The present application relates generally to toys and/or figurines and, in particular, to packaging for toys/figurines that can reveal an appearance of a toy and/or figurine.
Through the years, toys and/or figurines (for simplicity, referred to herein as toys) have provided amusement and entertainment for children. That is, toys have some inherent play value. To increase this play value, various features, such as action or movement features, have been incorporated into some toys (e.g., so that toys can appear to walk, crawl, talk, move etc.).
Additionally, or alternatively, some toys allow a user to modify the appearance of the toy. For example, a toy figurine might include thermochromic hair, layered clothing, features that move to “transform” the doll (e.g., from a mermaid to a princess), or other such appearance changing features. As one example of a figurine with appearance changing features, U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,102, which is issued to Davidson et al. and entitled TOY FIGURE HAVING WATER DISSOLVABLE CLOTHES AND FACIAL ELEMENTS, discloses a doll with a combination of waterproof materials and overlying fabric layers or facial appearance elements formed of a water dissolvable fabric or water dissolvable material, respectively. Thus, when the doll is immersed in water, the dissolvable fabric layers and dissolvable facial appearance elements are dissolved and expose the underlying waterproof elements.
Despite the foregoing, there is a continuing need for ever more interesting and varied doll features, for example, to surprise or entertain a child. For example, while the features of U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,102 may be interesting and engage a user, the features may provide a limited amount of surprise or suspense for the user, as the user can typically see the doll's overall appearance before or during exposure of the underlying waterproof elements.
A toy, a toy set including a toy, and a toy packaging are presented herein. In at least some embodiments, the toy is placed in a vessel of the toy set. More specifically, the toy is placed in a first compartment of the vessel, and a second compartment of the vessel is removably attached to the first compartment of the vessel. The second compartment of the vessel contains a substance with a breakable seal in an unbroken state. When the breakable seal is in a broken state, the substance is dispensed into the first compartment of the vessel to obscure an overall appearance of contents of the first compartment, at least partially. In at least some embodiments, a piercing element is used to break the breakable seal. Additionally, or alternatively, outer packaging for the toy set may be opaque, so that when it is disposed on the toy packaging, it substantially covers the toy packaging to obscure contents positioned therein. Thus, the toy and/or the packaging presented herein may provide a surprise for the user, adding to the play value of the toy.
According to other embodiments, the present application is directed to toy packaging including a first compartment and a second compartment. A toy may be removably contained in the first compartment and the second compartment may be configured to removably contain a substance. The second compartment also includes a bottom with a breakable seal positioned therein. In a broken state, the breakable seal dispenses the substance into the first compartment to at least partially obscure an overall appearance of contents of the first compartment.
Other systems, methods, features, and advantages will be, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. All such additional systems, methods, features, and advantages are included within this description, are within the scope of the claimed subject matter.
The toy set and toy packaging presented herein may be better understood with reference to the following drawings and description. The elements in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the toy set. In the figures, like-referenced numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views.
The toy set and/or the toy packaging presented herein includes a substance that adds play value during an opening or unboxing of a toy included in the toy set and/or toy packaging. For example, in at least some embodiments, a toy is placed in a first compartment of a vessel, and a second compartment of the vessel contains a substance with a breakable seal in an unbroken state. The second compartment is removably attached to the first compartment of the vessel in order to selectively close the first compartment. In at least some embodiments, a piercing element may be used to break the breakable seal. Then, when the breakable seal is in a broken state, the substance from the second compartment is dispensed into the first compartment to at least partially obscure an overall appearance of contents of the first compartment. Consequently, a user may not be able to identify the toy when the underlying toy is covered with the substance. Additionally, or alternatively, outer packaging for the toy set may be opaque, so that when it is disposed on the toy packaging, it substantially covers the toy packaging to hide its contents positioned therein from view. Thus, the toy set and/or the packaging presented herein may provide a surprise for the user, adding to the play value of the toy.
To be clear, the term “obscure” is used to denote that something is at least partially concealed. Thus, an obscured portion of a toy may not be visible from one or more perspectives. For example, when the toy 130 is packaged within packaging 131 that is opaque, such as in the depicted embodiment, the packaging 131 may hide/obscure the identity of the toy 130. Similarly, in the depicted embodiment, the accessories 140 are packaged within opaque packaging 141 that hides/obscures the identity of the accessories 140. This provides a surprise element for the user, since even after removing the outer packaging 110 the user (e.g., the child) may be unable to ascertain the toy 130 they have obtained (e.g., purchased). The term “opaque” is used herein to denote that something is not able to be seen through. In some embodiments, packaging 131 of the toy 130 may match the packaging 141 of the accessories 140.
