Patent Application
20180290051
The present invention is in the technical field of games, and pertains more particularly to word games.
Word games are played by many people both young and old. A challenge of finding correct letters to spell words appeals to many players. Games such as Scrabble®, Scattergories®, and Boggle® are popular, but players may often desire a different game that offers different challenges. What is needed in the art is a game that provides a plurality of game pieces each having a plurality of letters that may be arranged to spell words. In some embodiments one or more categories may be provided on cards, such that the players may spell words that fit the categories.
In one embodiment of the invention, a word-spelling game is provided, comprising a first set of a fixed number of balls as playing pieces, each of the balls in the first set bearing either one, two, three, four, six, eight, or twelve letters of the English alphabet, every ball in the set bearing the same number of letters. In the first set, each of the letters of the English alphabet, except two letters that each may be changed to another letter by rotation of a ball, appears once on a ball in the first set, and wherein a player places balls side by side on a support surface, with letters on the balls all facing in a common direction, to spell words in a game.
In one embodiment, the two letters that are not included are any two of M, W, N, Z, U, C, H, I, A and V. Also in one embodiment, the balls in the first set all have a common diameter, from 30 mm to 200 mm inclusive. Also in one embodiment, the balls in the first set all have a common weight, from 10 g to 450 g inclusive. Also in one embodiment, the letters on the balls in the first set have a common height of from 0.25 times the diameter of the balls, to 0.75 of the diameter of the balls, inclusive.
In one embodiment, the game further comprises one or more second sets of balls, each of the second sets being a duplicate of the first set, having the same number of balls, number of letters per ball, and letter distribution. Also in one embodiment, the game further comprises a third set of balls, the third set comprising one or more balls bearing one or more of the letters E, A, R, I, O and T. Also in one embodiment, the game further comprises a support mat having a plurality of circular indentions each for supporting a single ball, the indentions arranged in a manner that balls may be placed in adjacent indentions to spell a word in the English language. In one embodiment, background color for balls is a first color, and letters are in a contrasting color to the background color. And in one embodiment, balls in the first and second sets have a common background color, and balls in the third set have a different background color than in the first or second sets.
In one embodiment, the indentions in the mat are arranged on a common center-to-center distance in rows and columns. Also in one embodiment, a player spells words by placing balls from the set in adjacent indentions, each with a preferred letter facing upward, such that adjacent letters form a word in the English language. Also in one embodiment, all the balls in the sets have relatively soft surfaces. In one embodiment, the indentions in the support mat are circular through-holes, the support mat has a specific thickness, and the relationship of the diameter of the through-holes to the thickness is such that a ball placed over one of the through-holes is supported entirely by the peripheral edge of the through-hole without the ball touching a surface upon which the support mat rests. And in one embodiment, the support mat has a specific thickness, and the indentions are spherical in form without penetrating entirely through the thickness of the support mat, a radius of the spherical form of the indentions equal to a radius of the balls.
In one embodiment, the arrangement of indentions is a Cartesian array having uniform rows and columns of indentions, and a number of indentions equal to or greater than 25. Also in one embodiment, the balls are tennis balls having six letters each implemented on the spherical surface of the balls. In one embodiment, the letters on the tennis balls are implemented on areas of the balls where the letters do not overlap seams of the tennis balls. And in one embodiment, the third set comprises the letters E, A, R, I, O and T each two or more times on the balls of the third set.
“FANCY” rules.
In some embodiments one or more letters 104 and/or sides 102 on each game piece 100 may have different styles, such as different colors, fonts, and/or other characteristics. By way of a non-limiting example, a cube shaped game piece 100 may have two sides 102 with red letters 104, two sides 102 with green letters 104, and two sides 102 with blue letters 104. In alternative embodiments, all letters 104 and/or sides 102 may have the same style.
Game pieces 100, cards 106, and/or playing surfaces 110 may be used together to play a game. In some embodiments, the game pieces 100, cards 106, and/or playing surfaces 110 may be physical components. In alternate embodiments, the game may be played as a video game, computer program, mobile application, internet game, social network game, or any other type of electronic game. In some of these embodiments the game pieces 100, cards 106, and/or playing surfaces 110 may be digital representations. In alternate embodiments, some components may be physical and other components may be electronic.
