Patent Application
20100259002
The present invention relates generally to a game device, and more particularly to a table or floor game that uses an animated character with an appendage to distribute tiles about a horizontal surface for use during game play.
Board games or table games for children are well known and very popular. Often in the prior art, manufacturers of such games have used animals as part of the theme of the game to make the game more interesting and more exciting for children. For example, HUNGRY HIPPOS™, ANTS IN THE PANTS™, BARREL OF MONKEYS™, and CROCODILE DENTIST™, which are manufactured by Hasbro, and KING TOAD™ and DUCK, DUCK, BRUCE™, which are manufactured by Gamewright, all employ animals in the games' themes to make the game more attractive to children.
Many of these games, such as KING TOAD™ and DUCK, DUCK, BRUCE™ use playing cards as part of the game. The card games for children that use animated characters in the prior art, however, involve manually dealing or flipping the cards.
Also known in the prior art, are machines that automatically deal or distribute cards. For example, a 1911 patent, U.S. Pat. No. 999,670, issued to Murch, for “Machine for Dealing Playing Cards” discloses “a rotary card dealer-carrier, a card holder or box carried thereby, and devices acting in the rotation of the said dealer-carrier to deliver cards at predetermined points in the said rotation.” A patent issued in 1931, U.S. Pat. No. 1,824,542, to Hangerud, for an “Automatic Card Distributing Device” discloses a machine “for the distributing of a number of cards, one at a time, at a plurality of spaces disposed about a fixed point, the same being done automatically and continuously until the total number of cards to be distributed have been exhausted” and employs “a base and a housing disposed centrally of the base and superposed thereabove” with “[a]utomatic means . . . provided in the housing for the distributing of the cards one at a time”. A patent issued in 1992, U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,153, to Rosenwinkel et al., for “Mechanical Card Dispenser and Method of Playing a Card Game” discloses a machine that “is concerned with providing a game that mechanically dispenses additional cards to a player in a dramatic manner”, and “a chance element in operation of the device may still permit the player to escape receiving any additional cards” wherein “[d]epression of a button in accordance with card play, indexes a disc having variously spaced apart detents for actuating a battery motor driven eccentric wheel that expels the cards from a reservoir”.
A device combining an animated character that is used in a children's table game with an automatic card dealing machine is unknown in the prior art. Accordingly, it would be desirable to create this type of combination, which will increase children's interest and excitement during game play. The invention discussed in connection with the described embodiment addresses these and other deficiencies of the prior art.
The features and advantages of the present invention will be explained in or apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment considered together with the accompanying drawings.
The present invention addresses the deficiencies of the prior art of board games and table games for children that use animated characters and cards, tiles, or other two-dimensional objects as well as the deficiencies of the prior art of automatic card dealing machines by combining the two.
More particularly, a described embodiment of the invention provides a device operable by a game player for distributing two-dimensional objects, such as tiles or cards, about a plurality of game players. The device comprises an animated character with an appendage, such as a wing, an arm, or a leg, wherein the appendage is used to distribute the two-dimensional objects. The device also comprises a base for supporting the animated character above a horizontal surface with a panel for covering the base and providing one or more compartments associated with the base. In relation to the character and the base is a bin for holding a supply of the two-dimensional objects. An input mechanism, such as a beak or a nose to squeeze, is used for activating the appendage, which, in turn, flips the two-dimensional objects from the bin. A power source, such as a battery powered motor or a spring, is used in response to the input mechanism. In the present described embodiment, a rotating mechanism is operable with the power source for moving the character relative to the base for distributing the two-dimensional objects about the horizontal surface. Additionally, an indicator may be provided, such as a plurality of colored lights or an audio source, operable with the power source for communicating information to the game players. Finally, the two-dimensional objects may be cards or tiles containing graphics or text that are used as part of the game playing.
The invention will now be more particularly described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. Novel features believed characteristic of the invention are set forth in the claims. The invention itself, as well as the preferred mode of use, further objectives, and advantages thereof, are best understood by reference to the following detailed description of the embodiment in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
In the present described embodiment, the device 10 is shown as a penguin being the animated character 11 perched atop an iceberg. The animated character 11 has an appendage 12 for distributing, or flipping, two-dimensional objects 22, such as cards or tiles. In
The device 10 has an input mechanism 18 for activating the appendage 12 for outwardly flipping the two-dimensional objects 22 from the bin 16. In the described embodiment, the input mechanism 18 is the penguin's beak, where one squeezes the beak to activate rotation of the penguin's wing. In other described embodiments, the input mechanism may be another body part, such as a nose, that when squeezed, or pulled or activated in some other way, will cause movement in a character's arm or leg.
The device 10 has a power source 20, shown in
The device 10 further has one or more indicators operable with the power source 20 for communicating information to game players using the device 10.
