GB2267228A - Building set - Google Patents

Abstract

The model building set comprises building blocks with flat surfaces which can be releasably connected together in such a way as to permit some movement between blocks, by connecting means which are present on or recessed in surfaces of the building blocks. The connecting means do not extend over the entire surfaces and consist of VELCRO (R.T.M)-like components. The building blocks may be parallelopiped, plate-like, prismatic or cylindrical, and may be apertured, e.g. to receive the axle of a wheel. <IMAGE>

Description

9267228 MODEL BUILDING SYSTEM This invention relates to a model building

system.

Model building systems are used predominantly for the small-scale, more or less true imitation of building structures, mechanical and electrical appliances, living beings and the like.

Whereas adults use such model building systems mainly in conjunction with technical developments and operations, they serve children as tools, and have long been an important means for developing and testing motor, manual and intellectual capabilities both for those of normal and is for those of retarded development.

Wood blocks, mostly in the form of cubes, may be regarded as an original model building system, from which later so called standardized systems developed. Since these standardized systems contain only building blocks without connecting elements, only so to speak Ilmortarlessll structures can be imitated by them, so that only comparatively simple structures, and no movable structures, can be assembled therefrom.

Much greater possibilities of form are offered by plastics building blocks having elastically deformable fixing organs which lead to force-transmitting connections, such as are known, for example, generally under the name I'Legoll. Such building blocks are suitable, however, only for children of normal ability and children of a certain age, because the assembling and dismantling of structures demands a considerable degree of fine motor or manual ability and intellectual capabilities. The building blocks must be assembled together by a purely linear movement in a precise alignment. Even a very small inaccuracy in handling makes it impossible to obtain the structure desired. Whereas in standard systems only the building task but not the dismantling requires accurate handling of the elements, in the Lego system the dismantling also is demanding, because the individual components must be pulled apart from one another exactly perpendicularly to their parting line; this is all the more difficult since their lateral surfaces are completely smooth, with the result that fingers moist from perspiration or saliva slip on them. It is impossible to separate two building blocks in any other way, for example by tilting or shear movements.

Furthermore, the original components do not permit the is joining together of elastic and movable structures. There are indeed further developments of this system, by which for example automobiles and human figures can be formed; these are, however, components that may be used only quite specifically, the handling of which is fairly demanding in the motor, manual and intellectual senses. Further disadvantages are the small dimensions of the building blocks, which tempt children to suck on them or swallow them, with consequent risk of suffocation, and the quite sharp edges which can hurt one. The elements are also not very strong; if an adult steps on them, they easily shatter and the shattered parts form a still greater source of risk both with regard to risk of swallowing and also of persons injuring themselves.

In another model building system according to DEA-2 808 436, the building elements are of foam, covered with woven, knitted material or foil, and two mutually cooperating parts of a burr combination serve as fixing elements, as known by the general name I'Velcroll for example. This model building system is simple to operate and is almost without risk, because the parts are soft and sufficiently large not to be swallowed and have no sharp edges which could give rise to injury. A disadvantage is, however, that the building elements and especially their coverings easily become dirty and are not very durable, and moreover are quite complicated to manufacture and therefore expensive.

In another model building system according to CH-A-540 708, the elements consists basically of simple polyhedrons each having at least two smooth outer surfaces, e.g. of wood or plastics, and of connecting plates which are equipped at both sides with a suction cup. With these building elements it is possible to imitate both buildings, although these are not very rigid, and also slightly elastic constructions such as animals. The assembling of the individual components requires less precision than the assembling of Lego components, but nevertheless care must be taken that a suction cup bears completely on a surface.

The dismantling of constructions into their individual parts is not entirely simple. Admittedly, not very much manual or motor skill is required, because it is not necessary to perform a precise, clean pulling movement, but the force to be applied is relatively high and if the separation is carried out clumsily, there is a risk of damaging the suction cup. Furthermore, this model building system is sensitive to mechanical damage in the dismantled state and very rapidly wears out due to frequent assembling and pulling apart. As soon as the outer surfaces are no longer completely smooth or the suction cups suffer the slightest damage, this type of connection fails and the entire model building system becomes virtually useless.