The game may be played by one or more players. In some embodiments, a player may play with or against other players and/or computer opponents. In other embodiments, players may be grouped into teams that may play with or against one another. In alternative embodiments, a single player may play the game to attempt to get a high score or achieve other objectives.
In some embodiments, a plurality of game pieces may be provided to each player or team. In other embodiments, each player or team may draw from a pool of game pieces. In some embodiments, a plurality of cards may be provided in a deck. In other embodiments one or more cards may be provided to each player or team. In some embodiments, there may be one playing surface 110 for each player or team. In other embodiments, all players or teams may use the same playing surface 110. In alternate embodiments, the playing surface 110 may be absent, and players or teams may play the game on a table, floor, or any other surface.
In some embodiments, the game may be played by having each player or team select and/or move game pieces 100 with sides 102 that display letters 104 that spell out a word that fits a selected category 108 on a drawn card 106. In some embodiments, the game and/or individual rounds may have a time limit. In these embodiments, a timer 114 may be provided, as shown in
Several possible embodiments comprising different sets of rules for playing the game are described below. Each of the sets of rules described below has been given a title, however the titles are for reference only and are not intended to be limiting. Each set of rules is intended to be non-limiting, as in some embodiments elements of one set of rules may be combined or replaced with elements of another set of rules to play the game.
Players may earn a predetermined number of points for each word they spell correctly that fits into a category 108 on the card 106. In some embodiments, other players may verify that words are correctly spelled and fit a category 108 before points are awarded. In some embodiments, a dictionary may be consulted if players are unclear on whether a word is spelled correctly. In some embodiments players may vote on whether to accept another player's word if a player raises a question of whether the word meets fits within a category 108. Players may play the game in this manner to earn enough points to meet or exceed a predetermined winning score. In some embodiments, multiple rounds of selecting a card 106 and spelling words may be played in order to reach a predetermined winning score. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments each correctly spelled word that meets a category 108 may be worth one point, and the winning score may be set at fifteen points, such that multiple rounds of selecting cards 106 with five categories 108 each and spelling words may be needed before a player reaches the winning score.
In some embodiments, there may be a predetermined time limit during which players attempt to spell words that meet categories 108 on a drawn card 106, after which points are tallied and a new card 106 is drawn from the deck to begin a new round if no player has reached the winning score. By way of a non-limiting example, the timer 114 may count down a time limit of two minutes per round. In some embodiments, players may re-use game pieces 100 that were used in previous rounds for each new round.
When the first player that spells a word that fits the category 108 of the color the player selected, that spelling player may yell out the word and play stops. The word may be verified by the other players as being accurately spelled and appropriate for the category 108. If the word is not spelled correctly or is not appropriate for the category 108, play may resume and players may continue to attempt to spell words with their game pieces 100. After a spelled word has been verified as accurate and appropriate, one or more game pieces 100 may be discarded by the spelling player depending on the length of the spelled word. In some embodiments, the other players may add game pieces 100 if the spelled word was longer than a minimum number of letters 104. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments: for words with three or four letters 104, the spelling player may discard one game piece 100; for words with five letters 104, the spelling player may discard two game pieces 100; for words with six letters 104, the spelling player may discard two game pieces 100 and the other players may each add one game piece 100; for words with seven letters 104, the spelling player may discard three game pieces 100 and the other players may each add two game pieces 100; and for words with eight or more letters 104, the spelling player may discard five game pieces 100 and the other players may each add two game pieces 100.
In some embodiments discarded game pieces 100 may be discarded from the beginning of the spelled word. By way of a non-limiting example, if a player spells the word “THROW,” the player may discard the two game pieces 100 at the front of the word: the game pieces 100 used for the letters “T” and “H.” After game pieces 100 have been discarded and/or added, a new card 106 may be drawn and players may attempt to spell a word fitting into the category 108 of their selected color with their remaining game pieces 100.
In some embodiments, a player may exchange one or more of his or her game pieces 100 between rounds. In alternate embodiments, a player may exchange all of his or her game pieces 100 between rounds. In some embodiments exchanging game pieces 100 may be performed when the player has less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments a player may exchange all of his or her game pieces 100 when the player has eight or fewer game pieces 100 remaining.
In some embodiments, the winning player may be the first player with less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, the winner may be the first player with fewer than five game pieces remaining 100.
