Sword device with retractable, internally illuminated blade

• US 10,065,127 B1
• Filed: 03/16/2017
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Honeck, Michael R., Smoot, Lanny S., Smithwick, Quinn Y., Romaire, Eli Joseph, McCall, David J., Sandin, Terry O., Forster, Adam B., Chevako, Peter Anastasios
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Gene
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stanczak, Matthew B
• Application Number:
  US15/460,467
• Time in Patent Office: 537 Days
• Field of Search: 446473
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/009 Toy swords or similar toy weapons; Toy shields
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/22 Optical, colour, or shadow toys puzzles with optical elements A63F9/0613; kaleidoscopes G02B27/08
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/26 Magnetic or electric toys electric drives A63H29/22 ; indoor games played with small balls using magnetic power A63F7/0088, A63F7/068
• CPC Class Codes: A63J 5/00 Auxiliaries for producing special effects on stages, or in circuses or arenas
• CPC Class Codes: A63J 7/00 Auxiliary apparatus for artistes

Abstract

A special effects device for providing an energy sword effect. The device includes two long plastic semi-cylinders, and these two blade body members are rolled perpendicular to their length, which creates compact cylinders of material of small volume that can be provided on a pair of spools in a hilt. To extend the blade, a motor provided in the hilt unrolls the blade body members from the spools. Each blade body member passes through a blade forming guideway that nests the semi-cylindrical blade body members together as they leave the hilt. To retract the blade, the process is reversed. The lighting of the blade is achieved with a flexible strip of light sources. The light source strip is attached to a blade end cap and positioned in the center of the two blade body members such that it is pulled up along with the blade body members during their extension.

Claims

1. An apparatus for producing an energy sword special effect, comprising:

a hilt assembly including a drive assembly within a hilt body; and

a blade including a flexible strip with a plurality of light sources arranged in a linear pattern and an anisotropic diffuser diffusing light output from the plurality of light sources,

wherein the drive assembly operates in a first operating state to extend the blade outward from an opening in the hilt body and in a second operating state to retract the blade into the hilt body through the opening in the hilt body,

wherein the blade comprises an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member,

wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade, and

wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the light sources each comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the anisotropic diffuser is provided by the pair of blade body members and each of the blade body members comprises a strip of diffusion material.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the blade body members has a planar cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member when the blade body member is retracted into the hilt body and wherein the hilt assembly includes a blade form shaping the blade body members into the planar cross section during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and into the semicircular cross section during extension of the blade from the hilt body.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the hilt assembly includes a first spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a first one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and a second spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a second one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and wherein the drive assembly comprises a drive motor operating to concurrently rotate the first and second spools in a first direction during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and in a second direction, opposite the first direction, during extension of the blade out of the hilt body.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the hilt assembly further includes a third spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving the flexible strip with the light sources during retraction of the blade into the hilt body.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the blade has a uniform outer diameter along its length when extended out from the hilt body and wherein the blade width is in the range of 0.5 to 2 inches.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the blade is moved between a fully retracted state and a fully extended state in less than 1 second and wherein the blade has a length of at least 24 inches.

9. A special effects device, comprising:

a hilt body;

a drive assembly positioned within the hilt body;

an end cap;

a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap;

a flexible strip with a plurality of light sources arranged in a linear pattern, wherein the flexible strip is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned between the pair of blade body members,

wherein the drive assembly operates in a first operating state to extend the blade body members outward from an opening in the hilt body and in a second operating state to retract the blade body members into the hilt body through the opening in the hilt body.

10. The special effects device of claim 9, wherein each of the blade body members has a planar cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member when the blade body member is retracted into the hilt body, wherein the hilt assembly includes a blade shaping assembly shaping the blade body members into the planar cross section during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and into a semicircular cross section during extension from the hilt body, and wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially overlapping when extended from the hilt body to define a hollow cylindrical blade.

11. The special effects device of claim 9, wherein the light sources each comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

12. The special effects device of claim 9, wherein each of the blade body members comprises a strip of diffusion material, whereby the blade body members function as an anisotropic diffuser for light output from the lights sources when the blade body members are extended from the hilt body and the light sources are operated to output light.

13. The special effects device of claim 9, further including a first spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a first one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and a second spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a second one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body, wherein the drive assembly comprises a drive motor operating to concurrently rotate the first and second spools in a first direction during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and in a second direction, opposite the first direction, during extension of the blade out of the hilt body.

14. The special effects device of claim 13, further including a third spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving the flexible strip with the light sources during retraction of the blade into the hilt body.

15. An apparatus for producing an energy sword special effect, comprising:

a hilt assembly including a drive assembly within a hilt body; and

a blade comprising an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and, when the blade is extended out from the hilt body, having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member, wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade,

wherein the drive assembly operates in a first operating state to extend the blade outward from an opening in the hilt body and in a second operating state to retract the blade into the hilt body through the opening in the hilt body, and

wherein the blade has a uniform outer diameter along its length when extended out from the hilt body.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the hilt assembly includes a first spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a first one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and a second spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a second one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and wherein the drive assembly comprises a drive motor operating to concurrently rotate the first and second spools in a first direction during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and in a second direction, opposite the first direction, during extension of the blade out of the hilt body.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the blade further includes a flexible strip with a plurality of light sources, wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the light sources each comprises a light emitting diode (LED) and wherein the blade body members comprise strips of diffusion material, whereby the blade body members act as an anisotropic diffuser for light output from the light sources when powered on when the blade is extended from the hilt body.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein each of the blade body members has a planar cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member when the blade body member is retracted into the hilt body and wherein the hilt assembly includes a blade form shaping the blade body members into the planar cross section during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and into the semicircular cross section during extension of the blade from the hilt body.

20. An apparatus for producing an energy sword special effect, comprising:

a hilt assembly including a drive assembly within a hilt body; and

a blade including a flexible strip with a plurality of light sources arranged in a linear pattern and an anisotropic diffuser diffusing light output from the plurality of light sources,

wherein the drive assembly operates in a first operating state to extend the blade outward from an opening in the hilt body and in a second operating state to retract the blade into the hilt body through the opening in the hilt body,

wherein the blade has a uniform outer diameter along its length when extended out from the hilt body, and

wherein the blade width is in the range of 0.5 to 2 inches.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the blade comprises an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member, wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade, and wherein the light sources each comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the blade comprises an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member, wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade, and wherein the anisotropic diffuser is provided by the pair of blade body members and each of the blade body members comprises a strip of diffusion material.

23. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the blade comprises an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member, wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein each of the blade body members has a planar cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member when the blade body member is retracted into the hilt body, and wherein the hilt assembly includes a blade form shaping the blade body members into the planar cross section during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and into the semicircular cross section during extension of the blade from the hilt body.

24. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the blade comprises an end cap and a pair of blade body members each attached at a first end to the end cap and having a semicircular cross section in a plane orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the blade body member, wherein the pair of blade body members are at least partially nested to define a hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein the flexible strip with the plurality of light sources is attached at an end to the end cap and is positioned within the hollow cylindrical body of the blade, wherein the hilt assembly includes a first spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a first one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and a second spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving a second one of the blade body members during retraction of the blade into the hilt body, and wherein the drive assembly comprises a drive motor operating to concurrently rotate the first and second spools in a first direction during retraction of the blade into the hilt body and in a second direction, opposite the first direction, during extension of the blade out of the hilt body.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the hilt assembly further includes a third spool, pivotally supported in the hilt body, for receiving the flexible strip with the light sources during retraction of the blade into the hilt body.

26. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the blade is moved between a fully retracted state and a fully extended state in less than 1 second and wherein the blade has a length of at least 24 inches.