GB1599002A - Question and answer devices - Google Patents

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO QUESTION AND ANSWER DEVICES (71) We, EDITIONS EDMOND DUJARDIN S.A., a French Body Corporate, of 33260 LA TESTE DE BUCH, France, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to question and answer devices.

Question and answer devices have been proposed in the form of a board having input terminals corresponding to questions and which are connected by conductor elements to output terminals corresponding to the answers. Two contact elements connected by a flexible cable are applied by the user, one to a question terminal and the other to an answer terminal. If the answer terminal is the correct terminal corresponding to the question posed, a circuit is completed through the contact elements and the cable to actuate an appropriate indicating device.

According to the present invention there is provided a question and answer device comprising a set of question terminals, a set of answer terminals, conductor means connecting each question terminal with a corresponding answer terminal, and detector means to be held in contact with a said terminal of one of said sets by one of the hands of the user while a finger of the other hand of the user contacts a said terminal of the other of said sets, whereby when the appropriate answer terminal corresponding to the question terminal is contacted, an electrical circuit is completed through the body of the user to actuate indicating means.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a question and answer device in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of a board of the device; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the board; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of a detector stylus of the device; Figure 5 is a schematic representation of an electric circuit of the detector stylus.

In Figures 1 and 2 there is shown a game board having a set of question panels 2 carrying illustrations 3 and a set of reply or answer panels 4 having an explanatory text corresponding to the illustrations 3.

On each question panel 2 there is provided a conductive terminal 5 which is connected by a conductor element 6 to a conductive terminal 7 of the correct reply panel 4.

In one preferred embodiment, the board 1 is composed of a rigid insulating backing sheet or plate 8 (see Figure 3) on which there is disposed a printed circuit comprising printed conductor elements 6 connecting together the corresponding terminals 5 and 7. The conductive circuit is constituted by a deposit of conductive ink and is covered by a layer 9 of opaque insulating material which receives a printed layer 10 representing the various question and answer panels 2 and 4.

The body of the player is used to complete the circuit between the question and answer terminals. The player places one of the fingers 11 of a hand 12 upon the terminal 5 corresponding to a question while the other hand 13 holds a detector stylus 14 which is in contact with one of the terminals 7 corresponding to an answer. The connection between the hand 12 and the hand 13 being provided through the body of the player.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the detector stylus 14 comprises a conductive body 15 in which a power source 16 is housed. The power source is composed of at least one battery which supplies a warning device in the form of an incandescent lamp 17 connected to a current amplifier which has a probe 19 for contacting one of the terminals 7.

The game board is used as follows.

The player places a finger 11 of the hand 12 on a terminal corresponding to a question panel 2 and, with the other hand 13 which carries the detector stylus 14, he places the probe 19 of the latter with the terminal 7 corresponding to an answer panel 4.

If the answer panel is the correct one corresponding to the question panel, the circuit will be completed and the current coming from the power source 16 will pass through the body of the player by passing from hand 12 to hand 13; the current passes to the amplifier 18 which energises the lamp 17 thus indicating to the player that the answer does correspond to the question asked.

On the other hand, the circuit will not be completed and the lamp 17 will therefore not be energised if the answer panel is not the correct one associated with the question panel, and this will indicate to the player that an incorrect answer has been selected.

The board may be made by printing the circuit on loose sheets, cards or bound sheets.

The use of a low voltage battery and a current amplifier makes the game absolutely safe for the player.

The device described can have uses other than in question and answer games, or in games with questions having multiple replies. For example, the device may be used as a teaching aid so as to enable the user to acquire new knowledge or to check his own knowledge, for instance of history, geography, science or the highway code. The device may also be used for making guidance tests, tests for the selection of candidates for jobs or armed forces recruits, or for medical examinations and psychological tests.

Instead of using a lamp to indicate a correct answer, an audible warning device may be used.

