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Electronic educational toy having a contact-sensitive display screen

  • US 7,217,135 B2
  • Filed: 01/12/2004
  • Issued: 05/15/2007
  • Est. Priority Date: 12/29/1995
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. An electronic educational toy for a child, the electronic educational toy capable of executing educational software, the educational software designed to teach the child about letters by providing problems about letters to the child and positive reinforcement when the child has solved a letter problem correctly, comprising:

  • a housing having an upper face, the upper face of the housing including;

    a substantially planar contact-sensitive display screen having one or more sensors associated therewith capable of sensing the occurrence of contact with the contact-sensitive display screen, the display screen capable of receiving input at a plurality of locations over at least a substantial portion of the contact-sensitive display screen from the child by the child causing contact with the display screen, anda button apparatus not associated with a keyboard or numeric keypad, the button apparatus having a button designed to be actuated by the child through which the child may make an input to the toy,the housing enclosing;

    a speaker, anda processor, the processor configured to execute educational software;

    a first input mode of operation and a second input mode of operation, the first input mode being where inputs to the toy are triggered off of the child causing contact with the contact-sensitive display screen and the second input mode being where inputs to the toy are triggered off of actuation of the button;

    a plurality of audio problem prompts output by the speaker, an audio problem prompt including a question or instruction having at least one correct response, the question or instruction designed to present the child with a problem about a letter of an alphabet and to encourage a child to make a cognitive selection relating to the letter;

    the processor receiving information indicative of the child'"'"'s cognitive selection triggered off of the child making contact with the contact-sensitive display screen when the toy employs the first input mode and triggered off of the child actuating the button when the toy employs the second input mode;

    the processor determining whether the child'"'"'s cognitive selection corresponds to a correct response to the question or instruction;

    a first audio feedback response output by the speaker if the selection by the child corresponds to a correct response to the question or instruction, the first audio feedback response indicating that the selection by the child corresponds to a correct response to the question or instruction; and

    a second audio feedback response output by the speaker if the selection by the child is something other than a correct response to the question or instruction, the second audio feedback response indicating that the selection by the child is something other than a correct response to the question or instruction.

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