US3478465A - Doll eye and means pivoting the eye upon moving of its pivot axis within a plane - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 18. 1969 J. H. WILHELM 3,478,465

DOLL EYE AND MEANS PIVOTING THE EYE UPON MOVING OF ITS PIVOT AXIS WITHIN A PLANE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 19, 1964 A77bE/VEVS 3,478,465 MOVING J. H. WILHELM Nov. 18. 1969 DOLL EYE AND MEANS PIVOTING THE EYE UPON OF ITS PIVOT AXIS WITHIN A PLANE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 19, 1964 FIG. 4

FIG.

INVENTOR. Jamv M4 #5444 Nov. 18. 1969 J. H. WILHELM 3,478,465

' DQLL EYE AND MEANS PIVOTING THE EYE UPON MOVING OF ITS PIVOT AXIS WITHIN A PLANE Filed March 19, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VENTOR.

JO/Y/V ,4. W14 #54 44 3,478,465 Patented Nov. 18, 1969 3,478,465 DOLL EYE AND MEANS PIVOTING THE EYE UPON MOVING OF ITS PIVOT AXIS WITHIN A PLANE John H. Wilhelm, Newark, N..I., assignor to Marion Corporation, Newark, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Mar. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 353,053 Int. Cl. A63h 3/40 US. Cl. 46-169 14 Claims This invention relates to movable, or so-called sleeping, doll eyes.

The prime object of my present invention is the provision of a movable doll eye having the novel behavior or operation of remaining open or awake when the doll head is both in an erect or upright position and in a prone or lying down position (with face upward), and moves to a closed or sleeping condition when the doll head is moved to a prone and side-tilted position.

Conventional movable or sleeping doll eyes are constructed so that when and as the doll head is moved from an erect or upright position to a prone or reclined position, the eyes respondingly move from an open to a closed condition. This operation lacks somewhat of realism since it does not correctly simulate the natural behavior of a child being put to bed. In the movable doll eye of'the present invention, a fuller realism is imparted to the action of the doll by so constructing the mechanism of the doll eye that the doll may be laid down into its face upward lying or prone position without causing the doll eyes to close, and so that only when the doll is then moved on its side, simulating a tenderness of adding a further matter of comfort to impart or induce sleep, will the doll eyes move to a closed or sleeping state. The structure is furthermore such that as soon as the doll is moved from this supine and side-tilted position to any other position, the eyes will quickly come awake by moving to an open condition.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing object and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, the present invention relates to movable doll eyes as are more particularly sought to be defined in the appended claims, taken together with the following specification and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating a doll head in erect position with a pair of individual movable eyes of the present invention mounted therein;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing in exploded condition the components of one of the individual movable eyes of the present invention, with one part shown partly broken away;

FIG. 2A is a perspective view of one of the components, namely the housing member, shown in FIG. 2, taken in section in the plane of the line 2A2A of FIG. 2;

FIG. 3 is a view in an enlarged scale with some of the parts shown in section and taken in the plane of the line 3-3 of FIG. 1, featuring the left doll eye of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view also shown in an enlarged scale, with some of the parts shown in section and taken in the plane of the line 44 of FIG. 1, featuring particularly the right doll eye of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a view of FIG. 3 with all the parts shown in section taken in the plane of the line 55 of FIG. 3;

The said FIGS. 1 to 5 illustrate the position of the doll eyes in the doll head with the doll head and eyes in their erect position, the doll eyes being then held in eye open condition; these views, however, also illustrate the position of the doll eyes in the doll head when the head and eyes are moved to a prone (lying down with face upward) position, the doll eyes being then also held in eye open condition, as may be seen by turning FIG. 3 to a lying down or prone position;

FIG. 6 is a front view illustrating the doll head of FIG. 1, when moved to a prone position, tilted, however, to lie on the left side of the doll, the doll eyes being now shown in closed or sleeping condition;

FIG. 7 is a view shown in an enlarged scale, with some of the parts shown in section and taken in the plane of the line 77 of FIG. 6, featuring particularly the right doll eye of FIG. 7;