At the end of each round, spelled words may be verified by the other players as being accurately spelled and appropriate for category 108. After a spelled word has been verified as accurate and appropriate, one or more game pieces 100 may be discarded by the spelling player depending on the length of the spelled word. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments: for words with three, four, or five letters 104, the spelling player may discard one game piece 100; for words with six or more letters 104, the spelling player may discard two game pieces 100. In some embodiments discarded game pieces 100 may be discarded from the beginning of the spelled word. By way of a non-limiting example, if a player spells the word “THROW,” the player may discard the game piece 100 at the front of the word: the game piece 100 used for the letter “T.” After the round has been completed and game pieces 100 have been discarded, the players may draw a new card 106 and play a new round.
In some embodiments, a player may exchange one or more of his or her game pieces 100 between rounds. In alternate embodiments, a player may exchange all of his or her game pieces 100 between rounds. In some embodiments exchanging game pieces 100 may be performed when the player has less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments a player may exchange all of his or her game pieces 100 when the player has eight or fewer game pieces 100 remaining.
In some embodiments, the winning player may be the first player with less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, the winner may be the first player with fewer than five game pieces remaining 100.
The players may attempt to create an arrangement comprising a base word and dependent words that re-use the letters of the base word, such that the first letter of each dependent word is one of the letters of the base word. In some embodiments, the base word may fit the selected category, while the base words may be any word. By way of a non-limiting example, for a category 108 that reads “States,” a player may use game pieces 100 to spell the base word “OREGON” and six dependent words that begin with the letters “O,” “R,” “E”, “G,” “O,” and “N” respectively, as shown in
In some embodiments, the game pieces 100 of the base word may be positioned vertically when viewed from above, such that dependent words may extend horizontally to the right from the game pieces 100 of the base word. In alternate embodiments, the game pieces 100 of the base word may be positioned horizontally when viewed from above, and the dependent words may extend vertically below the game pieces 100 of the base word.
In some embodiments, the winner of the game may be the player that spelled a base word with the highest number of letters, as long as each letter of the base word also has a dependent word with more than a predetermined number of letters. By way of a non-limiting example, a player that plays the arrangement of game pieces shown in
The players may attempt to create an arrangement comprising a base word and dependent words that re-use the letters of the base word, such that the first letter of each dependent word is one of the letters of the base word. In some embodiments, the base word may fit the selected category, while the base words may be any word. By way of a non-limiting example, for a category 108 that reads “Months,” a player may use game pieces 100 to spell the base word “JULY” and four dependent words that begin with the letters “J,” “U,” “L”, and “Y” respectively, as shown in
In some embodiments, the game pieces 100 of the base word may be positioned vertically when viewed from above, such that dependent words may extend horizontally to the right from the game pieces 100 of the base word. In alternative embodiments, the game pieces 100 of the base word may be positioned horizontally when viewed from above, and the dependent words may extend vertically below the game pieces 100 of the base word.
The first player to complete an arrangement of a base word and dependent words all meeting a predetermined minimum length may shout out the base word the player spelled and play may stop. The spelled base word may be verified by the other players as being accurately spelled and appropriate for the category 108. After the spelled base word has been verified as accurate and appropriate, the spelling player may discard the game pieces 100 used in the shortest dependent word. By way of a non-limiting example, if the first player to complete an arrangement of a base word and dependent words spells the base word “JULY” as shown in
In some embodiments, the winning player may be the first player with less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, the winner may be the first player with fewer than twelve game pieces remaining 100.
The words may each fit one of the categories 108 on the card 106. The words may be connected to one another by one or more letters, such that at least letter of one word is re-used as a letter of a separate word. The connected words may be arranged vertically and horizontally when viewed from above. By way of a non-limiting example, the arrangement of words shown in
In some embodiments, the winner of the game and/or round may be the player who uses the most game pieces 100 in an arrangement of connected, correctly spelled words that each fit into a category 108 on the drawn card 106 within the predetermined time limit.
When a player has zero game pieces 100 remaining after spelling one or more words, that player may add a predetermined number of game pieces 100 from the plurality of auxiliary game pieces 100. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments when a player runs out of game pieces 100 after spelling words, the player may add three game pieces 100. After the player has added new game pieces 100, the player may continue attempting to spell words that fit any of the categories 108 on the card 106. If the players agree that no player may spell any more words that fit any of the categories 108 on the card 106, the players may draw a new card 106 and attempt to spell words that fit any of the categories 108 on the new card 106.
