US3181867A - Memory game apparatus - Google Patents

Description

May 4, 1965 A. F. DREYER MEMORY GAME APPARATUS Filed Jan. 14

INVENTOR ALLEN F. DREYER fizyy fw END FIE| E A TTORNE vs United States Patent 3,181,867 MEMORY GAME APPARATUS Allen F. Dreyer, Richmond, Calif., assignor to Universal Research, Berkeley, Calif., a partnership Filed Jan. 14, 1963, Ser. No. 251,079 8 Claims. (Cl. 273-131) The present invention relates to improvements in a game and particularly to a game requiring concentration by the players which is particularly suitable for a plurality of players or teams.

Games which utilize a playing board or apparatus together with a plurality of playing pieces are well known and have been eminently successful in providing many hours of amusement and fun to people everywhere. In general, games of this nature are particularly successful when the elements of luck and skill are combined so as to provide an advantage to the most skillful player and yet allow the less skilled player an opportunity to win an occasional game. The skill factor is usually determined by the manner in which the player carries out the various procedures open to him within the framework of the game, and the luck element may be through the casting of dice, drawing of a card, or the operation of a spinner or other device which determines the amount of or the type of play open to the player on his turn. The degree of luck utilized and complexity of the game together with the skill of the players will vary with different games so that certain games are best suited for different age brackets or skill of the players.

The present invention provides a game of the above mentioned character which introduces an additional skill factor in the form of memory, and thus provides a possibility for three elements in determining the winner. A particular advantage of the game of the present invention resides in the possible variation of plays or different games that may be played by the same apparatus in which the relative importance of the different elements mentioned above may vary. In other words, it is possible to provide a game in which the element of luck is completely eliminated, if desired, and the winner is determined by the manner in which he plays together with his ability to remember prior plays made as the most important factor. Of course, he may use various systems of play when it is his turn in order to establish a code or other aid to his memory in remembering the prior plays and to confuse his opponent.

Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a game utilizing a playing board or the like apparatus together with a plurality of playing pieces in which the ability to make accurate plays and thereby improve the chances of winning is determined by the ability to remember all of the plays that have already been made during the course of the game.

Another object of the invention is to provide a game of the character described in which a playing board is provided that hides certain of the preceding plays so that these plays must be committed to memory in order to secure an advantage, with the player best able to remember these hidden plays being the most likely player to win the game.

A further object of the invention is to provide a game containing an apparatus or board having a plurality of containers for holding a plurality of playing balls in each container thereof in lineal alignment together with means for masking the view of the playing pieces so that only the last piece played in a particular container may be seen and the knowledge of how many pieces have been played in each container should be remembered by the player.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a game apparatus of the character described in which a plurality of different games of various difliculty may be played according to the desire and ability of the competing players.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent as the specification proceeds, and the new and useful features of my invention will be fully defined in the claims hereto attached.

The preferred forms of my invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawing forming a part of this description, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective view of the playing apparatus constructed according to the invention together with an illustration of certain of the playing pieces and a die that may be used in accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 2, a plan view of the apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 1, but containing a special mask which is especially suitable for a specific game to be described in detail hereinafter;

FIGURE 3, a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 33 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4, an enlarged top view of a preferred form of container utilized in the apparatus constructed according to the invention.

While I have shown only the preferred forms of my invention, it should be appreciated that various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the claims hereto attached, without departing from the spirit of the invention. I

In its broad aspect, the game of this invention comprises a playing board or apparatus and a plurality of playing pieces capable'of fitting into containers provided on the playing board. The playing board or apparatus is preferably flattened out and has a suiiicient depth to hold a plurality of playing pieces in aligned vertical relation. For example, a typical playing board will be about three inches high or thick. The top of the playing board structure presents a pattern of holes which may vary considerably in number, but there must be at least a plurality of holes and preferably a number greater than three. A typical game such as that illustrated in the drawing contains 16 holes arranged symmetrically. As will be seen, the number of holes provided is proportional to the degree of memory required in playing the game so that a beginner or childs model may have a smaller number of holes, and a regulation game may contain 16 holes while an advanced or experts game could contain more than 16 holes.