FIG. 8 is a view of FIG. 7, with some of the parts shown 1n section taken in the plane of the line 8-8 of FIG. 7; FIG. 9 is a view shown in an enlarged scale, with some of the parts shown in section and taken in the plane of the line 9-9 of FIG. 6;

It will be noted that the parts not shown in section in FIGS. 3, 4, and 7 to 9 are the component parts of the eye member; and

FIGS. 10 to 12 are views of a modified structure of a doll eye of the present invention, of which FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of the eye member, FIG. 11 is a front view (looking into) a housing member for the eye member, and FIG. 12 is a side elevational view of the housing member.

Referring now more in detail to the drawings and having reference first to FIGS 2 to 5 thereof, the doll eye assembly A of the present invention shown inserted in and held by an eye socket s formed integrally in a doll head d, the latter made of a suitable resilient plastic material such as a vinyl plastic, comprises the components separately shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, namely an eye member E provided with a weight W contained in a housing H, the said housing comprising a back cover S in the form of a housing shell and a front cover C. The eye member E is supported by being pivotally mounted in the housing H and more particularly in the back cover shell S for movement thereon about a horizontal axis h between eye opened and eye closed positions; and the weight W is mounted on the eye member E for pivotal movement thereon about a vertical axis v between a vertical pendant position (shown in FIGS. 2 to 5 of the drawings) and a side tilted position (assumed when the doll is moved to lie on one of its sides).

The eye member E comprises a preferably plastic shell molded in the shape best shown in FIG. 2 having a hemispherical body 10 provided with a simulated eye portion 12, oppositely positioned pivot trunnions 14, 14, inwardly extending lug portions 16, 16 (acting as stops for the side movement of the weight W) and extensions 18, 18 which form pivot seats for the weight W When the latter is assembled to the eye member. The eye member is also preferably provided with a lash member I assembled thereto.

The weight W comprises a metal piece configurated as best shown in FIG. 2. formed with a weight mass 20, oppositely positioned trunnions 22, 22 and an end portion 24 terminating in a piece 26 Which acts as a cam follower as will be hereinafter explained. The Weight W is assembled to the eye member E positioning the trunnions 22 of the former in the pivot extensions 18 of the latter, the pivot extensions being staked over the trunnions as best shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 of the drawings for securing these parts in assembled condition, the weight being thereby mounted for free pivoting on the eye member about a vertical axis.

The back cover shell S of the housing H, suitably molded from a hard plastic material, is configurated to provide at its open front pivot recesses 28, 28 for receiving the pivot trunnions 14 of the eye member. At its rear the shell S is interiorly formed at its side with a wall portion 30 inclined as best shown in FIGS. 2A and 5 (to act as a cam surface as will be seen more particularly hereinafter) and at its bottom with a substantially flat surface 32. The surfaces 30 and 32 meet close to the vertical medial plane of the eye assembly.

The front cover C comprises a preferably metal shell configurated as best shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings and is provided with an eye opening 34 at its front and with a rear rim flange 36, which latter is seated in an annular groove at the front of the housing shell S in the assembling of the front cover to the housing shell S. The front cover also aids in securing the trunnions of the eye member E in their pivotal mounting in the housing shell S.

