The present invention relates to the portable games, and more specifically to a portable (pocket-size) chess/checkers/backgammon set (apparatus).
Chess, checker and backgammon are the games played using two sets of pieces on the boards. Chess and checker use a square form board with 64 spaces (smaller squares) of alternating colors, typically light and dark (mostly white and black). The backgammon game also uses the square form board and the game field usually with the dark color pattern (e.g. black) and, for example, white and red triangular form sections for pieces also known as stones (some players call them as draughts too). Typically, chess game include two sets of chessmen (also known as pawns and pieces), and the checker game (also known as draughtmen) and backgammon game use two sets of pieces (draughts). One set of the mentioned two sets has a light color and the another set has a dark color (usually white and black, but any other combination of colors may be used as well). The chessmen (pawns and pieces) and draughts will be conditionally referred to as pieces in this application hereinafter. The mentioned above two sets will be referred to as a set of pieces, and the set of pieces includes white piece set and black piece set. The white set of pieces includes only white pieces, and black set of pieces includes only black pieces. Also, hereinafter in this application a multi-game set will be considered to include the set of pieces and a game board.
Some chess/checker players record the moves made during a chess/checker game (match). Therefore, the chess/checker game board has the file and rank identification for each square. The files and ranks are mostly labeled in the different manner. White player always start the game (moves first).
A board may have the files and ranks marked (labeled) on only two contiguous sides, but mostly the board has the files and ranks marked (labeled) on all four sides. As disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,742, the black piece player reads the letters upside-down. If the numbers are not sideways, the problem of the player with the black pieces is compounded. One of the difficulties with this is that the board must be turned around before the next game with its customary color reversal.
The chessboard by U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,212 disclosing a sectional chessboard which includes a number of sections corresponding to blocks of a chessboard wherein each section of the chessboard has protrusions and grooves around all sides thereof to be respectively engaged with grooves and protrusions of other sections so that all adjoining sides of each section is jointed together for playing chess as a complete chessboard.
Such chess game set can not be conveniently used as a portable pocket-size game for car, bus, train or airplane tourists. Also, the mentioned set does not prevent the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board during a non-accurate or negligent player's manner to position piece near or even upon the borders of a square on the board, and/or at the moment of the unexpected tour-bus maneuver during the game.
Another U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,652 describes portable lawn playing checker apparatus including a board having a first and a second face; with a plurality of rectangles inscribed upon the first face and a first storage compartment and a second storage compartment attached to the second face of the rectangular base board on opposite ends of the base board for storing a plurality of movable rings, which are used as checkers. The board comprises the first and second holding compartments. The first holding means and a second holding means are attached to the first face of the board on opposite ends of the board. The first and second holding means are used for holding the movable rings (pieces) when playing the game to be played on the mentioned checker apparatus. The checker apparatus also comprises the special means for moving the movable rings from square to square. An example of the means for moving the movable rings is a device having a reaching member and a hook on one end of the reaching member.
This apparatus does not provide and suggests the multi-game possibility (for example, possibility also to play chess and/or backgammon), requires to use an additional special instrument such as piece mover, and also does not prevent the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board during a non-accurate or negligent player's manner to position piece near or even upon the borders of a square on the board.
As was mentioned above, the another inconvenience inherent when some players have a non-accurate or negligent manner to position piece near or even upon the borders of a square occasionally disposition opponent's piece on the board (one player knows where the piece is /should be or was/, but the another player /opponent/ can get thrown off by its off-center placement).
It is known, that the opponent sometimes has to say, “J'adoube” (adjust) before he or she may touch your ill-placed piece and then place it in the center of the square. Doing so, however, deprives the opponent of time allocated him or her by previous agreement. Another tactic some players use is floating a piece to a position just above a square but not contacting the square. This is called hovering. The general rule is touch a piece, move that piece, touch a square, leave it there. Players like to hover because it allows them to see ahead an additional move. Sometimes a player will hover interminably over a square which represents the worst move possible. This can cause the opponent to anticipate one course of action. Then the player will move with lightning speed and occupy a square which represents the best move possible. This is a technique that causes disappointment, consternation, confusion and palpitations in that order.