In some embodiments, the winner of the game and/or round may be the first player to acquire more than a predetermined number of game pieces and use them all to spell words that fit into the categories 108 on the drawn cards 106. By way of a non-limiting example, the winning player may be the first player to acquire and use 20 game pieces 100, with no game pieces 100 remaining.
After spelling words, players may place their spelled words into alphabetical order. In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than a predetermined number of words that fit the same category 108 and place the spelled words into alphabetical order may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells four words that each fit the same category 108 and places those four spelled words into alphabetical order may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than a predetermined number of equally long words that fit the same category 108 may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells four words of the same length that each fit the same category 108 may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
The spelled words may each fit into the same category, and may be of increasing length, such that no word has the same number of letters. By way of a non-limiting example, a player may select the category “Colors,” and the player may attempt to spell five words of increasing length that fit the category, such as “Red,” “Blue,” “Green,” “Yellow,” and “Fuchsia.” In some embodiments, the player may place the words in order from shortest to longest.
In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than the predetermined number of words of increasing length that fit the same category 108 and places them in order may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells five words of increasing length that each fit the same category 108 may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
The words may each fit the same category 108 on the card 106. The words may be connected to one another by one or more letters, such that at least letter of one word is re-used as a letter of a separate word. The connected words may be arranged vertically and horizontally when viewed from above.
In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than a predetermined number of connected words of the same length that fit the same category 108 may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells five connected words of the same length that each fit the same category 108 may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
The spelled words may each fit the same category 108. After the words are spelled, they may be placed in alphabetical order based on the last letter of each word. By way of a non-limiting example, the last letters of the words fitting the category “Food” in
In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than a predetermined number of words having either the same number of syllables, vowels, or letters that each fit into a different category 108 on the card 106 may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells five words of the same number of syllables, vowels, or letters that each fit into a different category 108 may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
In some embodiments, the first player to spell more than a predetermined number of words having the same number of syllables that each fit into the same category 108 on the card 106 may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by drawing a new card 106. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, the first player during a round who spells four words of the same number of syllables that each fit into the same category 108 may earn one point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn five points.
In some embodiments if a player spells a word for each category 108 on the card 106 before the time limit expires, and each word has a different number of vowels or letters, that player may be declared the winner. If no player has completed a word for each category when the time limit expires, the player with the most correctly spelled words in different categories with different numbers of vowels or letters may be declared the winner.
In some embodiments, each correctly spelled word may earn points depending on the length of the word. By way of a non-limiting example, in some embodiments: words with three letters may be worth one point; words with four letters may be worth two points; words with five letters may be worth three points; words with six letters may be worth four points; words with seven letters may be worth five points; words with eight letters may be worth six points; words with nine letters may be worth seven points; words with ten letters may be worth ten points; and words with eleven or more letters may be worth fifteen points. The winner of a game and/or round may be the player with the most points.
When a player believes he or she has spelled a word for each of the selected categories, play may stop. The words may be verified by the other players as being accurately spelled and appropriate for the categories 108. If one or more of the words are not spelled correctly or are not appropriate for the categories 108, each of the other players may transfer a game piece 100 to the player who spelled the incorrect word, play may resume and players may continue to attempt to spell words with their game pieces 100. If both words are verified as accurate and appropriate, the player who played the words may transfer one game piece 100 to each of the other players and a new card 106 may be drawn to begin a new round.
In some embodiments, the winning player may be the first player with less than a predetermined number of game pieces 100 remaining. By way of a non-limiting example, the winner may be the first player with fewer than thirteen game pieces 100 remaining.
The words may be connected to one another by one or more letters, such that at least letter of one word is re-used as a letter of a separate word. The connected words may be arranged vertically and horizontally when viewed from above.
At any time during the time limit, players may choose to draw a predetermined number of new game pieces 100 from the plurality of auxiliary game pieces 100. By way of a non-limiting example, a player may choose to draw seven additional game pieces 100 from the plurality of auxiliary game pieces 100.
