Patent Application
20250083064
This patent application is a continuation-in part and claims a priority date benefit of the following co-pending foreign patent applications by the same inventor and with the same title: Australia Patent Application No: 2023902960 filed on 13 Sep. 2023, China Pending application No. 2023229867207 filed on 6 Nov. 2023, and EU Patent Application No EP24152934.6 filed on 22 Jan. 2024, all of which are incorporated herein in their respective entireties by reference.
The present invention is centered around a toy building concept, with a particular emphasis on a panel designed for magnetic attachment to toy building tiles. In addition, the panels in the present invention minimize the expenditure required for buying additional building tiles to decorate with multiple graphics. The present invention facilitates a user to create both two-dimensional and three-dimensional decorative structures, offering an entertaining experience with multiple play options and simultaneously improving the user's skills.
Building tiles are play items composed of multiple pieces or components that a user assembles to construct a toy structure. These toys stimulate creativity and imagination by actively engaging users in a hands-on construction process. As users figure out how to fit the components together, the assembly process cultivates problem-solving skills. Apart from immediate enjoyment, construction toys often provide educational benefits by encouraging the development of spatial awareness through the manipulation of three-dimensional structures. Educational experts underscore the significance of building toys in early childhood development, contributing to the refinement of fine motor skills through the manipulation and connection of pieces. Collaborative play with these toys enhances social skills as children communicate, share ideas, and collaborate on creating structures.
Magnetic building tiles are employed to improve a user's skills, enabling the creation of two-dimensional or three-dimensional structures featuring diverse graphics printed on the building tiles. Nevertheless, the cost of magnetic building tiles is relatively high. Consequently, if the user desires to construct a design with different graphics or building tile appearance, the user must acquire additional magnetic building tiles, incurring additional expenses.
Building toys have been a staple for kids to play with for centuries, including wood blocks, Lego™, K'Nex™, MAGNA TILES™, and so on. The issue with these toys has been the ability to decorate the structures that kids build, limiting them to specialized decorated pieces that are hard to keep track of amongst the regular pieces. Further, acquiring magnetic building tiles entails a substantial cost, and these building tiles come with predefined graphic designs suited only for specific play scenarios such as castles, houses, or roads. This proves impractical as it demands a significant investment for limited adaptability across diverse play situations.
Furthermore, efforts have been made to enhance the playability of magnetic building tiles by directly imprinting graphics onto them. However, this approach has a drawback: once graphics are printed, users cannot re-print the magnetic building tiles. Consequently, the user or parents find themselves needing to purchase numerous sets to cater to various play scenarios. Notably, the manufacturing cost of magnetic building tiles is considerably higher than that of panels.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for developing a panel(s) that do not suffer from the aforementioned deficiencies.
One object of the present invention is to design a panel that minimizes the expense associated with constructing a multi-graphics structure compared to using magnetic building tiles.
Another object of the present invention is to develop a panel that prevents a building tile of a building toy play system from any potential damage during usage.
Another yet object of the present invention is to develop a panel that is non-scratchable.
A further object of the present invention is to design a panel featuring a range of graphics, aiming to offer numerous illusions to a user.
Another object of the present invention is to design a panel capable of absorbing vibrations generated during the usage of the play system.
Yet another object of the present invention is to develop a panel that enables the user to write/draw on the surface of the panel.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to develop a panel that possesses erasable qualities.
Another object of the present invention is to design an affordable panel.
Yet another object of the present invention is to develop a panel that is reusable.
Magnetic building tiles are a type of building or construction toy characterized by flat, geometric shapes with embedded magnets along their edges. These magnets facilitate easy attachment between building tiles, allowing a user to construct a diverse range of two-dimensional and three-dimensional structures. The magnetic feature enhances stability and versatility in the creations. Children commonly engage in creative play with magnetic building tiles, constructing anything from simple shapes to intricate designs such as houses, castles, or other imaginative structures. The building tiles are recognized for fostering spatial awareness, fine motor skills, and problem-solving capabilities in users.
In the present invention, at least one panel is disclosed that is magnetically attached to a building tile. The panel comprises a first side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile. The panel further comprises ferrous magnetic material configured to magnetically attract the panel to the plurality of magnets of the building tile to facilitate a removable attachment of the panel to the building tile. The panel may be sized to match the size of the building tile so as to cover thereof once magnetically attached thereto. Size matching term is used herein to describe the size of the panel to be within about +/−10% of the corresponding size of the building tile.
In one embodiment of the invention, the first side of the panel may be decorated with a first graphics layer.
In one embodiment of the invention, the first graphics layer may contain a graphic representation selected from a group consisting of: a straight road, a curved road, a Y-shaped road, a straight train track, a curved train track, a river, a lake, an ocean, a plant, a vegetation, at least one person, at least one character, at least one color, at least one shape, and at least one pattern. The at least one shape may be selected from a group consisting of: at least one circle, at least one square, at least one rectangle, at least one triangle, at least one trapezoid, at least one hexagon, and at least one octagon.
In one embodiment of the invention, the first side may be configured to be written on and erasable to facilitate changing the decorative appearance thereof.
