ITBI20100013A1 - SPHERE FOR GAME OF MANUAL SKILLS OF THE TYPE INCLUDING A VARIETY OF SLIDING ELEMENTS MANUALLY ON ITS SPHERICAL SURFACE. - Google Patents

Description

â € œSPHERE FOR MANUAL SKILLS OF THE TYPE INCLUDING A VARIETY OF ELEMENTS SLIDING MANUALLY ON ITS SPHERICAL SURFACEâ €

DESCRIPTION

Field of the invention

The present invention refers in general to the field of games, and more particularly it relates to a manual skill game of the type comprising a sphere, or a body of similar shape, which has on its external spherical surface a plurality of blocks, spherical caps and / or similar elements capable of being variously moved and manually messed up with each other, in which the essence of the game, and therefore the skill required of the respective player, consists in reconstructing and obtaining a certain initial combination again on the surface of the sphere, making these various elements move, and / or slide, and / or rotate,

For example, in this specific initial combination, the various elements arranged on the surface of the sphere are ordered so as to form with their respective colors eight segments of uniform but different colors.

Reference technique

Games have long been known, often also called â € œmagical spheres ", due to their typical sphere shape, which present a plurality of elements, such as tiles, pawns, tiles or other similar elements, which are designed to be disrupted and arranged in a disorderly and random way between them, starting from a determined and ordered initial configuration on the spherical surface of the sphere, so the game consists precisely in recombining and rearranging these elements successively, by the player, by moving them and moving them along the spherical surface, in order to obtain again and reconstruct the determined initial configuration.

The different possibilities of messing up and arranging these tiles or similar elements in a disorderly way, with respect to the determined combination or initial configuration, and then to reconstruct the latter again, subsequently, by moving and moving the tiles along the surface of the sphere, identify the characteristics of the game and therefore also Sa specific manual skill that is required of the respective player, when playing with it.

It is noted in particular how many of these game spheres or magic spheres, known, although having a spherical shape, closely resemble the execution of the game, and therefore require, on the part of the player, similar and comparable manual skills, to the so-called game of the “Rubik's Cube” or similar manual skill games.

Of course, although the market offers numerous forms and variants of these manual skill ball games and these magical spheres, there is always a keen interest in games, such as this genre or the like, even more original and attractive, namely that are able to capture the interest of the players to try their hand and play with them, and in particular present new, different and more complex possibilities to mess up and recombine the various pieces and elements, so as to make the game different, more interesting and more compelling compared to those already known, which very often, also due to the fact that they have been played and offered on the market for a long time, have now lost a good part of their charge of novelty and interest.

Among the known magic spheres and games of this type, those described in the following Chinese patents and utility models, published, CN201283216Y, CN201283216Y, CN101007214A, CN26388G0Y, CN2618652Y, CN2564210Y, CN2423003Y, CN244577083Y, CN222641 .

In this regard, it is noted how the variety and number of games described by these Chinese patents and utility models, and by other patents, not cited here for reasons of synthesis, demonstrate, among other things, how much space there is still to develop and propose further new and original embodiments of these ball games.

However, similarly to the other known spheres of the game, even those proposed by these Chinese patents and utility models appear to have limited possibilities of decomposition and recomposition of the respective elements, therefore such as to activate in the player a reduced interest or in any case destined to diminish very quickly, considering the relative ease with the player, after a few attempts he manages to execute and complete the game, that is to recompose the initial configuration of the sphere.

Summary of the invention

Therefore, the primary purpose of the present invention is to propose a new and interesting game, in the specific field of sphere-shaped games of the type comprising a plurality of blocks and / or similar elements that can be disjointed and recombined on the respective spherical surface, which is characterized by new and original possibility to mess up and recombine the various elements again, compared to the games of this type already known for some time and available on the market, so as to capture the interest of the public of the players in the face of the new operations and manual skills that are required to the player and put to the test to play with the new ball game. Another, not secondary, purpose of the invention is also to renew the interest in this type of ball games or similar, which, after the great commercial success of a few years ago following the launch of the cube game of Rubik and other similar games, have been slowly declining in the preferences of the public and players, also due to competition from electronic games.

These objects are fully achieved by the ball for manual skill game, according to the invention, having the characteristics defined by the main independent claims 1 and 11.

Particular and advantageous forms of the invention are further defined by the dependent claims.

There are numerous advantages of the game sphere of the invention and in particular, as will emerge from the following description, it provides new possibilities to mess up and subsequently recombine the various moving elements on the respective spherical surface, so as to offer itself as a game that is certainly unique and original. of its kind, as well as representing a real innovation in the field of these ball games.