The eye member E, the weight W and the interior configuration of the housing shell S with the aforesaid provision of the side positioned inclined wall surface 30 and the bottom flat wall surface 32 are so interrelated that the doll eyes are held or maintained in their open condition when the doll head is held either in its erect or upright position or is moved from such position to a prone or reclined position (lying down with face upward) and so that only when the doll is then tilted (from its said prone position) to lie on its side will the doll eyes move to a closed or sleeping condition..Besides mounting the weight W for pivotal movement on the eye member E about a vertical axis, thereby permitting movement of the weight W from a vertical pendant position shown in FIGS. 2 to 5 of the drawings to side-tilted positions (upon the side tilting of the doll head), the center of gravity of the weight W is located so that the eye member and weight are in a position of nearly gravitational equilibrium when the eye member is in a supine position. This may be seen by viewing FIG. 3 in a position with the doll lying in a prone position. With this construction when the doll head is moved from a prone position to an upright position, the weight W, weighted as described, tends to move the eye member in a clockwise direction. This tendency to such movement is, however, restrained by means associated with the housing shell S, the said means comprising the engagement of the bottom end 24 of the weight with the wall surface 32 of the housing shell as is best seen viewing FIGS. 3 and 5 of the drawings. When, however, the doll head is moved from its prone position to a side tilted position, means associated with the housing shell S and coacting with the weight W effects movement of the eye member to its closed position. Then the weight W moves about its vertical axis, and in so doing the cam follower portion 26 moves over the cam surface 30 of the shell S thereby causing the eye member to move to a closed condition. This latter behavior is best understood by reference to FIGS. 6 to 9 of the drawings, which latter will now be described.

FIG. 6 of the drawings depicts the position assumed by the doll head when after lying in a prone position, the doll head is then moved to lie on its left side, the doll eyes being now shown in their closed or sleeping condition. FIGS. 7 to 9 depict the action that has taken place in effecting the closing of the eyes as and when the doll head is moved to its supine and side-tilted position. Viewing FIG. 8 for example, in this operation, the weight W in its movement from its vertical pendant to a side-tilted position is acted upon by the engagement of its cam follower end 26 with the cam surface 30 for moving the eye member E from its held open condition to a closed condition, the cam follower 26 in this motion being moved from the start region designated as x to the end region designated as y.

Preferably the side cam surface and the bottom flat surface of the housing shell S are formed on opposite sides of the shell S so that the shell may be employed without orientation; and for this purpose these surfaces are formed symmetrically about a plane p lying diagonally of said shell as it is shown in FIG. 2A of the drawings. Thereby a second set of surfaces are formed which are designated as 30 and 32 similar to the surfaces 30 and 32. This extra set of cam and fiat surfaces formed in the housing shell S are seen particularly in FIGS. 7 to 9 of the drawings.

The movable doll eye of the present invention may be made in various forms and in the embodiment illustrated in the drawings the invention is shown applied to a so-called individual eye, that is an eye which is adapted to be mounted as an individual unit in the socket of a doll head. This is illustrated particularly in FIGS. 4 and 7 of the drawings where separate eye assemblies A, A are shown mounted in the two sockets s, s of a doll head.

In FIGS. 10 to12 of the drawings I show a modification of the eye assembly of the invention in which cam surfaces are formed on each side of the support housing for the eye member thereby producing a construction wherein movement of the doll head from a supine position to a side-tilted position on either side of the doll will produce the desired operation of moving the doll eyes to a closed state or condition.

Referring to FIGS. 10 to 12 of the drawings, the eye assembly comprises an eye member E pivotally mountable in a housing shell S for movement therein about a horizontal axis h between the eye opened position and the eye closed position and a weight member W mounted on said eye member for pivotal movement thereon about a vertical axis v between a pendant position (shown in FIG. 10) and side-tilted positions in either of opposite directions, the shell S being formed at its rear with a medially arranged seat 38 and with oppositely directed cam surfaces provided by the cam grooves 40 and 42. The eye member E with its weight W are mounted in the housing shell S in the same manner and by similar means as described in connection with FIGS. 1 to 9 of the drawings and the assembly is also completed by a front cover (not shown) similar to that heretofore described.

In this modification of FIGS. 10 to 12 the Weight W is provided with a weight mass 20" and with a terminal cam follower 26, the cam follower coacting with the central seat 38 and the cam grooves 40 and 42 in the operation of the assembly. As in the structure already described, the center of gravity of the weight W is located so that the eye member and weight are in a position of nearly gravitational equilibrium when the eye member is in a supine position thereby holding the eye in its open condition. When the eye assembly is moved from this supine position to an erect position (FIG. 10), the cam follower 26' located in the seat 38 provides the means which acts against the gravitational influence of said weight for restraining movement of said weight and thereby holding the eye member in its open condition. When with the eye member in its supine position it (the doll head) is tilted to either side so that the doll head lies either on its left side or right side, the cam follower 26 actuated by the gravitational influence of the weight W moves in either the cam groove 40 or 42 (whichever the case may be) and thereby the eye member E is moved to a closed condition. This construction thus provides for two cam sections in the housing shell, one on each side of a vertical medial plane of the eye member or shell.

