Patent Application
20080128989
The present invention relates to an electronic game board used with a visual display.
The development of electronics and microprocessor controlled computers has resulted in the evolution of various products, as well as the enhancement of older products in a manner to make our lives more enjoyable, as well as easing the burden in performing various tasks. Many consumer products, which in years past operate without the necessity of electronic or microprocessor control, now utilizes technology in the operation of these products. For example, consumer products such as refrigerators, dishwashers and ovens operate through the use of microprocessors. These microprocessors, with the help of various sensors, would monitor a number of differing operating conditions, thereby allowing each of these appliances to function more efficiently.
The use of electronics and microprocessors have also extended to amusement games and devices. Initially, amusement games employing electronics and microprocessors were very rudimentary, such as the games Pong and Battleship. Recently, these amusement games have become quite sophisticated and therefore have enhanced the enjoyment of the players of these games. Along with the pure enjoyment fact of these games, it is important to develop games and activities which can be used to teach children as well as adults various academic or artistic skills. The sophistication of these games have also included utilizing a display device, for displaying various pictures, questions, still photographs as well as the use of animation in playing a game as well as teaching both children and adults alike various facts.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/780,567, filed Feb. 19, 2004 and incorporated by reference herewith is directed to an electronic game in which various participants are asked to complete a picture or scene depicted upon a computer screen or similar display device. This application described a system in which only a portion of a picture would be projected upon a display screen. The same picture would be displayed upon a plurality of screens included in the same environment, such as a playroom or projected upon screens in remote locations utilizing the internet. The purpose of this game would be to identify the nature of the picture as more pieces are added to the picture. However, it was never the intention of the game described in the aforementioned application to be utilized with a game board having a plurality of squares on its periphery. Similarly, the aforementioned patent application did not contemplate a situation in which the position of a player on the game board would be communicated to a microprocessor controlling the action of the game, thereby resulting in the display of various scenes, questions or facts on a display device.
U.S. published patent application 2006/0175753 to MacIver et al describes a game system including a DVD player, DVD media, a television and an electronic game board. Various types of sensor switches would locate a game piece relative to a particular square on the game board. A wireless signal, such as a signal sensitive to a light-emitting diode would be transmitted between the game board and a remote DVD gaming system. Based upon the signals received by the DVD gaming system, various information would be displayed on the screen of the television. As illustrated in
U.S. published patent application 2003/0062675 to Noro et al describes a system for determining the position and attitude of a game piece on a game board. A game management unit would store information pertaining to a game as well as the current status or scene as the game progresses. A game console or personal computer would manage the proceedings of the game through the game management unit. A computer graphics generation unit would generate the computer graphics for a particular scene. The computer graphics are transmitted to a display mounted on the head of each of the players. Various types of sensors would be utilized by a player position and attitude determining device to indicate the position and attitude of a player upon the game board. Similar to the patent application publication to MacIver et al, the manner in which the position of the player is determined is very complicated.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,690,156 to Weiner et al details a device for detecting the position of a player piece on a game board. As illustrated in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,836 to Yamasaki et al discusses a figure data input device in which the position and type of a figure is sensed when that figure is inserted into a particular position on a mounting board. Data is transmitted to a linked machine, such as a personal computer which is used to generate a scene on a display device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,327 issued to Gilboa is directed to a computerized game board associated with a display screen. Various playing pieces are provided on the game board at discrete locations. Each game piece generates a unique signal so that each game piece can be uniquely identified by a processor unit.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,397 issued to Lee et al describes a computer interface used with a game board. The game board can contain various overlays, each of which would be removably affixed to a game base. Each of the game overlays contains a plurality of player squares, either around the periphery of the overlay or across the entire surface of the overlay. Each of these squares is provided with a hole therein. Each of these holes is connected to an identification unit for communicating both identification data as well as position data to a central processor unit. Various game pieces are employed having unique information associated therewith. Therefore, the insertion of a game piece into the hole in one of the squares would transmit information to the central processor unit detailing into which square a particular game piece has been inserted, but also the specific identity of that game piece.