Brief description of the drawings

These and other objects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become clear and evident from the following description of some of its preferred embodiments, given by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a ball for manual skill play, according to the invention, comprising a plurality of elements that slide and rotate on the respective spherical surface, in a first configuration in which these elements have been mutually disordered, or arranged in a disordered way among each other. them, with respect to a determined and ordered initial combination;

Fig. 2 shows the game ball of Fig. 1 in a second configuration in which the various sliding and rotating elements have been recombined again on the spherical surface, or arranged in an orderly manner among themselves, in accordance with the determined and ordered initial combination ;

Fig. 3 is a view showing the playing ball of Figs. 1 and 2 broken down into their respective various parts;

Fig. 4 shows a part, consisting of an internal support skeleton, of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 5 shows the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2 in a partially assembled configuration;

Figs. 6A and 6B show respectively from the external side and from the internal side a generic rotating cap of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 7 shows from the external side and in decomposed form the various rotatable spherical caps of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 8 shows on an enlarged scale from the external and internal side a generic sliding block of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 9 shows from the external side and in a broken down form the various sliding blocks of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Figs. 10 and 11 show respectively in totally and partially assembled form a first variant of the game ball of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 12 shows a second variant of the game ball of the invention, in the respective initial configuration; And

Figs. 13A and 13B show some parts relating to the second variant of the game ball of Fig. 12.

Detailed description of a first preferred embodiment of the invention (Fiqq, 1 and 2)

With reference to Figs. 1-9, a ball for manual skill play, hereinafter also referred to as a play ball or simply a ball, according to the present invention, is indicated as a whole with 10.

In particular, the game sphere 10 comprises:

an internal support skeleton or body 11 (Fig. 4), adapted to support the various parts of the game ball 10;

a plurality of sliding blocks or tiles or similar elements, indicated in! complex with 12 and singly with 12-1, 12-2, 12-3, etc. , arranged on the spherical outer surface 10a of the sphere 10 and able to slide along this spherical surface 10a of the sphere 10;

a plurality of spherical caps, or similar rotating elements, indicated as a whole with 14 and individually with 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, etc., also arranged on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, which are adapted to rotate about respective fixed axes of rotation defined on the surface 10a of the sphere 10; And

a plurality of covering elements, indicated as a whole with 17 and individually with 17-1, 17-2, etc., fixed on the internal support skeleton 11, which cover areas of the spherical surface 10a of the sphere 10 not occupied by sliding blocks 12 and rotating spherical caps 14.

As shown in detail in Fig. 4, the support skeleton 11 is for example constituted by three annular elements 11a. 11 b and 11c, corresponding to circles

of the sphere 10, which are arranged along the three planes of symmetry, perpendicular to each other, i.e. the two polar planes and the equatorial plane, of the sphere 10, so as to cross in six intersection areas arranged symmetrically with respect to the center of the sphere 10 .

As shown in Figs. 3 and 7, the revolving spherical caps 14 are for example six in number, therefore indicated with 14-1, 14-2, .... 14-6, and are arranged on the spherical surface 10a on opposite sides and in a symmetrical way around the center of the sphere 10, i.e. with two caps arranged at the two poles and the other four arranged along the equatorial band of the sphere 10, so as to be able to rotate around their respective fixed axes of rotation X, Y, Z , corresponding to the symmetry axes of the sphere 10.

For this purpose, the six rotating spherical caps 14-1, 14-2, etc. they are each mounted in correspondence with a respective central hole 14c and with a slight play, on a pin 15 (Figs. 1, 2, 6A), in turn fixed on the internal support skeleton 11, so that each spherical cap 14 -1, 14-2, .. 14-6 is free to rotate around the pin 15, sliding with its internal face 14d (Fig, 6B) in contact with the annular elements 11a-11c of the support skeleton 11.

In particular these pins 15, which define and extend, in pairs of two, along the axes of rotation X, Y and Z of the six spherical caps 14-1, 14-2, .. 14-6, are fixed on the skeleton support 11, in the six areas of intersection between the respective annular elements 11 a, 11 b and 11 c.

Furthermore, each spherical cap 14-1, 14-2, etc. it has, along the respective circular edge 14a, a plurality of seats 14b, for example four as shown in the drawings, which are provided to receive and house the sliding blocks 12-1, 12-2, 12-3, etc. while playing the game, as better described later on.

In particular, these seats 14b are configured as recesses, along the edge 14a, each suitable for housing exactly a sliding block 12, and are arranged symmetrically and angularly spaced 90 ° from each other, around the axis of rotation X or Y or Z of the respective spherical cap.

Furthermore, on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, each of the spherical caps 14-1, 14-2, ... 14-6 has four colored areas of different colors, which extend from the center of the spherical cap, or from the respective axis of rotation. , to the circular edge 14a, so that the surface of the spherical cap is divided into four zones or quadrants, colored with different colors, which correspond to the four seats 14b, formed along the same edge 14a, suitable for receiving the sliding blocks 12 .

