U.S. patent application number 10/688733 was filed with the patent office on 2004-10-07 for magnetic assembly toy.
Invention is credited to Barri, Darin, Grzesek, Robert, Sanchez, Jorge.
Application Number | 20040198143 10/688733 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32110221 |
Filed Date | 2004-10-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040198143 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Grzesek, Robert ; et
al. |
October 7, 2004 |
Magnetic assembly toy
Abstract
Magnetic assembly toys including magnetically assembled vehicles
to which accessories may be attached. The magnetically assembled
toy includes a plurality of components that are adapted to
magnetically couple with one another. The toy includes at least one
magnetic portion that is affixed to one of the plurality of
components. In some embodiments, at least one of the plurality of
components may be adapted to rotate.
Inventors: |
Grzesek, Robert; (Redondo
Beach, CA) ; Barri, Darin; (El Segundo, CA) ;
Sanchez, Jorge; (Downey, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
KOLISCH HARTWELL, P.C.
520 S.W. YAMHILL STREET
SUITE 200
PORTLAND
OR
97204
US
|
Family ID: |
32110221 |
Appl. No.: |
10/688733 |
Filed: |
October 15, 2003 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60419205 |
Oct 16, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
446/129 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63H 17/26 20130101;
A63H 17/002 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
446/129 |
International
Class: |
A63H 033/26 |
Claims
We claim:
1. A toy comprising: a first component in the form of a first
portion of a vehicle; a second component; and a magnetic portion
affixed to one of the first component and the second component,
wherein the magnetic portion is adapted to magnetically couple to
the other of the first component and the second component.
2. The toy of claim 1, wherein the first component includes a
ferrous material.
3. The toy of claim 1, wherein the toy further includes at least a
third component adapted to represent a second portion of a
vehicle.
4. The toy of claim 3, wherein the second portion of the vehicle is
one of a spoiler, a sideguard, a grill, a muffler, and a light.
5. The toy of claim 1, further comprising an alignment assembly
adapted to align the first and second components to a predetermined
position relative to one another.
6. The toy of claim 5, wherein the alignment assembly includes a
post that protrudes from one of the first and second components and
an aperture in the other of the first and second components.
7. The toy of claim 1, wherein the toy further includes a rotatable
element.
8. The toy of claim 7, wherein the toy includes at least two
components adapted to selectively couple with one another such that
the rotatable element is confined therebetween.
9. The toy of claim 8, further comprising at least one support
configured to restrict translation of the rotatable element.
10. The toy of claim 7, wherein the rotatable element is the second
component.
11. A toy comprising: a plurality of components including: a first
component adapted to rotate; and a second component and a third
component adapted to magnetically couple with one another and
operatively retain the first component between the second and third
components.
12. The toy of claim 11, wherein the first component is
magnetically coupled to at least one of the second and third
components.
13. The toy of claim 11, wherein at least one of the second and
third components has at least one support configured to restrict
translation of the first component.
14. The toy of claim 11, wherein at least one of the plurality of
components is adapted to represent a portion of a vehicle.
15. The toy of claim 11, further comprising an alignment assembly
adapted to align at least two of the plurality of components
relative to one another.
16. The toy of claim 11, wherein the first component is an axle
adapted to support at least one wheel.
17. The vehicle of claim 11, wherein at least one of the plurality
of components includes a ferrous material.
18. A toy vehicle comprising: a first component in the form of a
first portion of a vehicle; a second component in the form of a
second component of a vehicle; a third rotatable component, wherein
the first component may be selectively magnetically attached to the
second component, securing the third component in a rotatable
configuration, and the third rotatable component represents a wheel
and axle assembly; and at least one support mounted to one of the
first and second components and adapted to restrict translation of
the third rotatable component.
19. The toy vehicle of claim 18, wherein the at least one support
is a plate adapted to support the third rotatable component a
distance away from the first and second components.
