U.S. patent number 3,923,305 [Application Number 05/439,212] was granted by the patent office on 1975-12-02 for combined game of chance and skill.
Invention is credited to William A. Brady, Lawrence L. Reiner.
United States Patent |
3,923,305 |
Reiner , et al. |
December 2, 1975 |
Combined game of chance and skill
Abstract
A combined game of chance and skill which is a modified form of
the popular gambling game known as craps. The game includes a game
board having a playing position at one end, a curved rebound bumper
at the other end thereof, and a drop-off ledge dividing the game
board into upper and lower playing surfaces with the lower playing
surface having a plurality of puck-receiving members movably
mounted thereon for actuating associated indicators. A
puck-propelling mechanism is movably mounted at the playing
position of the game board so that the shooter may select one die
value and is adapted to propel a puck along the upper playing
surface and over the lower playing surface to impact with the
curved rebound bumper, bounce off and be propelled along the lower
playing surface until the puck drops into one of the puck-receiving
members and actuates its associated indicator to indicate the other
die value and the results of the play.
Inventors: |
Reiner; Lawrence L. (Woodbury,
L.I., NY), Brady; William A. (Fort Lee, NJ) |
Family
ID: |
23743763 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/439,212 |
Filed: |
February 4, 1974 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
273/126R;
273/129R |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63F
7/0076 (20130101); A63F 3/062 (20130101); A63F
3/0423 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A63F
7/00 (20060101); A63F 3/04 (20060101); A63F
3/06 (20060101); A63F 007/10 (); A63F 009/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;273/126R,126A,129R,118-125 ;124/31 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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|
|
|
|
|
|
385,110 |
|
Dec 1932 |
|
UK |
|
512,961 |
|
Mar 1939 |
|
UK |
|
17,690 |
|
Oct 1891 |
|
UK |
|
Primary Examiner: Shapiro; Paul E.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Amster & Rothstein
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A combined game of chance and skill comprising a game board
including a playing field having a playing position and a rebound
bumper spaced from said playing position, a puck-propelling
mechanism, said puck-propelling mechanism including a housing, a
trigger mechanism within said housing, said trigger mechanism
including a puck-receiving seat for receiving said puck, and
locking means for holding said trigger mechanism in a cocked
position, said locking means including a cam formed in said housing
and a cam follower attached to said puck-receiving seat for camming
said trigger mechanism into its cocked position within said
housing, said locking means further including an actuating hole
formed in said housing and a lock formed on said trigger mechanism
adapted to be inserted through said actuating hold to maintain said
trigger mechanism in its cocked position, means for mounting said
puck-propelling mechanism at said playing position, means dividing
said game board into an upper playing surface and a lower playing
surface, a plurality of puck-receiving members movably mounted on
said lower playing surface, an indicator associated with each of
said puck-receiving members and a puck adapted to be propelled by
said puck-propelling mechanism from said playing position along
said upper playing surface to impact with and bounce off said
rebound bumper and be propelled along said lower playing surface
until said puck drops into one of said puck-receiving members and
actuates said puck-receiving member so that its associated
indicator indicates the result of the play.
2. A combined game of chance and skill according to claim 1 wherein
said housing includes an abutment and a spring adapted to be
compressed by and between said abutment and said puck-receiving
seat to store energy within said puck-propelling mechanism.
Description
This invention relates generally to a combined game of chance and
skill and, more particularly, to a game which is a modified form of
the popular gambling game known as craps.
Throughout the years, various dice games have become popular and
are played by both children and adults. One such popular dice game
is craps in which each player takes turns in shooting the dice. In
one popular form of the game of craps, the player must use the dice
to shoot for a 7 or 11 on the first throw without shooting a 2, 3
or 12. However, if the shooter does not obtain any of these
combinations on his first throw of the dice, the number obtained
becomes his point which he must try and duplicate on subsequent
throws before shooting a 7 in order to win. If the shooter does not
make his or her point on subsequent throws and shoots a 7, he loses
and the next player takes his or her turn in shooting the dice.
Although the foregoing game has substantial play value and is
interesting and intriguing both to children and adults, still
further excitement could be generated by introducing further player
controls which would determine the play and outcome of the game. As
a new dimension or variable is added to the player's skill or
control, further variants and modifications of such games can be
created which will have enhanced play value and substantial
consumer interest.
