Level/position sensor and related electronic circuitry for interactive toy
First Claim
1. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
- a base member having at least one recess formed therein which is partially defined by a peripheral wall thereof;
at least one switch disposed within the peripheral wall of the base member; and
at least one trigger ball disposed within the recess and freely movable about the peripheral wall of the base member;
the sensor being operative to generate at least two different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the movement of the trigger ball within the recess, with one state being generated when the trigger ball is in contact with the switch and another state being generated when the trigger ball is not in contact with the switch.
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Abstract
A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device. The sensor comprises a base member having at least one recess formed therein which is partially defined by a peripheral wall thereof. Disposed within the peripheral wall of the base member is at least one switch. Also disposed within the recess is a trigger ball which is freely movable about the peripheral wall of the base member. The sensor is operative to generate at least two different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane. The movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitates the movement of the trigger ball within the recess, with one state being generated when the trigger ball is in contact with the switch and another state being generated when the trigger ball is not in contact with the switch.
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Citations
73 Claims
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1. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
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a base member having at least one recess formed therein which is partially defined by a peripheral wall thereof;
at least one switch disposed within the peripheral wall of the base member; and
at least one trigger ball disposed within the recess and freely movable about the peripheral wall of the base member;
the sensor being operative to generate at least two different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the movement of the trigger ball within the recess, with one state being generated when the trigger ball is in contact with the switch and another state being generated when the trigger ball is not in contact with the switch. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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16. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
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a base member having at least one recess formed therein which is partially defined by a peripheral wall thereof;
at least two switches disposed within the peripheral wall of the base member; and
a trigger mechanism disposed within the recess and freely movable about the peripheral wall of the base member;
the sensor being operative to generate at least four different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the movement of the trigger mechanism within the recess, with a low state being generated when the trigger mechanism is not in contact with either of the switches, two different high states being generated corresponding to contact between the trigger mechanism and respective ones of the switches, and another high state being generated when the trigger mechanism is simultaneously in contact with both of the switches.
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37. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
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a base mount defining at least one face;
at least one switch attached to the face of the base mount;
at least one sensor arm rotatably connected to the face of the base mount; and
at least one magnet which is attached to the sensor arm and produces a magnetic field, the switch being oriented relative to the sensor arm such that the switch may be exposed to the magnetic field of the magnet upon the rotation of the sensor arm;
the sensor being operative to generate at least two different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the rotation of the sensor arm, with one state being generated when the switch is exposed to the magnetic field of the magnet and another state being generated when the switch is not exposed to the magnetic field of the magnet.
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53. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
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a base mount defining at least one face;
at least two switches attached to the face of the base mount; and
at least one trigger magnet which is rotatably connected to the face of the base mount and produces a magnetic field, the switches being oriented relative to the trigger magnet such that the trigger magnet is passable over the switches upon the rotation of the trigger magnet;
the sensor being operative to generate at least three different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the rotation of the trigger magnet, with two different high states being generated corresponding to the exposure of respective ones of the switches to the magnetic field of the trigger magnet, and another high state being generated when both of the switches are simultaneously exposed to the magnetic field of the trigger magnet. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65)
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66. A sensor for use in an interactive electronic device, the sensor comprising:
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a base member having at least one recess formed therein which is partially defined by a peripheral wall thereof;
at least two switches disposed within the peripheral wall of the base member;
a trigger mechanism disposed within the recess and freely movable about the peripheral wall of the base member; and
programmable electronic circuitry in electrical communication with the sensor;
the sensor being operative to generate at least four different states corresponding to respective positions of the sensor relative to a reference plane, the movement of the sensor relative to the reference plane facilitating the movement of the trigger mechanism within the recess, with the low state being generated when the trigger mechanism is not in contact with either of the switches, two different high states being generated corresponding to contact between the trigger mechanism and respective ones of the switches, and another high state being generated when the trigger mechanism is simultaneously in contact with both of the switches, the electronic circuitry being operative to translate the high states into respective effects and facilitate the production of the effects from the electronic device individually and in any combination. - View Dependent Claims (67, 68, 70, 71, 72, 73)
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69. In an interactive electronic device which may be oriented to reside on a device plane which extends in generally parallel relation to a reference plane and is selectively movable to reside on any one of a multiplicity of function planes which each extend in non-parallel relation to the reference plane, the improvement comprising:
a sensor disposed within the device and operative to generate a multiplicity of different output signals corresponding to respective ones of the function planes.
Specification