This invention relates to a jig-saw puzzle.
Jig-saw puzzles are well known and have been in existence for many years. A typical traditional jig-saw puzzle comprises a piece of art work which is laminated onto a material, usually cardboard or wood, and which is then cut into a number of interlocking pieces. Depending on the number and the size of interlocking pieces and the pattern of the artwork, jig-saw puzzles can be created which range in difficulty from puzzles which would be suitable for an infant child, up to much more complicated and challenging puzzles for adults seeking a mental challenge.
There are various known ways of making jig-saw puzzles which are challenging and difficult to complete. One way is to make the pieces very small and almost identical in colour and shape. It is also common to make jigsaws having a thousand or more pieces since all else being equal, the more pieces there are to the puzzle, the longer it takes to complete. It is also known to make jigsaw pieces which are double sided which can increase the difficulty of the puzzle.
There are also ways of making jigsaw puzzles more interesting, particularly for children by for example including special pieces in the jig-saw puzzle which have particular shapes such as numbers, letters, silhouettes of animals, or the like.
One attempt to make a more interesting/challenging puzzle is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,697 which discloses a jig-saw puzzle which when assembled, forms a sphere. One of the disadvantages of the puzzle shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,697, is that the design is limited to a spherical shape. That limits the application of the puzzle and also somewhat limits the artwork which can be applied to the puzzle. Of less significance, there is considerable wastage in the manufacture of the pieces for the puzzle and over half of the material has to be recycled.
The present invention aims to provide a jigsaw puzzle and method of making the same which is potentially more challenging than existing puzzles and which is more flexible in terms of the designs which the puzzle may carry or form.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which has been included in the present specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.
In a first broad aspect, the present invention provides a jig-saw puzzle including a plurality of rigid planar pieces, a plurality of interlocking cooperative pairs of coupling elements being formed in said pieces to interlock edge to edge each adjacent piece to another adjacent piece characterised by at least some of the pieces being transition pieces which include hinges and define transitions between two intersecting surfaces in the completed puzzle.
In another broad aspect, the present invention provides a jig-saw puzzle which when completed, forms a 3-dimensional object defining at least two intersecting surfaces, the puzzle being formed from a plurality of interlocking generally planar pieces, at least some of which are transition pieces being hinged such that part of the piece is co-planar with one of the intersecting surfaces and the other pieces co-planar with a second intersecting surface.
Thus, the present invention provides that a jig-saw puzzle can be used to make a 3-dimensional object that includes edges or surfaces defining two or more intersecting surfaces. Some of the pieces, the transition pieces “wrap around” the edges of the object. Thus, a cube can now be turned into a jig-saw puzzle and yet formed from planar pieces which generally maintain the identify and familiarity of the pieces of a jig-saw puzzle.
Whilst 3-dimensional jigsaw puzzles embodying the present invention may be sold simply as a puzzle, it is also possible to market such puzzles as promotional material, for example a jigsaw in the form of a cube, with each side showing an image of Australia.
Typically, the transition pieces will define fold lines scored into one side of the pieces so that the piece may be bent in one direction only.
Typically, the angle defined between the intersecting surfaces of the transition piece in the 3-dimensional object will be substantially less than 180° depending on the object and will commonly be around 90°.
In a further related aspect of the present invention, there is provided a generally planar jig-saw puzzle piece comprising two generally planar portions joined by a hinge line, each portion defining male or female coupling means for interlocking with corresponding coupling means on adjacent pieces. In a yet further aspect, the invention provides a method of making a jigsaw puzzle of a 3-dimensional object comprising the steps of:—
Specific embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
a is a plan view of a jigsaw piece which is to form a curved piece;
b shows a section through the piece shown in
c shows a section through the piece after it has been curved;
d shows the curved piece of
a to 9d illustrate pieces for use where a convex curved surface meets a flat plane;
a and 10b illustrates an internal structural double piece defining a groove; and
Referring to the drawings,
As shown, the transition piece is divided into two planar elements 18, 20 by a hinge or fold line 22 formed by partially cutting through the reverse face of the material with a knife. Alternatively, the hinge line may be creased or impressed.
a to 4d illustrate the formation of a curved jigsaw piece 40 for forming part of a curved surface such as a cylinder. A series of spaced parallel grooves are cut or grooved into the sheet of material as shown in cross section in
FIGS. 5 to 7 illustrate the steps involved in the production of a 3-dimensional puzzle in the shape of a cube. A 3-dimensional jigsaw has to have the object surfaces mapped and reduced to two dimensions for producing on a flat sheet of material. Also during the mapping process, the placement of the transition pieces for edges and corners has to be accommodated.
With a simple 2-dimensional jigsaw, a laminated cardboard picture is typically used and placed under a standard die cutting press and cut into pieces. In this process, due to the thickness of the blade, a small amount of cardboard will be removed between the pieces, including a small amount of cardboard removed from between the male and female elements of the connectors. Since the pieces of a 2-dimensional jigsaw puzzle only have to slot together, the removal of the cardboard between the male and female connector elements during the manufacturing process is of no consequence.
However, in the case of a 3-dimensional jigsaw puzzle, the pieces must structurally contribute to a load bearing surface. Thus, frictional resistance between the pieces of the jigsaw is paramount to the puzzle's structural integrity. In order to gain enough friction to maintain the sides of the object, the pieces have to be a tighter fit. In the present invention, in order to gain the required friction between the pieces, the pieces are cut separately.
FIGS. 5 to 7 illustrate a method of making a 3-dimensional jigsaw in the form of a cube. A six sided cube may be folded flat easily. However, simply because the pieces fold together to make edges of the cube, does not automatically mean that the planes of the cube will join together. In a 2-dimensional jigsaw puzzle, the jigsaw puzzle pieces extend to and include edge pieces which form the border of the 2-dimensional puzzle. In contrast with 3-dimensional jigsaw puzzles, there is no edge of a single plane as such, instead two planes intersect and it follows that where there is an edge of one plane there will be another side or surface of the object touching that edge/plane.
In
FIGS. 9 to 12 illustrate additional pieces which may be used in making 3-D objects other than a cube.
In particular,
As well as laser cutting as described above, where plastics materials are used for the pieces, the pieces could be die cut out or stamped out. Alternatively the pieces may be made individually by injection moulding or the like, or may be moulded using some other process such as casting. Where injection moulding is used to manufacture plastic pieces, the resistance between pieces could be moulded into the pieces using a pattern, grooves or other surface irregularities, so as to achieve resistance between interlocking pieces. Such a piece is illustrated in
Puzzles made of plastic, wood, metal or other harder materials would have an advantage over cardboard pieces in that they would be more durable and could be used for larger structures due to the increased strength of the material compared to cardboard and paperboard.
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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PS 0994 | Mar 2002 | AU | national |
This application is a National Stage application and a continuation-in-part of International Application No. PCT/AU03/00284, filed on Mar. 11, 2003, which claims priority of Australian Application No. PS 0994, filed on Mar. 12, 2002.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/AU03/00284 | 3/11/2003 | WO |