GB2205250A

GB2205250A - Apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game

Info

Publication number: GB2205250A
Application number: GB08712280A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Frank Coldwell
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-05-23
Filing date: 1987-05-23
Publication date: 1988-12-07
Also published as: GB8712280D0

Abstract

Apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game consists of a hollow cube-shaped body formed of transparent plastics, partitions within the body dividing it into cube-shaped compartments whose walls are provided with openings selectively dimensioned to permit or prevent the passage of a ball thus defining a labyrinth type of path wherein the labyrinth path to be followed when the ball is in one compartment can be disposed in any one of three mutually perpendicular planes. Each compartment of a central core of compartments extending from the upper to the lower surface of the cube are sub-divided into further sections and the labyrinth path is arranged so that the ball has to enter this core of sub-divided compartments in order to pass between at least two of the layers of compartments in the body. <IMAGE>

Description

"Apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game" This invention relates to apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game and more particularly, to apparatus in the form of a hollow body having a labyrinth path formed therein through which a playing piece is moved.

According to this invention, apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game comprises a hollow body'formed of a transparent material, partition means within the body to define a plurality of compartments, at least one wall of each one of a plurality of compartments being provided with an opening or aperture connecting the or each compartment to an adjacent compartment, the openings or apertures being'selectively dimensioned to permit or prevent the passage therethrough of a playing piece and define a labyrinth type of path through the body from a start position to a finish position, wherein the labyrinth path to be followed is disposed in three mutually perpendicular planes.

Preferably, aligned compartments in a central region of the body are each sub-divided into two or more further sections by additional partition means.

Preferably, also, the body is a cube.

The compartments are, preferably, formed by two or more parallel spaced-apart horizontally extending first partitions; two or more parallel spaced-apart vertically extending second partitions disposed substantially perpendicular to said first partitions, and two pr more parallel spaced-apart vertically extended third partitions disposed substantially perpendicular to said second partitions to define a plurality of cube-shaped compartments within the body.

Preferably, the sub-divided aligned compartments in the central region of the body forming a core extending for a major portion of the length of the body from the upper to the lower surface thereof are each divided into four further sections by the additional partition means.

Preferably, also, the labyrinth path is arranged so that the playing piece has to enter the core of sub-divided compartments to pass between at least two adjacent layers of the compartments in the body.

The playing piece is, preferably, a sphere and the apertures or openings are of a circular shape.

Alternatively, the apertures or openings may be formed by slots, grooves, or archways in the partitions forming the compartments.

Preferably, the compartment at the finish position is provided with an aperture or opening through which the playing piece can be removed from the hollow body as evidence of completion of'the game.

A preferred embodiment of this invention will now be describedj by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings of which Figure 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game; and Figure 2 is a perspective view of the apparatus showing the internal partitions.

Referring now to the drawings, apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game comprises a hollow cube-shaped body indicated generally at 10, which is divided into five layers by horizontally extending spaced-apart partitions 12.

Each layer is further divided into five rows by vertically extending spaced-apart partitions 14 and each row is again sub-divided by further vertically extending spaced-apart partitions 16 into five individual cube-shaped compartments 18.

The partitions 12, 14, and 16 are arranged to be mutually perpendicular and it will be appreciated that 125 individual compartments 18 are formed in the body 10. The central row of compartments 18 is provided with two additional partitions 20 which divide each central compartment 18 into four sections thus forming 20 sections in these five central compartments 18.

The walls of the compartments 18 including the walls of the sections of the central compartments 18 are provided with openings or apertures (not shown) of, for example, a circular shape, or alternatively, they may be formed as slots, grooves or archways. The openings or apertures are selectively dimensioned to permit or prevent the passage therethrough of a playing piece (not shown) such as a ball, and thereby define a labyrinth type of path through the body from a starting compartment to a finishing compartment.

The labyrinth path to be followed from the starting to the finishing compartment is disposed in three mutually perpendicular planes thereby increasing the complexity of the puzzle over known puzzles where the labyrinth path once a playing piece reaches a particular level is only in two planes. The complexity of the puzzle is further increased by arranging the labyrinth path so that the playing piece has to enter the sections of the central row of sub-divided compartments 18 in order to pass between at least two layers of compartments 18 in the body 10.

The body 10 and the partitions 12, 14, 16 and 20 are formed of a transparent material such as "Perspex" (Registered Trade Mark) to enable the person playing the game to see the playing piece as it is moved within the body 10 by movement of the body. The playing piece is located in the starting position during assembly of the apparatus and can only be removed therefrom through an aperture (not shown) in the finishing position compartment.

The apparatus can be formed by producing an outer open topped box and sequentially inserting into the box sub-assemblies each consisting of one layer of the apparatus. It will be appreciated that each of the sub-assemblies can be conveniently formed by an injection moulding process, particularly, where the openings or apertures in the partitions 12, 14, 16 and 20 are in the form of archways or open-ended slots.

This invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment but extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in the specification and/or drawings, or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process disclosed herein.

Claims

Claims.

1. Apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game comprising a hollow body formed of a transparent material, partition means within the body to define a plurality of compartments, at least one wall of each one of a plurality of the compartments being provided with an opening or aperture connecting the or each compartment to an adjacent compartment, the openings or apertures being selectively dimensioned to permit or prevent the passage therethrough of a playing piece and define a labyrinth type of path through the body from a start position to a finish position, wherein the labyrinth path to be followed is disposed in three mutually perpendicular planes.

2. Apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein aligned compartments in a central region of the body are each sub-divided into two or more further sections by additional partition means.

3. Apparatus according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the body is a cube.

4. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the compartments are formed by two or more parallel spaced-apart horizontally extending first partitions; two or more parallel spaced-apart vertically extending second partitions disposed substantially perpendicular to said first partitions; and two or more parallel spaced-apart vertically extending third partitions disposed substantially perpendicular to said second partitions to define a plurality of cubeshaped compartments within the body;

5. Apparatus according to Claim 2 and any one of Claims 1, 3 or 4, wherein the sub-divided aligned compartments in the central region of the body forming a core extending for a major portion of the length of the body from the upper to the lower surface thereof are each divided into four further sections by the additional partition means.

6. Apparatus according to Claim 5, wherein the labyrinth path is arranged so that the playing piece has to enter the core of sub-divided compartments to pass between at least two adjacent layers of the compartments in the body.

7. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the playing piece is a sphere and the apertures or openings are of a circular shape.

8. Apparatus according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, wherein the apertures or openings are formed by slots, grooves or archw2yss in the partitions forming the compartments.

9. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the compartment at the finish position is provided with an aperture or opening through which the playing piece can be moved from the hollow body as evidence of completion of the game.

10. Apparatus for playing a puzzle type of game constructed, arranged and adapted to operate substantially as hereinbefore described.