Construction toy

• US 4,579,538 A
• Filed: 01/16/1984
• Issued: 04/01/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/1983
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co., Inc.
• Original Assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co., Inc.
• Inventors: Bass, Sidney, Seki, Yoshizo
• Primary Examiner(s): Yu, Mickey
• Application Number:
  US06/562,721
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• Field of Search: 446/85, 446/89, 446/97, 446/99, 446/107, 446/109, 446/120, 446/121, 446/125, 446/124, 446/126, 446/385, 446/320, 446/268, D21/148, D21/155, D21/159, D21/167
• US Class Current: 446/107
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 3/16 made of parts that can be put together facial parts only A63H3/365
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/088 with holes A63H33/062, A63H33/065 take precedence

Abstract

A construction toy utilizes a plurality of tubular elements which are connectable to each other or are connectable to one or more hollow members. Each of the tubular elements has a first skirt on one end and a second skirt on its opposite end which are of the same size and are utilized to attach the elements to the hollow members. Further, attaching to one of the skirts on one of the ends is a smaller skirt which allows the smaller skirt to be attached to one of the skirts on a further of the tubular elements so as to connect two tubular elements together. The tubular elements have a plurality of convolutions which allow them to be expanded or contracted so as to lengthen or foreshorten the tubular elements as well as allowing the tubular elements to bend during the construction of structures with the components of the invention.

Claims

1. A toy which comprises:

at least one one piece intergally formed tubular element and at least one hollow member;

said tubular element formed of a plastic material and having first and second ends connected by an element body;

said tubular element body including a plurality of connected corrugations, said corrugations formed by alternating first and second truncated conical walls joined together base to base about circumferentially extending convex hinges and apex to apex about circumferentially extending concave hinges, said first conical walls shorter than said second conical walls such that they are nestable within said second conical walls;

said first end of said tubular element including an axially extending first skirt having an outside surface of a first fixed diameter and an inside surface of a second fixed smaller diameter and including locking means on both said first skirt outside surface and said inside surface;

said second end of said tubular element including an axially extending second skirt, a shoulder and an axially extending third skirt, said second skirt interspaced between said tubular element body and said third skirt and said shoulder interspaced between said second skirt and said third skirt, said second skirt having an outside surface of a fixed diameter equal to the diameter of said outside surface of said first skirt and including lock means on said outside surface of said second skirt, said third skirt having an outside surface sized so as to just fit within said inside surface of said first skirt and including lock means on said outside surface of said third skirt which engage said lock means on said inside surface of said first skirt to frictionally maintain said third skirt within said first skirt;

at least one hollow member having at least one upstanding hollow boss located thereon and opening into the interior of said hollow member, said hollow boss of a size and a shape such that said first or said second skirts of said tubular element just fit within the inside diameter of said hollow boss with said lock means on said first or said second skirt frictionally engaging the interior of said hollow boss to frictionally maintain said element connected to said member.

2. The toy of claim 1 including:

at least two of said tubular elements, the first skirt of said tubular elements connectable to said hollow boss or to the third skirt of a further of said tubular elements, the second skirt of said tubular elements connectable to said hollow boss and the third skirt of each of said tubular elements connectable to the first skirt on a further of said tubular elements.

3. The toy of claim 3 wherein:

said lock means includes at least one circumferentially extending protrusion convexly projecting from the outside surface of the respective first, second or third skirt.

4. The toy of claim 3 wherein:

said lock means further includes at least one circumferentially extending groove concavely projecting into the inside surface of at least said first skirt, said groove sized and shaped so as to except and mate with the circumferentially extending protrusion of said third skirt.

5. The toy of claim 4 including:

said hollow boss including at least one circumferentially extending boss groove concavely protecting into the inside surface of said hollow boss, said boss groove sized and shaped so as to except and mate with the circumferentially extending protrusion on said first and said second skirts.

6. The toy of claim 5 including:

said hollow member having a plurality of said hollow bosses located thereon.

7. The toy of claim 5 including:

a plurality of said tubular elements, the first skirt of each of said tubular elements connectable to one of said hollow bosses or to the third skirt of a further of said tubular elements, the second skirt of each of said tubular elements connectable to one of said hollow bosses and the third skirt of each of said tubular elements connectable to the first skirt on a further of said tubular elements.

8. The toy of claim 6 including:

an end wall located on said third skirt and joining said third skirt at a radius of curvature such that said third skirt curves smoothly into said end wall.

9. The toy of claim 8 including:

a plurality of hollow members each having at least two hollow boss located thereon.

10. The toy of claim 9 wherein:

at least one of said hollow member has only one of said hollow bosses located thereon.