At the end of the time limit, each player may count the number of correctly spelled connected words that each have the predetermined number of letters, and count the number of unused game pieces 100. Each player's score may be the amount of game pieces 100 used in the spelled words subtracted by the number of unused game pieces 100. By way of a non-limiting example, a player who began with 21 game pieces and added seven additional game pieces during the time limit may have spelled six connected words of four letters each and may have used 19 of the player's total 28 game pieces, with nine unused game pieces remaining. That player may subtract the nine unused game pieces from the 19 used game pieces, for a total score of ten. The winner of the round and/or game may be the player with the highest score.
In some embodiments, the first player to spell a word that answers the current question may earn a predetermined number of points, and the players may begin a new round by asking and/or displaying a new question. The winner may be the first player to meet a minimum number of points. By way of a non-limiting example, if the question is “What is the capital of Oregon?” the first player to spell “SALEM” may earn a point, and the winner of the game may be the first player to earn ten points.
The foregoing sets of rules are purely exemplary, and the rule sets and/or scoring systems may be modified and/or combined to create further ways of playing the game. Most rule sets specify providing the same number of game pieces to each player, but in some games governed by alternative rule sets players may compete for game pieces to get as many as they can before words are spelled out. In some embodiments one or more elements of one set of rules may be combined or replaced with elements of another set of rules to play the game. By way of non-limiting examples, players may play games with multiple rounds of the same rules, play a single round of any rule set, play multiple rounds with or without a time limit, play with the same or different categories for each player, play with a different number of points to determine the winner, play with a different beginning number of game pieces, or play with any other desired modification.
In some embodiments, the game may be even further modified by specifying which letters on which game pieces are valid to play. By way of non-limiting examples, in some embodiments game pieces may have different colors and/or have sides and/or letters with varying colors and/or fonts. In some of these embodiments a player may play game pieces and/or letters on those game pieces with one or more specific fonts and/or colors. By way of non-limiting examples, in the exemplary arrangement shown in
In another aspect of the invention the scale of a game may be expanded, and such a game may be, for example, provided for play outdoors, in an open environment. In such a game, it may be desirable to have game pieces that are much larger than game pieces thus far described in embodiments of the invention described above.
In one aspect of the invention, balls, such as tennis balls, are adapted and configured as game pieces.
On the flat pattern of
In
It is to be understood that tennis balls as game pieces is just one example of balls used as game pieces, and that other balls may also be used. In the case of tennis balls, there are strict regulations pertaining to balls that may be used in such as tournaments. Modern tennis balls must conform to certain criteria for size, weight, deformation, and bounce criteria to be approved for regulation play. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) defines the official diameter as 6.54-6.86 cm (2.57-2.70 inches). Balls must have masses in the range 56.0-59.4 g (1.98-2.10 ounces). Yellow and white are the only colors approved by the ITF, and most balls produced are a fluorescent yellow known as “optic yellow”, first introduced in 1972 following research demonstrating they were more visible on television.
For a modern tennis ball, having a diameter of 6.7 cm, the circumference, and hence dimension C in
To be easily distinguished in game play, letters need to have a certain minimum thickness of the lines of the letters as well. The inventor is of the opinion that letters having a line thickness, or weight, of less than one mm, are too thin to be useful in playing the game in embodiments of the invention. Similarly, at a height of from 25 mm to about 38 mm., which is from 1 to 1.5 inches, a line thickness of 10 mm, is about a maximum for the letters to be easily distinguishable.
It was stated above that tennis balls are not a limiting feature in embodiments of the invention. It is preferable, however, that balls be rather soft and flexible, rather than hard and rigid. This is partly because rigid balls tend to do more damage if thrown or dropped. As to limits on ball diameter, balls as small as 3 cm, or as large as 20 cm. may be used in different versions of the game.
Given the above constraints and examples, a relationship between ball diameter, letter height and letter line weight may be stated, for preferable embodiments of the invention, as follows:
D=ball diameter; H=letter height; T=letter line weight.
D may vary from 25 mm to 200 mm.
H may vary from 0.25 D to 0.75 D.
T may vary from 0.025 D to 0.075 D
This relationship provides a minimum ball diameter of about 1 inch, and a maximum ball diameter of about 7.8 inches. With six letters per ball, the letter height for different diameter balls will vary from a height that will leave a spacing between letters of about twice the letter height, to letters that very nearly touch on the surface of a ball. The line weight will be about 0.1 of the letter height in each case. The taller the letter, the heavier the line.
