1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to toys, and more specifically to an animal toy.
2. Background Art
Many toys have been used to entertain animals. For example, animals (and particularly dogs) often enjoy tugging or pulling on a length of rope. Some toys attach various objects to the rope, or thread the rope through objects to increase the appeal of the toy as well as provide gripping surfaces. Certain toys attach the rope directly to the object. For example, a rope may terminate inside a ball in a knot retaining the rope therein, or may be stitched directly to the ball.
In either case, the life of the toy is limited by the stresses exerted on the object when the rope is pulled taut. Repeated pulling or tugging on the rope, especially when the rope is affixed to the object, may cause the object to break or the attachment between rope and object to come undone. This ultimately results in the destruction of the toy.
Animals often enjoy playing with, chewing on, or pulling on plush toys as well. Many plush toys are designed to withstand chewing, but not necessarily a tugging or pulling force. Such forces may stretch the stitching holding the plush toy together, especially where the force is exerted directly on the plush toy or the junctions between portions of the toy. Thus, plush toys also often fall apart when repeatedly tugged or pulled.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved animal toy.
One embodiment of the present invention takes the form of an animal toy having a body, a rope extending through said body from an entry point to an exit point, and an object external to the body, the rope at least partially extending through the object. The body may be a plush body. The body may further be affixed to either the rope or the object. The object may be, for example, a ball. The rope may pass through the ball, or may terminate in a knot inside the ball. The rope may form a loop passing through the ball or other object. The rope may be affixed to the ball or object, or may freely pass therethrough.
Another embodiment of the present invention takes the form of an animal toy having a plush body and a rope passing therethrough. The toy may include a ball, cylinder, or other object at one end, although this is optional. Generally, a first end of the rope extends from a first end of the plush body, and a second end of the rope extends from a second end of the plush body. Pulling the rope taut generally exerts no stresses on the plush body or its attachment points with either the object or rope.
Additional features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the entirety of this disclosure.
One embodiment of the present invention takes the form of an animal toy having a plush body and a rope passing therethrough. The toy may include a ball, cylinder, or other object at one end, although this is optional. Generally, a first end of the rope extends from a first end of the plush body, and a second end of the rope extends from a second end of the plush body.
In alternative embodiments, one or both ends of the rope may be formed into a loop. At least a portion of the loop is exposed (i.e., outside the plush body). In some embodiments, the entire loop (or loops) may be exposed. Portions of the loop may pass through the plush body, or an unlooped segment of the rope may pass through the plush body.
Regardless, in many embodiments the rope and plush body are affixed to one another, typically by stitching. Alternative embodiments, however, may affix rope and plush to one another with adhesive, staples, or any other conventionally-known fastener. The plush body and rope are affixed to one another such that tugging, pulling, or otherwise exerting stresses on the rope does not exert stress on the plush body (beyond incidental stresses). That is, pulling on both ends of the rope does not, for the most part, pull on, or exert force on, the body. This occurs for two reasons. First, the rope passes entirely through the body. Thus, the rope may conduct forces from the first end to the second end directly, or vice versa. Second, the attachments between the rope and plush body generally are not planar with the longitudinal axis of the rope. Accordingly, as the rope is pulled taut, the resulting force vector extends along the rope's longitudinal axis and is not transmitted to the plush body. In this manner, the attachments or connections between the plush body and rope do not fray or snap as readily, and the toy maintains its structural integrity for a longer time.
The plush body 115 is secured to the rope 110 at least one attachment point 155. Typically, the plush body 115 is stitched to the rope 110 at the attachment point 155. Alternatively, the rope 110 and plush body 115 may be glued together at the attachment point 155 or otherwise affixed.
As shown to best effect in
One may draw the rope 410 taut by holding the ball 445 and pulling the rope's first end 420. Although the rope 410 is secured to the plush body 415 at an attachment point 455, the attachment point 455 does not lie along the force vector. Thus, at most only incidental stresses are exerted on the attachment point 455 and/or plush body 415 when the rope 410 is tugged or tautened.
In addition to relieving stress on the plush body 415, which is typically more sensitive to stresses than the rope 410, the various embodiments of the present invention combine a number of elements or objects with which many animals like to play. As mentioned above, some embodiments of the invention combine a plush animal, a rope, and a ball. Each of these items individually is used to entertain and distract animals, such as dogs. It is believed the combination of such items may prove particularly entertaining to animals.
As with the previously-discussed embodiment, tugging on the ball 445 and rope 410 to pull the rope 410 taut does not project appreciable stress onto the plush body 415. Although the ball 445 is affixed to the plush body 415, the stress is generally carried by the junction of ball 445 and rope 410. The knot 450 comes to rest against the sidewall of the ball 465, while the rope's other end (first end, not shown) is pulled tight to transmit force to the ball 445. In any of the embodiments discussed herein, the rope 410 may be unattached to the plush body 415 at either the first or second ends to permit the rope 410 to slide through the body 415, either partially or completely.
It should be understood that
Additional embodiments may form the rope into a loop at both ends, instead of only at a single end. The rope may thus take the form of a figure-eight or Moebius strip. The looped portion of the rope 610 may exit the plush body 615 at two points (as shown in
Although the present invention has been discussed with respect to specific embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that additional embodiments may be realized upon review of the foregoing disclosure. Similarly, certain changes to the various embodiments described herein may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the disclosure. Accordingly, the proper scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of provisional patent application No. 60/684,243, filed on May 23, 2005 and entitled “Animal Rope and Plush Toy”, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60684243 | May 2005 | US |