The playing pieces are constructed to fit into the holes and in a preferred form the playing pieces are spherical wooden balls. In such a case, the holes are preferably circular and represent the open top of a tube or a cylindrical container of the proper size to receive the playing pieces. The playing board or apparatus also contains means associated with the container for holding the balls at the opening of the tube in a yieldable manner so that the balls may be forced down into the container or allowed to set with substantially half is diameter protruding from the top of the hole in the playing board.

Thus as the balls are played into the containers in the playing board, the first ball is inserted in the hole and remains visibly in place at the top of the container. When a second ball is played in the same hole, the first ball is pushed down into the tube, and the second ball is then held in position the same as the first ball was. In a typical form, a third and fourth ball can then be played into the same tube, but when four balls are in the tube the container is full with the bottom ball resting on the bottom of the playing apparatus. Thus any attempt to play another ball in the full tube will meet with firm resistance.

Although I perfer to utilize containers which hold four balls, it will be appreciated that the containers can be designed to hold any number of balls so long as there s19 is provision to hold a plurality of balls and the last ball is held at its opening. Once again, the size of the container will serve to provide for games of more or less complexity, and I have found that containers which hold four balls are eminently suitable.

When the game is being played, it is difficult to re 'member the number of balls played in the holes unless the play is very carefully watched and a sutficient number of plays remembered to give a player an advantage. When an attempt is made to play a ball into a hole and the hole is full, a player loses his turn and thus loses time in his objective of playing all his pieces. This is the basis for the game and provides the memory factor described above.

Methods of play can be Worked out by the players to aid in rememebring which tubes are full. For example, the player may make his play to follow a particular design code known only to himself to aid his memory. This may be accomplished by relating the full tubes by diagonal factors or the next move in fact. The design of the playing board is important in this respect, and so are the colors of the playing balls when multicolored playing balls are used. In such a case, the player might attempt to fill up outside holes with green balls and inside holes with red balls or some other aid in remembering open or closed tubes or containers. A variety of games may be played so that the short games or long games may be provided as well as games ranging in difiiculty from those having fairly simple to those having fairly difiicult memory problems.

Certain specific examples of games will be given herein for the purpose of illustration, but it will be appreciated that other games could be provided within the scope of the invention. Example 1 below illustrates the basic game, in which the luck factor is reduced substantially to a minimum with the exception of the advantage of playing first.

Example 1 Playing pieces of 64 balls are used with the playing apparatus having 16 containers, each capable of holding four balls as described in detail hereinafter. Four colors are used with even distribution. In other words, there are 16 red, 16 green, 16 blue and 16 yellow balls. The balls are evenly divided among the players, and the first player is chosen by high throw of the single die provided with each game or any other suitable choosing means. When three players are playing the game, the odd ball is placed in any opening before play starts so that each player has the same number of balls.

The object of the game is to be the first to play 7 all balls in his possession with the players playing in regu lar rotation one ball at a time. Thus the first player places the ball into any opening where it remains with its upper half protruding from the board. The second player may then play a ball into any other opening or in the same opening that the first player used. When a second abll is placed in the container, the ball being played is placed on top of one already in the opening, and pushed down until it remains in the same position that the first ball occupied. In this case, the ball already held at the top of the opening drops down into the container. If or when a player attempts to place a ball in a full container (into a container which already has four balls) the ball will not go in. Then the player must keep the bail and lose his turn. As the game progresses and players forget what has been played, the fun increases.

It has been found that in the game illustrated the player generally gains an advantage by remembering the condition of more than half of the containers or more than one fourth of the containers if four players are competing.

A typical example of a playing apparatus constructed according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying rawings. As here shown,

the game comprises a playing board or apparatus 11 having a playing surface 12 in the form of a mask fitting on a plastic unit 13 which fits into a box 14. The various units are held in position in the box by means of a frame 16 which fits tightly but removably on the box as best snown in FIGURE 3. If desired, temporary holding mean may be provided to hold the frame 16 in place during the game, but the frame should be removable so that the plastic unit 13 can be lifted out of the box and the various playing pieces recovered easily.

