WO2003101558A1

WO2003101558A1 - Kit system for a puzzle cube

Info

Publication number: WO2003101558A1
Application number: PCT/DE2003/001792
Authority: WO
Inventors: Reinhold Zwerenz
Original assignee: Reinhold Zwerenz
Priority date: 2002-06-01
Filing date: 2003-05-31
Publication date: 2003-12-11
Also published as: AU2003243905A1; DE10224406B4; EP1509289A1; DE10224406A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a kit consisting of individual identical cube construction components or of construction modules composed of construction components of this type that are placed against one another. Said kit comprises n x n x n (n= 3, 4, 5) construction components of identical shape and size with open lateral faces, which can be combined to form a puzzle cube in such a way that two respective associated component faces (2, 3) can be interconnected by removable connector elements, each respective half of said elements engaging in the open opposing lateral faces so that the two lateral faces can be joined with no intervening gap. The puzzle cube has a base construction module consisting of four structurally identical construction components, which form a corner construction unit consisting of three construction components arranged on one plane that form an equal-limbed L shape and one construction component on a subsequent plane that is placed on the corner component. Said corner construction unit can either be used as a corner of the cube or as a construction unit in the cube.

Description

Modular system for puzzle cubes

The invention relates to a modular system consisting of individual, structurally identical building block elements, and a puzzle cube consisting of building block groups assembled with the aid of building block elements which can be joined together.

There are a variety of different puzzle games that can be put together to form an image or a geometric shape or an overall representation. There are also building blocks that consist of individual identical building block elements, e.g. also in cube form, with which a number of objects can be built by placing the building block elements on top of and next to each other and e.g. can be detachably combined with one another by plug-in connections or the like.

WO 97/26963 discloses a puzzle construction kit with cube building block elements or building block groups of identical shape and size formed therefrom, which can be connected to one another with the aid of releasable connecting pins. The pins are plug pins for connecting both components. Each connecting pin has two different locking elements formed in opposite end areas, e.g. an annular, bead-like elevation and an annular groove-like depression as locking points.

US Pat. No. 5,306,198 relates to cube-shaped game pieces with circular openings with a ring flange on the cube sides, into which cover plates with a button-like attachment on one or both sides can be inserted. DE 34 36 107 shows a puzzle with game pieces composed of cube-shaped elements, at least one of which is articulated, at least two elements of the game piece being connected to one another via a joint. The elements are designed as separate cube-shaped components that are connected to one another by means of rigid or articulated plug connections.

The object of the invention is to propose a puzzle in three-dimensional cube shape, namely a puzzle cube which is composed of individual identical cube building block elements or of predetermined building block groups consisting of such individual cube building block elements, with a fixed basic building block group being assumed on which the puzzle cube is built.

According to the invention, this object is achieved with the features of the characterizing part of claim 1. Further embodiments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

The puzzle cube construction kit according to the invention preferably comprises n ³ cube building block elements, where n = 3, 4 or 5. In a preferred embodiment, n = 3 is selected and the kit consists of the following individual parts:

a) 27 cube building block elements of identical design, b) four cube building block elements are assembled or can be assembled into a basic building block group, such that three building block elements are assembled on one level to form a corner and another building block element is placed as a corner stone on the element of the group of three c) 23 cube building block elements which are assembled or can be assembled into three building block groups each consisting of four cube building block elements and three building block groups each consisting of five cube building block elements, and d) 23 connecting elements with which the individual cube building block elements or building block groups on the basic building block group are assembled into a puzzle cube with a baseline length of three building block elements.

Seven different types of block groups can be assembled from four cube block elements, as will be explained in more detail below. Furthermore, twenty five different types of building block groups can be assembled from five cube building block elements, as will also be explained below. This results in an enormous variety of conceivable tasks and game variations, and the solution is to create the puzzle cube with a basic length of 3 x 3 x 3 cube building blocks from two building block groups, each consisting of four building block elements and three building block groups, each consisting of to add or assemble five building block elements that are attached to the fixed basic building block group.

The basic building block group consisting of four building block elements can be positioned in different ways as the starting group of the puzzle cube when assembling the cube, e.g. such that nine sides of the four building block elements are visible to the outside within the puzzle cube, that seven sides of the four building block elements of the basic building block group are visible to the outside, or that five or optionally three sides of the four building block elements of the basic building block group are visible to the outside are, depending on how the predefined basic block group is positioned in the finished puzzle cube.

