Interactive toy with visual and audio feedback

• US 8,262,473 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2009
• Issued: 09/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mattel Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Mattel Incorporated
• Inventors: Civettini, Robert J., Snook, Douglas P., Orland, Luke J., Bailey, Todd M., Hardouin, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Deodhar, Omkar
• Assistant Examiner(s): GARNER, WERNER G
• Application Number:
  US12/348,761
• Publication Number:
  US 20090176545A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,345 Days
• Field of Search: 463/7
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/0282 with shapes other than balls
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/2457 Display screens, e.g. monitors, video displays
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/247 audible, e.g. using a loudspeaker
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 5/045 using a rotating wheel and a fixed indicator, e.g. fortune wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/02 Shooting or hurling games throwing-implements for sports or recreational use A63B65/00; throwing or projecting toys per se A63H33/18; gun simulators F41A33/00, e.g. light- or radiation-emitting guns F41A33/02; practice apparatus for gun-aiming F41G3/26, e.g. using a light-emitting device F41G3/2616; targets, target ranges, bullet catchers F41J, photo-electric hit-detector systems F41J5/02

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an amusement device, the amusement device having: a display device rotatably mounted to a structure, the display device being configured to create a plurality of images via a persistence of vision effect; a device for rotating the display device; a sensor for determining whether an object has hit one of the plurality of images; a microcontroller in operable communication with the sensor and the display device, the microcontroller changing the appearance of at least one of the plurality of images when the sensor determines that an object has hit at least one of the plurality of images.

Claims

1. An amusement device, comprising:

a display device rotatably mounted to a structure, the display device being configured to create a plurality of images via a persistence of vision effect;

a device for rotating the display device;

a sensor for determining whether an object has hit one of the plurality of images;

a microcontroller in operable communication with the sensor and the display device, the microcontroller changing the appearance of at least one of the plurality of images when the sensor determines that the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images; and

a screen disposed behind or in conjunction with the structure, the screen being configured to deflect the objects launched at the plurality of images created by the display device.

2. The amusement device as in claim 1, further comprising a sound system for playing a plurality of sound effects, each of the plurality of sound effects corresponding to at least one of the plurality of images.

3. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein the structure further comprises a plurality of openings and some of the plurality of images are visible through the plurality of openings.

4. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at one of the plurality of images and if the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images another one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit the another one of the plurality of images or another predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at the another one of the plurality of images.

5. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein the structure further comprises a plurality of openings and some of the plurality of images are visible through the plurality of openings wherein the object is one of a plurality of objects and the plurality of objects that miss one of the plurality of images are received within a cavity of the structure and these objects are released through one of the plurality of openings when a movable member of the structure is released.

6. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating how much time a user has to hit one of the plurality of images and another one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating a score relative to a number of times the plurality of images have been hit by the object.

7. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein the device is a motor and one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating how much time a user has to hit one of the plurality of images and another one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating a score relative to a number of times the plurality of images have been hit by the object and the amusement device further comprises a launcher for launching the object at the plurality of images, and the launcher comprises a sensor for determining when and in what direction the object is launched to determine if the object hits the one of the plurality of images.

8. The amusement device as in claim 7, further comprising a sound system for playing a plurality of sound effects, each of the plurality of sound effects corresponding to at least one of the plurality of images and wherein the structure further comprises a plurality of openings and some of the plurality of images are visible through the plurality of openings.

9. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at one of the plurality of images and if the object has hit one of the plurality of images another one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit the another one of the plurality of images or a another predetermined amount of time from when the object is first launched the another one of the plurality of images has elapsed.

10. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein the amusement device further comprises a sound system for playing a plurality of sound effects, each of the plurality of sound effects corresponding to at least one of the plurality of images and the structure further comprises a plurality of openings and some of the plurality of images are visible through the plurality of openings, wherein the structure and the plurality of images when combined resemble another image and one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the sensor has determined that the object has hit one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at the one of the plurality of images and if the object has hit the one of the plurality of images another one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit the another one of the plurality of images or another predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at the another one of the plurality of images.

11. The amusement device as in claim 1, further comprising a microphone and a sound system for playing a plurality of sound effects, each of the plurality of sound effects corresponding to at least one of the plurality of images, wherein the sound system is configured to play one of the plurality of sound effects in response to an audio signal picked up by the microphone.