The present invention is directed to a modified form of the game of
craps. More particularly, instead of each player shooting dice at
random as in craps, a dice selector or puck-propelling mechanism is
used to determine and select which die values each player will
receive. In the play of the game, the player selects one die value
by positioning the puck-propelling mechanism in any of six
positions which have indicia corresponding to the six sides of a
die. The player then selects the other die value by using the novel
puck-propelling mechanism to propel an indicating puck towards
puck-receiving pockets each of which has indicia corresponding to
one side of a die. Accordingly, rather than shooting dice
completely at random, each player has the opportunity of using his
or her skill to propel the indicating puck and shoot for particular
die values to obtain a 7 or 11 on the first throw or the necessary
point on subsequent throws. In this manner, a new dimension of
skill has been added to the play of the conventional game of craps
and enhances the play value thereof by lending greater interest and
excitement to this well-known game.
Accordingly, it is an overall object of the present invention to
provide a combined dice game of chance and skill which is like the
conventional game of craps, but has an interesting and new
dimension of skill and control in the play thereof. In its
commercial form, the game is portable, is of relatively simple
construction, is readily manufactured by mass production techniques
at relatively low cost and includes a number of simple and
relatively indestructible components.
In accordance with an illustrative embodiment demonstrating objects
and features of the present invention, there is provided a combined
game of chance and skill which includes a game board or playing
field having a playing position at one end thereof and a curved
rebound bumper at the other end thereof. A drop-off ledge divides
the game board into an upper playing surface extending between the
playing position and the drop-off ledge and a lower playing surface
extending between the drop-off ledge and the curved rebound bumper.
A plurality of puck-receiving pockets are pivotally mounted on the
lower playing surface and are each provided with associated indicia
panels corresponding to the die values on the side of a die and
which are operable to appear at a window. At the playing position
of the game board, a puck-propelling mechanism is movably mounted
between six indicia stations, each having indicia corresponding to
the die value on one side of a die. Accordingly, in the play of the
game, the shooter positions the puck-propelling mechanism at any of
the six indicia stations to select one die value and selects the
other die value by using the puck-propelling mechanism to propel an
indicating puck from the selected indicia station at the playing
position, along the upper playing surface of the game board and
over the lower playing surface with sufficient momentum to impact
with the curved rebound bumper. The indicating puck bounces off of
the bumper and is propelled along the lower playing surface until
the indicating puck drops into one of the puck-receiving pockets
and actuates the pivotally mounted pocket so that its associated
indicia panel appears at the window to indicate the other die value
and the results of the play.
As in the conventional game of craps, the object of the present
combined game of chance and skill is for each player to obtain a 7
or 11 on the first play without shooting a 2, 3 or 12, or to
duplicate his or her point on subsequent plays without obtaining a
7. However, in the present game, the player obtains each die value
of the necessary dice combination in a novel manner. More
particularly, each player selects the first die value of his dice
combination by moving the puck-propelling mechanism to one of the
six stations at the playing position and thereby selects the
associated indicia which corresponds to the die value on one side
of a die, for example, 5. To obtain the second die value in the
dice combination, the shooter uses the puck-propelling mechanism to
shoot for a puck-receiving pocket which is assigned a desired die
value, for example, 2. Accordingly, in the game of the present
invention, the player may improve his or her shooting skill to
improve the chances of obtaining desired die values, whereas in the
conventional game of craps, the most each player can do is
determine what the probability is of shooting for a desired dice
combination. Accordingly, a new dimension of skill and control has
been added to the conventional game of craps which thereby enhances
the play value thereof. Of course, the present apparatus may be
used to play any other dice games in which dice are used to
determine the outcome at random. In addition, the indicia of this
game may be changed so that the apparatus may be used to play a
wide variety of other games including, for example, but without
limitation, versions of bingo, word games and the like.
