Patent Application
20200027372
This invention relates to learning rods of the type pioneered by Georges Cuisenaire ® during the middle of the last century in order to teach mathematical concepts such as arithmetic through the use of sets of differently sized and coloured rod elements, each colour corresponding to a particular length of rod element.
The original Cuisenaire rod elements were made from wood, each set comprising ten rod elements, each of different colour to other rod elements in the set, with the length of each rod element being an integer of a chosen linear measurement scale, such as the centimetric scale, the smallest rod element in the set having a length of 1 cm and the longest rod element having a length of 10 cm. This concept proved very useful as a means of teaching students the relationship between length and number, with each length of rod element being of a particular colour, usually also bearing a number or other sign indicating its length. These rod elements could be arranged in a linear fashion i.e. end-on-end so that the students were able to easily determine in numerical terms the entire length of a rod formed from a plurality of joined-up rod elements. However, a disadvantage of this system was that they could not be physically joined together to form an elongate rod which could be handled by the students and therefore required placement on a flat stable surface such as a desktop.
With the introduction of interlocking toys such as Lego ® this problem was resolved such that current learning rod elements supplied by Cuiseneaire ® and others are made from injection-moulded plastics in which each rod element comprises a tube of square section having a closed end from which extends a cylindrical connecting pip of diameter corresponding to the smallest of the inside diameter of the tube, the open end of which acts as a socket for the connecting pip of another such rod element so that any number of rod elements can be connected together via a push fit to form a single elongate learning rod of length equal to the sum of its constituent parts. However, as will be apparent, the manufacture of each respective size of rod element requires a respective injection moulding tool such that where ten such rod elements are required, each of a different length to the other rod elements in the set, a total of ten moulds are required, which is expensive. Similarly, for each of the ten such rod elements a separate colour of plastic is usually required in order to easily distinguish rod elements of different lengths. Although the separate colour concept may be dispensed with as a means of reducing the complexity and cost of manufacture, the difficulty then arises that if the rod elements are of the same colour but of differing lengths it is not easy to visually distinguish the point where one rod element joins with another and therefore the point where a rod element having one number value has been added to by another rod element having another number value such that the overall length can be attributed to the sum of the number values.
The present invention is derived from the realisation that there is a need for a less complicated and less expensive way of manufacturing learning rods of the Cuisenaire type in plastics whilst retaining visual simplicity whereby students can readily construct and handle learning rods assembled from multiple rod elements joined end-on-end in which the overall length is easily identifiable.
According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a method of manufacturing a learning rod educational toy set comprising a plurality of rod elements, each rod element having an indication of its length on an outer surface thereof, such as by a number and/or a symbol indicating total length in increments, such as inches or centimetres, each rod element being releasably connectable to another such rod element by a respective coupling element, the coupling element including a flanged region having an outer perimeter generally contiguous with the outer perimeter of the or each rod element, the method including the steps of, in any convenient order, extruding a continuous tube or other elongate extrusion of sectional shape corresponding to the required sectional shape of the rod elements, cutting the continuous extrusion into discrete lengths corresponding to chosen increments, such as inches or centimetres, providing an indication of the length of each rod element on an external surface thereof, forming flanged coupling elements, each for attachment to an end of a respective rod element for connecting selected pairs of rod elements end-on-end to form a continuous learning rod, the flange of each coupling element being of a colour visibly distinct from the colour of the rod elements, thereby to provide a visible indication of the number of rod elements in a learning rod formed therewith.
With this arrangement a single extrusion die can be used to make rod elements of any chosen length and cross-sectional shape, such as a tube, in any chosen colour, thereby minimising the overall cost of manufacture, and a single injection mould can be used to form the coupling elements, which may conveniently be formed is plastics of a single colour, such as white or black, the flanged region of each coupling element therefore providing a visual indication of the junction between respectively adjacent rod elements.
In accordance with a second aspect of the invention there is provided a learning rod educational toy set comprising a plurality of extruded rod elements, each rod element having an indication of its length on or in an external surface, the set including rod elements of different lengths, the rod elements being connectable end-on-end by respective coupling elements to form one or more learning rods, each of total length equal to the sum of the length of each rod element used for the or each learning rod, adjacent rod elements being connectable by respective coupling elements, each coupling element including a visual indication of the end of an extruded rod element and the junction with another such extruded rod element when joined thereto.
With this arrangement, the coupling element of each rod element effectively serves two functions, the first being to connect respective pairs of extruded rod elements and the second being to indicate by means of the flange, the end of one rod element and the beginning of another such rod element attached to it.
Conveniently, at least the flange of the moulded coupling element is of a visibly different colour to that of the rod elements such that the number of rod elements in a learning rod constructed therefrom is easily ascertainable by the user thereof. Preferably, a neutral colour such as white or black is used for the coupling elements and the rod elements are of different colours, each colour corresponding to a respectively different length and colour.
In this patent specification reference to “colour” or “visible” is intended, where the context permits, to include other means of distinguishing between rod elements of differing lengths including, without limitation, rod elements where length is indicated in Braille or by some other tactile or visual means.
The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
In
The foregoing example shows the elegant simplicity of the Cuisenaire rods in conveying arithmetical concepts to students such as schoolchildren in an interesting manner which is easily understandable and tactile, requiring the selection and connection of various pieces by the student. As an improvement to this concept, each of the rod elements may be marked with an indication of its length, such as with numbers 1 to 10, so that students can quickly become familiar with the concept that numbers nearer to 10 than 1 represent rod elements that are longer than those having numbers nearer to 1. The rod elements themselves are relatively easy to manufacture if made of plastics by the process of injection moulding but an obvious disadvantage is that different moulds are required for different lengths such that a total of ten moulds are required for manufacturing the set shown in
In accordance with the invention the foregoing disadvantages may be wholly or partially overcome in the manner as shown with reference to
In
In accordance with the method of the invention, the extrusion 15 is cut into the various lengths for forming a complete set of rod elements, such as ten of sizes between 1 cm and 10 cm in length, and each cut length is provided with a respective coupling member by inserting a spigot 18 into one of the open ends of each extrusion 15. Each cut length of extrusion 15 may conveniently be distinguished from other different lengths in the set by being of a different colour, or by having markings such as numbers or formations such as Braille lettering or any combination of such indicators whereby different lengths in the set can be distinguished.
The invention therefore provides an elegantly simple solution to the problem, otherwise, of manufacturing learning rod sets whilst using multiple moulds to produce different lengths of rod elements, and uses instead a single extrusion mould and common coupling pieces, which coupling pieces also have the advantage of providing an easily identifiable means for students to differentiate between learning rod elements of different lengths by the use of numbers or other indicia corresponding to each length of rod.