To summarize, it can therefore be established that none of the known model building systems is suitable for handling - a - by persons of weak development in the motor, manual and intellectual aspects.

From one aspect, the present invention provides a model building set comprising building blocks which have at least two surfaces, which each form a first part of a connecting organ, and comprising connecting elements, which possess on two surfaces each a second part of the connecting organ, which when cooperating with the first part is intended for creating a releasable connection, permitting tilting movements, wherein the first and the second parts of the connecting organ consist of mutually cooperating seating and bearing components of a burr combination. This facilitates the provision of a model building system of which the individual parts can be joined together to form rather elastic structures and dismantled again in a very simple manner, even with inaccurate handling or in a slightly damaged condition.

Preferably, at least one of the mutually cooperating parts of the burr combination lies in a recess. Advantageously, the depth of the recess corresponds to a predetermined separating force.

A building block for the system may be in the form of a parallelepiped, preferably a cube, with two to six of its surfaces being equipped with parts of connecting organs.

Alternatively, it may be formed as a plate, each (major) plate surface being equipped with at least one part of a connecting organ, or as a prism, or as a cylinder, preferably a circular cylinder.

A building block for the system may be provided with at least one through aperture, preferably one which connects together two opposed surf aces. It may include, or be adapted to receive, an axle for at least one wheel, rotatable relative to the building block.

A typical burr combination or connector is a pressure sensitive releasable fastening constituted by two cooperating surfaces, each having a respective distributed structure capable of cooperating with the other structure to form a mechanical connection, as in I'Velcroll, referred to above.

From another aspect, this invention provides a block for a model building set having at least two connecting elements on its surface area, each said connecting element forming one part of a burr connector. Preferably the block is rigid or semi-rigid.

In most forms of building block the surface area will be formed by at least two surfaces, in which case each of the two surfaces preferably have a said connecting element thereon.

The at least two connecting elements may be different (cooperating) or similar halves of a burr connector.

In a set including at least two such blocks at least one would comprise a connecting element forming a first part of a burr connector and at least one other block would comprise a connecting element forming a second part of a burr connector cooperable with the first part.

By the use of rigid building blocks, of wood or plastics, and of connecting organs which consist of cooperating, fleece-like seating and bearing components and make possible a burr-like connection, the model building system according to this invention can be easily handled by persons with very small or retarded children. The cooperating portions of the burr combination stick together sufficiently even when they do not lie entirely in register or are partly damaged. The constructions produced by assembling are slightly elastic and therefore especially suitable for imitating living beings. Adequately stable structures can, however, also be produced.

The disassembling of the building blocks and connecting elements is also simple, because movements in tension, shear and tilting or a combination of these movements can be executed for this purpose.

is The disassembling of the building blocks and connecting elements is also simple, because movements in tension, shear and tilting or a combination of these movements can be executed for this purpose.

Assembled building elements can be rotated relative to one another without loosening their connection.

In a preferred embodiment of the model building system of this invention, the connecting elements are disposed integrally on the building blocks. Such building blocks may be equipped, on different faces, each with seating and/or bearing components of a burr combination. it is also possible to provide both seating components and bearing components of the burr combination on larger surfaces, which can further simplify the handling of the model building system.

It proves to be favourable to arrange the seating and/or the bearing components of the burr combination in recesses of the surfaces. The deeper these recesses are, the more demanding does the assembling and separating of the building blocks and possibly also connecting elements become; building blocks and connecting elements with connecting organs in deep recesses are more suitable for the production of building models, because in this way a less elastic connection is obtained. Building blocks having less deep recesses are especially suitable for the production of living beings, because the resultant connections are quite elastic. If building blocks having less deep and then deeper recesses are made available in succession to a user, then in this way the degree of difficulty of handling can be increased, and this forms part of a logical learning process.