The blocks 12, as mentioned, are able to slide on the spherical surface 10a of the sphere 10, in particular along guides 13 (Figs. 1, 2, 5) which extend on this surface 10a along limited portions or arches of circles of maximum ball diameter 10.

These guides 13 are defined both by the fixed parts and by the movable parts arranged on the surface 10a, or by the seats 14b of the rotatable spherical caps 14 and by profiles or portions 17a (Fig. 5), facing each other, of the edge of the covering elements 17, fixed on the support skeleton 11.

For example, if the ball 10 has, as described above, six spherical caps 14 each provided with four seats 14b for the sliding blocks, these guides 13 are twelve in number, so as to divide the external surface 10a of the game ball 10 in eight equal spherical sectors arranged symmetrically with respect to the center of the sphere 10.

In particular, two seats 14b, facing and corresponding, belonging to two different different spherical caps 14 and each suitable for housing exactly a sliding block 12, define the end areas of each guide 13, while the facing profiles 17a of two different elements fixed cover 17, define the central area.

Since the covering elements 17 are configured in such a way as to separate the various spherical caps 14, one from the other, according to a space corresponding to a block 12, the total number of spaces occupied by the guides 13 on the spherical surface 10a is equal to twelve by three, or thirty-six, which also corresponds to the total number of sliding blocks 12.

As shown in Fig. 8, each block 12 has a substantially rectangular shape on the external side, i.e. along the surface 10a of the sphere 10, and, on the internal side facing the center of the sphere 10, a groove 12a, in turn suitable to cooperate, during the manual sliding of the block 12 on the spherical surface 10a, with corresponding guide profiles 13a (Figs. 5, 6A, 7), defining the various guides 13, in which these guide profiles 13a are formed both on the portions 17a facing the edges of the covering elements 17 and along the contour, in the form of a recess, of the seats 14b obtained along the edge of the spherical caps 14.

Similarly to the spherical caps, also the blocks 12 are colored, and in particular each of them has two colored areas of different colors, according to twelve different pairs or combinations of two colors, so that the sliding blocks 12 are divided into twelve groups, indicated with g-1, g-2, ... g-12, each consisting of three sliding blocks 12 and defined by a specific pair or combination of two different colors.

Again, consistently with the number of rotating spherical caps 14-1, 14-2, etc. , the covering elements 17, fixed on the support skeleton 11, are eight in number, therefore indicated with 17-1, 17-2, .- .. 17-8, and are also arranged in a symmetrical and on opposite sides, two by two, on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, so as to leave free both the space for mounting the caps 14-1, 14-2, etc. on the support skeleton 11, and both the space, interposed between the facing profiles 17a of the covering elements, corresponding to the guides 13 for sliding the sliding blocks 12 along the spherical surface 10a, as clearly shown in Fig. 5.

One of these covering elements 17, for example the element 17-2, has an exchange area or free space, generally indicated by S and shown in Fig. 2, suitable for allowing the sliding of the sliding blocks 12, while playing the game, as better described later on.

In particular, this free space S is defined by a parking seat, indicated with 17b and obtained along an edge of the covering element 17-2, which has a recess shape suitable for receiving and housing exactly any of the blocks 12, in order to park it temporarily during the execution of the game and exchange it with another block 12, in the same location 17b.

Also these cover elements 17-1, 17-2, etc. of the sphere 10, fixed on the support skeleton 11, are colored.

However, unlike the sliding blocks 12 and the rotatable spherical caps 14 which exhibit, on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, areas of different colors so as to present different colors along their respective edges, the eight fixed covering elements 17 are single-colored, i.e. they are colored with eight different colors, with each of

they colored with only one of the eight colors used on sphere 10.

that is, each of them is colored with one and only color, which in turn

It is different from that of the other hedging elements.

Summarizing, for clarity, the following tables indicate the colors, in total

eight, of the colored areas of each of the various tiles 12-1, 12-2, etc. and of each

of the various spherical caps 14-1, 14-2, etc. , and the unique color of each of the

cover elements 17-1, 17-2, etc. , according to the following terminology.

M = Brown

R = Red

Vâ € ™ = Dark green

B = Blue

G = Yellow

A = Orange

V "= Light green

Z = Light blue

36 two-tone sliding blocks 12-1, 12-2, 12-3, ..., 12-35, 12-36, divided into twelve

groups g-1, g-2, ... g-12, each made up of three sliding blocks, defined by 12 different pairs of colors.

Group of three Color

dowels

'I I

M R: Vâ € ™ <!> B G A V "z

!

g-1 X X

g-4 <;> x X -9-5 X x;

9-6 X X

9-7 X X

9-8 X X

;

9-9 X! X

9-10 X X

9-11 X X

fl-12 X X

6 rotating spherical cups 14-1, 14-2, 14-3. 14-6, each with four zones

colored in different colors.

