Amusement devices: toys – Construction toy – Including connectable panels or strips
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-06
2001-01-30
Ackun, Jacob K. (Department: 3712)
Amusement devices: toys
Construction toy
Including connectable panels or strips
C446S119000, C446S101000, C446S109000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06179681
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a construction kit, and more specifically, to a construction kit which employs universal connectors which are connectable by a tongue-in-slot mechanism and which are available in a range of shapes and sizes for building models.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Construction kits and connectors are well known. Such items have employed connectors and additional members having a wide range of shapes and sizes including blocks, pyramids, rods, gears, flat panels, discs and the like. Construction kits have been used to build a respective wide range of very crude to semi-realistic models of structures such as airplanes, trains, cars, rockets, buildings, animals and more.
Known construction kits for constructing semi-realistic models generally require either one or both a large number of like-shaped connectors or a wide range of uniquely-shaped connectors generally being connectable in only one or a limited number of ways. Such construction kits quickly lose a user's interest due to either the extreme effort required to build a suitable model or the limited number of structures/models that can be made.
Known connectors employ a variety of interconnecting and interlocking means such as holes, bosses, notches, grooves, threads, and joints. Those connectors have also been made from a large variety of materials such as wood, plastic, foam and metal.
One widely available connector is the TAZO™ connector sold by Lulirama International, Inc. Such connectors are available in a variety of geometric shapes such as a circle, square, pentagon, hexagon and the like. Each TAZO™ has four to eight notches on the outer periphery of the disc. The width of the notches approximates the thickness of a TAZO™ connector. TAZO™ connectors are formed into chains or strips and other structures by detachably and perpendicularly interconnecting their notches so that adjacent TAZO™ connectors are substantially perpendicular to each other.
By interconnecting a varying number of TAZO™ connectors, some very simple geometric structures, such as a circle, sphere, rod, square, cube triangle, rectangle, block, pyramid and the like, can be formed. However, forming semi-realistic models of complicated structures such as airplanes, buildings, animals, automobiles, ships and spaceships, is almost impossible when employing solely TAZO™ connectors and if accomplished generally results in extremely large models.
There remains a need for a construction kit which can form a wide range of semi-realistic models while requiring a limited number of connectors and providing a greater number of ways in which the connectors can be connected.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes some of the disadvantages of known construction kits and thus is generally directed to a versatile construction kit which is used to easily form a wide variety of semi-realistic models while requiring only a limited number of tongue-in-slot connectors. The construction kit is expanded by the addition of further connectors to permit construction of an even greater variety of semi-realistic models of virtually anything such as, by way of example, buildings, people, animals, toys, weapons, machinery, caricatures, fanciful figures, spaceships, and air, land or water borne vehicles, and other such structures.
In one aspect, the invention provides a construction kit having a variety of similarly or uniquely-shaped parts for building semi-realistic models. Thus, the present invention is a construction kit comprising a plurality of substantially planar connectors wherein each connector comprises:
a substantially planar body having a defined thickness and being defined by a first outer periphery;
at least one tongue member having a defined thickness and width and being defined by a second outer periphery;
a neck member having a defined thickness and width and having a first end attached to said first outer periphery of said body and a second end attached to said second outer periphery of said at least one tongue member; and
at least one edge defining a respective slot in at least one of said body and said tongue member, said slot having a defined length and width;
wherein:
each of said at least one tongue member is attached to one of said neck member;
the length of said slot is smaller than the width of said tongue member;
the width of said slot is larger than the thickness of said tongue member and said neck member;
a portion of said second outer periphery of said at least one tongue member which is most proximal said body is spaced from said first outer periphery of said body by a distance which at least approximates the thickness of said tongue member;
the width of said neck member is smaller than the length of said slot; and
said tongue member is dimensioned to be inserted through said slot.
At least one of the first and second outer peripheries can include at least one notch which width generally approximates or is smaller than the thickness of the body and the tongue member. Placement of one or more notches along the periphery of the connectors can vary to permit building a greater number of semi-realistic models.
A connector according to the invention comprises one or more or a plurality of tongue members and respective attached neck members as well as a plurality of slots. The slots can be spaced apart, connected, interconnecting or disposed as desired within the body or the tongue members of the connector.
The tongue-in-slot connectors of the invention are shaped as desired. For example, they can have a regular, irregular, geometric, asymmetric, symmetric or other shape.
The universal connectors are provided individually or in groups as individual pieces or as comprising punch-out cards.
The tongue-in-slot connectors of the invention are made of rigid, semi-rigid of flexible materials. When the connectors of the invention are properly connected and are made of the appropriate materials they will form virtually any 2- or 3-dimensional shapes and combinations thereof.
When connected by way of their notches, the tongue-in-slot connectors of the invention will interconnect substantially perpendicularly and detachably.
As the present construction kit forms semi-realistic models, the surfaces of the connectors can be adorned with any of wide range of odoriferous, optic, visual, sensual, graphic, textural, ornamental, image and/or text features.
Other features, advantages and embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art by the following description, accompanying examples and appended claims.
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Ackun Jacob K.
Hughes Kevin M.
Innovar L.L.C.
Matos Rick
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