12. The amusement device as in claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a rotational feedback sensor selected from the group comprising:

hall effect sensors, physical switches, photosensors, phototransistors, quadrature encoders, systems of points and contacts, each of which is positioned to interact with the display device in order to determine a rotational speed of the display device and wherein contact of the object with the display device will cause the rotational speed of the display device to be reduced and the rotational feedback sensor will detect the reduction in rotational speed of the display device.

13. An amusement device, comprising:

a display device rotatably mounted to a structure, the display device being configured to create a plurality of images via a persistence of vision effect;

a device for rotating the display device;

a sensor for determining whether an object has hit one of the plurality of images;

a microcontroller in operable communication with the sensor and the display device, the microcontroller changing the appearance of at least one of the plurality of images when the sensor determines that the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images; and

a launcher for launching the object at the plurality of images created by the display device, wherein the object is a miniature car.

14. An amusement device, comprising:

a display device rotatably mounted to a structure, the display device being configured to create a plurality of images via a persistence of vision effect;

a device for rotating the display device;

a sensor for determining whether an object has hit one of the plurality of images;

a microcontroller in operable communication with the sensor and the display device, the microcontroller changing the appearance of at least one of the plurality of images when the sensor determines that the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images;

another microcontroller disposed on the display device and in operable communication with the microcontroller and for creating the plurality of images as the display device is rotated by the device by selectively illuminating a plurality of illuminating devices disposed on the display device;

a sound system for playing a plurality of sound effects, each of the plurality of sound effects corresponding to at least one of the plurality of images, the sound system being operated by the microcontroller; and

a screen disposed behind or in conjunction with the structure, the screen being configured to deflect the objects launched at the plurality of images created by the display device.

15. The amusement device as in claim 14, wherein the structure further comprises a plurality of openings and some of the plurality of images are visible through the plurality of openings and wherein one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit at least one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at one of the plurality of images and if the object has hit one of the plurality of images another one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit the another one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time has elapsed from when the object is first launched at the another one of the plurality of images and the structure further comprises a pair of side portions pivotally secured to the structure and releasably secured to each other such that upon the occurrence of a predetermined event, the pair of side portions are released from each other and pivot open.

16. The amusement device as in claim 14, wherein one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating how much time a user has to hit one of the plurality of images with the object and another one of the plurality of images is indicia indicating a score relative to the number of times the object has hit one of the plurality of images and the amusement device further comprises a launcher for launching the object at the plurality of images, wherein the object is a miniature car and wherein the screen is configured to deflect the objects launched at the display device into a cavity disposed behind the structure, the cavity retaining the objects until a movable member of the cavity is moved to release the objects from the cavity.

17. A method for providing targets, images and sound effects in an amusement device, the method comprising;

rotating a display device viewed through or around a structure, the display device being configured to create a plurality of images via a persistence of vision effect by selectively illuminating a plurality of illuminating devices disposed on the display device, wherein at least one of the plurality of images is visible through an opening in the structure;

generating a plurality of sound effects, wherein at least one of the plurality of sound effects corresponds to at least one of the plurality of images; and

selecting one of the plurality of images and one of the plurality of sound effects when either the sensor has detected that at least one of the plurality of images has been hit by an object or a predetermined time period from when the object is first launched at one of the plurality of images has elapsed without the at least one of the plurality of images being hit by the object and wherein a screen is disposed behind or in conjunction with the structure, the screen being configured to deflect the objects launched at the plurality of images created by the display device.

18. The method as in claim 17, wherein the structure and the plurality of images when combined resemble another image and one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the sensor has determined that the object has hit one of the plurality of images or a predetermined amount of time from when the object is first launched at one of the plurality of images has elapsed and if the object has hit one of the plurality of images another one of the plurality of images is displayed above the structure until the object has hit the another one of the plurality of images or another predetermined amount of time from when the object is first launched at the another one of the plurality of images has elapsed and wherein the sensor comprises a rotational feedback sensor selected from the group comprising:

hall effect sensors, physical switches, photosensors, phototransistors, quadrature encoders, systems of points and contacts, each of which is positioned to interact with the display device in order to determine a rotational speed of the display device and wherein contact of the object with the display device will cause the rotational speed of the display device to be reduced and the rotational feedback sensor will detect the reduction in rotational speed of the display device.