The device particularly described by using the body of the user to form part of the electrical circuit, obviates the need for two contact elements, one for a question terminal and the other for an answer terminal, interconnected by means of a cable.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. A question and answer device comprising a set of question terminals, a set of answer terminals, conductor means connecting each question terminal with a corresponding answer terminal, and detector means to be held in contact with a said terminal of one of said sets by one of the hands of the user while a finger of the other hand of the user contacts a said terminal of the other of said sets, whereby when the appropriate answer terminal corresponding to the question terminal is contacted, an electrical circuit is completed through the body of the user to actuate indicating means.

2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the detector means comprises a conductive body, indicating means, a power source, an amplifier, said indicating means being connected to the power source through the amplifier, and a probe connected to the amplifier and engageable with a said terminal, said body carrying said indicating means, said power source and said amplifier, the arrangement being such that when the electrical circuit is completed the indicating means is actuated through the amplifier.

3. A device according to Claim 1 or claim 2 further comprising board means carrying said sets of terminals, said board means comprising a substrate of insulating material, a printed circuit disposed on said substrate, said printed circuit forming said conductor means, a layer of opaque insulating material covering said printed circuit, and question and answer forming indicia carried by the opaque layer, with each said question and each said answer being associated with a respective question terminal and answer terminal.

4. A device according to Claim 3, wherein the circuit is printed on loose sheets, cards, or bound sheets.

5. A device according to Claim 3 or claim 4, wherein said printed circuit is formed by conductive ink.

6. A question and answer device substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (6)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. through the body of the player by passing from hand 12 to hand 13; the current passes to the amplifier 18 which energises the lamp 17 thus indicating to the player that the answer does correspond to the question asked. On the other hand, the circuit will not be completed and the lamp 17 will therefore not be energised if the answer panel is not the correct one associated with the question panel, and this will indicate to the player that an incorrect answer has been selected. The board may be made by printing the circuit on loose sheets, cards or bound sheets. The use of a low voltage battery and a current amplifier makes the game absolutely safe for the player. The device described can have uses other than in question and answer games, or in games with questions having multiple replies. For example, the device may be used as a teaching aid so as to enable the user to acquire new knowledge or to check his own knowledge, for instance of history, geography, science or the highway code. The device may also be used for making guidance tests, tests for the selection of candidates for jobs or armed forces recruits, or for medical examinations and psychological tests. Instead of using a lamp to indicate a correct answer, an audible warning device may be used. The device particularly described by using the body of the user to form part of the electrical circuit, obviates the need for two contact elements, one for a question terminal and the other for an answer terminal, interconnected by means of a cable. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A question and answer device comprising a set of question terminals, a set of answer terminals, conductor means connecting each question terminal with a corresponding answer terminal, and detector means to be held in contact with a said terminal of one of said sets by one of the hands of the user while a finger of the other hand of the user contacts a said terminal of the other of said sets, whereby when the appropriate answer terminal corresponding to the question terminal is contacted, an electrical circuit is completed through the body of the user to actuate indicating means.

2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the detector means comprises a conductive body, indicating means, a power source, an amplifier, said indicating means being connected to the power source through the amplifier, and a probe connected to the amplifier and engageable with a said terminal, said body carrying said indicating means, said power source and said amplifier, the arrangement being such that when the electrical circuit is completed the indicating means is actuated through the amplifier.

3. A device according to Claim 1 or claim 2 further comprising board means carrying said sets of terminals, said board means comprising a substrate of insulating material, a printed circuit disposed on said substrate, said printed circuit forming said conductor means, a layer of opaque insulating material covering said printed circuit, and question and answer forming indicia carried by the opaque layer, with each said question and each said answer being associated with a respective question terminal and answer terminal.

4. A device according to Claim 3, wherein the circuit is printed on loose sheets, cards, or bound sheets.

5. A device according to Claim 3 or claim 4, wherein said printed circuit is formed by conductive ink.

6. A question and answer device substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.