Spherical shell Color

!

M R Vâ € ™ B G A Vâ € Z

14 - 1 X X X X

14-2 X X X X

14-3 X X X X

14-4 X X X X

14-5 X X X X

14-6 X X X X

8 fixed cover elements 17-1, 17-2,. 17-8,

monochrome, colored with 8 different colors

Cover element Color

17-1 G

17-2 B

17-3 M

17-4 R

17-5 Vâ € ™

17-6 A

17-7 Vâ €

17-8 Z

Operation of the game ball of the invention and execution of the game In the execution of the game, the various spherical caps 14, the various blocks 12, and the various covering elements 17 of the sphere 10 are initially arranged, each relative to the others, in a determined and ordered combination or initial configuration, indicated with C1 and shown in Fig. 2.

In particular, this determined and ordered initial combination C1 is defined by a certain correspondence between the colors of the various colored areas of these various elements, that is, of the spherical caps 14, of the blocks 12, and of the cover elements 17, arranged adjacent one next to the other. to the other, on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, in this determined and ordered initial combination C1.

For example, as shown in Fig. 2, in the combination or configuration C1 the blue areas B of the blocks 12 and of the rotating caps 14 are arranged in an orderly manner around the blue cover element 17-2 B, in so as to define, on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, a sector or triangular spherical segment S2 of blue color B,

Again, again in the combination C1, the brown areas M of the dowels 12 and of the spherical rotating caps 14 are arranged in an orderly manner around and along the edges of the brown M covering element 17-3, so as to define , on the surface 10a of the sphere 10, a spherical sector S1 of brown color M, and so on, for the other colors, so that in the combination C1 the surface 10a delta sphere 10 has a total of eight spherical sectors or colored segments S1- S8, clearly distinct from each other, corresponding to the eight different colors M, R, V, B, G, A, V ", 2 used to define the colored areas of the spherical caps 14 and of the blocks 12, and the colors , unique, of the covering elements 17,

In particular, Fig. 2 shows four of these sectors or segments, respectively blue B, brown M, orange A, and dark green Vâ € ™.

Naturally, in the determined initial combination C1, the sphere also has, on its surface 10a as shown again in Fig, 2, the parking seat 17b, for sliding blocks 12, formed on a covering element 17.

Subsequently, in a preparatory phase of the game, this determined and ordered initial combination C1 is completely disrupted, as shown in Fig. 1.

In detail, in this preparatory phase, the initial combination C1 is altered and disrupted in a completely random way and without following a particular order, by rotating the spherical caps 14, as indicated by arrows fi, parking the various blocks 12 from time to time. in the parking seat 17b, as indicated by arrows f1 ", and furthermore by sliding the blocks 12, as indicated by arrows fi <1>, 12 along the guides 13, which thus form on the surface 10a.

In this way the spherical caps 14 and the blocks 12 are arranged in a completely random and disordered way with respect to each other and with respect to the fixed covering elements 17, on the spherical surface 10a, so that the sphere 10 assumes the configuration, shown in Fig, 1 and indicated by C2, in which the configuration with eight distinct colored spherical sectors S1-S8 and the chromatic correspondences of the initial combination C1 are completely lost, and in particular the various blocks 12 and the various spherical caps 14 have colors different around and along the edge of each cover element 17.

At this point the game consists in recombining, by the player, the various elements, that is the sliding blocks 12, the spherical rotating caps 14 and the fixed covering elements 17, so as to reconstruct on the surface 10a the initial combination C1, shown in Fig. 2, showing the eight spherical sectors S1-S8, of respective eight different colors.

Therefore, during this actual phase of the game, the player rotates the various caps 14 and slides the various blocks 12 on the spherical surface 10a of the sphere 10 until the initial combination C1 is regained, in turn clearly recognizable by the presence of the eight wedges or triangular spherical sectors, S1, S2, ... S8, each of a different color, on the same surface 10a.

More in detail, in this phase of the actual execution of the game, the player proceeds by steps, typically carrying out the following operations:

rotates, between one step and the other, the spherical caps 14, as indicated by arrows f2 in Fig. 2, so as to vary the mutual arrangement between the seats 14b of the various adjacent spherical caps, so that the blocks 112 housed in these seats 14b, they are moved and moved from one to the other of the sliding guides 13 defined on the spherical surface 10a;

slides the various blocks 12 along the guides 13, as indicated by arrows f2â € ™, in order to remove them from the previous seats 14b and insert them in new seats 14b of the spherical caps 14;

from time to time, or between one rotation and another of the spherical caps 14 and one sliding and the other of the blocks 12 along the guides 13, temporarily park a block 12 in the parking seat 17b, formed in one of the fixed cover 17, as indicated by an arrow f2â €, so as to exchange this block 12 with the block 12 previously housed in the parking seat 17b, and at the same time free up space on the spherical surface 10a so as to allow the sliding of the blocks 12 along it.

