Correlated magnetic toy parts and method for using the correlated magnetic toy parts

• US 7,963,818 B2
• Filed: 06/07/2009
• Issued: 06/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Correlated Magnetics Research, LLC
• Original Assignee: Cedar Ridge Research LLC
• Inventors: Fullerton, Larry W., Roberts, Mark D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Barrera; Ramon M
• Application Number:
  US12/479,821
• Publication Number:
  US 20090288283A1
• Time in Patent Office: 744 Days
• Field of Search: 335/285, 335/306, 446/92
• US Class Current: 446/93
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/046 comprising magnetic interaction means, e.g. holding together by magnetic attraction
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining

Abstract

A toy is described herein that is made from correlated magnetic toy parts (e.g., toy building blocks) which have an ingenious coupling means that enable the correlated magnetic toy parts to be attached to or released from one another. The correlated magnetic toy parts could have many different shapes and can be attached to one another to form an abstract shaped toy or a predetermined shaped toy.

Claims

1. A toy comprising:

a first toy part that incorporates a first field emission structure; and

a second toy part that incorporates a second field emission structure, where the first toy part is attached to the second toy part when the first and second field emission structures are located next to one another and have a certain alignment with respect to one another, where each of the first and second field emission structures include field emission sources having positions and polarities relating to a desired spatial force function that corresponds to a relative alignment of the first and second field emission structures within a field domain, said spatial force function being in accordance with a code, said code corresponding to a code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources and a complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said code defining a peak spatial force corresponding to substantial alignment of said code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources with said complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said code also defining a plurality of off peak spatial forces corresponding to a plurality of different misalignments of said code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources and said complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said plurality of off peak spatial forces having a largest off peak spatial force, said largest off peak spatial force being less than half of said peak spatial force.

2. The toy of claim 1, wherein the first toy part is released from the second toy part when the first and second field emission structures are turned with respect to one another.

3. The toy of claim 1, wherein the first toy part further includes a release mechanism which is used to turn the first field emission structure with respect to the second field emission structure so as to release the first toy part from the second toy part.

4. The toy of claim 1, wherein the first toy part and the second toy parts have a block shape or a log shape.

5. The toy of claim 1, wherein the first toy part has a letter shape, a car shape, a house shape, an airplane shape, a boat shape, a rocket shape or an animal shape and the second toy part is a board onto which the first toy part is attached at a desired location.

6. The toy of claim 1, further comprising one or more additional toy parts each of which has one or more field emission structures.

7. The toy of claim 6, wherein the first toy part and the second toy part each has incorporated therein one or more additional field emission structures which respectively interact with the one or more field emission structures attached to the one or more additional toy parts.

8. The toy of claim 7, wherein the first toy part, the second toy part, and the one or more additional toy parts are attached to one another to form an abstract combination by using multiple pairs of the field emission structures where each pair of field emission structures has one field emission structure and a corresponding mirror image field emission structure.

9. The toy of claim 8, wherein the one field emission structure has one identifier and the corresponding mirror image field emission structure has another identifier, where both identifiers indicate that the respective pair of field emission structures is configured to attach when properly aligned.

10. The toy of claim 7, wherein the first toy part, the second toy part, and the one or more additional toy parts are attached to one another to form a predetermined shape by using multiple pairs of the field emission structures where each pair of field emission structures has one field emission structure and a mirror image field emission structure.

11. The toy of claim 10, wherein the one field emission structure has one identifier and the corresponding mirror image field emission structure has another identifier, where both identifiers indicate that the respective pair of field emission structures is configured to attach when properly aligned.

12. The toy of claim 10, wherein the predetermined shape is a toy model including a playhouse, a doll house, a fort, a fire station, a boat, a vehicle, an animal, an airplane, a train, a robot, or a doll.

13. The toy of claim 1, wherein said positions and said polarities of each of said field emission sources are determined in accordance with at least one correlation function.

14. The toy of claim 13, wherein said at least one correlation function is in accordance with at least one code.

15. The toy of claim 14, wherein said at least one code is at least one of a pseudorandom code, a deterministic code, or a designed code.

16. The toy of claim 14, wherein said at least one code is one of a one dimensional code, a two dimensional code, a three dimensional code, or a four dimensional code.

17. The toy of claim 1, wherein each of said field emission sources has a corresponding field emission amplitude and vector direction determined in accordance with the desired spatial force function, wherein a separation distance between the first and second field emission structures and the relative alignment of the first and second field emission structures creates a spatial force in accordance with the desired spatial force function.

18. The toy of claim 17, wherein said spatial force comprises at least one of an attractive spatial force or a repellant spatial force.

19. The toy of claim 17 wherein said spatial force corresponds to a peak spatial force of said desired spatial force function when said first and second field emission structures are substantially aligned such that each field emission source of said first field emission structure substantially aligns with a corresponding field emission source of said second field emission structure.

20. The toy of claim 1, wherein said field domain corresponds to first field emissions from first field emission sources of said first field emission structure interacting with second field emissions from second field emission sources of said second field emission structure.

21. The toy of claim 1, wherein said polarities of the field emission sources comprise at least one of North-South polarities or positive-negative polarities.

22. The toy of claim 1, wherein at least one of said field emission sources comprises a magnetic field emission source or an electric field emission source.

23. The toy of claim 1, wherein at least one of said field emission sources comprises a permanent magnet, an electromagnet, an electret, a magnetized ferromagnetic material, a portion of a magnetized ferromagnetic material, a soft magnetic material, or a superconductive magnetic material.

24. A method for enabling a user to form a toy by attaching one or more toy parts to one another, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a first toy part that incorporates a first field emission structure;

providing a second toy part that incorporates a second field emission structure; and

aligning the first toy part with the second toy part such that the first toy part will be attached to the second toy part when the first and second field emission structures are located next to one another and have a certain alignment with respect to one another, where each of the first and second field emission structures include field emission sources having positions and polarities relating to a desired spatial force function that corresponds to a relative alignment of the first and second field emission structures within a field domain, said spatial force function being in accordance with a code, said code corresponding to a code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources and a complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said code defining a peak spatial force corresponding to substantial alignment of said code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources with said complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said code also defining a plurality of off peak spatial forces corresponding to a plurality of different misalignments of said code modulo of said first plurality of field emission sources and said complementary code modulo of said second plurality of field emission sources, said plurality of off peak spatial forces having a largest off peak spatial force, said largest off peak spatial force being less than half of said peak spatial force.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising a step of releasing the first toy part from the second toy part, where the first toy part is released from the second toy part when the first and second field emission structures are turned with respect to one another.

26. The method of claim 24 further comprising the step of providing one or more additional toy parts each of which has one or more field emission structures, wherein the first toy part and the second toy part each has incorporated therein one or more additional field emission structures which respectively interact with the one or more field emission structures attached to the one or more additional toy parts.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the first toy part, the second toy part, and the one or more additional toy parts are attached to one another to form an abstract combination by using multiple pairs of field emission structures where each pair of field emission structures has one field emission structure and a corresponding mirror image field emission structure.

28. The toy of claim 26, wherein the first toy part, the second toy part, and the one or more additional toy parts are attached to one another to form a predetermined shape by using multiple pairs of field emission structures where each pair of field emission structures has one field emission structure and a mirror image field emission structure.