The invention relates to a book.
Young children have short attention spans and often lose interest in storybooks fairly quickly. It is therefore beneficial to have a book with some added interest so that a child will remain interested in the book for longer, for example to improve their reading skills.
According to the invention, there is provided a book, said book comprising a plurality of apertured pages, a main page behind the apertured pages, a counter, a first magnetic means, a second magnetic means, wherein: the counter incorporates the first magnetic means; the second magnetic means is part of the main page of the book; the second magnetic means is movable within the main page; the apertured pages each have an aperture located at different positions on adjacent pages, the apertures are of a size such that the counter may pass through the apertures and the book is arranged such that, when the counter is attracted by the second magnetic means and the second magnetic means is moved, the counter is drawn across an apertured page into the aperture on that page.
The book preferably includes a front cover with at least some of the apertured pages being located between the front cover and the main page. The front cover may also include an aperture for the counter to pass through.
In this specification, reference is made to first and second magnetic means. At least one of these magnetic means will be a permanent magnet or will have a magnetic field induced by an applied electrical current. The other magnetic means may also be a permanent magnet (with the poles of the two being such that they are attracted to one another) or may be of a material which will be attracted to a permanent magnet.
The pages of the book may be hingedly connected to a first side of the main page. Alternatively, the book may have pages which fold out in different directions and are hinged on different sides of the main page. The main page will usually be at the back of the book but it may alternatively be located in the middle so that it has apertured pages on either side. In such an embodiment, the book may contain two stories so that a child may read the first story on one side of the main page and then turn the book over and read the second story. The book may also come with two or more counters, particularly in this embodiment where there may be a different counter for each story.
The second magnetic means may be attached to a movable component which can be used to move the second magnetic means relative to the plane of the main page. The movable component controls movement of the second magnetic means behind the apertured pages.
It is preferred that the movable component is a rotatable disc which rotates about a central axis such that the second magnetic means describes a circle when the rotatable disc is moved. This ensures that the second magnetic means follows a pre-determined path which will correspond to the locations of the apertures on the apertured pages so that when the second magnetic means is moved, the first magnetic means which is attracted to the second magnetic means is moved into the apertures in the apertured pages. The movable component may alternatively be a slide member or any other suitable means of moving the second magnetic means relative to the plane of the main page. There may also be more than one second magnetic means and more than one aperture in each apertured page.
The second magnetic means is preferably located at or adjacent a periphery of the rotatable disc so that the circular path described by the second magnetic means is as long as possible. However, the second magnetic means may be located anywhere on the disc.
It is preferred that the main page has a first and second layer and that the second magnetic means is located between the first and second layers as this allows concealment of the second magnetic means between the two layers. This arrangement also ensures that movement of the second magnetic means in a plane perpendicular to that of the main page is substantially prevented.
There may also be a spacer between the first and second layers, the spacer having a thickness such that it maintains a pre-determined distance between the first and second layer. The maintenance of a pre-determined distance between the two layers allows free movement of the second magnetic means between them. However, there may be no spacer between the two layers which may instead form an envelope.
The spacer may also be shaped so as to limit the movement of the second magnetic means in the plane of the main page. The spacer can guide the second magnetic means between the first and second layers to ensure that it follows a pre-determined path within the main page.
When the movable component is a rotatable disc, it can be located in a substantially cylindrical volume defined by the spacer, the first layer and the second layer. The advantage of the volume being substantially cylindrical is that it is complementary in shape to the disc. It is preferred that the disc is of a size such that it fits snugly in the substantially cylindrical volume. The disc is thereby retained within the substantially cylindrical volume and its movement in the plane of the page is substantially prevented. No further fixings are required. However, it should be understood that the rotatable disc may also be attached via a pivot located at its centre about which it can turn.
Optionally, part of either the first or second layer is cut away to expose a portion of a periphery of the rotatable disc. This facilitates access to the rotatable disc so that it may be turned more easily. It is preferred that all layers of the main page will be cut-away and that the cut-out portion/s will be semi-circular in shape. There may be one or more cut-away portions located on any side of the main page. However, it is preferred that there is only a single cut-out portion and that it will be located on a second side of the main page which is located opposite the first side of the main page. The apertured pages may also have cut-out portions to assist access to the rotatable disc located behind the apertured pages.
The rotatable disc may also have edge portions which are shaped so that the disc is easy to grip and turn. The edge portions may be serrated. Alternatively, the edge portions may be depressions in a surface of the rotatable disc or holes in the rotatable disc.