The cube building block elements are preferably designed with open side walls into which cassette-shaped cover plates can be inserted, so that in each case an open side wall of a building block element by inserting a cover plate, for example in the form of a cassette, becomes a closed, flat side of the cube. The cover plates, which serve to cover the side surfaces of the building block elements, can be of different colors, so that, for example, in the completed puzzle cube, each side of the cube can be given a different color, which makes assembly considerably easier, since the player can orientate himself that each of the six cube sides of the puzzle cube has the same color or that each building block element can only be set so that it is arranged in the color of the respective side of the same color. Such a colored design of the puzzle cube is particularly suitable for beginners, for example children, who appreciate the quickest possible success.

The connecting elements which are used to join two adjacent building block elements are designed so that they are inserted half into the opening of one side surface and the other half into the opening of the facing side surface of an adjacent building block element to be attached, the connecting elements being designed in such a way that that in the case of assembled building block elements, there is no distance between the two building block elements connected to them and are not visible to the outside. According to a special embodiment of the invention, such connector elements consist of an upper and a lower section, the two sections each have two parallel, spaced-apart bars, the bars of different sections are arranged at right angles to one another and each limit the circumference of the connector element. Furthermore, the two sections have a common, circumferential, raised central web, which serves as a stop for inserting the connector element into the opening of a side wall of a module element. In particular, the bars of the connector elements have a square cross section with a width a and a length 4a, the total width of a cube-shaped module element 6a and the width of the opening 4a. The cube-shaped building block elements are preferably designed as hollow cubes.

The invention is described below in connection with the drawing using exemplary embodiments. It shows:

1 is a puzzle cube, which is composed of 27 individual building block elements,

2 shows a basic building block group, as it is used as an initial component for the puzzle cube, in a perspective view,

3 shows six embodiments of different types of module groups, each of which consists of four individual module elements or can be assembled,

4 25 embodiments of each of five identical individual building block elements in different assignment of building block groups,

5 four different solutions for the position of a basic building block group within a puzzle cube (the visible sides of the basic building block group are shown in white),

6a-6d further configurations of combinations of puzzle cubes, four puzzle cubes with the same solution being put together in different ways,

7a-7c a connecting element in top view, in side view and in perspective,

Fig. 8 shows a connecting element according to Fig. 7, used in two individual component elements assembled together, and

Fig. 9a, 9b a section of a block element with a cover plate in supervision and in section. In the case of a cube with a side length n = 3 individual building block elements, a puzzle cube 1 according to FIG. 1 consists of 27 identical building block elements 2, 3, 4, which can be connected to one another or plugged together without a gap. The construction or assembly of such a puzzle cube is based on a basic building block group 5 (FIG. 2), which consists of four building block elements 6, 7, 8, 9, three of which are assembled to form a corner group of three and the fourth element is placed on the cornerstone of the group of three. This basic structural unit 5 can form a corner of a cube 1, but can also assume a different position within the puzzle cube 1. However, the basic unit is always specified in the form and the free building block groups are attached to the basic unit in order to assemble the puzzle cube.

Depending on the procedure for assembling such a puzzle cube, two units of the building block groups I - VI according to FIG. 3 and three units of the building block groups A - Z of FIG. 5 are each composed of individual building block elements in order to attach the puzzle cube to the basic building block ( Fig. 2) or other building block groups (Fig. 4, Fig. 5) to assemble. The block groups I - VI of Fig. 3 are present in the kit as individual block elements 2, 3 or 4 and are assembled according to a predetermined scheme to one of the block groups I - VI as a block unit before they are installed on the basic block group. The individual building blocks of building block groups I - VI are formed on one level in the four building block groups I - IV, while in building block groups V and VI a building block element (shown in deep black) is placed on an underlying building block element in order to form a building block group consisting of four individual building block elements receive. However, the puzzle building block can instead already contain the building block groups I - VI which are composed of the respective building block elements. For exercise purposes, for example, building block groups II and III are for the Assembling the puzzle cube 1 used to get a relatively simple solution.