It follows that in this way, or by carrying out many of these operations in succession, the player progressively moves, step by step, the various tiles 12 from one area to the other of the spherical surface 10a, and also ensures that, at the ™ occurrence, the sliding blocks 12 rotate on themselves with respect to the initial position.

The game continues until the player, continuing to move, move and recombine, on the spherical surface 10a the various elements between them, that is the sliding blocks 12, the spherical rotating caps 14 and the fixed covering elements 17, reconstructs and obtain again the initial combination C1, which, as said, is easily recognizable, since it has on the surface 10a, as shown in Fig. 2, eight spherical sectors indicated with S-1, S-2, S-3, etc. , each of a different color and therefore clearly distinct from each other, in turn corresponding to the eight colors that were used to define the various colored areas of the blocks 12 and the caps 14, and the unique colors of the covering elements 17.

It is therefore clear, from what has been described, that the present invention fully achieves the objectives it had set itself, and in particular it proposes a sphere for manual skill game that is characterized by new and original possibilities to manually mess up and recombine the various elements. on its spherical surface, which greatly complicate the execution of the game so as to make it particularly attractive to fans of these games of manual skill.

In the preferred embodiment 10, described above, the ball for play has a number of spherical caps 14 equal to six, each provided with respective four seats 14b for housing the blocks 12, which are arranged symmetrically around the center of the sphere 10, i.e. at the poles and along the equatorial belt of sphere 10.

Furthermore, the same sphere 10 has a total number of sliding blocks 12, two-colored, equal to thirty-six, and a total number of fixed covering elements 17, one-colored, equal to eight.

Again, in this embodiment 10, eight different colors were used, in turn corresponding to the eight fixed cover elements 17-1, 17-2, ... 17-8, one-color, to define the two colored areas of each sliding block 12 and the four colored areas of each spherical cap 14.

However, it is clear that the above numbers, relating to the embodiment 10, have no limiting value, and that therefore a game sphere comprising a number, other than six, of spherical rotating caps, as well as a number, different of four, of the seats of each spherical cap, or a number, other than eight, of fixed covering elements, and therefore also a corresponding number, other than eight, of different colors to define the colored areas of the various elements of the sphere, must still be considered within the present invention.

Furthermore, in the example described above, the determined and ordered initial combination C1, that is the combination that constitutes the result of the game, is defined by a specific chromatic correspondence, in turn based on the adoption of eight colors ¬ different, among the colors of the zones, arranged adjacent one next to the other, of the various elements arranged on the surface 10a, or rather of the blocks 12, of the caps 14 and of the fixed covering elements 17, in this combination C1,

Here too, however, it is clear that this combination can also be defined in other ways, and by the correspondence of other characteristics, other than color and / or colored areas, between the disombinable and recombinable elements on the surface of the sphere.

For example, the combination, which the player must reconstruct by playing with the sphere of the invention, can consist of a specific and clearly recognizable image which is imprinted on the spherical surface of the sphere, and which is therefore divided into a multiplicity of corresponding areas. to the various sliding blocks, swivel caps and fixed cover elements of the sphere.

Or the combination that the player has to reconstruct can be based and defined by the correspondence of surface characteristics, such as roughness or others, of these elements, or by the correspondence between characters and / or graphic symbols printed on them.

Variants

While the basic concepts of the present invention remain, it is also clear that variations, modifications and further improvements may be made to the sphere for manual skill games described so far, without thereby departing from the scope of the invention itself.

For example, each fixed covering element, fixed on the internal support skeleton, while presenting the same and unique color along the entire extension of the respective edge, in turn destined to correspond with the colors of the various blocks and spherical caps in the determined initial configuration, it may have, in areas distant from the edge and for example in the central area of the roofing element, one or more different colors.

Again, the parking seat, in the form of a recess, is intended to temporarily park the sliding blocks, during the execution of the! play, can be formed, instead of along the edge of a fixed roofing element, along the edge of a rotating cap.

Two variants will now be described separately which, unlike the previous ones, limited to specific details, affect more generally the whole of the parts that make up the game sphere of invention.

First variant (Fio, 10)

Figs. 10 and 11 show a first variant, indicated as a whole with 110, of the game ball of the invention, in which the parts and characteristics corresponding to those of the ball 10, already described, are indicated with numerical references increased by 100.