In one embodiment of the invention, the panel may further comprise a second side opposite the first side, the second side may be configured to alter the appearance of the building tile with a second graphics layer that is different from the first graphics layer.
In one embodiment of the invention, the ferrous magnetic material may be located along a peripheral edge of the panel.
In one embodiment of the invention, the panel may include a first non-magnetic layer adjacent the first side of the panel and a second magnetic layer comprising a ferrous magnetic sheet.
In one embodiment of the invention, a building tile play system may include a plurality of identical building tiles, wherein each building tile is characterized by a length, a width, and depth, the depth is smaller than either the length or the width of the building tile. Each building tile may comprise a solid top piece and a solid bottom piece with a hollow space in between the solid top piece and the solid bottom piece when assembled together, the hollow space is sufficient for a plurality of magnets to be placed within the building tile adjacent at least one side thereof. The building tiles of the plurality of the building tiles may be configured to facilitate one building tile to be removably attached to another building tile via a magnetic attachment along one side thereof to facilitate building of tile play structures. The building tile play system may further comprise at least one panel comprising a ferrous magnetic material and sized to match the length and the width of the building tile, the at least one panel further comprises a first side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile when the panel is placed on top thereof while being magnetically attached to the plurality of magnets therein.
In one embodiment of the invention, a method of performing an amusement activity is described by using a plurality of panels and a plurality of building tiles to create a tile play structure. The method may include the steps of:
In one embodiment of the invention, the method may further include the steps of:
The accompanying drawings illustrate the best mode for carrying out the invention as presently contemplated and set forth hereinafter. The present invention may be more clearly understood from a consideration of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference letters and numerals indicate the corresponding parts in various figures in the accompanying drawings, and in which:
Embodiments of the present invention disclosure will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like numerals represent like elements throughout the figures, and in which example embodiments are shown.
The detailed description and the accompanying drawings illustrate the specific exemplary embodiments by which the disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are described in detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention illustrated in the disclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. The following detailed description is therefore not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention disclosure is defined by the appended claims. Embodiments of the claims may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.
The building toys described here are magnetic building tiles that allow kids to build two-dimensional structures and three-dimensional structures by using magnets on the edges of each tile to allow for the building tiles to stick together in any combination that the kid can think of. The building tiles can be in any shape, such as square, rectangular, circular, triangular, octagon, etc., which will make it easier to create intricate and complex structures as well as simple ones.
The magnetic building tiles comprise a solid top piece and a solid bottom piece. Before the top and bottom pieces are placed together and are fastened to each other, for example using conventional fasteners or using ultrasonic weld points at the corners, the magnets are placed around the outside edge recesses of the top and bottom pieces. The two or more magnets are placed around each of the edges, dividing the recess space evenly among the magnets. The magnet poles are reversed with every additional magnet placed, so north/south is followed by south/north. Ideally, there would be an even number of magnets around each edge. In between each of the magnets, there may be an additional fastener or an ultrasonic weld point.
The building toys may also include one or more flat decorative panels. Each panel may include a first side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile. The panel may further comprise ferrous magnetic material configured to magnetically attract the panel to the magnets of the building tile to facilitate a removable attachment of the panel to the building tile. The panel may be sized to match the size of the building tile so as to cover thereof once magnetically attached thereto.
The panels can have any prefabricated decoration forming a first graphics layer on the first side of the panel. The first graphics layer may contain a graphic representation, such as a straight road, a curved road, a Y-shaped road, a straight train track, a curved train track, a river, a lake, an ocean, a plant, a grass, a vegetation, at least one person, at least one character, at least one picture, at least one color, at least one shape, at least one pattern, and images from books, movies, and TV. The at least one shape may be selected from a group consisting of: at least one circle, at least one square, at least one rectangle, at least one triangle, at least one trapezoid, at least one hexagon, and at least one octagon.
The panels may have the same width and length as any of the magnetic building tiles described above and stick to the magnetic building tiles using the back side of the panels. In embodiments, the panels may have the exact size and shape of the building tiles to ensure that there is no overlap or underlap between the pieces, when the panels are smaller or larger than the building tiles. The decorative panels may be easily differentiated from the tile pieces when the kids are building a structure. The panels could be attached to a predetermined shape created by the panels, so the panels are used in combination to create a pattern or single image, like the child completing a puzzle.
In several embodiments of the present invention, the tile is made up of two identical pieces 104, i.e., a solid top piece and a solid bottom piece, that make up the top and bottom of the tile. Further, a hollow portion is present between the solid top piece and the solid bottom piece. A plurality of circle portion 103 is a fastening portion that is used to connect the top and bottom pieces 104, with a fastener. The fastener is preferably an ultrasonic rivet, but any type of fastener may be used for connecting the top and bottom pieces 104. The pieces 104 are solid on the top and hollow in the middle. A solid edge 106 surrounds the tile on the outside, and internal dividing portions 107, which are part of the top and bottom pieces 104, are placed in the interior of the building tiles for added support when the top and bottom pieces 104 are attached to each other.
