Static structures (e.g. – buildings) – Opaque stonelike module – Particularly related to adjacent module
Patent
1996-03-19
1997-09-02
Canfield, Robert
Static structures (e.g., buildings)
Opaque stonelike module
Particularly related to adjacent module
52578, 446482, 446128, 446118, 446108, 446116, 446124, A63H 3306, A63H 3308, E04C 100
Patent
active
056619413
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention concerns a building element for a constructional toy building set with coupling means for coupling the element to other building elements, which are included in the building set, through cooperation with their coupling studs arranged with mutual modular measures, said coupling means comprising flanges whose side faces are adapted to engage a plurality of the coupling studs on another building element in a first plurality of orientations of the building element with respect to the other building element.
Such building sets are known e.g. from U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,867,784, 5,061,218 and DK patent 120 627. These building sets thus comprise building elements which consist of substantially rectangular boxes, whose underside is open and whose upper side is provided with protruding studs. The studs are shaped so as to be insertable from below into another building element, such that at least some of the edge faces of the studs engage the side faces on the flanges which are formed by the side faces of the box-shaped building element.
Although it is ensured hereby that the building elements can be combined in many ways, it is, however, a drawback of such existing building sets that the embodiments of studs and flanges after all restrict the number of orientations in which a first building element can be positioned on another. Thus, a building element according to Danish patent DK 120 627 can be placed in four different orientations on another building element of the same type.
However, in many connections, e.g. where one of the building elements is shaped as a chair or another piece of furniture to be placed on another building element, e.g. a building plate which serves as a floor, it is desirable that the piece of furniture can be positioned with more orientations on the building plate than the number which is limited by the structure of the known building elements, always provided however that the new and the known building elements are compatible.
This can be achieved using a known chair building element for use in connection with the building elements of DK 120 627. Thus, this chair element is downwardly provided with flanges shaped such that, depending upon the position on another element, they either surround one of the studs of the other element, or protrude down between four of these studs. The flanges are shaped such that the chair element in the first-mentioned position has the greatest possible support face, while still being capable of rotating freely around the stud-of the other element. Although it is thus possible to rotate this element freely about a stud, the base face of the element is limited dimensionally by the distance between two studs opposed with respect to the surrounded stud, in order for this rotation to be possible.
The object of the invention is therefore to provide a building element of the type mentioned in the opening paragraph, which can be oriented in more ways on a building element of the known type than is possible solely using the known building elements, while the base face may be dimensioned larger than the base face of the known chair element so that the element is more difficult to overturn.
This is achieved with a building element as since the flanges are thus divided into sections in such a manner that edge faces are formed on the flanges, said edge faces serving as engagement faces with the coupling studs when the building element is oriented in another manner than is possible with the known building elements, it is clear that these flanges define a periphery for the base face of the building element which intersects the coupling studs in the above-mentioned orientation. Therefore, the size of the base face is not restricted by the spacing of the coupling studs, as is the case with the known chair element.
An embodiment of the invention for use in connection with building elements of DK 120 627 is preferred, in which the building element may be rotated approximately 45.degree. with respect to the orientations which are possible with the known elements,
REFERENCES:
patent: 294607 (1884-03-01), Frost
patent: 879455 (1908-02-01), Frost
patent: 1193975 (1916-08-01), Beardsley
patent: 1660119 (1928-02-01), Decker
patent: 3074203 (1963-01-01), Paksy
patent: 3220141 (1965-11-01), Goss
patent: 4744780 (1988-05-01), Volpe
patent: 4919635 (1990-04-01), Bertrand
patent: 5061218 (1991-10-01), Garage et al.
patent: 5259803 (1993-11-01), Lyman
Canfield Robert
INTERLEGO AG
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