The simplest building blocks of the model building system according to this invention are, as in other model building systems, rectangular blocks and cubes, in which, preferably, not only two but three to six surfaces are each equipped with a seating component or bearing component of a burr combination. In the case of cubes circular seating and bearing components respectively, which are only slightly smaller than the inscribed circle of the square surface, are with advantage chosen.

If the model building system is intended especially for the construction of buildings, then building blocks formed as plates are suitable, which are provided, on both their surfaces, continuously or in sections with applied seating and/or bearing components of a burr combination. Such plate-like building blocks may also comprise through holes, which serve in the finished structures as windows or doors.

The plate-like building blocks are joined together with overlaps.

The possibilities for assembling the widest variety of structures are very much greater if building blocks, possibly with integrated connecting elements, which have a prismatic shape, are provided, in which for the purpose of assembling with cubes one face with advantage forms of a square corresponding to the cube face.

For the production of trees and living beings, and also certain structures, it is advantageous if building blocks of cylindrical shape are also available, in which the flat end faces are equipped with seating or bearing components of a burr combination. The cylindrical wall face also may contain seating and/or bearing components of a burr combination; if the diameter of the cylinder is is sufficiently large, then flat building blocks or connecting elements will adhere also to curved surfaces, that is for instance to such a cylindrical surface.

Like the plate-shaped building blocks, in a further form of embodiment parallelepipedic, prismatic or cylindrical blocks may also possess apertures, which for example connect together two mutually opposite, generally parallel surfaces or parts of surfaces. Such apertures may serve, for instance, for receiving foreign materials; thus, by pushing in grasses and small leafy twigs, quite natural looking trees or bushes can be produced.

If the apertures are so shaped and dimensioned that they can accept the aforementioned cylindrical building blocks, then even simple mechanical constructions can also be produced.

If an aperture is arranged between two mutually opposite surfaces in such a way that it also extends to a third surface adjoining the two aforementioned surfaces, then a 9 - U-shaped component is obtained, which can serve as an arch element of buildings or as a pair of legs for living beings.

There is often a wish to model not only buildings, plants and living beings, but also vehicles. For this purpose, building blocks having an axle may be provided, on which at least one wheel rotatable relative to the building block, which wheel may also be roller-shaped, is fixed, the axle projecting radially beyond the building block.

To decrease the risk of injury, the arrises on all building blocks and connecting elements are advantageously broken or rounded.

is The use of the model building system can be facilitated if the various building blocks and possibly connecting elements are of different colours, preferably by faces.

The seating and bearing components of the burr combinations also may have different colours, and if desired be fixed to surfaces of the same or of contrasting colours.

The form of construction and the use of the model building system of this invention are explained and illustrated below by the description of preferred examples of embodiment of individual building blocks and structures produced with them, with reference to the accompanying drawings. The figures in the drawings show:

Fig. 1 a building block formed as a cube, of the model building system according to this invention, in perspective; Fig. 2 two connected together building blocks of the model building system of this invention, shown in part view and section; Fig. 3 a portion of a building block of the model building system of this invention, in section; Fig. 4 a building block of the model building system of this invention, formed as a prism, in perspective; Fig. 5 a building block of the model building system of this invention, formed as a plate, seen from the front; Fig. 6 a parallelepipedic and a cylindrical building block of the model building system of this invention, in perspective; Fig. 7 an arch-shaped building block of the model building system of this invention, in perspective; Fig. 8 a building block of the model building system of this invention, amplified by a rotatable wheel, in perspective; and Fig. 9 an image of a dinosaur-like living being made up of building blocks of the model building system of this invention.