In several embodiments of the present invention, a plurality of magnets 102 are placed around the outer edge of the inside portions 105 of the building tiles. Preferably the magnets are placed at equidistant intervals, as shown in the
In several embodiments of the present invention, the interior magnets 108 are placed equidistant from each other on the interior of the building tiles. While two magnets are shown along the cross portion, any equal number of magnets could be used as long as they mirror each other vertically and horizontally along the center axes of the tile. The polarity of the interior magnets should alternate polarities along the vertical and horizontal axes. Additional magnets could be placed anywhere in the interior, as long as they are equidistant and switch polarities along the vertical and horizontal axes.
In several embodiments of the present invention, a divider(s) 205 could be placed between neighboring magnets and between the rivet points and the magnets to keep the magnets in place. The outer and inner magnet borders 206 and 207 keep the magnets in a perpendicular direction to the dividers. The magnets could be affixed to the bottom piece via an adhesive, or the dividers and borders could keep the magnets in place. There could be inner dividers 107, as shown in
In another embodiment of the present invention, the top portion is made of a ferrous magnetic material. Since the graphic design covers both the top portion and the bottom portion, and the material for both the top portion and the bottom portion is ferrous, the user is allowed to affix any side with the magnetic tile based on the desired graphics presented on the top side.
In several embodiments of the present invention, the panel comprises a first side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile. The panel further comprises ferrous magnetic material configured to magnetically attract the panel to the plurality of magnets of the building tile to facilitate a removable attachment of the panel to the building tile, wherein the panel is sized to match the size of the building tile so as to cover thereof once magnetically attached thereto.
In embodiments, the panel may include a first non-magnetic layer at the first side of the panel, and a second magnetic layer comprising a ferrous magnetic sheet. In other embodiments, the panel may comprise a third core layer between the first non-magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer, wherein the third core layer is configured to provide rigidity for the panel.
The first side of the first non-magnetic layer may be decorated with a first graphics layer which, in turn, may include different type of graphics. Further, the third core layer, i.e., the center of panel 1002 may be made of wood, plastic, rubber, or another non-metallic material to give the panel rigidity. The first layer 1001 may be affixed to the third core layer of the panel via glue, epoxy, tape, or any type of substance that can attach one object to another. Further, the second magnetic layer, i.e., base 1003, may be a ferrous sheet that covers the entire section of the panels, or around the perimeter, that allows for the panels to attach to the building tiles.
In further embodiments, the second side of the panel opposite the first side thereof may also be configured to alter the appearance of the building tile, such as with a second graphics layer that is different from the first graphics layer. During amusement activity, the kid may flip the panel to instantly change the appearance of the building tile from that corresponding to the graphics on the first side of the panel to that corresponding to the graphics on the second side of the panel.
In other embodiments of the invention, the panel may comprise a transparent pocket at the first side or the second side of the panel. The transparent pocket may be configured for removable placement of a flat carrier containing a first graphics layer. This may facilitate printing of the first graphic layer at home and inserting the printed graphic into the pocket so as to change the appearance of the building tile to facilitate playing a new game.
In further yet embodiments, additional layers serving a variety of useful purposes may also be included in the panel at various locations therein, as the present invention is not limited in this regard.
A method of performing an amusement activity according to the present invention, may use a plurality of panels and a plurality of building tiles described above to create a tile play structure. The method may include the following steps:
The method of the invention may further include the step of providing a second plurality of panels sized to match the building tiles, each panel comprising ferrous magnetic material configured to facilitate a removable magnetic attachment of the panel to the building tile, each panel further comprising a first side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile when the panel is placed on top thereof while being magnetically attached to the plurality of magnets therein, the second plurality of panels together corresponding to a second selected theme for the tile play structure.
Furthermore, the method may include a step of replacing the first plurality of panels with the second plurality of panels so as to switch the amusement activity from the first selected theme to the second selected theme.
In further embodiments, in step (e) of the method, the first plurality of panels may have a second side configured to alter the appearance of the building tile according to the second theme, so as switching from the first theme to the second theme is accomplished by flipping the panels to expose their respective second side in place of the first side.
The invention, as described above, offers several advantages. For instance, each of the panels is very simple in design and construction. Further, the panels use commonly available materials. The simplicity in design and construction and the use of commonly available materials allow the panels to be mass-produced with minimal capital expenditure and to be made available in the market at significantly lower prices. Also, the panels can be reused several times and are, therefore, cost-effective for the end user and minimize waste generation. Magnetic building tiles are typically expensive, and incorporating ferrous panels is a means to reduce costs while offering additional play options, as compared to purchasing various magnetic building tiles.
Various modifications to these embodiments are apparent to those skilled in the art, from the description and the accompanying drawings. The principles associated with the various embodiments described herein may be applied to other embodiments. Therefore, the description is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown along with the accompanying drawings but is to provide the broadest scope consistent with the principles and the novel and inventive features disclosed or suggested herein. Accordingly, the invention is anticipated to hold on to all other such alternatives, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope of the present invention and appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202390960 | Sep 2023 | AU | national |
| 2023229867207 | Nov 2023 | CN | national |
| 24152934.6 | Jan 2024 | EP | regional |