With the building block groups A - Z (Fig. 4) consisting of five building block elements, there is a much greater variety of possible combinations than with a building block group consisting of four building block elements, with the individual building block elements being arranged on one level in the combinations A - H, while in the Building block groups J - Z, the combinations each have a building block element in a level above or below, each with a building block element located in the main level. In the combinations N and O, the block element labeled with a white dot is arranged in a plane that lies either above or below the main plane, namely in a plane that is different from the plane in which the block element shown in full black lies , From the group of the block group consisting of five block elements, e.g. combinations A, D and W are used for training purposes, with which the assembly of the puzzle cube can be carried out relatively easily. With these specially addressed building block groups consisting of four or five building block elements, a variety of 164 different solutions already result in the production of a puzzle cube consisting of 3 x 3 x 3 building block elements.

5 shows four different embodiments of a puzzle cube with an edge length of three building block elements and four possibilities which relate to the different placement of the basic building block group in the puzzle cube. These four different embodiments, shown in FIGS. 5a-5d, show the outwardly visible side surfaces of the basic building block group, nine surfaces in FIG. 5a, seven surfaces in FIG. 5b, five surfaces in FIG. 5c, and three in FIG. 5d Areas of the basic building block group on the puzzle cube are visible to the outside. 6 shows, with the individual representations of FIGS. 6a-6d, four different possibilities of assembling four puzzle cubes in a symmetrical arrangement.

FIG. 7 shows a connecting element in the form of a plug-in element 10, which is used for plugging together two adjacent individual component elements 2, 3, as shown in FIG. 8. Fig. 7a is a plan view, Fig. 7b is a side view, and Fig. 7c is a perspective view of a connector element, which consists of an upper and a lower portion 1 1, 12. The upper section 11 comprises two spaced-apart bars 13, 14 with a square cross-section, the lower section 12 two bars 15, 16, also with a square cross-section. The bars 13, 14 and 15, 16 are arranged at right angles to one another and one above the other so that they form the outer boundaries of a connector element, so that a central opening 17 with square dimensions is formed when viewed from above. Each connector element 10 has a central, web-like, raised, narrow peripheral edge 18, which is symmetrically assigned to the upper and the lower section and which engages in the mutually facing, beveled opening boundaries 19 of two assembled module elements 2, 3, the web-like peripheral edge and the opening boundary have matching slopes. This ensures that two building block elements can be joined together largely without gaps (Fig. 8). The dimensions of the cube-shaped building block elements are chosen so that the cube length = cube width = cube height is 6a units, so that the frame parts have a width of a and a spacing of 4a. Correspondingly, the connector elements 10 each have a width or length of 4a, the bars 11, 12, 13, 14 have a length of 4a and a cross section of axa, so that the distance between two parallel bars is each 2a. The individual building block elements are designed with open side surfaces or side walls, the openings in the side walls being delimited by frame elements which represent the frame of a building block element. The open sides of an individual building block element can be closed by cassette-like plates 20 such that the outside of the building block element is flat with the frame elements. Furthermore, these tiles can be colored so that all building block elements that are visible on the outside of the puzzle cube are designed in different, selectable colors, and one criterion for the composition of the puzzle cube is that one side of the The puzzle cube is only populated with individual components of the same color. The side walls, which are not visible from the outside in the puzzle cube, remain open since the opening is required to insert connecting elements 10, which form a transition to an adjacent building block element. These plates, like the openings of the building block elements, are designed in such a way that they can be pressed into the opening limitation by a snug fit, so that they are held in the opening by a clamping action (FIGS. 9a, 9b).

Claims

claims

1 . Building set consisting of individual, identical cube-building block elements or of building block groups composed of such building block elements, which comprises: nxnxn (n = 3,4,5) building block elements of identical shape and size with open side surfaces that form one with the other Puzzle cubes can be assembled in such a way that two mutually assigned building block surfaces can be connected to one another by detachable connector elements, each half of which engage in the open, facing side surfaces, in such a way that the two side surfaces can be joined to one another without a gap, the puzzle cube being one Has basic building block group, which consists of a number of structurally identical building block elements, which form a corner unit, which consists of several arranged in one plane, an isosceles L building block elements and a block element in a next level on the corner block, where the corner unit can either be set as a cube corner or as a unit in the cube.

2. Kit according to claim 1, characterized in that the connector elements are plug-in elements which consist of an upper and a lower section, the two sections each have two parallel, spaced-apart bars, the bars of different sections are arranged at right angles to each other and the bars each limit the scope of the connector element.

