Thermochromic transformable toy

• US 8,128,450 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2006
• Issued: 03/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mattel Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Mattel Incorporated
• Inventors: Imai, Jun
• Primary Examiner(s): RICCI, JOHN A
• Application Number:
  US11/418,902
• Publication Number:
  US 20070259593A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,133 Days
• Field of Search: 446/14, 446/219, 446/268, 446/321, 446/431, 446/465, 446/470
• US Class Current: 446/14
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 17/004 Stunt-cars, e.g. lifting front wheels, roll-over or invertible cars
• CPC Class Codes: A63H 33/003 Convertible toys, e.g. robots convertible into rockets or vehicles convertible into planes

Abstract

A product, comprising a reconfigurable toy assembly, said assembly being reversibly reconfigurable between at least a first configuration and a second configuration; and the toy including at least one body surface with an integral thermochromic layer covering at least a portion of the body, where the integral thermochromic layer exhibits a visual change in response to temperature is provided.

Claims

1. A product, comprising:

a reconfigurable toy assembly, said assembly being reversibly reconfigurable between at least a first configuration and a second configuration; and

the toy assembly including at least one body surface with an integral thermochromic layer covering at least a portion of the body surface, where the integral thermochromic layer exhibits a visual change in response to temperature, and the body surface portion is internally facing in the first configuration and externally facing in the second configuration.

2. The product of claim 1 wherein the first configuration is a vehicle configuration and the second configuration is a figure configuration, said body surface being a vehicle body surface in the first configuration, the product further comprising instructions to a user, the instructions instructing the user apply a cool a medium to the toy assembly.

3. The product of claim 2 wherein the integral thermochromic layer is a common color with a non-thermochromic region of the toy assembly at a room temperature of approximately 20 degrees Celsius.

4. The product of claim 2 wherein the integral thermochromic layer is substantially planar with a non-thermochromic region of the toy assembly.

5. The product of claim 1 wherein the integral thermochromic layer comprises a coating on the body surface.

6. The product of claim 5 wherein the coating includes paint.

7. The product of claim 1 further comprising a blaster accessory including at least a cartridge, the cartridge configured to hold a liquid and having a squeezable section to pressurize and eject the liquid.

8. The product of claim 7, wherein the cartridge is removably coupled to the blaster accessory, and where the blaster accessory is shaped to be coupled to the toy assembly in at least one of the first and second configuration.

9. The product of claim 1 wherein the integral thermochromic layer reveals a human readable code.

10. The product of claim 9, wherein the thermochromic code may be input into an electronic interface device by a user to obtain information relating to the toy assembly.

11. The product of claim 10, wherein the electronic interface device is one of a computer or gaming device.

12. The product of claim 10, wherein the electronic interface device includes a computer program that is configured to receive the human readable code, the program producing an output based on the entered human readable code, the output including content relating to the entered human readable code.

13. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes access privileges to at least one of a special site, a board, or a level.

14. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes access to various powers or skill sets.

15. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes access to previously unavailable information.

16. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes access to historical or other factual information related to the toy assembly from which the human readable code was obtained.

17. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes secret or limited access to information regarding the toy assembly.

18. The product of claim 12, wherein the output is related to the toy assembly having the human readable code.

19. The product of claim 12, wherein the output is a web page.

20. The product of claim 12, wherein the electronic interface device provides a website for entry of the human readable code, and the content includes access to a different web page within the website.

21. The product of claim 12, wherein the content includes access to various features through at least one of the Internet, a computer, a DVD, or a game.

22. The product of claim 9, wherein the human readable code is a bonus content code.

23. The product of claim 9, wherein the human readable code is a game code.

24. The product of claim 1, wherein the integral thermochromic layer is accessible to a user when the toy assembly is in its second configuration and inaccessible to the user when the toy assembly is in its first configuration.

25. The product of claim 24, wherein the reconfiguration of the toy assembly from its second configuration to its first configuration reduces the visual change of the integral thermochromic layer in response to temperature.