The above description as well as further objects, features and
advantages of the present invention will be more fully understood
by reference to the following detailed description of the presently
preferred, but nonetheless illustrative embodiment in accordance
with the present invention, when taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a representative form of the game of
the present invention, illustrating the puck-propelling mechanism
propelling a puck into one of the puck-receiving pockets;
FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the game of the present invention
illustrating in detail the pivotally mounted puck-receiving
pockets;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view, taken substantially along the
line 3--3 in FIG. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows,
illustrating further details of one of the puck-receiving pockets
of the present invention in its non-indicating position.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view illustrating a
puck-receiving pocket actuated to its indicating position by the
receipt of a puck;
FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevational view, taken
along the lines 5--5 in FIG. 3 and looking in the direction of the
arrows, with parts broken away, illustrating the puck-receiving
pockets with one in its indicating position;
FIG. 6 is a top plan view, with parts broken away and in section,
illustrating details of the puck-propelling mechanism of the
present invention;
FIG. 7 is a sectional view, taken substantially along the line 7--7
in FIG. 6 and looking in the direction of the arrows, illustrating
the puck-propelling mechanism cocked and ready to shoot the
indicating puck; and
FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the puck-propelling mechanism after
the indicating puck has been propelled therefrom.
Referring now specifically to the drawings and in particular to
FIG. 1, there is shown an illustrative game embodying features of
the present invention, generally designated by the reference
numeral 10, which includes a game board 12 supported by a frame 14.
Game board 12 includes a central playing field 16 and betting areas
18, 20 on either side of the central playing field 16. A
puck-propelling mechanism 22 is movably mounted on central playing
field 16 for propelling an indicating puck 24 into one of a
plurality of puck-receiving members 26 which are pivotally ,mounted
on central playing field 16 and which are adapted to receive
indicating puck 24 when propelled therealong by puck-propelling
mechanism 22, in a manner which will be described below.
In this illustrative form of the invention, which is particularly
designed for the play of craps, six chip-storing areas 28 for up to
six players surround game board 12 and are formed in the top of
frame 14. Accordingly, in this illustrative form of the invention,
up to six players may be situated around game board 12 using their
respective chips to bet on each play made by the shooter operating
puck-propelling mechanism 22. In addition, betting areas 18, 20 are
adapted to receive various indicia or betting cards 30 so that the
players may bet on each play of the shooter and place their chips
on betting cards 30 to indicate their bets. It should be
understood, of course, that betting card 30 is of representative
form only and any betting card may be placed on betting areas 18,
20 in accordance with the particular variation and rules of the
game of craps which is being played.
As may be seen most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 3, central playing field
16 is defined at one end by playing position 32 and at the other
end by a curved rebound bumper 34. At playing position 32, a
longitudinally extending slot 36 having downwardly extending walls
36c is formed in central playing field 16 so that puck-propelling
mechanism 22 may be moved to various indicia stations along slot
36. More particularly, longitudinally extending slot 36 includes a
plurality of indentations 36a formed in the sides thereof to define
shooting positions or indicia stations 36b for puck-propelling
mechanism 22. In this illustrative form of the invention, six
indentations 36a are formed along longitudinally extending slot 36
to define six shooting positions or stations 36b for
puck-propelling mechanism 22. In addition, six indicia markings 38
are formed on playing surface 16 adjacent the six stations 36b with
each indicia marking 38 corresponding to a respective shooting
position or station 36b along slot 36. Each indicia marking 38
represents and corresponds to one of the six faces of a
conventional six-sided cubical die. Accordingly, the shooter may
move puck-propelling mechanism 22 to any of the six shooting
positions 36b and thereby select the associated die value as part
of his two-dice combination. At the other end of playing field 16,
curved rebound bumper 34 is formed from a suitable elastic material
to absorb some of the impact of indicating puck 24 and propel it in
the opposite direction towards puck-receiving pockets 26a, as will
be explained.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, central playing field 16 is provided
with a drop-off ledge 40 which divides playing field 16 into an
upper playing surface 42 and a lower playing surface 44. Upper
playing surface 42 extends between playing position 32 and drop-off
ledge 40 whereas lower playing surface 44 extends between and is
defined by drop-off ledge 40 and rebound bumper 34. As shown in
FIG. 1, upper playing surface 42 is also provided with six
numerical indicia markings 46 corresponding to the six die faces of
a conventional cubical die. Each of the six numerical indicia
markings 46 are associated with and correspond to one of the six
puck-receiving members 26 which are pivotally mounted below lower
playing surface 44, as will be explained. In addition, lower
playing surface 44 is provided with six holes or cutouts 48 formed
adjacent drop-off ledge 40 with each of the holes 48 being
separated by partitions 48a, for a purpose to be explained.