The various components of the apparatus and playing pieces may be constructed of a variety of materials such as plastic or wood. I have found that a particularly satisfactory unit may be constructed by utilizing wood for the box 14- and the frame 16, transparent plastic for the unit 13 and paper for the mask 12. When the upper surface of the plastic unit 13 is opaque, it is possible to dispense with the paper playing surface 12. However, the game is generally provided with a plurality of playing surfaces such as the surface 12 shown in FIGURE 1 and the surface 12a illustrated in FIGURE 2. In this way, a large number of playing surfaces may be provided for different types of games. In addition, it is possible to change the geometric configuration by utilizing a mask 12 which covers up certain of the holes to provide a different geometric configuration. For example, if the holes at the four corners are covered up by a mask, the present apparatus provides a playing surface in the form of a cross.

The unit 13 may also be constructed in a variety of Ways, but it must have means for holding a plurality of playing pieces in lineal alignment together with releasable holding means for holding a playing piece at an opening of the container at the playing surface. In addition, the apparatus should be constructed so that the playing pieces may be easily removed for replay. These objectives may be achieved by a number of different designs including containers having regular bottoms together with other means for removing the playing pieces. For example, spring retaining means could be used which could be released as a group to allow the balls to return outward or any other mechanical devices could be designed to provide the above mentioned functions.

In the preferred form, a plurality of cylindrical or tubular shaped plastic pieces or containers 17 are provided and these are welded or fastened by a suitable adhesive to a plastice plate 18 having holes 1s therein for receiving the plastic tubes 17. The tubes 17 are constructed of substantially the same length so that the plastic unit 13 may rest on the bottom of the box 14, and the hei ht is preferably such that frame 16 holds the entire unit firmly together.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated in the drawing, each plastic tube 17 contains three slotted portions 21 lying substantially in the same plane and holding an elastic member 22. As best seen in FIGURE 4, the elastic member 22 extends within the cylindrical plastic tube 17 in symmetrical fashion to provide a good firm releasabie holding means for the playing pieces.

When the container for the playing pieces is substantially tubular as shown in the preferred embodiment, the playing pieces 23 are preferably spherical balls of such dimensions that they slide easily through the tube but are adapted to rest on the elastic member 22. If desired, the playing pieces can come in different lengths so that not all of the playing pieces are alike. For example, two or three of the balls could be permanently adhered together in lineal fashion so that such a playing piece would occupy a plurality of positions and might be played as the first play for a given hole and add additional confusion or difficulty in remembering for the players.

In the apparatus here described, players can hear the balls drop into the bottom of the box, but this generally does not provide a sufficient hint to be of any value. If desired, means may be provided to prevent this hint such as a cushioned bottom for the box 14, or by providing additional holding means throughout the length of the container so that the balls are also held in intermediate positions.

Alternative devices can be used to releasably hold the balls, if desired. For example, the tube may be lined with a layer of sponge rubber or plastics, spring devices may be fastened in the outside of the tube presenting a slidable device through the holes in the tube, or elaborate units may be provided in which individual units would hold all the balls and release them all at once after the game is ended.

The apparatus shown in the drawing is preferred because it is comparatively simple in construction and efficient in operation. In this connection, it should be noted that the slots 21 are made in a half V-shape to allow the elastic member 22 to move down and out for releasing the balls and for returning the elastic member to proper position. A slot constructed in other forms is likely to cause the elastic to bind. Specifically, the top of the slot is parallel with the top of the tube as shown in FIG- URE 3 and the bottom of the slot slants down at about a 45 degree angle as shown by surface 24. With this construction, the ball may he accidentally pushed a little too far into the tube and it will return to the proper position.