3. Kit according to claim 2, characterized in that the two sections have a common, circumferential, raised edge, which acts as a stop for the insertion of the connector element is used in the cube.

4. Construction kit according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the bars of the connector elements have a square cross-section with a width a and a length 4a, the total width of the cube being 6a and the width of the opening 4a.

5. Construction kit according to one of claims 1-4, characterized in that the puzzle cube has a basic building block group consisting of four structurally identical building block elements which form a corner structural unit which consists of three arranged in one plane, an isosceles L forming building block elements and a building block element placed on the corner building block in a next level, the corner building unit being able to be placed either as a cube corner or as a building unit in the cube.

6. Construction kit according to one of claims 1-5, characterized in that the building block groups which can be assembled with the basic building block group to form a puzzle cube consist of five different, each consisting of four or five individual building block elements.

7. Building kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the five building block groups which can be assembled into a puzzle cube comprise: a) a building block group in the form of an isosceles L which consists of five building block elements arranged in one plane, b) a combination of four building block elements in one level in the form of a square, flat building block group, c) two further building block groups each in the form of a square Building block group with an additional, attached building block elements, the one with a building block group on a left and with the other building block group on a right building block element of the flat, four building block elements in one above! igh level is set, and d) another block group in the form of an L-shaped block group consisting of four block elements, one leg of which comprises three block elements and the other leg of which comprises a block element.

8. Construction kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the building block group, which consists of four identical building block elements, the shape of a square, an L, a T, a Z, an isosceles angle with a block element placed on an end block on the left or either at the right end.

9. Construction kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the building block group, which consists of five identical building block elements, comprises the geometric shapes that can be formed from five building block elements in a flat plane, and also includes the geometric shapes, which consist of four building block elements can be formed on a flat level and in addition a single block element in a level above and / or below, the block group having a maximum length of three block elements and the height of the block group being a maximum of three block elements.

10. Construction kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a) each building block element has at least three open side faces for receiving of connector elements, and the remaining side surfaces, depending on the positioning of the relevant block element on the cube, form a filled or open side surface inside or outside, b) each block element on the outside of the cube has at least one or two or, in the case of a corner stone, three side surfaces , which are filled, and c) the filling (cassette) of the respective side surface is colored, such that the six sides of the cube can be represented when the cube is assembled with component side surfaces of the same color.

1 1. Construction kit according to claim 9, characterized in that the filled side walls consist of open side walls with fillings or cassettes inserted flush into the frame parts.

12. Construction kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cube has a basic building block group which consists of four structurally identical building block elements which form a cube corner and which by two stacked identical building block elements, each with three closed outer surfaces and three open inner surfaces and at right angles to each other can be attached to two open side walls of two open outer surfaces of the lower module element.

13. A construction kit according to claim 3, characterized in that further building block groups can be plugged onto the basic building block group, such that the outer surfaces of the building block elements have the same color on the different and differently colored sides of the cube.

4. Building block according to one of claims 1-4, characterized in that the basic building block groups and the entire cube building block elements can be attached continuously and in succession, the building block elements being designed so that the building block sides with colored outer surfaces to an entire cube side of the puzzle Cubes of uniform color can be assembled, while the building block elements with open side faces are directed into the interior of the cube and are provided for receiving the connecting elements.

5. Building kit according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the plug-in groups which can be plugged onto the basic building block group are composed of five different, each consisting of four or five individual building block elements and that the five building block groups which can be assembled into a cube comprise: a ) a block group in the form of an isosceles L, which consists of five block elements arranged in one plane, b) one of four combination of four block elements arranged in one plane in a square block group, c) two further block groups each as a square block group with an additional one , attached block element, which is placed on one block group on a left and in the other block group on a right block element of the flat square block group, and d) another block group that has an L-shaped B consisting of four individual block elements is austein group, one leg of which comprises three individual building block elements and the other leg of which comprises a single building block element.

6.Puzzle cube, consisting of building block elements of a building block according to one of the preceding claims 1-15, namely a basic building block group consisting of four building block elements, two building block groups composed of four building block elements, three building block groups composed of five building block elements each, as well as connecting elements for assembling the building block elements Block groups and for connecting block groups with block groups or with the basic block group.