The wood or plastics cube 10, illustrated in Fig. 1, the edges 11 of which are broken or rounded to avoid injury, possesses seating or bearing components of a burr combination on all sides, which are described in more detail below. As in the other figures, the seating surfaces are denoted with cross-hatching and the bearing surfaces with dotted shading. In the cube 10 illustrated, three lateral surf aces 12, 13 and 14 can be seen, the surfaces 12 and 13 containing overlays 15 and 16 and the face 14 an overlay 17. The sides of the cube are or are so equipped with seating and bearing components that three surfaces which do not have any common corners each carry one seating component and the other three surfaces one bearing component. It is also possible for individual surfaces to be left as pure wooden or plastics surfaces or to be provided with some kind of decorative elements, such as eye components.

The seating and bearing components 15, 16 and 17 are circular and have almost the dimension of the inscribed circle of the square surfaces which bound the cube.

In a preferred example of embodiment, the cube has an edge length of 4 em and the diameter of the connecting members is approx. 3.5 em; other dimensions are of course possible.

In a part view illustrated in Fig. 2 of an element 20, once again the edge 21 is broken or rounded. An upper face 22 has a recess 23, which contains a seating element 24 which, for example, is fixed by gluing with a waterproof and non toxic adhesive. It could also be envisaged to f ix the seating and bearing components with small nails or staples.

Closed, short fibre loops 25 of this part of the fleece like burr combination project at most just out of the recess 23. A further lateral surface 25 has a recess 26, in which a bearing component 27 is fixed in the same manner as the seating component 24 in the recess 23.Open fibres 28 of this part of the burr combination, which are longer than the loops 25, project beyond the recess 26.

In a cube described above of approx. 4 cm arris length, the recess, for example, is 1 to 1.4 mm deep, but certainly not more than 2 mm deep.

When assembling the adjacent surfaces 30 and 31, according to Fig. 3 a bearing component 32 must stand opposite each seating component 33, so that the fibres 34 engage between and into the loops 35, with the result that the surfaces 30 and 31 stick to each other. The connection is elastic, which means that the two surfaces 30 and 31 can be tilted through a small angle, which does not basically exceed the value of 200, but in general is about 10 to 150, without the connection being lost.

This is possible because the depth of the recesses of the surfaces 30 and 31 and the height of the fibres 34 and loops 35 are so adapted to one another that the edges of the surfaces 30 and 31 free from recesses tough each other not at all or only under pressure and otherwise enclose a gap 36 and are disposed at a distance from one another.

To separate the adjacent components, a pull can be applied perpendicularly at an angle to the surfaces 30 and 31 or, for example, the surface 31 can be tilted away in the direction of arrow B from the surface 32. With a pull at 450 to the surface, in the case of a cube of 4 cm side length and a connecting member of 3.5 cm diameter, a force of about 15 Newtons is required for this purpose.

Fig. 4 shows a prismatic building block 40, which corresponds to one-quarter of a cube according to Fig. 1, a surface 41 forming a square.This surface 41 and also the invisible surface 42 each comprise a circular seating or bearing component 43, 44 respectively; the surface 45, corresponding to a half square area, has a semicircular bearing component 46, while the triangular surfaces 47 and 48 are pure wood or plastics surfaces.

In Fig. 5, a plate-shaped building block 50 is illustrated, which is provided on both sides with a plurality of sections of seating components 51 and bearing components 52 and has a through aperture 53 which, depending upon the arrangement of the plate-shaped building block 50, may constitute a door or a window in a building. A plurality of such plate-shaped building blocks can be joined together overlapping in such a way that a wall is produced; for the is corner columns of buildings of such walls, high prisms having a square base surface can be used. For reasons of weight, foreign materials, such as cardboard or stiff paper, are more suitable as roofs.

In building blocks of large area of this and other types, the seating and bearing components may, of course, be shaped and arranged differently.