26. A product, comprising:

a reconfigurable toy assembly, said assembly being reversibly reconfigurable between at least a first configuration and a second configuration;

the toy assembly including at least one body surface with an integral thermochromic layer covering at least a portion of the body surface, and at room temperature, the integral thermochromic layer exhibits a visual appearance similar to another non-thermochromic layer adjacent the integral thermochromic layer so that the integral thermochromic layer is substantially hidden, where the integral thermochromic layer exhibits a visual change in response to a temperature below the room temperature, and the body surface portion is concealed in the first configuration and revealed in the second configuration;

a blaster accessory adapted to be removably coupled to the toy assembly; and

a cartridge accessory adapted to be removably coupled to the blaster, the cartridge capable of retaining liquid.

27. The product of claim 26 wherein the temperature below room temperature is between approximately 10 and 20 degrees Celsius, and where room temperature is approximately 20 degrees Celsius.

28. The product of claim 26, wherein the cartridge includes a flexible bulb, where upon squeezing of the bulb liquid is pressurized and ejected from the blaster.

29. The product of claim 28 wherein the blaster includes an adjustable nozzle that varies a spray pattern of ejected liquid.

30. The product of claim 29 wherein the integral thermochromic layer reveals a human readable code.

31. The product of claim 26, wherein the visual change in response to a temperature below the room temperature is less when the toy assembly is in its first configuration than when the toy assembly is in its second configuration.

32. A product, comprising:

a reconfigurable toy assembly, said assembly being reversibly reconfigurable between at least a first configuration and a second configuration; and

the toy assembly including at least one body surface with a thermochromic region on at least a portion of the body surface, where the thermochromic region exhibits a visual change in response to temperature, wherein at least some of the thermochromic region is internally facing in the first configuration and externally facing in the second configuration.

33. The product of claim 32 wherein the first configuration is a vehicle configuration and the second configuration is a figure configuration, where the thermochromic region is a paint layer, and where the thermochromic region is shaped to reveal a human readable code.

34. The product of claim 32, wherein an amount of the visual change is affected by whether the toy assembly is in its first configuration or in its second configuration.

35. The product of claim 34, wherein reconfiguring the toy assembly between its second configuration and its first configuration changes the visual change in response to temperature.

36. The product of claim 32, wherein the thermochromic region includes a human readable code that is exhibited in response to temperature, the portion of the at least one body surface with the human readable code is internally facing in the first configuration and externally facing in the second configuration.

37. The product of claim 32, wherein the visual change includes a thermochromic code, and a user may input the thermochromic code into an electronic interface device to obtain information relating to the toy assembly.

38. The product of claim 37, wherein the electronic interface device is one of a computer or gaming device.

39. The product of claim 37, wherein the electronic interface device includes a computer program that is configured to receive the human readable code, the program producing an output based on the entered human readable code, the output including content relating to the entered human readable code.

40. A reconfigurable product, comprising:

a body that is repositionable between a first configuration and a second configuration, the body having a plurality of surfaces that are hidden when the body is in its first configuration and that are visible when the body is in its second configuration, the body including a thermochromic region that exhibits a visual change in a response to temperature, the visual change including a human readable code that can be used by a user to obtain information relating to the product, the thermochromic region is located on one of the surfaces that is hidden when the body is in its first configuration and that is visible when the body is in its second configuration.

41. The product of claim 40, wherein the human readable code is accessible to a user when the body is in the first configuration and inaccessible to the user when the body is in the second configuration.

42. The product of claim 40, wherein the human readable code is one of a code that is obscured by the thermochromic region until the visual change occurs or a thermochromic code.

43. The product of claim 42, wherein the human readable code can be input by a user into an electronic interface device to obtain the information relating to the product.

44. The product of claim 43, wherein the electronic interface device is one of a computer or gaming device.

45. The product of claim 40, wherein the human readable code can be entered into a website to obtain the information.

46. The product of claim 45, wherein the information relating to the product includes historical or factual information relating to the product, and the website provides access to the historical or factual additional information.