As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, the six puck-receiving members 26 are
pivotally mounted on frame 14 on the underside of central playing
field 16. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 2, frame 14 is
provided with mounting tabs 14a for supporting a longitudinally
extending rod 14b about which puck-receiving members 26 pivot. Each
puck-receiving member 26 includes a puck-receiving pocket 26a
formed at one end thereof and an indicia panel 26b formed at the
other end thereof. Puck-receiving member 26 also includes a
connecting portion 26c which is pivotally mounted between lower
playing surface 44 and longitudinally extending rod 14b so that
puck-receiving member 26 may pivot about rod 14b between a
non-indicating position and an indicating position. As shown most
clearly in FIG. 4, each puck-receiving pocket 26a is adapted to be
in alignment with one of the six holes 48 and is of sufficient size
to receive and contain indicating puck 24 when it passes through
hole 48 with the weight of puck 24 being operable to pivot a
puck-receiving member 26 in a counterclockwise direction about rod
14 b to its indicating position. In this manner, the indicia panel
26b of a puck-receiving member 26 is brought into engagement with
one of a series of windows 14c formed in frame 14 (See FIG. 5).
Windows 14c are formed with translucent panels 14d so that indicia
panels 26b are not visible through panels 14d unless an indicia
panel 26b is in direct engagement with a translucent panel 14d.
Each of the indicia panels 26b are provided with indicia
corresponding to one of the six die facees of a die. In this
illustrative form of the invention, indicia panel 26b is provided
with indicia holes 26d corresponding in arrangement to the dots
formed on a conventional die face. In this manner, when indicating
puck 24 is received in a puck-receiving pocket 26a, the
puck-receiving member 26 pivots about rod 14b and indicia panel 26b
is actuated into engagement with translucent panel 14d and indicia
holes 26d are visible through window 14c, as shown in FIG. 5.
In order for the shooter to propel indicating puck 24 along central
playing field 16 to actuate a puck-receiving member 26 and its
associated indicia panel 26b, there is provided a puck-propelling
mechanism 22, as shown most clearly in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8.
Puck-propelling mechanism 22 includes a housing 50 mounted on a
base 52. Base 52 includes a stem 52a which extends through
longitudinally extending slot 36 so that puck-propelling mechanism
22 may be moved along slot 36. In addition, base 52 includes an
abutment 52b which prevents puck-propelling mechanism 22 from being
removed from slot 36 and a post 52c mounted on abutment 52b.
Accordingly, as the shooter rotates puck-propelling mechanism 22 to
aim for a particular puck-receiving pocket 26a, post 52c will
engage walls 36c of slot 36 to limit further rotation of
puck-propelling mechanism 22. In this illustrative form of the
invention, post 52c and walls 36c are arranged to limit the
rotation of puck-propelling mechanism 22 through a shooting angle
of approximately 90.degree. so that puck-propelling mechanism 22
may be rotated within slot 36 to propel indicating puck 24 towards
any point along curved rebound bumper 34.
Housing 50 of puck-propelling mechanism 22 includes an upper
circular wall 50a, a lower circular wall 50b, a side wall 50c
extending about the circumference of the housing, an opening 50d
formed in side wall 50c adapted to receive puck 24, and guide walls
50e. In addition, upper circular wall 50a is provided with an
actuating hole 50f and lower circular wall 50b has formed thereon a
cam 50g and an upstanding element 50h, all for a purpose to be
explained. The interior of housing 50 is provided with a cocking or
trigger mechanism 54 for propelling indicating puck 24. More
particularly, trigger mechanism 54 includes an arc-shaped wall 54a
and a roof 54b which together form a puck-receiving seat 54c.
Trigger mechanism 54 also includes two longitudinally extending cam
followers 54d, 54e which extend within and parallel to guide walls
50e formed in housing 50. Mounted between upstanding element 50h
and arc-shaped wall 54a is a spring 54f which is adapted to be
compressed therebetween when trigger mechanism 54 is cocked.
Trigger mechanism 54 also includes an upper wall 54g having a slot
54h formed therein to form a flexible finger engaging member 54j
having a locking member 54k formed on the top thereof which is
adapted to be extended through actuating hole 50f formed in the
upper circular wall 50a of housing 50.