The structure, operation and functioning of the movable doll eye of the present invention and the advantages secured therewith will, it is believed, be fully apparent from the above detailed description of the embodiments thereof. A full realism of doll eye movement from an awake to a sleeping condition is imparted to the action of a doll by the constructed mechanism of the doll eye. With this construction a doll may be laid down into its face upward lying or prone position without causing the doll eyes to close since in that position the weight W is in its nearly equilibrium state as it best seen from viewing FIG. 3 of the drawings. When the doll is in its erect position or is moved from a lying down prone position to an erect position, the doll eye is constrained against pivotal movement in the housing by the engagement of the end 24 (and the cam follower 26) of the weight W with a part such as the surface 32 of the housing shell S. When, however, the doll head is moved to a supine (prone) and side-tilted position, the weight W by the riding engagement of its cam follower 26 with the shell cam surface 30 causes the doll eye to move to a closed condition as is best seen from FIGS. 6 to 9 of the drawings. In the first form of the invention (FIGS. 1 to 9) this movement of the eyes to a closed condition is attained by moving the doll head on its left side. In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 this is attained by moving the doll head to either its right or its left side. The construction is furthermore such that as soon as the position of the doll head is changed as by moving the doll to a face upward prone position or by lifting the doll, the eyes will quickly move to and assume their full awake and open condition. 7

It will be apparent that many changes may be made in the construction of the doll eyes of the present invention without departing from the spirit of the invention defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A doll eye assembly comprising a support, an eye member pivotally mounted on said support for pivotal movement thereon about a horizontal axis between eye open and closed conditions, a Weight pivotally mounted on said eye member for pivotal movement relative to said eye member about a vertical axis between a vertical pendant position and a side-tilted position, means associated with said support for restraining said pivotal movement of the eye member when the eye member is moved between positions corresponding to erect and supine positions, of a doll equipped with said assembly, and means associated with said support, and coacting with said weight for effecting movement of the eye member to its closed condition when the eye member is moved to a supine and sidetilted position.

2. A doll eye assembly comprising a support, an eye member pivotally mounted on said support for pivotal movement thereon about a horizontal axis between eye open and closed conditions, a weight pivotally mounted on said eye member for pivotal movement relative to said eye member about a vertical axis between a vertical pendant position and a side-tilted position, the center of gravity of said weight being located so that the eye member is held in its open condition when the eye member is in a supine position, is under the gravitational influence of the weight when the eye member is in an erect position and when the eye memberis in a side-tilted position, means associated with said support active against the gravitational influence of said weight for restraining said pivotal movement of said weight and thereby holding the eye member in its open condition when the eye member is in its erect position, and means associated with said support coacting with said weight in its movement to a supine side-tilted position for effecting movement of said eye member to closed condition when the eye member is moved to supine and side-tilted position.

3. A doll eye assembly comprising a support, an eye member pivotally mounted on said support for pivotal movement thereon about a horizontal axis between an eye open condition and an eye closed condition, a weight pivotally mounted on said eye member for pivotal movement relative to said eye member about a vertical axis between a vertical pendant position and a side-tilted position, the center of gravity of said weight being located so that the eye member and weight are in a position of nearly gravitational equilibrium when the eye member is in a supine position thereby holding the eye in its open condition, means associated with said support active against the gravitational influence of said weight for restraining said pivotal movement of said weight and thereby holding the eye member in its open condition when the eye member is in its erect position, and means associated with said support located at a side of the eye member coacting with said weight in its movement from its vertical pendant to a side-tilted position for eflFecting movement of said eye member to closed condition when the eye member is moved to supine and side-tilted position.