Still referring to
When the outer packaging 110 is disposed on the vessel 200, the top edge 114 may be positioned adjacent or proximate to the top rim 214 of the first compartment 210 of the vessel 200. Meanwhile, the bottom edge 116 may be positioned adjacent or proximate to a bottom 216 of the first compartment 210 of the vessel 200. As can be seen in
In the depicted embodiment, the piercing element 120 is stored at least partially within the outer packaging 110. Thus, a user may access or obtain the piercing element 120 when the user removes the outer packaging 110. Additionally, in the depicted embodiment, the outer packaging 110 allows the toy set 10 to be stored or displayed on a rod. However, in other embodiments, the vessel 200 or outer packaging 110 may also include other elements that facilitate storage and/or display in any desirable manner and/or elements that retain or do not retain the piercing element 120 in any manner (e.g., the piercing element 120 can be coupled to outer packaging 110 in any manner or need not be coupled to outer packaging 110). Similarly, in various embodiments, any portion of toy packaging 100 may incorporate unshown elements like doll stands, play accessories, and the like, in any desirable manner.
In the depicted embodiment, the first compartment 210 is defined by a sidewall 212, a top rim 214, and a bottom 216. The bottom 216 closes a first end of the sidewall 212 and an opposite end of the sidewall 212 extends to the top rim 214. Thus, the bottom 216 and sidewall 212 collectively define the first compartment that can at least partially enclose a toy 130 and/or receive the substance 240 from the second compartment 220. However, the first compartment 210 need not be defined by only the aforementioned features and, in other embodiments, may have any size or shape, e.g., with more than one sidewall. For example, in some embodiments, the top rim 214 might support a breakable seal so that a piercing element 120 inserted into the second compartment 220 breaks at least one breakable seal on the second compartment 220 and a breakable seal on the first compartment 210.
The second compartment 220 of the depicted embodiment is a cylindrical, half-sphere, defined by a bottom skirt 226, a bottom opening 228, a breakable seal 230, a sidewall 222, and a top 224. At one end, the top 224 includes an opening 225 sized to receive the piercing element 120. In some embodiments, opening 225 may be sealed by a breakable seal, but other embodiments need not include a breakable seal at opening 225. At the other end, the bottom opening 228 is disposed interiorly of the bottom skirt 226. The bottom opening 228 includes the breakable seal 230 positioned therein and configured to form a temporary barrier that spans the bottom opening 228. Thus, the breakable seal 230 may be configured to retain, at least temporarily, a substance or items within the second compartment 220. In the depicted embodiment, the bottom skirt 226 of the second compartment 220 may be removably attachable to the top rim 214 of the first compartment 210 to selectively close the first compartment 210. However, in other embodiments, the second compartment 220 may be removably attachable to the first compartment 210 in any manner and/or with any features or couplings.
Moreover, in the depicted embodiment, the entire vessel 200 is transparent. With such a configuration, a user can watch the substance 240 dispense from the second compartment 220 to the first compartment 210. However, in other embodiments, the vessel 200 may be any size or shape and one or more portions of the vessel 200 may be transparent while one or more other portions are opaque, reflective, etc. In at least some instances, a partially transparent vessel 200 may still enable a user to watch the substance 240 move from the second compartment 220 into the first compartment 210.