Lastly in referring to the perspective diagrams,
The input mechanism 18 comprises a beak 32 or mouth portion, a lever 34, a lever support 36, and an input leaf switch 38. The beak 32 is composed of rubber, although other squeezable materials may be used, and fits through an opening on the front outer housing 30. The lever 34 fits into the beak 32 on one end and through an opening in the lever support 36 such that the end of the lever 34 through the lever support 36 rests below the contact of an input leaf switch 38. The input mechanism 18 is engaged by a game player squeezing the beak 32 and causing the end of the lever 34 through the lever support 36 to rise and press the contact on the input leaf switch 38, thus activating the electronic circuitry of the device 10. Although a leaf switch is shown, other microswitches may be used. Furthermore, although a squeezable beak is shown, other common input mechanisms may be used, such as buttons or switches.
The audio source 26 comprises a speaker 40, a speaker grill 42, and a speaker mounting support 44. The speaker 40 is mounted on the speaker mounting support 44 and pressed into the speaker grill 42 so that the audio sound will emanate from the front of the animated character 11. Once the electronic circuitry of the device 10 is activated, the power source 20 provides power to the audio source 26. Although audio communication is shown using a speaker in the described embodiment, other methods of communicating auditory information may be used, such as bells or whistles.
Once power is provided to the motor 52, the motor 52 causes a gear assembly 54 to turn. As shown in
The gear assembly 54 is also used to turn a standard pinion gear 62, which, as will be shown in
The components of the light indicator 24 are also shown in
Also shown in
Further shown in
In the present described embodiment, the microprocessor 110 is operable with the power source 20 and receives input signals from the input mechanism 18 by a game player squeezing the beak 32 of the animated character 11. This squeezing motion causes the interaction between the lever 34 and the input leaf switch 38 as previously described, which sends an electronic signal to the microprocessor 110 indicating that the beak 32 has been squeezed. Upon receiving this input, the microprocessor 110 sends output signals to the motor driver circuitry 112 operable with the power source 20, which simultaneously causes the flipping mechanism 118 to move the appendage 12 and causes the rotating mechanism 15, which is also operable with the power source, to rotate the upper portion of the device 10 about the base 14. The microprocessor 110 or the motor driver circuitry 112 uses counters to control the number of flips and the number of rotations. Also upon receiving an input signal, the microprocessor 110 sends output signals to the sound effects circuitry 114, which controls the audio source 26 and is operable with the power source 20, and to the indicator lights circuitry, which controls the light assembly and is also operable with the power source. The microprocessor 110 uses timers to control both the audio and light indicators.
The remainder of this section describes the use of the device 10 in terms of using it during game play and provides an example of the operation of the device 10.
The contents of the game include the device 10, sixty-four double-sided picture tiles, such as are shown in
To prepare for the game, a player must load the bin 16 with forty-eight picture tiles, shuffle the mission tiles, and place the mission tiles next to the device 10.
To begin the game, a player must squeeze the penguin's beak 32. The penguin will say “uh-oh” and begin flipping the picture tiles about the horizontal surface as all portions above the base 14 rotate. The penguin will flip up to twelve picture tiles about the horizontal surface. When the penguin stops flipping and spinning, a player must flip over the top mission tile. The players must then look at the color of the light indicator 24 to see if the light is green or red. If the light is red, the players must look at the red mission on the mission tile. If the light is green, the players must look at the green mission on the mission tile. To complete a mission, a player must find a picture on one of the picture tiles that matches the text on the mission tile. During play, the penguin may say “wat wat”, in which case the light indicator 24 will change colors and the mission changes to match the color of the light. If a player spots a picture that matches the mission, that player must shout “Pictureka!”, point at the picture and say what that player saw. If the other players disagree, the current mission continues. If nobody disagrees, the player removes the picture tile from the game and keeps it. Play then continues with the mission matching the color of the light on the light indicator 24. Once players have performed both missions on one side of a mission tile, one player must turn the mission tile over and perform the missions on the other side. Eventually, the penguin will begin flipping tiles again and everyone should take a break until the penguin finishes. Then, a new mission tile is used. If all players get cannot complete a mission, they may discard the current mission tile and use a new one. Play continues until the penguin makes a noise that sounds like someone “blowing a raspberry” on a baby's stomach. The player with the most picture tiles wins the game.
It should be noted that the game just described may be played with or without using the device 10, and, it should also be noted that other games may be played using the above-described tiles both with or without the device 10.
While the present invention has been illustrated by a description of various embodiments and while these embodiments have been set forth in considerable detail, it is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the appended claims. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications to the foregoing preferred embodiments may be made in various aspects. It is deemed that the spirit and scope of the invention encompass such variations to be preferred embodiments as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art and familiar with the teachings of the present application.