20. The toy vehicle of claim 19, wherein the plate has at least one
groove adapted to receive the third rotatable component.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of and priority under 35
U.S.C. 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/419,205
entitled "Magnetic Assembly Toy Car," filed Oct. 16, 2002, the
disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to magnetically
assembled toys, and more particularly to magnetic assembly toy
vehicles to which accessories may be attached. Various toys with
magnets are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,767,517, 4,038,775,
4,118,888, 4,170,840, 4,176,492, 4,183,173, 4,186,515, 4,206,564,
5,277,643, 5,295,889, 5,380,233, 5,727,717, 6,171,169, 6,431,936
and 6,592,427 the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by
reference.
SUMMARY
[0003] The present disclosure is directed to toys, having a
plurality of components that are adapted to couple magnetically
with one another. The toy includes at least one magnetic portion
that is affixed to one of the plurality of components. In some
embodiments, at least one of the plurality of components may be
adapted to rotate. The toy may take the form of a vehicle, in which
case the components may represent portions of a vehicle such as a
vehicle body.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] FIG. 1 is a top isometric view of a toy according to the
present disclosure, including components having magnetic
portions.
[0005] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating assembly of a
first component to one or more of a second component and a third
component of the toy of FIG. 1, with at least two components of the
toy coupled by magnets.
[0006] FIG. 3 is a top isometric view of a portion of an exemplary
toy vehicle including a cockpit, a chassis, and an axle with
wheels.
[0007] FIG. 4 shows a bottom isometric view of an alternative
embodiment of the cockpit depicted in FIG. 3.
[0008] FIG. 5 shows a bottom isometric view of the body depicted in
FIG. 1.
[0009] FIG. 6 shows a bottom isometric view of the cockpit depicted
in FIG. 4, assembled with the body depicted in FIG. 5.
[0010] FIG. 7 shows a bottom isometric view of the assembly
depicted in FIG. 6, assembled with the axel with wheels depicted in
FIG. 3.
[0011] FIG. 8 shows a bottom isometric view of the assembly
depicted in FIG. 7, assembled with another set of an axel and
wheels.
[0012] FIG. 9 shows a bottom isometric view of the assembly
depicted in FIG. 8, assembled with the chassis depicted in FIG. 3,
and assembled with various accessories.
[0013] FIG. 10 shows a bottom isometric view of the assembly
depicted in FIG. 9, with some of the accessories shown adjacent to
the assembly, as duplicate components, for clarity.
[0014] FIG. 11 is a top isometric view of a rear portion of the toy
vehicle shown in FIG. 1, with a spoiler shown in proximity to the
body of the toy vehicle.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION AND BEST MODE OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0015] An illustrative example of a toy is shown in FIG. 1 and
indicated generally at 10. Toy 10 may take the form of a vehicle,
as shown, or numerous other forms including, but not limited to,
trains, motorcycles, aircraft, or watercraft. Alternatively, toy 10
may take the form of action figures, robots, buildings, etc. Toy 10
includes a plurality of components 12 that are configured to be
easily disassembled and reassembled by a user for increased
enjoyment during play. Thus, a young child may enjoy the thrill of
building his or her toy whenever he or she chooses with limited
frustrations as the components themselves assist in this
process.
[0016] In the depicted embodiment, a variety of components 12 are
selectively coupled with one another to form a complete toy. Select
components of toy 10 are held together by magnetic attraction
therebetween. This attraction may be accomplished through strategic
location of magnetic portions 14 on one component that interact
with either magnetic portions located on other components or with
components that are made of a ferrous metal, or combinations
thereof.
[0017] When toy 10 is in the form of a vehicle, components 12 may
include a vehicle body 16, a cockpit 18, and a chassis 20, as
illustrated in FIG. 1. As shown, cockpit 18 fits within body 16 and
mates with chassis 20 to simulate the internal structure of a
typical toy vehicle. Although cockpit 18 is shown placed within
body 16, cockpit 18 may alternatively be integrally formed with
vehicle body 16. Thus, the quantity of components may be adjusted
to provide toys of varying levels of difficulty.
[0018] Additional components may be included and may provide a more
realistic look and feel of toy 10. These components may include
axles 22 and wheels 24. The vehicle may further include a variety
of components in the form of vehicle accessories 26, as will
subsequently be discussed.