Similarly to the game sphere 10, the game sphere 110 is also expected to be broken down into its various parts, and subsequently reassembled by a player, in order to obtain a certain initial combination C1, defined by a certain correspondence, along the surface 110a of the sphere 110, between the colors of the colored areas of the respective rotatable spherical caps 114, of the sliding blocks 112 and of the fixed covering elements 117,

The game ball 110 differs from the game ball 10 essentially in that the various spherical caps 114, which rotate around respective axes X, Y and 2 as indicated by arrows f3 in Fig. 10, are not separated from the covering elements fixed 117, fixed on the internal support skeleton 111, but are instead arranged adjacent to each other on the surface 110a of the game ball 110, i.e. each cap 114 is arranged so as to touch the four adjacent caps in four areas or points, in turn corresponding to the seats 114b suitable for receiving and housing the sliding blocks 112.

Therefore, in the sphere 110, the covering elements 117, unlike those 17 of the sphere 10 which have a vaguely trapezoidal shape, have a triangular shape.

Furthermore, the guides 113 of the playing ball 110, for the sliding of the blocks along the spherical surface 110a, as indicated by arrows f3â € ™, are defined only by two seats 114b, facing each other, of two adjacent caps 114.

Consequently, in the sphere 110, also the number of spaces, each corresponding to a piece 12, which are defined globally by the guides 113, is reduced, with respect to the sphere 10, and is equal to twenty-four.

Finally, the number of sliding blocks 112 of the game ball 110 is equal to twenty-three, i.e. it is reduced by one unit with respect to the total number, equal to twenty-four, of the available spaces, each corresponding to a block 112, defined by the guides 113 , in order to allow the sliding of the blocks 12 along the spherical surface 110a.

In fact, in this way, i.e. by missing a sliding block with respect to the total number, equal to twenty-four, of the available spaces defined by the guides 113, a space is freed along the same guides 113, indicated with S 'and shown in Fig. 10, exactly corresponding to a piece 112, so that the pieces 12 can slide, in the execution of the game, on the surface 110a of the sphere 110, so as to reconstruct the determined initial combination C1â € ̃.

Summarizing, the sphere of the variant 110 includes six rotating spherical caps 114, eight fixed covering elements 117, and twenty-three sliding blocks 112.

The operation of the variant 110 does not differ substantially from that of the sphere 10, and will therefore be omitted.

Second variant (Fig. 12)

Figs. 12 and 13A-13B refer to a second variant, indicated with 210, of the game ball of the invention.

In particular, Fig. 12 shows the sphere 210 in assembled form in a respective determined initial configuration, indicated with C1 ", while Figs. 13A-13B show some parts of the sphere 210, disassembled from the others.

In detail, this second variant 210, in which the parts and characteristics corresponding to those of the sphere 10 will be indicated with numerical references increased by 200, comprises a plurality of caps 214, rotatable on the surface 210a of the sphere 210; a plurality of blocks 212, sliding on the same surface 21 0a, which are substantially the same as the blocks 12 and 112 of the previous embodiments 10 and 110; and a plurality of fixed covering elements 217, of triangular shape, which are substantially the same as the fixed covering elements of the sphere 110.

Instead, unlike the caps 14 and 114, of these previous embodiments, which have along the edge a plurality of seats configured only to house the blocks along the edge of the cap, the spherical caps 214 have a series of guides 215 which are designed to guide and allow the sliding of the blocks 212 along the entire extension of the spherical surface 21 Oa, from one side to the opposite, of each cup 214.

In particular, each cap 214 has on its external spherical surface 21 Oa four guides 215, arranged on opposite sides, two by two, and each corresponding to a block 212, which divide this surface into four equal quadrants, indicated with 214e, and join, forming a kind of cross, in a central area of the cap 214.

In turn, each of the four guides 215 is defined by a pair of profiles 21 5a, arranged along the external surface 21 Oa and adapted to cooperate with two opposite sides of any sliding block 212, and by a pair of profiles 215b, arranged lower down towards the center of the ball 210 and able to cooperate with the guide groove 212a of the same sliding block 212.

Therefore, thanks to the presence of these guides 215, the blocks 212 of the game ball 210, unlike the blocks 12 and 112, respectively of the balls 10 and 110, which are designed to slide only on arcs, of limited extension, of circles of maximum diameter of the sphere, they can instead slide, during the execution of the game, along the whole circumference of circles with a maximum diameter of the sphere 210.

In other words, thanks to the presence of these guides 215 which allow the sliding of the blocks 212 through each cap 214. from one side to the opposite of it, the blocks 212 can be made to slide, during the execution of the game, along the whole the circumference of circles with a maximum diameter of the sphere 210, whereas, on the other hand, the blocks 12 and 112, respectively of the spheres 10 and 110, can be made to slide only on arcs, of limited extension, of circles with a maximum diameter of the sphere.