As shown in FIG. 7, in order to cock trigger mechanism 54,
indicating puck 24 is inserted through opening 50d and is pressed
into puck-receiving seat 54c with sufficient force to compress
spring 54f. As trigger mechanism 54 is being compressed and is
moved rearwardly within housing 50, cam followers 54d, 54e are
gradually cammed upwardly onto cam 50g until locking member 54k
extends through actuating hole 50f to lock trigger mechanism 54 in
its cocked position in housing 50. To release trigger mechanism 54
and propel indicating puck 24, it is only necessary for the shooter
to exert a slight downward force on locking member 54k to cause
flexible member 54j to be flexed downwardly and thereby remove
locking member 54k from actuating hole 50f. This will cause
compressed spring 54f to be released and exert a force against
trigger mechanism 54 to move it quickly forward within housing 50.
This quick forward movement of trigger mechanism 54 is sufficient
to propel indicating puck 24 out of housing 50 and along central
playing field 16 with sufficient force to engage and rebound off of
curved rebound bumper 34 and slide along lower playing surface 44
until puck 24 drops into one of the puck-receiving pockets 26a.
In order to provide a clear understanding of the apparatus of the
present invention, a brief description of the play of the game will
now be provided. In a typical use, the apparatus described can be
set up to play a variation of the popular game of craps in which
the apparatus of the present invention is used by the players to
select and determine the die values of the two-dice combination. To
prepare the game for play, playing chips are distributed among the
players and suitable betting cards 30 are selected and placed in
betting areas 18, 20. One of the players is then selected to be the
first shooter and each of the remaining players place their chips
on betting cards 30 to bet against the shooter. That is, each
player is betting that the shooter will not obtain a 7 or 11 on the
first play, but will shoot a 2, 3 or 12, and the players are also
betting that the shooter will not duplicate his or her point on
subsequent plays, but that the shooter will first obtain a 7.
Once the remaining players have placed their bets on betting cards
30, the shooter selects the first die value of his or her dice
combination by moving the puck-propelling mechanism 22 to one of
the six indicia stations 36b at playing position 32 and thereby
selects the associated indicia 38 which corresponds to the die
value on one side of a die, for example, 5. To obtain the second
die value in the dice combination, the shooter may rotate
puck-propelling mechanism 22 to any position within its 90.degree.
shooting angle to aim for a puck-receiving pocket 26a which is
assigned a desired die value, for example, 2. Of course, other
possible combinations may be selected by the shooter to obtain a 7
or 11 on his or her first play.
Once the shooter has rotated puck-propelling mechanism 22 to the
desired shooting angle, the shooter then loads the puck-propelling
mechanism 22 with indicating puck 24. This is accomplished by the
shooter inserting indicating puck 24 within puck-receiving seat 54c
with sufficient force to compress spring 54f and cock trigger
mechanism 54, as explained above.
The shooter may then again check to insure that the puck-propelling
mechanism 22 has been rotated to the proper shooting angle to
obtain the desired puck-receiving pocket 26a and the associated die
value 46. The shooter then releases trigger mechanism 54 by
applying a slight downward force on locking member 54k, as
explained above, and thereby propels indicating puck 24 out of
housing 50, along upper playing surface 42, over ledge 40 and lower
playing surface 44 with sufficient momentum to impact with and
bounce off of curved rebound bumper 34 and be propelled along lower
playing surface 44 until indicating puck 24 drops into one of the
puck-receiving pockets 26a. As explained above, when indicating
puck 24 drops into a particular puck-receiving pocket 26a, its
weight is sufficient to pivot puck-receiving member 26 in a
counterclockwise direction about rod 14b from its non-indicating
position to its indicating position so that its associated
indicator panel 26b is brought into alignment and engagement with
window 14c so that indicia holes 26d are visible through window
panel 14d. Accordingly, to obtain the results of the play, the
first die value 38 selected is added to the second die value 46. As
in the conventional game of craps, if the shooter obtains a 7 or 11
on the first play or makes his or her point on subsequent plays,
the shooter wins all bets which have been made by the players.
However, if the shooter obtains a 2, 3 or 12 on the first play or
does not make his point on subsequent plays, the players win their
bets and collect from the shooter. The next player in turn then
becomes the shooter.
A latitude of modification, change and substitution is intended in
the foregoing disclosure. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the
appended claims be construed broadly and in a manner consistent
with the spirit and scope of the invention.
* * * * *