FIGURE 3 illustrates the manner in which the balls are held by the elastic member 22 and stacked up when the containers are full. Thus the tube 17 at the left-hand side of FIGURE 3 illustrates how two balls are positioned in the tube as they are played. In other words, one ball rests upon the bottom of the box 14 while the other ball is held within the entrance opening of the container by the elastic member 22. At the right-hand side, a full tube is illustrated by the balls shown in phantom, and it is seen that any attempt to play another ball will be unsuccessful. Thus the full tube and the tube having room for two more balls present exactly the same appearance from the top of the playing surface so that the tubes may only be identified by their position in the playing surface or to some extent by the color of the balls at the top thereof.

From the foregoing description, it is seen that the apparatus illustrated in the drawing is suitable for playing the game described above. In addition, it is also suitable for playing other games as illustrated by the additional examples which are given below.

Example 2 This example illustrates a game played according to the invention which I have entitled Color Dice. The game is the same as the basic game illustrated in Example 1 above except that a throw of special Color Dice controls the number of balls played and the holes played therein. The game combines luck and skill. In this game, one or more color dice are used such as the die 26 which is a typical cube having each of the six faces colored with colors corresponding to those of the balls being played. Each face may contain a single color or a pair of colors and the number of dice used may be varied. The board used is one containing a mask or layout such as 12a which contains indicia for indicating the various colors. In other words, red area 27 is provided around 4 holes, green area 28 is provided around 4.0ther holes, blue area 29 is provided around still 4 other holes, and yellow area 31 is provided around each of the remaining 4 holes.

In the play, the first player rolls a colored die or dice. If a single color turns up, the player plays one ball in any of the 4 holes showing the color rolled. If 2 colors turn up, the player plays the ball in each of the two holes showing the colors turned up on the color die or dice. As in the basic game, players must try to remember which holes are full. If an attempt is made to play a ball in a full hole, the player must keep the ball and lose a turn. The first player to play all of his playing pieces wins the game.

Example 3 Another game which may be played in accordance with this invention is the game herein designated as Spot Dice. The game is the same as the basic game and the Color Dice game described above except that regulation dice are used. In other words, dice are used which have numbered indicia from one to six on each of the six faces as in standard cubical dice. Once again the game combines luck and skill, and the single die controls the number of balls played.

In the play, the first player rolls the die and notices the number that turns up. This number determines the number of balls the player may play, and they may be played in any of the holes in the playing board. As the game progresses and the player attempts to play a ball in a full hole he does not lose his turn, but must keep the ball or it could not be played. For example, if a player rolls a 5 he may play the first ball as one of the 5, and if a second is played into a full hole, he must keep that ball, but can go on and play the remaining 3 balls, if possible. Again the first player to play all of his playing pieces wins the game.

Example 4 This example illustrates a game which I identify as Follow Me, and this game also utilizes a mask such as mask 1201 which indicates a starting position and has a line drawn from there throughout the entire board. In this game, each player plays one ball in turn as in the other forms of the game; the winner is the person to play all of his playing pieces first.

However, in Follow Me the first player must play a ball in the first hole marked Start. Second player then has a choice of playingin the first or second hole following the heavy black lines around the board. First player then has a choice of playing a hole that has been played in or in the empty hole following the line. Neither player can play more than one empty hole past those already played at any time. The game is very fast and much skill is required to confuse the opponent in remembering enough of the previous plays to win the game.

From the various games illustrated in the examples given above, it is seen that many types of games or varieties of plays are provided by this invention, and that all of these games provide amusement through the use of the skill factor based on memory. In addition, the play factor is involved whereby each player may utilize his own play in such a way as to follow a"systern or particular code so as to provide him an advantage in regard to remembering the condition of the'varilous playing areas. It is also seen that games may be provided in which the luck factor is present in various degrees.

From all the foregoing description, it is seen that I have provided a game of concentration capable of providing many hours of amusement for the players regardless of their ages or skills.

I claim:

1. A game comprising a board having a playing surface equipped with a plurality of openings, a plurality of containers adjacent to the playing surface each having an open end in alignment with an opening in the playing surface, each of said containers having walls constructed to hold a plurality of playing pieces in lineal alignment, and holding means on each container for releasably holding a playing piece at the opening of the playing surface, each of said holding means comprisinga plurality of slots in the container and an elastic member fitting in said slots and extending into the container at one end thereof.