Fig. 6 illustrates a parallelepipedic building block 60, having an aperture 61, in which a cylindrical building block 62 is rotatably seated. This arrangement can be amplified, because both the parallelepipedic building block and the cylindrical building block 61 have seating components 63 and bearing components 64 of burr combinations, to which further building blocks can be fixed. The building blocks 60 and 61 can, of course, be used differently, for example as parts of buildings or living beings.

- 14 The building block 70 illustrated in Fig. 7 having an aperture 71, which extends as far as a surface 72, forms an arch-shaped element. The building block 70 is equipped on all sides with seating surfaces 73 and bearing surfaces 74 of burr combinations and can therefore be used not only as an arch or gate for buildings but also, for example, as a pair of legs for a living being.

Fig. 8 illustrates a building block 80 having an axle 81, which rotates a wheel 82, rotatable relative to the building block 80. These wheel-shaped building blocks 82 can, of course, also be provided with seating surfaces and/or bearing surfaces. The building block 80, like the building blocks described earlier, is provided with seating is components 83 and bearing components 84.

Fig. 9, finally, illustrates a dinosaur-like living being 90, which is constructed solely of building blocks 10 and 40. By the elasticity of the connections, this living being has an extraordinarily realistic appearance.

Although the model building system of this invention is intended as a toy for entertainment and teaching purposes, especially for less highly developed persons such as small children or retarded persons, it may of course also be used, for example, for architectural and building general planning, for the planning of changes and processions and for simulating situations in instructions about traffic.

Important, and independent of the particular shape of the individual components, is the simple adjustment of the separating force by an appropriate choice of the burr area and depth of the recesses for the burr material.

It will be understood also that the use of naturally occurring and recyclable materials, such as wood and is - rubber. for the production of the building blocks according to this invention, or the fitting of additional embellishments, such as eyes, lies within the normal scope of the skilled person. 5

Claims (17)

CLAIMS:

1. A model building set comprising building blocks which have at least two surfaces, which each form a first part of a connecting organ, and comprising connecting elements, which possess on two surfaces each a second part of the connecting organ, which when cooperating with the first part is intended for creating a releasable connection, permitting tilting movements, wherein the first and the second parts of the connecting organ consist of mutually cooperating seating and bearing components of a burr combination.

2. A model building set according to claim 1, wherein at is least one of the mutually cooperating parts of the burr combination lies in a recess.

3. A model building set according to claim 2, wherein the depth of the recess corresponds to a predetermined separating force.

4. A model building set according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a said building block is formed as a parallelepiped, with two to six of its surfaces being equipped with parts of connecting organs.

5. A model building set according to any one of claims 1 to 3,1 wherein a said building block is formed as a plate, each plate surface being equipped with at least one part of a connecting organ.

6. A model building set according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a said building block is formed as a prism.

7. A model building set according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a said building block is formed as a cylinder.

8. A model building set according to any one, of the preceding claims, wherein a said building block has a through aperture, preferably connecting together two opposite surfaces. 10

9. A model building set according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a said building block includes, or is adapted to receive, an axle for at least one wheel, rotatable relative to the building block. 15

10. A block for a model building set having at least two connecting elements on its surface area, each said connecting element forming one part of a burr connector.

11. A rigid or semi-rigid block according to claim 11. 20

12. A block according to claim 10 or claim 11 wherein said surf ace area is f ormed by at least two surf aces of the block, each of said two surfaces having a said connecting element thereon. 25

13. A block according to any one of claims 10 to 12 wherein said two connecting elements are similar halves of a burr connector. 30

14. A block according to any one of claims 10 to 12 wherein said two connecting elements are the different halves of a burr connector.

15. A set of model building blocks including at least two blocks each according to any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein at least one of the two blocks comprises a said connecting element forming a first part of a burr connector and at least the other of the two blocks comprises a said connecting element forming a second part of a burr connector cooperable with the first part.

16. A building block for a model building system substantially as herein described with reference to any one of Figures 1 to 8 of the accompanying drawings.

17. A model building system comprising at least one block according to any one of claims 10 to 14 and 16.