The inconvenience of a sudden displacement (roaming, sliding, etc.) of the pieces on the board, for example, at the moment of the unexpected tour-bus maneuver during the game, may cause the arguments about the positions before the displacement and sometimes search for missing (e.g. fell down) pieces.
To avoid these deficiencies, the magnetic effect for the board and pieces is used in some known portable sets.
The U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,490,675; 5,413,352; 5,244,212; 5,197,742 and 4,371,168 use the magnetic attraction between board and pieces. For example, the chess game devices by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,490,675 and 5,413,352 include a steel sheet attached to the board, and the pieces have a magnets installed in the bottom part of the pieces.
Such devices do not provide and suggests the multi-game possibility (for example, possibility also to play checker and/or backgammon games), and also does not prevent the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board, for example, at the moment of the unexpected tour-bus maneuver during the game, that may cause the player's arguments about the positions before the displacement and sometimes search for missing pieces. Additionally, such set games often suffer from inadequate magnetic attraction/repulsion between adjacent pieces.
The chess game sets by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,244,212; 5,197,742 provide each square of the board and each piece with the magnet appropriately installed in the each board's square and in the bottom of each piece.
These game sets do not provide and suggests the multi-game possibility (for example, possibility to play checker and/or backgammon games), and also does not prevent the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board, for example, at the moment of the unexpected tour-bus maneuver during the game, that may cause the player's arguments about the positions before the displacement and sometimes search for the fell down pieces. Also, such set games often suffer from inadequate magnetic attraction/repulsion between adjacent pieces.
Another U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,168 describes the pocket-size chess set, which comprises two slidable para-magnetic checkerboard halves and the flat pieces provided with a magnetic element on the back and bottom surfaces of each piece. Thus, each piece (chessman) may be placed either horizontally for storage or vertically for play on the checkerboard. Each square has a recessed circular portion located at the center of the square, and their margins are also recessed for the placing a piece thereon. Each piece is relatively thin and is provided with a magnetic element having a back surface and a narrow bottom surface projecting slightly below its lower end. In both positions (vertical and horizontal), the magnetic element is in contact with the recessed portion, so that each piece is properly centered on its square. When a piece is laid horizontally on a square, it lies flat because the back surface of its magnetic element extends into the recess.
This chess game set does not provide and suggests the multi-game possibility (for example, possibility to play checker and/or backgammon games), and the recesses on the board create some difficulties to use regular pieces of another set with such board having recesses (for example, the pieces of the another set without extended magnetic portion at the bottom of the pieces and having incompatible diameter of the piece's bottom portion with the diameter of the recesses /e.g. slightly bigger than the diameter of the recess/).
While this device fulfill it respective, particular objectives and requirements, the mentioned above patents do not disclose, teach and/or suggest the portable (pocket-size) multi-game set preventing occasional/accidental piece disposition on the board (for example, at the moment of the unexpected tour-bus maneuver during the game, that may cause the player's arguments about the positions before the displacement and sometimes search for missing /e.g. fell down pieces/) and inadequate magnetic attraction/repulsion between adjacent pieces on the board.
Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and advantages of the improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game set may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention.
Thus, the known prior art do not provide the comfortable and convenient portable (pocket-size) multi-game set (apparatus) and in theses respects, an improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game set according to the present invention substantially departs from the devices of the prior art.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present invention are to provide an improved portable board game set.
It is another object of the invention to increase convenience of the improved portable pocket-size board game.
It is further object of the invention to provide the multi-game portable (pocket-size) set.
It is still another object of the invention to increase convenience and comfortability of the improved portable board game set, providing the prevention of the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board during a non-accurate or negligent player's manner to position piece near or even upon the borders of a square on the board.
It is still further object of the invention to prevent the possible occasional disposition pieces on the board at the moment of the unexpected movements, for example, such as a tour-bus maneuver during the game.
