US2781595A - Toy ruler with animated figures - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 19, 1957 5. J. c. BOURDIN 2,781,595

TOY RULER WITH ANIMATED FIGURES Filed March 26. 1954 jz' a l. i is fin i ii al 55%? M0155 C/M'fLES BUURDl/v IN VENTOR ATTORNEY United States PatentO 2,781,595 TOY RULER WITH ANIMATED FIGURES 1 Serge Jules Charles Bourdin, Paris, France I Application March 26, 1954, Serial No. 419,036

Claims priority, application France March 30, 1953 I 7 Claims; (CI. 40-96) The present invention has for its object a pupils toy ruler for desk or drawing use, which comprises an animated or a fixed decorative design intended for entertaining, instructive or advertising purposes.

According to the invention, the ruler is hollow and made of a transparent material, and it is internally fitted with a strip supporting a decorative design arranged in front of a background adapted to said design, means being provided for shifting said strip relative to said background.

By means of non-restrictive examples, there may be represented on the movable strip: cyclist racers running in front of a background including roads, mountain landscapes, hunting in front of a plain or forest landscape, soldiers parading in front of historical monuments, etc.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, from a consideration of the following description of one specific embodiment of the invention, shown by way of example, 7

in the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a ruler according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a cross section of this ruler;

Fig. 3 is a top view with some parts broken away of one of the faces of the ruler;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the ruler;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a roller for shifting the movable strip;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view, showing the elements for holding the fixed decorative background;

Fig. 7 shows the movable strip formed into shape ready to be placed on the assembly of Fig. 6, and

Fig. 8 is an elevational front view of the stationary background. In the embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawing, 1 denotes the stationary decorative background which may be constituted by a strip of material such as paper, Bristol paper, and the like, adapted to receive thereon by means of the conventional drawing, printing or photoengraving processes a decorative design related to the subject which is to stand on the movable strip 2.

The decorative background 1 is clamped between two transparent bars 3 and 4, the ends of which are rounded into a semi-circle.

Over the assembly of the two bars 3 and 4, thus brought near each other is slipped the transparent strip 2 which is thin and flexible, and which may be made of a material similar to that the moving picture films are made of. The strip 2 embraces with a gentle friction and in a continuous manner the assembly illustrated in Fig. 6. Upon this strip are applied by any suitable means the subjects adapted to be animated and to move in front of the stationary background 1.

The above mentioned assembly is enclosed within the hollow ruler proper constituted by the transparent plates 5 and 6 and the covers 7 and 8 which may not be transparent. Should the above mentioned plates and covers not be made integral, they may be assembled by adhesive means for instance. The covers 7 and 8 are in engagement with the top and bottom parts of the assembly shown in Fig. 6 while a given clearance may be left between said assembly and the plates 5 and 6 for avoiding the outer face of the flexible strip 2 to get marred due to the frictional eflt'ect.

At both ends of the ruler provision is made for rollers 9, and 10 made-of, rubber, gutta, or the like, which are in engagement with the outer face of the flexible strip 2. It will be readilyunderstood that when the rollers are rotated in the direction of the arrows, the, flexible strip' is driven in the direction indicated in Figs. 3 and 7.

-In the modification shown in Fig. 3, guide-rolls 11 and 12 are provided in suitable recesses provided within the bars 3 and 4, said guide rolls being in bearing engagement with the inner face of the flexible strip 2 which is thus pressed between the rollers and guide rolls 9 and 11 on one hand, and 10 and 12 on the other hand.

In any case, the rollers 9 and 10 may be maintained by means of pins 13, the projecting ends of which'are supported in corresponding bearing recesses provided in the end portions of the covers 7 and 8.

In order to conceal the ends of pins 13, and if the plates 5 and 6 and the covers 7 and 8 are assembled by adhesive means in order also possibly to improve the assemblage of the external elements of the ruler, over the end portions of the ruler may be slipped rubber bands 14 and 15 forinstance, or metal rings suitably made to shape and forcedly driven. The small-thickness of such bands or rings enables the ruler not to bear against the paper on which a line is being drawn thus avoiding the ink to flow under the ruler and ruin the work. When rubber is used, the bands form an antiskidding device which holds the ruler firmly in place on the paper.

As many changes could be made in the above construction, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. For instance the shifting of the strip could be achieved like in moving picture films by means of a sprocket wheel cooperating with perforations along the strip.

What I claim is:

1. Toy ruler comprising in combination a casing constituted by two lateral transparent elongated plates arranged in parallel spaced-relationship and top and bottom covers longitudinally secured to said plates, two transparent bars arranged inside said casing, with their ends rounded into semi-cylinders, the top and bottom surfaces of said bars being respectively in engagement with said covers, said bars leaving a gap between themselves and relative to the inner face of each of said transparent plates, a transparent endless flexible strip carrying a decorative design arranged around said bars and adapted to be shifted along and in said gap provided between said bars and said transparent plates, a thin background element. inserted between. said two transparent bars and carrying a design in accordance with said design carried by said strip and driving means manually operable from I the exterior of said casing and operatively connected to said strip for shifting said strip in said casing, while said background remains stationary.

2. The combination'of claim 1 wherein said driving means consists of a roller rotatably mounted'in at least an end of said casing in frictional engagement with the outer face of said flexible strip and adapted to be rotated by a finger through an aperture in the end of said casing.

3. The combination of claim 1 with the provision of cylindrical recesses in the end portions of said two transparent bars, back-rollers rotatably mounted in said recesses with their cylindrical surface in frictional engagement with the inner face of said flexible strip, said driving means being constituted by a roller rotatably mounted at each end of said casing and in frictionalengagement with the outer face of said flexible strip opposite said two back rollers respectively, said rollers partially protruding out of said casing for engagement by a finger of the user. p

4. T hecombination of 'claim 2 wherein said roller is rigid with an axial pin adapted topivot in corresponding recesses of said covers. t

5. The combination of claim 2 wherein said roller is made of high friction material.

6. A toy ruler comprising a stationary background strip carrying a design, a movable endless transparent strip traveling around said stationary background strip and carrying a design complementary to the design of said background strip, transparent means holding said background strip and providing a guiding surface for 4 said traveling strip, manually operated means actuating said movable strip, and a casing enclosing said strips and holding means, said casing having a transparent top wall.

7. A toy ruler comprising a stationary background strip carrying a design, a movable endless transparent strip traveling around said stationary background strip and carrying a design complementary to the design of said background strip, transparent means holding said background strip and providing a guiding surface for said traveling strip, at least one manually operated roller frictionally engaging said movable strip for displacement thereof with respect to said stationary strip, and a casing enclosing said strips and holding means, said casing having a transparent top wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 564,211 Mishler July 21, 1896 1,553,906 Marette Sept. 15, 1925 2,239,187 Becker Apr. 22, 1941 2,304,327 Anderson Dec. 8, 1942

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