It also follows that the game ball 210, unlike the balls 10 and 110, does not have on its surface 21 Oa any free space or exchange area, corresponding to a block, to allow the sliding of the blocks on this surface 21 Oa during the execution of the game, this sliding being ensured by the different configuration, defined by the guides 215, of the caps 214 with respect to the caps 14 and 114 of the balls 10 and 110.

Otherwise, the game ball 210 is basically similar to the balls 10 and 110.

In particular, the caps 214 are able to rotate around respective axes on an internal skeleton, not shown in the drawings, of the sphere 210, and for this purpose they are rotatably mounted, in the area of a respective central hole 214c, on a corresponding pin fixed on the internal skeleton of the sphere 210.

This pin, in turn, is arranged in a lowered position with respect to the surface 21 Oa of the shell 214, so as not to interfere with the sliding of the blocks 212 through the central area of the shell 214.

In summary, the game ball 210 comprises six revolving spherical caps 214, in which each spherical cap 214 houses on its surface, in correspondence with the respective four guides 215 and the central area, a total of five 5 sliding blocks 212, for which the total of the blocks 212 of the sphere 210 is equal to thirty, and of course still includes eight fixed covering elements, of triangular shape, which separate the various spherical caps 214 from each other along the surface 210a.

Also the determined initial combination C1â € of the sphere 210, on the respective spherical surface 21 Oa, which, once altered, must be reconstructed again by the player is based on the correspondence between the colors of specific colored areas of the various elements, and as in the case of spheres 10 and 110, is defined by eight distinct segments or spherical sectors of eight different colors.

Therefore, of the thirty blocks 212 included in the game sphere of the variant 210, twenty-four are of the bi-color type, i.e. each have two zones of two different colors, and six blocks, indicated by 212b, instead have a configuration with four quadrants of four different colors, in which these four quadrants share a central point that corresponds to the common edge of four spherical segments of the determined initial combination C1 ", with eight spherical segments, to be reconstructed by the player.

However, for any other detail, not described here, of the variant of the game ball 210 and of the relative structure, reference is made to the previous embodiments 10 and 110.

Similarly to the spheres 10 and 11. also in the case of the game sphere 210, the game consists in decomposing its various parts, and in subsequently reassembling them, in order to obtain a certain initial combination, in turn, as mentioned above, defined by a certain correspondence, along the surface 21 Oa of the sphere 210, between the colors of the colored areas of these parts, that is, of the rotating spherical caps 214, of the sliding blocks 212 and of the fixed covering elements, and in particular defined by a configuration with eight spherical segments of eight different colors.

As already mentioned, the execution of the game with the variant of the sphere 210 differs from the spheres 10 and 110 in that the blocks 212, thanks to the different configuration of the caps 214 which allows the blocks to slide from one side to the other of them, they can be made to slide by the player, in the various steps of the game, along the whole circumference of circles of maximum diameter of the sphere 210, instead of only on limited portions of such circles.

In particular, in order to correctly reconstruct the determined initial combination, the six blocks that have a four-color configuration must be repositioned in the central areas of the six caps 214, so as to define the common edge of four adjacent spherical segments in this determined combination, to be rebuilt, which constitutes the objective of the game.

In this way the variant 210 further increases the complexity of the game and offers further possibilities to mess up and recombine the various parts of the sphere between them, thus making the game even more interesting and engaging.

Claims (4)