It is also further object of the invention to prevent the possible inadequate magnetic attraction/repulsion between adjacent pieces on the game board.
In order that the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed may be more clearly understood, embodiments thereof will be described by way of example with reference to the attached drawings, of which:
a–1c are the simplified representations of the unfolded (ready to play) game board of the improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game apparatus for chess/checker games.
a, 2b are the simplified representations of the unfolded game board of the improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game apparatus for backgammon.
a–3f are the simplified cross-sectional view of the pieces of the improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game apparatus.
a–4c are the simplified representations of the front and side views of the folded (closed) game board.
a–5d are the simplified representations of the game board with the apertures for pieces central positioning on the squares of the board.
a–6e are the simplified representations of the game board with the storage (drawers) for pieces.
a–7f are the simplified representations of the front and side views of the unfolded (ready for game) game board with the drawers for pieces storage.
a, 8b are the simplified representations of the board wall configuration.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known prior art, the present invention provides a new convenient portable (pocket-size) multi-game apparatus. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described hereinafter in greater details, is to provide a new portable (pocket-size) multi-game set, which has many of the advantages of the portable game apparatus mentioned heretofore and many novel features that result in the pocket-size multi game with secure pieces possible misplacement on the board, which is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested or even implied by any of prior art portable board game devices, either alone or in any combination thereof.
To attain this, the present invention generally comprises the portable (pocket-size) multi-game apparatus (set) for playing chess, checker or backgammon games. An improved portable (pocket-size) multi-game set includes a game board comprising two half-boards coupled to each other by a folding means, the chess/checker and backgammon field layers, and the chess and checker/backgammon pieces each including the piece opening, inclosure and director, which is insertable into the apertures located in the game board and providing the central positioning of the pieces on the appropriate square of the chess/checker game field, thereby preventing misplacement of the piece.
With reference now to the drawings, and particularly to
Referring to
The game board 1 is a foldable board forming a box in the closed (initial) position. The game board 1 comprises two halves: a first half-board 11 and a second half-board 12, as shown in
The game board 1 also can include the chess/checker field layer 16, the backgammon field layer 17 and the main layer 18 (see
Referring to
The board 1 includes the holes (apertures) 29 providing the central positioning of the piece on the squares 4 of the chess/checker field 2. The diameter “D” of the holes 29 in the squares 4 of the board 1 is slightly bigger than the diameter “d” of the director 31 of the pieces 5, 6 (D>d) in order to provide the passage of the director 31 (see
The checker players can during the game use the checker/backgammon pieces 6 in the normal position (director 31 down) or upside-down (director 31 up). The piece's upside-down position also can be used for recognition of the “king” piece (in order to increase visual perception of the “king” piece, the director 31 of all pieces 6 can have a different bright color appropriately for white and black pieces).
The backgammon players during the game use the checker/backgammon pieces 6 in the convenient upside-down position (director 31 up), but the triangular sections of the backgammon field layer 17 can include the apertures 29/not shown/ or the slot /not shown/ along the bisector of the triangular sections for the director 31 if the players use the pieces 6 in the normal position (director 31 down). The appropriate space into the inner side 43 of the board game 1; and if needed into main layer 18 located between the layer 17 and inner side 43 can be provided too. Each piece (chess piece 5 and checker/backgammon piece 6) can include the director 31 located in the piece opening 39, as shown in
The game board, pieces, layers and the mentioned above means can have any reasonable form, configuration and size, and made of any reasonable and applicable material (e.g. such as wood, glass, plastic, metal, para-magnetic material, etc). For example, the outer side of the board wall 38 can have the shape, as shown in
Accordingly the reader will see that, according to the invention, I have provided a convenient portable board multi-game set. There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention. In this respect, it is understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the description and/or drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
While the above description contains many specificities, these should not construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, but as exemplification of the presently-preferred embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications are possible within the teaching to the invention. For example, an improved portable board multi-game set can be successfully used by tourists and/or elderly people, having general physical limitations to carry regular size and heavy sets made of wooden material.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, for carrying out the several purpose of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
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