[0019] In the exemplary diagram shown in FIG. 2, a first component
28 is retained between a second component 30 and a third component
32, which may be coupled to one another through magnetic attraction
as previously described. The terms "first component," etc. may
refer to any of the components 12 as these terms are used for
simplicity of description only. For example, the first, second and
third components may refer to axle 22, cockpit 18 and chassis 20,
respectively.
[0020] At least one of the first, second, and third components
includes a magnetic portion 14 that may be disposed on the
component or embedded within the component. Alternatively, the
component as a whole may be formed from a magnetic material. When
disposed on the component, the magnetic portion may be secured to
the component through any suitable fastener, such as glue,
Velcro.RTM., snaps, clips, and the like.
[0021] Component 12 may be made of plastic such that magnetic
portions 14 may be on or embedded within the respective component.
Plastic components with integrated magnetic portions may make the
toy light weight so that it can be easily handled by a young
child.
[0022] Magnetic attraction between components 12 may be used to
couple the components together. In some embodiments, one of
components 12, such as second component 30, may be made of a
ferrous material, or have a ferrous material portion, by which
magnetic portion 14 of third component 32 couples these components
together, as in the case of cockpit 18 being placed within vehicle
body 16, as previously shown in FIG. 1.
[0023] Toy 10 may include a component capable of movement, such as
rotation. Referring back to FIG. 1, assembly of a rotatable element
34, such as axle 22 and/or wheels 24, may result in enhanced
enjoyment of the child's assembly efforts. A child may engage in
play with the vehicle, such as by rolling it across a surface, once
such a rotatable element has been assembled. For example, rotatable
element 34 may be joined to one of the other components through
magnetic attraction or may be disposed between two or more
magnetically coupled components.
[0024] For example, first component 28 may take the form of a
rotatable element 34 including one or more axles 22 that support
one or more wheels 24, as shown in FIG. 1. In some embodiments,
first component 28 includes a ferrous material to assist in
magnetic coupling with second component 30. First component 28 may
alternatively, or additionally, be retained between two or more
components, such as second component 30 and third component 32, as
shown in FIG. 2.
[0025] The axle may also include ribs and/or crimped regions to
maintain wheels 24 positioned at their respective ends of axle 22.
In some embodiments, these ribs and/or crimped regions may be on
either side of wheels 24. Wheels 24 may be affixed to a rotatable
axle and may be formed from any cost effective and/or light-weight
material as desired, such as plastic. In other embodiments both
axles 22 and/or wheels 24 may be rotatable. For example, axle 22
may rotate while wheels 24 are in a fixed position relative to axle
22, or axle 22 may be in a fixed position relative to the rest of
toy 10 while wheels 24 are free to rotate about axle 22.
[0026] Further details of how components 12 may couple together are
shown in the illustrative examples of FIGS. 3-10, which show toy 10
in the form of a vehicle. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4,
cockpit 18 may include at least one support 36 that supports axle
22. Magnetic portion 14 is positioned between supports 36 to
provide coupling between axle 22 and cockpit 18. The supports shown
are in the form of plates 38 that each include a groove 40. Axle 22
is able to rotate within groove 40, but axle 22 may be otherwise
restricted from moving relative to the rest of the vehicle.
Although grooves 40 are shown shaped to correspond to the radius of
axle 22, other configurations also are suitable, as grooves 40 need
not be arcuate to allow free rotation of axles 22.
[0027] In some embodiments, magnetic portion 14 is mounted upon, or
embedded within, a pedestal 42 to maintain magnetic portion 14 in
close proximity with axle 22. Thus, supports 36 and pedestal 42
provide appropriate spacing between axle 22 and the remainder of
cockpit 18 so that movement of wheels 24 is not restricted and the
relationship between the various components more accurately
reflects that of a full-sized vehicle.
[0028] As shown in FIG. 3, chassis 18 includes a pair of recesses
44 that mate with support plates 38 so that axle 22 is retained
within groove 40 of plates 38, thereby preventing axle 22 from
sliding laterally out of grooves 40. Chassis 18 may also conceal
these mating portions to provide a more realistic look and feel to
the assembled vehicle.
