Pop-open throwing toy with controllable opening delay and method of operating same
First Claim
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1. A toy object, comprising:
- an articulated shell structure having a top cap, a bottom cap, and at least three fingers connecting said top cap and said bottom cap in a manner such that said articulated shell structure can selectively change from a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape into a flattened shape as said top cap and said bottom cap move together along a central axis;
an elastic member which is attached to at least two of said fingers, the elastic member applying a force to said fingers, the force tending to urge said shell structure into a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape;
a releasable lock which, when the shell structure is deformed to said flattened shape, applies a restraining force to said top cap and said bottom cap, the restraining force holding said shell structure in said flattened shape in opposition to the force applied by said elastic member; and
a variable timer which causes said releasable lock to apply the restraining force to the shell structure only during a period of time which can be varied, wherein after the period of time the variable timer causes said restraining force not to be applied, and the elastic member thereby urges said shell structure into the three-dimensional, polyhedral shape.
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Abstract
A toy object has an articulated shell structure which can change from a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape into a flattened shape. A biasing device applies force to the shell, that force tending to urge the shell structure into the three-dimensional, polyhedral shape. A holding device holds the shell structure in the flattened shape in opposition to the force applied by the biasing device, and a regulator regulates the period of time for which the holding device holds the shell structure in its flattened shape.
61 Citations
22 Claims
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1. A toy object, comprising:
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an articulated shell structure having a top cap, a bottom cap, and at least three fingers connecting said top cap and said bottom cap in a manner such that said articulated shell structure can selectively change from a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape into a flattened shape as said top cap and said bottom cap move together along a central axis; an elastic member which is attached to at least two of said fingers, the elastic member applying a force to said fingers, the force tending to urge said shell structure into a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape; a releasable lock which, when the shell structure is deformed to said flattened shape, applies a restraining force to said top cap and said bottom cap, the restraining force holding said shell structure in said flattened shape in opposition to the force applied by said elastic member; and a variable timer which causes said releasable lock to apply the restraining force to the shell structure only during a period of time which can be varied, wherein after the period of time the variable timer causes said restraining force not to be applied, and the elastic member thereby urges said shell structure into the three-dimensional, polyhedral shape.
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2. A toy object, comprising:
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an articulated shell structure having a top cap, a bottom cap, and at least three fingers connecting said top cap and said bottom cap in a manner such that said articulated shell structure can selectively change from a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape into a flattened shape as said top cap and said bottom cap move together along a central axis; an elastic member which surrounds said central axis and which is attached to at least three of said fingers, the elastic member applying a force to at least some of said fingers, the force tending to urge said shell structure into a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape; a releasable lock which applies a restraining force to said top cap and said bottom cap, the restraining force holding said shell structure in said flattened shape in opposition to the force applied by said elastic member; and a variable timer which causes said releasable lock to apply the restraining force to the shell structure only during a predetermined period of time, wherein after the predetermined period of time the variable timer causes said restraining force not to be applied, and the elastic member thereby urges said shell structure into the three-dimensional, polyhedral shape. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A toy object, comprising:
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an articulated shell structure having a top cap, a bottom cap, and at least three fingers connecting said top cap and said bottom cap in a manner such that said articulated shell structure can selectively change from a three-dimensional, polyhedral shape into a flattened shape; biasing means for applying a force to at least some of said fingers, the force tending to urge said shell structure into the three-dimensional, polyhedral shape; holding means for holding said shell structure in the flattened shape in opposition to the force applied by said biasing means; and regulating means for regulating a period of time during which said holding means holds said shell structure in said flattened shape, so that said period of time during which said holding means holds said shell structure in said flattened shape can be varied.
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22. A method of changing a configuration of a toy object, comprising the steps of:
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providing the toy object, the toy object having an articulated shell structure deformable between a three-dimensional polyhedral shape and a flattened shape, a releasable lock which, when the shell structure is deformed to a position applies a restraining force to the shell structure to hold the shell structure in the position, and a variable timer which causes the releasable lock to apply the restraining force to the shell structure only during a period of time which can be varied; applying a force to a portion of said shell structure, the force tending to urge the shell structure into the polyhedral shape; holding the shell structure in the flattened shape using the releasable lock in opposition to the force applied; and regulating a duration of said holding of the shell structure by the releasable lock in the flattened shape using the variable timer.
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Specification