GB2340160A - A removable modular track for chirdren - Google Patents

Description

2340160 A TRACK FOR CHILDREN AND THE PLATES FOR ITS CONSTRUCTION The

invention relates to a track for children and plates of soft material which can be assembled to-ether to build the track on which children can play and ride on tricycles and other mobile means.

It has been believed necessary to create tracks made of soft and flexible material for areas where children play, in order to reduce the impact when children on skates, tricycles, miniature cars and other mobile means fall and hit the track.

Such tracks are presently built on a concrete base which is covered with rubber tiles or strips. This system is expensive both in regards to the laying down of the concrete base, and to the laying down of the non rigid material covering it. This normally consists of square rubber plates whose sides measure one meter in length, and which are cut by the installers at the curv es to adapt them to the curvature of the track, covering it evenly.

Althouolh covered by rubber, the tracks are quite hard. Therefore, when children fa.U down on them they can still bruise and scratch themselves.

Furthermore, the tracks are permanent structures which therefore reduce the space for other games, especially when the track is not being used.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a removable track, made of flexible and soft material, which can be installed in free spaces such as lawns, not specially equipped and prepared for such a track, and which can be removed when it isn't being used. The assembling and taking apart operations are desired to be simple to allow even non-qualified personnel to carry them 2 5 out, such as nursery school and kindergarten janitors.

The invention which affords these results consists of a removable track for children, on which they can run and play, on tricycles, bicycles and other mobile means, made of a soft and flexible modular structure, which can be assembled on any free surface, the modular structure has components the width of which is the same as the width of the track they form, the components beina, provided with 'oining means on both their ends for detachable sequential 0 J 0 connection.

In the preferred embodiment the track is formed by at least two differently shaped components. One of the components is straight and the other one is a regularly shaped curve whose angle is 90'/n, n representing a whole number, and the internal curvature radius is equal to the minimum one existing in the track to assemble. The curved component, at the very least, may be made to be reversible (usable on both sides).

The said track is especially advantageous because it does not require a concrete base track, or any other base to support it, and so it can be assembled on a ground base, hard floors, or lawns.

The track's shape and outline can be widely varied with straight and curved sections, with right sided curves or left sided curves which can be obtained using the reversible curved component, that can be used on both sides. The materials used, usually consisting of recycled rubber or other extremely resistant material, are flexible and soft to reduce the impact of children banging and falling onto the track. They are also low cost materials such as recycled ones as the present invention does not require the materials to have special technical features.

The assembly of the track is very simple and it entails the sequential Jo-nina of the components which are provided with shapes and/or means at their ends which allow the coupling, either fixed (puzzle-like) or hinge tv 0, pe to adjacent components. Therefore, the components are easy to assemble even by non-specialised personnel such as kindergarten or nursery school 'anitors or 0 J playground personnel. Taking the track apart to regain the space occupied by the track is easy and fast and the components can be reused at other times to re form a track which can be the same or different in shape.

The present invention is described herebelow with reference to embodiments given to exemplify and reproduced in the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is the front view of a component with which the straight parts of the track are made, its ends are indicated with a shading to highlight the fact that the joining ends can be of different types, puzzle-like, hinge-like or those types that are known to join a sequence of the same components; Figure 2 is the front view of a component with which the curved parts of the track are made, the internal anale A is indicated; Figure 3 is the front view of a sequence of two components, one is cuned the other is straight, which are joined together by means of indented ends with male and female rounded parts (puzzle-like); Figure 4 is the front view on a different scale of a completed track with a number of elements of the types shown in Figures I and 2.

It is understood that the drawinas are simply to help understand the invention and are given only to illustrate the object of the invention, without constituting in any way a limitation.

In the drawings the straight component has been indicated with 1, while 2 and 3 indicate its ends provided with joining means. 4 is the cuned component having an angle of curvature "A", usually equivalent to 90'/n, where n is a whole number. 5 and 6 indicate the rounded indents and protrusions on both sides of the components I and 4 in the solution in which said ends join (puzzle-like) as shown in figure 3. In substance a removable type of track for children is provided, its modular structure is adequate to allow them to play and go on it with tricycles, bicycles and other mobile means and 4 the track is characterized by a soft and flexible structure which can be installed on any free surface not necessarily equipped or prepared for it. The track is made of a sequence of components I and 4, with the width of each component equal to the width of the track that is being made. At each end 2 and 03 the components are provided with joining means which allow the pieces to be stably located one after the other. The track is made of components of soft, flexible and low cost material, for example recycled rubber. The thickness of the components is adequate to allow the track to be placed even on surfaces which are not prepared or equipped for its installation. For this reason the thickness of components 1 and 4 is usually between two and four centimetres.

The width of each component is equal to the width of the track that will be assembled.

As exemplified in the drawings, the components are preferably of two different types: the first one I has straight sides and is appropriate to form the straight parts of the track- the second one 4 has curved side outlines and is therefore appropriate to form the curved parts of the track. Components or plates I and 4 are therefore planned to be placed one after the other and their ends 2 and 3 are provided with detachable means to couple them and join them together, which gives stability to each position of the components in sequence.

Plate 4 has a curved outline and its anale of curvature or ano-le width is approximately equal to 90'/n, with n indicating a whole number, so that the 90' curve is obtained with a number of whole plates. The angle width is usually of 45' to obtain a -U- curve with only 4 successive curved plates.

The means to couple and join the plates can be of many types and known techniques provide many equivalent solutions. The example in fig. 3 shows rounded indents 5 and protrusions 6 (jigsaw like), which are placed to allow a sequence of plates to be joined (in line). Another solution is to 'oin the pieces b-, J sliding one plate into the other sideways, one of the plates ends with a male element and the other one havinc, a side groove or female element. One more solution could be of alternating cylindrical protrusions and empty spaces, the protrusions are provided with a transversal hole to form a cylindrical hinge to 'oin two plates by inserting a bar sideways through these cylindrical protrusions.

Finally, the curved plate 4 is reversible (structured to be turned upside down) in order to allow a change in the direction of the curve, therefore obtaining right curves or left curves with the same plate and making it possible to create differently shaped tracks.

6

Claims (5)

CLAIMS:

1. A removable track suitable for use with tricycles, bicycles and other mobile means, comprising a soft and flexible modular structure that is adapted to be assembled and installed on free surfaces, wherein the structure includes a plurality of components that are as wide as the track formed with them, each of the components being provided with joining means for detachably coupling the components together such that said components may be joined one after another to form the track.

2. A removable track as claimed in claim 1, wherein said components are flexible and soft with a thickness of between two and four centimetres, to allow installation on unprepared surfaces.

3. Track components for use in the construction of the track of claims I or 2, wherein each component is one of at least two different shapes: a first component (1) having opposing ends and straight sides extending therebetween, and a second component (4) having opposing ends and curved sides extending therebetween.

4. Track components as claimed in claim 3. wherein the first component has a width equal to the width of the track it is used to construct and wherein the ends of said track components are provided with joining means (2) and (3) for their coupling to corresponding means on other track components.

5. Track components as claimed in claim 3, wherein said second component is curved with an internal angle of 90'/n, where n is a whole number.

6, Track components as claimed in claim 4, wherein said joining means 23 consists of rounded indents (5) and protrusions (6).

7 7. Track components as claimed in claim 3, wherein the second component (4) can be turned upside down in order to change the direction of curve of the track. S. A removable track substantially as hereinbefore described with reference 5 to and as shown in the accompanving drawings.

1 0 9. Track components substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.