be arranged in the bottom part 43.

This free standing part of the connecting piece 10 forms the neck part 42 which enables the dent 5 arranged between the head part 41 and bottom part 43 to accommodate the connection flanges 1 b and 2b to be formed.

The outer surface 41 of the head part 41 of connecting block 4 is of hedgehog shape. In this case, the hedgehog form consists in the marking 6a arranged in the information-carrier zone 6 of connecting block 4, which enables the connecting block 4 to be identified. In fact, the information-carrier zone 6 occupies the full outer side 41a of the head part 41.

The connecting block 4 shown in Fig. 5 enables the covering segments 1 and 2 to be fastened together as follows. First, the receiving holes 1a of covering segment 1 and the receiving holes 2a of covering segment 2 will be paired and fit onto each other, then, the connecting piece 10 of the bottom part 43 of connecting block 4 will be led through the receiving holes 1a and 2a arranged over each other.

As the connecting piece 10 appears on the other side, the recess 11 of head part 43 of the connecting block 4 will be placed on it and the two half parts pushed together.

As a result, the fixing clamp 10a of the connecting piece 10 will penetrate into the recess 11 and, due to its shape, fixed in it, thus fixing the connection flanges 1 b and 2b of covering segments 1 and 2, respectively, led through the head part 41 and bottom part 43. The connection can be released by pulling apart the head part 41 and bottom part 43, thus enabling the covering segments 1 and 2 to be separated.

Fig. 6 shows a connecting block 4 that differs from that described above. The head part 41 of motorcar shape, the neck part 42 and the bottom part 43 are made of rubber. The information-carrier zone 6 is of smaller size and the marking 6a arranged within it consists in a number which, for reason of distinction, is obviously different for each connecting block 4.

Fig. 7 shows an example for the application of connecting block 4 described in connection with Fig. 6. As the connecting block 4 is made of one piece, it is fixed in this case so as to adapt the receiving holes 1a and 2a to the projection size of head part 41. It is clearly shown in Fig 7, that the receiving holes 1a and 2a are of rectangular shape. By leading the head part 41 of connecting block 4 through the receiving holes 1a and 2a of this shape and by turning the connecting block 4 away, the connection can be established.

Fig. 8 shows an embodiment of the set of packaging means according to the invention, which consists of three covering segments 1 , 2 and 3. The covering segment 1 arranged at the bottom and the covering segment arranged at the top are made of one piece each by folding. On the surface 1c of covering segment 1 facing the central covering segment 2, the play-field 9 is shown, which appears after unpacking the product 8 by removing the connecting blocks 4 and opening the cover.

Even in this embodiment, the connecting block 4 have their information- carrier zones 6 and, within the zones, the markings 6a suitable for distinction, which consist in colour marking in this case. In the case of packaging means of this kind, composed of covering segments 1 and completed with play-field 9, the empty packaging together with the connecting blocks 4 can be used as a boarded parlour game or individual quiz game. The connecting blocks 4 that form the toy- pieces can be "attached" to the play-field 9 of covering segment 1 when playing, as described in connection with the previous Figure, while they can be fixed in the receiving hole 1a when the plaything is out of use, thus preventing them from being lost.

The set of toys according to the present invention can advantageously be used during travel for entertainment and playing, on the other hand, the set of packaging material is suitable to be used not only for packaging, but, due to its additional features, also for entertainment and playing. This offers the additional advantage that products packaged in carriers of this kind have better market.

Claims

1. Multi-purpose set of means that includes one or more connecting block and supporting means holding the said connecting block at least temporarily, being the said connecting bl.ock provided with head part, bottom part and interconnection segment e.g. neck part of smaller section, the latter forming a dent that fits between said parts, and at least one receiving hole provided with connection flange is arranged in the supporting means, characterized in that, at least one of the head part (41), neck part (42) or bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is formed as a toy-piece (110) - e.g. toy-figure of a boarded toy -, the head part (41) and/or the bottom part (43) is connected either by means of interconnection parts to the neck part (42) or formed directly as the elongation of the neck part (42) of the connecting block (4), the head part (41) of the connecting block (4) is arranged on the one side, while the bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is arranged on the other side of the supporting means, the neck part (42) of the connecting block(4) fits into the receiving hole (2a), thus connecting the said connecting block (4) to the supporting means in a temporary manner, removably and restorably.

2. Multi-purpose set of means as in claim 1 , characterized in t h at, the supporting means consists in a play-board (100) and at least one side of the play-board (100) is designed as a play-field (101).

3. Multi-purpose set of means as in claim 1, characterized in t h a t, the supporting means consists in a cover assembled of the covering segments (1, 2, 3), at least one of covering segments (1, 2, 3) includs a spatial pattern and the receiving holes (1a,2a,3a) of the covering segments (1, 2, 3) are arranged one above the other in the closed state of the covering segments (1, 2, 3).

4. Multi-purpose set of means as in claim 3, characterized in t h at, the connecting block (4) is fastened by means of its bottom part (43) to the surface (1c) of at least one of the covering segments (1,2,3).

5. Multi-purpose set of means as in claim 4, characterized in t hat, the bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is formed from the material of one of the covering segments (1).

6. Multi-purpose set of means as in any of claims 1 to 5, c h a -r a c t erized i n that, the toy-piece (110) has information-carrier zone (6), the said information-carrier zone (6) is provided with marking (6a) serving for the purpose of distinction of toy-piece (110).

7. Multi-purpose set of means as in any of claims 1 to 6, c h a -r a c t erized in that, the connecting block (4) is made from an only one piece of elastic material, e.g. rubber.

8. Multi-purpose set of means as in any of claims 1 to 6, c h a -r a c t erized in that, one of the head part (41) and bottom part (43) of the connecting block (4) is provided with a connecting piece (10), while the other of them is provided with recess (11) suitable to receive at least one part of the connecting piece (10), while being said head part (41) and said bottom part (43) integrated into a single part by fastening the said connecting piece (10) into the recess (11).