In the depicted embodiment, the piercing element 120 is defined by a sidewall 122, a top 124, and a bottom 126. The sidewall 122 extends from the top 124 to the bottom 126. Moreover, in the depicted embodiment, the piercing element 120 has a solid center 128 (insofar as solid indicates that it is not hollow) to prevent a user (e.g., a child) from ingesting substance 240. However, in other embodiments, the piercing element 120 may be any size or shape and may or may not be hollow, provided that the piercing element 120 is capable of breaking the breakable seal 230 in at least some fashion. For example, the piercing element 120 may be partially hollow to resemble a straw, e.g., from one or both ends, but the hollow sections may be separated or broken by solid sections that prevent a substance from flowing through piercing element 120. The piecing element 120 might also a decorative element 129, such as molded fruit shapes, extending from a portion thereof. In some instances, the decorative element 129 might create a stop that prevents the piercing element from falling into the first compartment 210. A bend in the piercing element 120 may also provide such stop functionality, either with a decorative element or instead of a decorative element (see, e.g.,
In the depicted embodiment, the piercing element 120 is capable of breaking the breakable seal 230 when inserted through the opening 225 of the second compartment 220. This is because an overall length of the piercing element 120 is larger than a height of the second compartment 220. This overall length is a dimension measured along a central axis spanning from bottom 126 to top 124, or vice versa, and includes one bend or turn in the depicted embodiment. But, in other embodiments, a portion of the piercing element 120 may have sufficient length (e.g., may be longer than the second compartment 220) to break the breakable seal 230 and/or may include any desirable feature to render the piercing element 120 capable of breaking the breakable seal 230 (e.g., an extension, telescopic part, etc.). Alternatively, some embodiments of the piercing element 120 might be capable of breaking the breakable seal 230, but only when engaging a bottom surface of the breakable seal 230 (e.g., engaging the breakable seal 230 through the bottom opening 228). Still further, some embodiments of the toy set 10 presented herein might not include a piercing element 120 at all.
Now turning to
In the depicted embodiment, the breakable seal 230 goes from an unbroken state 231 to a broken state 232. When the breakable seal 230 is in an unbroken state 231 the substance 240 is removably contained in the second compartment 220 of the vessel 200. When the breakable seal 230 is in a broken state 232, the substance 240 is dispensed from the second compartment 220 into the first compartment 210 of the vessel 200 through the bottom opening 228 of the second compartment 220. In the depicted embodiment, the substance 240 is an opaque slime. The term “slime” is intended to denote a moist, soft, and slippery substance. In other embodiments, however, the substance 240 may be any material and/or may be transparent. In yet other embodiments, the substance 240 may be a foam, liquid, etc. In the depicted embodiment, the substance 240 is dispensed into the first compartment 210 to obscure an overall appearance of contents of the first compartment 210, at least partially. This may create a third surprise element for the toy set 10 (e.g., since the user must remove the toy 130 from the substance 240 to see the toy 130).
Still referring to
In
Now turning to
While the toy and packaging presented herein has been illustrated and described in detail and with reference to specific embodiments thereof, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since it will be apparent that various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the inventions and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims. In addition, various features from one of the embodiments may be incorporated into another of the embodiments. That is, it is believed that the disclosure set forth above encompasses multiple distinct inventions with independent utility. While each of these inventions has been disclosed in a preferred form, the specific embodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense as numerous variations are possible. The subject matter of the inventions includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and subcombinations of the various elements, features, functions and/or properties disclosed herein. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims be construed broadly, and in a manner consistent with the scope of the disclosure as set forth in the following claims.
It is also to be understood that the toy figurine and packaging described herein, or portions thereof may be fabricated from any suitable material or combination of materials, such as plastic, foamed plastic, wood, cardboard, pressed paper, metal, supple natural or synthetic materials including, but not limited to, cotton, elastomers, polyester, plastic, rubber, derivatives thereof, and combinations thereof. Suitable plastics may include high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polystyrene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene, ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), or the like. Suitable foamed plastics may include expanded or extruded polystyrene, expanded or extruded polypropylene, EVA foam, derivatives thereof, and combinations thereof.
Additionally, it is to be understood that terms such as “left,” “right,” “top,” “bottom,” “front,” “rear,” “side,” “height,” “length,” “width,” “upper,” “lower,” “interior,” “exterior,” “inner,” “outer” and the like as may be used herein, merely describe points of reference and do not limit the present invention to any particular orientation or configuration. Further, the term “exemplary” is used herein to describe an example or illustration. Any embodiment described herein as exemplary is not to be construed as a preferred or advantageous embodiment, but rather as one example or illustration of a possible embodiment of the invention.
Finally, when used herein, the term “comprises” and its derivations (such as “comprising”, etc.) should not be understood in an excluding sense, that is, these terms should not be interpreted as excluding the possibility that what is described and defined may include further elements, steps, etc. Similarly, where any description recites “a” or “a first” element or the equivalent thereof, such disclosure should be understood to include incorporation of one or more such elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements. Meanwhile, when used herein, the term “approximately” and terms of its family (such as “approximate”, etc.) should be understood as indicating values very near to those which accompany the aforementioned term. That is to say, a deviation within reasonable limits from an exact value should be accepted, because a skilled person in the art will understand that such a deviation from the values indicated is inevitable due to measurement inaccuracies, etc. The same applies to the terms “about” and “around” and “substantially”.
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