4. The doll eye assembly of claim 1 wherein said support comprises a housing member for the eye member, the means for restraining pivotal movement of the eye member comprises a part ofsaid housing member located to engage a part of said weight, and the means for effecting movement of the eye member to its closed condition comprises a cam part located at the tilted-side of the eye member over which a part of said weight is adapted to ride for effecting said movement of the eye member.

5. The doll eye assembly of claim 4, in which the said cam part comprises two cam section, one on each side of a vertical medial plane of said eye member.

6. The doll eye assembly of claim 2 wherein said doll eye assembly is an individual movable eye, said support comprises a housing for the eye member, the first mentioned means comprises a part of said housing member located to engage a part of said weight, and the second mentioned means comprises a cam part located at the tilted-side of the eye member.

7. The doll eye assembly of claim 3 wherein said support comprises a housing shell, the first mentioned means comprises a part of said shell at the bottom thereof engageable with a part of said weight, and the second mentioned means comprises a part of said shell having a cam face located at the tilted-side of the eye member.

8. The doll eye assembly of claim 7 wherein the housing shell is structured symmetrically about a plane lying diagonally of said shell.

9. An eye for a toy, said eye comprising a shell, an eye member pivotally mounted therein, and means within the shell for pivoting the member from an open position to a closed position as the pivotal axis is moved in a plane through an angle of from a horizontal position to a vertical position.

10. An eye as defined in claim 9 wherein said means comprises a surface on the interior of the shell making an angle with the pivotal axis and weight mean bearing on said surface and member.

11. An eye as defined in claim 9 wherein said means comprises a cam surface integral with the interior of the shell and making an angle with the pivotal axis and weight means bearing on said surface and member.

12. An eye for a toy, said eye comprising a shell, an eye member, means pivotally mounting the member in the shell, and means reacting between the shell and member for pivoting the member from an open position when the pivotal axis is horizontal to a closed position when the axis is moved in a plane through 90 to a vertical position.

13. An eye as defined in claim 12 wherein the reacting means comprises a cam surface in the shell and Weight means 'bearing on said surface and reacting against the member.

14. A head for a toy having a pair of eyes pivotally mounted therein for pivotal movement about parallel axes and means mounting the eyes in the head for independent movement, means for moving the eyes from an open position when the axes are horizontal to a closed position as the axes are moved in a plane through an angle of 90 to a vertical position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,290,967 1/1919 Gerberg. 1,343,422 6/ 1920 Thomson. 1,910,911 5/1933 Wilhelm 46-169 2,022,286 11/ 1935 Henry 46169 F. BARRY SHAY, Primary Examiner UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No 3,478 ,465 November 18 1969 John H. Wilhelm It is certified that error appears in the above identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In the heading to the printed specification, lines 5 and 6, Marjon Corporation" should read Margon Corporation Signed and sealed this 6th day of April 1971.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. WILLIAM E. SCHUYLER, JR Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents

Claims (1)

1. A DOLL EYE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A SUPPORT, AN EYE MEMBER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORT FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT THEREON ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS BETWEEN EYE OPEN AND CLOSED CONDITIONS, A WEIGHT PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID EYE MEMBER FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID EYE MEMBER ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS BETWEEN A VERTICAL PENDANT POSITION AND A SIDE-TILTED POSITION, MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID SUPPORT FOR RESTRAINING SAID PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF THE EYE MEMBER WHEN THE EYE MEMBER IS MOVED BETWEEN POSITIONS CORRESPONDING TO ERECT AND SUPINE POSITIONS, OF A DOLL EQUIPPED WITH SAID ASSEMBLY, AND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID SUPPORT, AND COACTING WITH SAID WEIGHT FOR EFFECTING MOVEMENT OF THE EYE MEMBER TO ITS CLOSED CONDITION WHEN THE EYE MEMBER IS MOVED TO A SUPINE AND SIDETILTED POSITION.

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