2. The game defined in claim 1, in which masks are provided to vary the design of the playing surface.

3. A game comprising a board having a playing surface equipped with a plurality of openings, a plurality of tubular containers attached to the playing surface with an end of each tube being open and corresponding to an opening in the board, a plurality of balls of a size sufiicient to fit closely Within said tubular containers, each of said tubular containers constructed to hold a plurality of said balls in lineal alignment, and holding means on each container for releasably holding a ball at an opening in the board, each of said holding means comprising a plurality of slots extending through the walls of the tube at one end thereof and an elastic member fitting within said slots.

4. The game defined in claim 3, in which masks are provided to vary the design of the playing surface.

5. The game defined in claim 3, in which the slots have lower surfaces extending at about a 45 degree angle with respect to the walls of the containers.

6. A game, comprising a box having a bottom, a unit remcvably fitting Within the box containing a board having a playing surface equipped with a plurality of openings, a plurality of tubular containers open at both ends, each of said tubular containers being attached to the playing surface with one open end of each tube corresponding to an opening in the board and the other open end fitting adjacent to the bottom of the box, a plurality of balls of a size sufiicient to fit closely within said tubular containers, each of said tubular containers constructed to hold a plurality of said balls in lineal alignment, and holding means on each container for releasably holding a ball at an opening in the board, each of said holding means constructed to support a ball thereon while in normal position and releasable by application of a force in excess of the weight of the ball to allow the ball to be pushed therethrough and into the associated container.

7. The game defined in claim 6, in which sixteen tubular containers are provided and each container is constructed to hold four balls.

8. A game comprising a board having a playing surface equipped with a plurality of openings, a plurality of tubular containers attached to the'playing surface at the openings in the board, said tubes being open at both ends whereby playing pieces may be inserted into each container from its corresponding opening in the board and removed therefrom through the opposite opening in the container, closure means relatively movable with respect to the containers for closing the ends opposite the ends attached to the playing surface, a plurality of balls of a size sutlicient to fit closely within said tubular containers, and holding means on each container for releasably holding a ball at an opening in the board, each of said holding means constructed to support a ball thereon while in normal position and releasable by application of a force in excess of the weight of the ball to allow the ball to be pushed therethrough and into the associated container.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 540,268 6/95 Newell 461 3,014,727 12/61 Myers 273-l 3,101,947 8/63 Dzuris 273-136 X FOREIGN PATENTS 47,073 5/ 89 Germany.

DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. 8. A GAME COMPRISING A BOARD HAVING A PLAYING SURFACE EQUIPPED WITH A PLURALITY OF OPENINGS, A PLURALITY OF TUBULAR CONTAINERS ATTACHED TO THE PLAYING SURFACE AT THE OPENINGS IN THE BOARD, SAID TUBES BEING OPEN AT BOTH ENDS WHEREBY PLAYING PIECES MAY BE INSERTED INTO EACH CONTAINER FROM ITS CORRESPONDING OPENING IN THE BOARD AND REMOVED THEREFROM THROUGH THE OPPOSITE OPENING IN THE CONTAINER, CLOSURE MEANS RELATIVELY MOVABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE CONTAINERS FOR CLOSING THE ENDS OPPOSITE THE ENDS ATTACHED TO THE PLAYING SURFACE, A PLURALITY OF BALLS OF A SIZE SUFFICIENT TO FIT CLOSELY WITHIN SAID TUBULAR CONTAINERS, AND HOLDING MEANS ON EACH CONTAINER FOR RELEASABLY HOLDING A BALL AT AN OPENING IN THE BOARD THEREON SAID HOLDING MEANS CONSTRUCTED TO SUPPORT A BALL THEREON WHILE IN NORMAL POSITION AND RELEASABLE BY APPLICATION OF A FORCE IN EXCESS OF THE WEIGHT OF THE BALL TO ALLOW THE BALL TO BE PUSHED THERETHROUGH AND INTO THE ASSOCIATED CONTAINER.

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