Apparatus With Mesh and Manducable Protrusion

• US 20100056310A1
• Filed: 11/09/2009
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Got II LLC
• Original Assignee: Rhino Toys Incorporated
• Inventors: Silverglate, David E., Gulassa, Brian
• Granted Patent: US 8,282,518 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/612
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 17/001 Baby-comforters
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 17/02 Teething rings
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 17/1111 conjoined with soft cushions or toys
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 9/0623 facilitating gripping
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0633 without electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2208/12 specially adapted for children
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 39/00 Hollow non-inflatable balls , i.e. having no valves rigid balls A63B37/00
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/00 Balls with special arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 43/002 with special configuration, e.g. non-spherical discs for throwing A63B65/10
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/006 Infant exercisers, e.g. for attachment to a crib
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 5/00 Musical or noise- producing devices for additional toy effects other than acoustical musical tops A63H1/28; sound-producing dolls A63H3/28; musical toy vehicles A63H17/268; acoustical vehicle-signalling devices A63H17/32; whistling toy locomotive arrangements A63H19/14; music, sound or noise production in general G10

Abstract

An apparatus is provided, which includes a plurality of elongated strands having joinder regions uniting adjacent strands at a distance along a length of an outer perimeter of the elongated strands, the elongate strands being configured to couple together for a distance along their lengths. The elongated strands form a surface of a mesh when the joinder regions are coupled. The apparatus may further include a manducable protrusion coupled to the mesh and extending a distance away from an exterior surface of the mesh.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of elongated strands having joinder regions uniting adjacent strands at a distance along a length of an outer perimeter of the elongated strands, the elongate strands being configured to couple together for a distance along their lengths, wherein the elongated strands form a surface of a mesh when the joinder regions are coupled; and

a manducable protrusion coupled to the mesh and extending a distance away from an exterior surface of the mesh.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the manducable protrusion is formed in a shape of a nipple.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the manducable protrusion is a teething accessory.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the mesh encloses a void, and the manducable protrusion extends a distance away from the exterior surface of the mesh, away from the void.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the mesh is in the shape of a polyhedron.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the mesh is in the shape of a truncated icosahedron, a dodecahedron, a tetrahedron, an icosahedron, or an icosadodecahedron.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the manducable protrusion is removably coupled to at least one elongated strand.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a container removably coupled to the manducable protrusion and to at least one elongated strand.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the container is a bladder contained within a void bounded by the mesh.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the container is a bottle.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the container is removably coupled to elongate strands of the mesh at each of two opposite sides of the mesh, so as to extend through respective open spaces defined by the elongate strands on each of the two opposite sides of the mesh.

12. An apparatus comprising:

a mesh including a plurality of mesh structures each bounding an opening, the mesh structures having cooperative mating surfaces disposed at least partially around an outer perimeter of each mesh structure, wherein the cooperative mating surfaces of adjacent mesh structures are configured to couple together for a distance along their lengths, wherein the mesh structures form a surface of the apparatus when the cooperative mating surfaces are coupled with each other; and

a manducable protrusion coupled to at least one mesh structure and extending at a distance from an exterior surface of the mesh and away from a void enclosed by the mesh.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the manducable protrusion is formed of a deformably resilient material.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the manducable protrusion is removably coupled to the mesh structure.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising a container removably coupled to the manducable protrusion and to a mesh structure via a mounting structure, the mounting structure having an outer perimeter edge sized to conform to an inside perimeter surface of the mesh structure.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a mesh including a plurality of mesh structures each bounding an opening, the mesh structures having cooperative mating surfaces disposed at least partially around an outer perimeter of each mesh structure, wherein the cooperative mating surfaces of adjacent mesh structures are configured to couple together for a distance along their lengths, wherein the mesh structures form a surface of the apparatus when the cooperative mating surfaces are coupled with each other, and wherein the surface of the mesh is formed in the shape of a polyhedron; and

a manducable protrusion coupled to at least one mesh structure and extending outwardly at a distance from an exterior surface of the mesh and away from a void enclosed by the mesh, wherein the manducable protrusion is formed in the shape of a nipple.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising, a container coupled to the manducable protrusion and to one of the mesh structures.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the container is a bottle.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the container is a bladder.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein each mesh structure includes a curved inner perimeter surface.