In some embodiments of the invention, the weight of the balls as playing pieces may be important, and the weight of balls may be related closely to the size of the balls. The inventor has discovered that a minimum useful weight for balls in embodiments of the invention is about 10 grams, and a maximum weight is about 454 grams, which is one pound. Balls too light, too small, too big, or too heavy may provide an obstacle to comfortable play in versions of the game of the invention.
In various embodiments of the invention, the number of balls, and the distribution of letters on balls is important. Considering, for example, the English alphabet, if six different letters are printed or otherwise placed on each of four balls, with no letter repeated, in the set of four balls, those four balls will provide one instance of each letter in the English alphabet, in playing a spelling game, because the letters Z and N, and the letters W and M, may be interchangeable. That is, in spelling a word, a player may arrange a ball with the letter M showing, or turn the same ball 180 degrees to use the letter W. The same is true of the letters Z and N, except the player would turn the ball 90 degrees to differentiate.
Further to the above, there are certain letters in the English alphabet that are used more frequently in forming words than other letters. The letters E, A, R, I, O and T are frequently used letters. So, in some embodiments these letters are provided on balls more than the other letters.
In one embodiment of the invention, balls are lettered as follows:
Ball 1 has EQSKLB in six positions spaced as indicated in
Ball 2 has AJTWCX in the six positions
Ball 3 has RGNYUH in the six positions
Ball 4 has IVOFDP in the six positions
Ball 5 has EARIOT in the six positions
Note that in a set of balls comprising balls 1, 2, 3 and 4, the letter M is not specifically represented, and the letter Z is not specifically represented. These two letters may be formed by rotation of the balls having the letters W and N.
In one embodiment of the invention sixteen of each of balls 1 through 5 are provided, making a total of eighty balls in the game. The letters other than E, A, R, I, O and T are represented sixteen times each in the set of eighty balls, (480 letters). E, A, R, I, O and T, which are letters more used in forming English words, than the letters on balls 1, 2, 3 and 4, are represented 32 times in the overall set.
It is to be understood that the set of balls in a game as just described, is not a limitation in all embodiments of the invention. If a game is intended for a small number of players, fewer balls may be provided in the game set. For a larger number of players, as many as 160 balls may be provided, with proportional letter distribution to that described above.
One ball that may be useful as a playing piece in embodiments of the invention may well be a tennis ball, upon which letters may be implemented either by printing or drawing on a planar pattern as shown in
Lettered balls 2801 as game pieces placed on a mat 2901 may be used to play any of the games described above, and may be serviceable for new types of games in this invention, where balls with characters may be involved in games that have rules as described in many embodiments above, but also additional components, such as, for example, instances of throwing, batting and retrieving the lettered ball during the playing of a word game. Balls may be retrieved, for example, from a basket or other container at random, thrown against a wall, caught by a player, and then, according to what character faces upward when the ball is caught, become the first letter of a word to be formed according to an agreed-to category of words in the game. A player, then deciding on a word in the category starting with the first letter determined, may by rule be required to throw balls at random and catch them rebounding until the second and subsequent letters may be revealed by catch position and place on the mat to form the word intended.
Many athletic word games may be thus composed with rules to accommodate lettered balls as described above, in many instances using rules of the games described above, or a mixture of described rules, and additional rules specific to a game played with balls. Games and lettered balls will be used by teachers, trainers, coaches and facilitators who want to combine physical activity with word/math games. Such balls can be used to teach juggling, dribbling, kicking, throwing, catching and a variety of other athletic skills, and then they can be used for more cognitive challenges using the letters or numerals on the balls. An example of such a challenge might be that there are two teams and everyone starts with a ball. Everyone needs to dribble their ball across a basketball court and make a basket. If they make a basket, then their team will get to use that ball when it is time to spell. This could also be done with kicking the balls into a goal or hitting the balls over a net. After the competing teams have each had a chance to win their balls, the facilitator would then direct them to spell using those letters. They might be given specific words/numbers to build or they might just be directed to spell as many words as they can. They might be given questions and they need to assemble the correct answer using the balls. For example, “What is the capital of Oregon?”, or “What is 12 times 23?” Such a product is needed because it creates an easy way to combine fun, physical activity and exercise with academic or cognitive challenges. There are many games that involve spelling or math but these balls will give people the ability to play athletic games that also involve math and language arts.
Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the invention as described and hereinafter claimed is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.