[0029] In some embodiments, such as the one shown in FIGS. 4-6, an
alignment assembly 46 further assists the child with placement of
the components during assembly of the vehicle. When two components
are held in close proximity, the magnetic attraction between
components 12 pulls them together while alignment assembly 46
guides components 12 to a predetermined configuration so that the
child may be repeatedly successful in assembling the vehicle. The
illustrative alignment assembly includes at least one aperture 48
shown in FIG. 4, and at least one post 50, shown in FIG. 5.
Aperture 48 and post 50 are sized and shaped substantially the same
so that aperture 48 fits into post 50. Apertures 48 are shown mated
with posts 50 on the underside of body 16, in FIG. 6. The use of an
alignment assembly also may improve the strength of the connection
between the components during play.
[0030] FIGS. 6-9 show toy 10 in sequential steps of assembly. For
example, axels 22 and wheels 24 are added, as are various examples
of accessories 26. Accessories 26 may be included to increase play
options and the complexity of toy 10 and may represent components
that typically are associated with the type of the toy. For
example, the accessories may be components that are commonly
attached to, or part of, a vehicle, such as a muffler or tailpipe
52; a pair of sideguards 54; and a grill liner 56. As shown in FIG.
10, grill liner 56 may include a grill 58 and headlights 60. Also
shown in FIG. 10 is a spoiler 62.
[0031] In some embodiments, accessories 26 take the form of items
that are not typically part of the toy itself, but are otherwise
associated with toy 10. In the example of a vehicle, such
accessories may include passengers, pets, sporting equipment, etc.
The toy may form interior compartments, or other appropriate
regions or surfaces, to accommodate these accessories.
[0032] While referring to FIG. 10, it should be noted that the
magnets may take multiple forms. One form is a rectangular flat
magnet, as shown schematically at 14. However, for most
applications a disc-shaped magnet has been found to work very well,
as shown at 114. (Similar disc-shaped magnets are shown in FIGS. 4
and 6-8, as item 14.) For yet other connections between components,
a rod-shaped magnet 214 works very well. Rod-shaped magnet 214 may
be used to attach spoiler 62 to body 16, preferably by forming
conformal receptacles 64 within body 16, as shown in detail in FIG.
11.
[0033] Exemplary assembly of toy 10, including its accessories 26,
is described below and illustrated in FIGS. 4-10. Components 12 may
be placed upside down for ease of assembly, although selection of
such an orientation is dependant upon the individual user and the
particular configuration of toy 10. Cockpit 18 may be placed within
vehicle body 16 so that posts 50 and apertures 48 of alignment
assembly 46 engage with one another, and cockpit 18 and vehicle
body 16 are coupled together by magnetic portions 14. Wheel axles
22 may then be placed over the exposed magnetic portions of cockpit
18 so that axles 22 align with grooves 40 formed in supporting
plates 38 of cockpit 18. If provided, grill liner 56 may then be
coupled to vehicle body 16 in its appropriate position. Once axles
22 have been properly aligned, chassis 20 is placed adjacent
cockpit 18 to complete the underbody of the vehicle and secure
axles 22, and possibly grill liner 56, within assembled toy 10. Any
remaining accessories may then be selectively attached, such as
muffler 52, sideguards 54, and spoiler 62.
[0034] It is believed that the disclosure set forth above
encompasses multiple distinct inventions with independent utility.
While each of these inventions has been disclosed in its preferred
form, the specific embodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated
herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense as numerous
variations are possible. The subject matter of the inventions
includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and subcombinations
of the various elements, features, functions and/or properties
disclosed herein. Similarly, where any claim recites "a" or "a
first" element or the equivalent thereof, such claim should be
understood to include incorporation of one or more such elements,
neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements.
[0035] Inventions embodied in various combinations and
subcombinations of features, functions, elements, and/or properties
may be claimed through presentation of new claims in a related
application. Such new claims, whether they are directed to a
different invention or directed to the same invention, whether
different, broader, narrower or equal in scope to the original
claims, are also regarded as included within the subject matter of
the inventions of the present disclosure.
* * * * *