CLAIMS (with the amendments in a marked form) 1. Ball (10;) for manual skill game comprising; an internal support skeleton or body (11;); a plurality of blocks (12, 12-1, 12-2, 12-3, etc .;), or similar elements, substantially the same, sliding, arranged on the spherical surface (10a; ) of said sphere (10) and able to slide along it; a plurality of spherical caps (14, 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, etc .;), or similar rotating elements, arranged on said spherical surface (10a;) and able to rotate around respective axes (X , Y, Z) relative to said internal support skeleton (11;), each of said rotatable spherical caps (14; ) presenting along the respective circular edge (14a) a plurality of seats (14b;), in the form of recesses, suitable for receiving and housing said sliding blocks (12; 112), said blocks (12;) being able to slide on the surface spherical (10a;) of the sphere (10; 440) along guides (13; 443), defined by portions or arcs of circles of maximum diameter of the sphere (10; 440), extending between two corresponding seats (14b;) obtained along the edges of two different spherical caps (14;); a plurality of fixed covering elements (17, 17-1, 17-2, etc .;), fixed on said internal support skeleton (11;), which cover the areas of said spherical surface (10a) not occupied by the anchors sliding (12;) and swiveling spherical caps (14;); And at least one free space (S, 17b;) provided on the surface (10a;) of the sphere (10;), said free space being such as to free a space corresponding to a sliding block (12;) in order to allow the sliding of the blocks (12;) along said guides (13;) during the execution of the game; in which, in the execution of the game, the spherical caps (14, 14-1, 14-2, etc .;) are rotated manually (f2) around their respective axes (X, Y, Z), and the various blocks (12 ; ) are made to slide manually (f2 ') by a player on said spherical surface (10a;), along said guides (13;), so as to move and move, step by step, the various blocks (12; from one area to the The other of the spherical surface (10a;) and from one to the other of the seats (14b; obtained on the various spherical caps (14;), in order to reconstruct and regain a certain initial combination (C1; G4) between said caps spherical rotating elements (14; said sliding blocks (12;), and said fixed covering elements (17;), on the surface (10a;) of said sphere (10;). in which said free space (S), to allow the sliding of the blocks (12) on the surface (10a) of the sphere (10), is defined by a parking seat (17b), in the form of a recess, obtained along the edge of one of said revolving caps (14) or of one of said fixed covering elements (17), said parking seat (17b) being able to park temporarily, during the execution of the game and between one step and another , the various plugs (12). said sphere being characterized by what said fixed covering elements (17) are configured in such a way as to separate, on said spherical surface (10a), a rotating cap (14) from the other, so that said guides (13), for the sliding of said plugs (12), extending between two corresponding seats (14b), of two different rotatable spherical caps (14), they are defined in a respective central area, by the facing edges (17a) of two different covering elements fixed (17), e from what said support skeleton (11) consists of three annular elements (11 a, 11b. 11) arranged along the three planes of symmetry, perpendicular to each other, of the sphere (10), so as to cross in six areas of intersection arranged symmetrically with respect to the center of the same sphere (10). 2. Ball for play (10) according to claim 1. wherein said determined initial combination (C1), to be reconstructed by playing with the ball, is defined by a determined correspondence between the characteristics of said rotating cups 114), said sliding blocks (12) and said fixed covering elements (17). in the adjacency areas between them (12, 14, 17) in said determined initial combination (C1). And in particular said initial combination (C1) is defined by the correspondence between the colors of colored zones, arranged adjacent in said determined combination (C1), of said rotating caps (14). said sliding blocks (12) and said fixed covering elements (171; or from a determined image impressed on the spherical surface of the sphere and subdivided into a plurality of elementary areas corresponding to the various elements arranged on the surface of the sphere, that is the rotating caps, the sliding blocks and the fixed covering elements; or by the correspondence between specific surface characteristics of the adjacent areas of said rotating caps (14), said sliding blocks (12) and said fixed covering elements (17); or from the correspondence between symbols and / or characters imprinted on them. 3. Ball for play (10) according to claim 1 or 2. in which, on the surface of said sphere (10), each of said blocks (12) has at least two colored areas of different colors (M-R, M-Vâ € ™ , B-G, etc.); each of said spherical caps (14) has along its respective edge (14a) a number of colored areas of different colors (Vâ € ™ -A-Vâ € -Z, M-R-B-G, etc.) which correspond to the seats (14b), defined from the spherical cap, to receive the sliding blocks (12); and each of said covering elements (17) is colored with the same and unique color (G, B, M, etc.), in particular along the edge of the covering element, and in which said particular combination (C1, S1-S8) is defined by the correspondence between the colors (M, R, Vâ € ™, B, G, A, Vâ €, Z) of the colored areas of said rotatable spherical caps (14 ) and of said sliding blocks (12) and the colors of said fixed covering elements (17), along the edges, arranged adjacent one next to the other in said specific combination (C1), of said rotatable spherical caps (14), of said sliding blocks (12) and of said fixed covering elements (17). 4, Ball for play (10) according to claim § 3, in which said revolving spherical caps (14) are six in number, and each have four seats (14b), corresponding to four different colors, arranged symmetrically and angularly spaced apart 90 ° around the axis of the spherical cap; in which said sliding blocks (12) are thirty-six in number, and each have two areas of different colors; wherein said fixed covering elements (17) are eight in number; in which eight different colors (M, R, Vâ € ™, B, G, A, V ", Z) are used to define the various colored areas of the thirty-six tiles and the eight spherical caps and the unique colors of the eight said covering elements and in which said determined initial configuration (C1) has eight distinct spherical sectors or segments (S1-S2-S8) corresponding to said eight different colors. Ball for play (10;) according to any one of the preceding claims, in which said sliding blocks (12;) each consist of a body which has, on the outer spherical surface (10a;) of said sphere, a substantially rectangular shape, and it has, on the side facing towards the inside of the sphere, a groove (12a), in turn adapted to cooperate with corresponding guide profiles (13a) formed along the contour, in the form of a recess, of said seats (14b; ) and along the edge (17a) of said covering elements (17), in order to guide the block (12; 442) during the manual sliding along the surface (10a;) of the sphere (10;).