Amusement devices: toys – Construction toy – Including electrical feature or assembly
Patent
1987-09-22
1990-01-16
Hafer, Robert A.
Amusement devices: toys
Construction toy
Including electrical feature or assembly
446175, 446219, 446485, 350 961, A63H 3304, A63H 3000, A63H 3322, A63H 3326
Patent
active
048940402
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a toy building set with elements for providing positional information by detection of radiated, reflected energy, such as light.
Associated toy elements are known in the form of a light source and a light detector, respectively, said light detector being adapted to detect the light transmitted from the light source. This prior art provides an information signal by insertion of light absorbing means in the path of the light beam.
The object of the invention is to provide a toy building set with improved means with respect to the prior art for providing positional information.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This object is achieved in that the toy building set comprises an element of the type defined in the characterizing portion of claim 1. Thus, the invention comprises the use of an integrated electric circuit known per se which both contains a source and a detector, preferably for light, and the special advantages of the invention are obtained by using a detector of this type in a housing which is partly connectible with other elements belonging to the building set and is partly adapted for coupling with various forms of energy reflecting means. Preferably, the circuit is of the type where the transmitted light intensity is automatically increased if the received light signal weakens, which entails that it is sufficient with two leads to the circuit as the circuit will draw a supply current which is dependent upon the light reflection conditions (see e.g. Electronic Design, March 1982, p. 255). It is observed that the energy radiating source and energy receiving detector defined in claim 1 were stated as being a light source and a light receiver above, which is a preferred embodiment and does not prevent the use of something else than ordinary light, such as microwaves.
Claim 2 provides an example of an energy reflecting means for cooperation with the building element of claim 1. The disc may e.g. be a tachometer disc as stated in claim 3. As stated in claim 4, the disc may be provided with wind cups and thus serve as an anemometer.
Claim 5 provides another example of an energy reflecting means in the form of a light conductor which may be coupled mechanically with the building element, so that the region sensitive to detection may be moved away from the immediate vicinity of the building element.
Claim 6 provides another expedient element for the building set of the invention, said element comprising a line code for cooperation with the light detecting element, either directly or indirectly via light conducting means for the type mentioned in claim 4.
The light source may be laser, cf. claim 7, thus making it possible to perform a highly sensitive detection. For example, the oscillations of a membrane can be registered by means of coherent light, and in particular in such a detection it is important that the structure is mechanically stable and geometrically well-defined. When coherent light is used, the variations in the reflective power of the energy reflecting means may be obtained as stated in claim 8.
The mentioned examples, which will be described more fully later, indicate various situations where special advantages are obtained by positioning both the light source and the light receiver in a housing having mechanical coupling means, which involve pre-determined positioning of both the transmitter and the receiver with respect to other energy reflecting building elements of the toy building set.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be explained more fully by the following description of some embodiments with reference to the drawing, in which
FIG. 1 shows a known element from a toy building set,
FIGS. 2 and 3 schematically show the essential parts of an embodiment of the toy building set of the invention,
FIGS. 4-7 show various embodiments of energy reflecting means,
FIG. 8 schematically shows a use of the toy building set of the invention,
FIG. 9 schematically shows another use of the toy building set of the invention,
FIGS. 10-12
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Bach Erik
Toft Allan
Hafer Robert A.
Interlego AG.
Muir D. Neal
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