U.S. published patent application 2005/0014563 to Barri discusses an interactive DVD gaming system for playing various games, such as trivia games. However, this application does not utilize a game board during the play of the game.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,505 issued to Perrie et al describes a casino game including an illuminated game board having a game layout provided thereon. A player table is attached to the illuminated game board and is provided with a wager area thereon. As shown in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,650,870 to White et al discusses a data communication apparatus used with a toy or game. This apparatus includes a base unit provided with a recess portion, a speaker and a display. A character having a tag thereon is placed into the recessed portion with the tag lying adjacent to a tag reader. The tag contains information about the character which would then be visually displayed upon the display and/or transmitted to a speaker.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,674 issued to Bukowsky describes a stock market game having a game board surface defining a game piece moving pathway extending around the periphery of the game board. An electronic display is inserted within the center of the game board. This electronic display includes a processing unit for controlling a stock value and a portfolio value display.
U.S. published patent application 2005/0122995 to Walker et al displays a game board apparatus provided with a plurality of categories around the periphery of a game board. An audio/visual device comprising a display, a keypad and a speaker is associated with the game board apparatus. Electronic text, audio snippets and video snippets are displayed thereon for trivia questions for selected time periods.
Although several of the patents discussed hereinabove describe a game board provided with various sensors for transmitting the location and identify of a specific game pieced to a microprocessor, CPU or similar device, no single reference describes a situation in which only the location of a game piece is transmitted either wirelessly or through a wired connection to a device for controlling information to be projected upon a display either physically attached to the game board or provided at a distance remote from the game board.
The deficiencies of the prior art are overcome by the present invention which is directed to an electronic game board associated with a display unit. The electronic game board includes a playing surface having a plurality of playing squares or spaces provided around the entire periphery of the game board, or a portion of the periphery of the game board. Alternatively, the squares or spaces could be provided in the interior portion of the game board only, or could cover the entire surface of the game board. A switch or similar device is associated with each of the playing squares or spaces. A computer processor unit (CPU) is associated with the game board and the display. The display is either fixedly attached to the game board or provided at a location remote from the game board, such as a television screen. When the game utilizes a remote display unit, the CPU can either be located directly in or on the game board. If the display is remote from the game board, the CPU can also be provided on or in the game board or directly connected to a display screen in the form of a DVD or CD-ROM. The display screen can either be a television screen, a computer screen, or the like.
A switch is associated with each of the playing squares or spaces. Once a player lands on a particular square or space, the switch associated with that square or space would be physically depressed by the player or the player's piece. When the display is physically attached to the game board, a signal is produced which is transmitted either through a conductor provided between that particular square or space and the CPU or can be wirelessly connected to each of the switches. Based upon the particular square or space that a player has landed, various scenes, facts or questions would be projected upon the display. When the display is not physically connected to the game board and, is therefore located a distance therefrom, the depression of a particular switch, thereby indicating the particular square or spaces upon which the player has landed is wirelessly transmitted to the CPU associated with the display screen, wherein the CPU can also remotely situated with respect to the electronic game board. The DVD or CD-ROM in association with the CPU would produce the proper image to be displayed.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of the specification, illustrate the embodiments of the present invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
Referring to the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals indicate like elements,
Each of the squares of spaces 14, 16 would have a sensor switch 30 associated therewith. Although the type of switch which would be utilized for the play of this game is not important, it has been found that pressure switches which a particular player or player's piece would depress has been found to work particularly well.
The depression of each of the respective switches 30 associated with each of the game squares or spaces 14, 16 would generate a unique signal 31 which is wirelessly transmitted from the electronic game board 12 to a wireless receiver 28 associated with the DVD player 20. It is contemplated that any kind of wireless signal could be utilized. The depression of any of the switches 30 could be noted by the illumination of a light 18 provided directly upon the electronic game board 12 or, by the production of an audio signal produced by a speaker 24 associated with the DVD player 20 or, alternatively, the speaker could also be directly provided on the game board 12. A switch connected to either the electronic game board 12 or the DVD player 20 would be used to put the game in a “play” mode, wherein the depression of only the switches 31, would result in the proper material being projected onto display 22.
As can be appreciated, the type of game or the number and type of categories provided in the game shown in
The display unit 32 with the display 34 includes a base structure 39 directly attached to one side of the game board 12. Hinges 36, 38 will be used to move the display unit 32 from the upright position shown in
As various modifications can be made in the constructions and methods herein described and illustrated without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative rather than limiting. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims appended hereto and their equivalents.