Although the attraction between the counter and the movable component has been described here as being a magnetic attraction, other mechanisms which can provide or generate similar attractive forces may also be possible, and the invention is not limited to magnetic attraction.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description, taken together with the drawings wherein:
The book 10 has a front cover 13, a main page 14 and a plurality of apertured pages 16, the main page 14 being located at the back of the book. The apertured pages 16 each have an aperture 18 through which the counter 12 can pass and the main page 14 houses a rotatable disc 20. The apertured pages 16 are all hingedly connected to a spine on a first side 15 of the book 10. The rotatable disc 20 contains the second magnetic means 28. Again, the second magnetic means 28 is also a magnet however it could also be any type of metal or ferromagnetic material that is attracted by or to magnets. One of the first and second magnetic means will always be a magnet but they may both be magnets.
It is intended that a reader of the book place the counter 12 on a start position on a first apertured page. The start position will be indicated by the print on this first page. Once the reader has read the first page they must then turn the rotatable disc 20 containing the second magnetic means 28 which will attract the first magnetic means contained within the counter 12 thereby moving the counter 12 across the first apertured page until it reaches an aperture 18 in the page. The counter will drop into this aperture 18 and sit on a second apertured page until the first page is turned, at which point the counter will be free to move across the second apertured page. This process will then be repeated with each subsequent apertured page of the book 10. The number of apertured pages 16 in the book 10 may depend on the strength of the magnetic attraction which should be sufficient to ensure that the counter moves with the second magnetic means 28 whether the counter is on the first or last page of the book. It will not be necessary for the print on the apertured pages after the first to indicate a start position on the page, as this will be determined by the location of the apertures 18 on the preceding apertured pages. The positions of the apertures 18 on the apertured pages 16 will normally correspond to the circular path through which the second magnetic means 28 will pass as the rotatable disc 20 is turned. The apertures 18 on the apertured pages 16 may be holes in the middle of the pages 16 or cut-out portions at the edges of pages. The apertures 18 may be of any size or shape as long as the counter can pass though them but in this embodiment they are circular holes in the apertured pages 16.
The main page 14 also has a semi-circular cut-out portion 22 on a second side 17 of the main page 14 which is located opposite the first side 15 of the main page 14. The purpose of this semi-circular cut-out portion 22 is to allow the reader to grip and turn the rotatable disc 20.
Although the embodiment described uses a rotatable disc to move the second magnetic means along a pre-determined path, there may be many other ways of achieving this. For example, as previously mentioned, the spacer layer may have a path that is circular or snake-like in form and the second magnetic means may be located at one end of a slide member.
In this case, the slide member will be located between the spacer and either the first or second layer of the main page and the second magnetic means will protrude from the slide member so that it fits into the path in the spacer layer. The second magnetic means will therefore pass along the pre-determined path defined by the spacer layer. The slide member will protrude out between the two layers of the main page of the book such that the slide member may be manipulated by the reader.
The slide member 34 has a first end 33 which protrudes through the gap 36 between the layers 24, 26 of the main page 14 and is therefore located outside the body of the book 11, and a second end 35 which is located within the main page 14 between the first layer 24 (not shown) and the second layer 26. The slide member 34 further has a main body 37 between the first end 33 and the second end 35. The slide member 34 substantially comprises a flat elongate piece of sheet plastic or card or any other suitable material. The first end 33 of the slide member 34 is enlarged such that it is easier for a user to grasp and also has a hole 19 in the middle so that a user may place a finger through the hole 19 to further improve their grip on the slide member 34. The second end 35 of the slide member 34 includes the second magnetic means 28 and has shoulders 39 which are broader than the gap 36 in the main page 14. The shoulders 39 act as a stop to prevent the slide member 34 falling out of the main page 14. The slide member 34 further has a crease line 40 located between the main body 37 and the first end 33 of the slide member 34. During storage and transport of the book 11, the slide member 34 may be folded along this crease line 40 and the slide member 34 can be pushed into the main page 14 as far as it can go, so that the slide member 34 sits flush with the second side 17 of the main page 14 and does not protrude outwards where it might be damaged. Alternatively, the apertured pages 16 and the main page 14 may have cut-out portions (similar to those shown in
The advantage of the book described is that, in combination with a counter which conforms to the story of the book, the entire reading experience will be enhanced. For example, if the book is about a lion then the counter may be in the form of a soft toy in the shape of a lion. This enhancement will lengthen the period that a young child can remain interested in the book and they will therefore learn more.
It is to be recognized that various alterations, modifications, and/or additions may be introduced into the constructions and arrangements of parts described above without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention, as defined by the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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0400747.2 | Jan 2004 | GB | national |