US2831692A - Game piece agitator - Google Patents

Description

April 22, 1958 A. H. KEAsT 2,831,692 A GAME PIECE AGITATOR f Filed Jan. 2, 195'? United States Patent C GAME PIECE AGITATOR Alfred H. Keast, San Francisco, Calif.

Application January 2, 1957, Serial No. 632,193

2 Claims. (Cl. 273-145) My present invention relates to educational games and more particularly to a game device having mechanically operating parts by which dice and/or other game pieces are tumbled about upon a play surface and which when 'at rest will indicate certain game values upon saidplay surface as to future play.

An object of my invention is to provide a new and novel game device in which dice or other game pieces are agitated in a novel manner to determine scoring values in accordance with predetermined rules.

Another object of my invention is to provide a mechanically operated game apparatus having an oscillating game piece supporting surface with Various game play indicia thereupon by which scoring values or procedure in accordance with established rules of play are indicated by the position of game pieces thereupon when said surface comes to rest.

Another object of the invention is to provide a game apparatus in which captivated play pieces are supported upon a surface which is mechanically oscillated to produce game score values or other indications under the control of one or more players.

A further object of the invention is to provide a game apparatus having a novel game piece supporting surface that is oscillated in a novel manner by spring means in which operating energy can be established in varying degrees under the control of an operating player.

Other objects and advantages will be in partevident to those skilled in the art and in part pointed out hereinafter in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein there is shown by way of illustration and not of limitation a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawing wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views:

Figure l is a plan view of a device embodying the invention with the play pieces removed, and

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line II-II of Figure l, showing details of construction.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference is now made to the accompanying drawing wherein the numeral designates a suitable housing having a central cavity formed by a slightly inclined wall 11 over which a transparent cover 12 extends for confining a plurality of play pieces 13, shown by dot and dash lines. Disposed within and forming a play piece supporting surface for said cavity, there is a rotatable member 14 which as shown in Figure l of the drawings, is divided into different zones or areas by radially extending ridges 15 and concentric ridges 16 that intersect. To avoid the possibility of a die coming to rest upon these ridges 15 and 16 at their points of intersection, I have shown a raised bead or upstanding protuberance. In this arrangement, the play piece supporting member 14 is shown as annular in outline and as having two concentrically arranged zones. Disposed centrally in co-planar relation with the annular member 14 there -is a central play piece supporting member 17 which, as indicated in Figure l of the drawing, is divided into four zones by partitioning ridges 18. As

ice

indicated in Figure 2 of the drawing, the play piece surface forming member 17 is mounted to float freely in a central recess of the play piece surface forming member 14 so that when an oscillating movement is imparted to the member 14, as will hereinafter appeal-,the play surface forming member 17 will move and/ or oscillate independently and relative tothe annular area of the play piece supporting surface carried by the member 14. The play piece supporting member 14 is secured to the upper end of a vertically extending shaft 19 which is journalled for rotation upon a pedestal 20 carried by a closure plate 21 at the bottom of the housing 10. Attached to the shaft 20, at its inner convolution, there isa horizontally disposed clock spring 22,' which is secured at its outer end to the housing 10 in such a manner that when Wound and released, said clock spring 22 will impart an oscillating movement to the play piece supporting member 14. In this connection, it should be here stated that the mass or weight of the play piece supporting member 14 and the resilience of the clock spring 22 will be such that the play piece supporting member 14 Will be oscillated in a manner sufficient to impart tumbling action to the play pieces 13 placed thereupon.

In order to wind the spiral spring 22 and thus store up suicient energy to impart'the above oscillating movement to the play piece supporting member 14, I have provided the member 14 with'an extension at the underside thereof in the form of a ratchet wheel 23 with which a dog carried by an operating lever 25 engages. In this instance, the lever 2S is mounted to turn freely about the vertically extending shaft 19 and will operate in a horizontally extending slot 26 in the housing 10 which has an arcuate length of approximately The dog 24 is biased into engagement with the ratchet wheel 23 in any suitable manner. Extending oppositely from the dog 215, the operating lever 25 also carries a lever 27 which is operative to move said dog 25 out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 23 as said operating lever approaches the end of its spring winding movement. To this end the closure plate 21 is shown as having a vertically extending pin 2?, super-imposed in partover the sectional View of Figure 2 and diagrammatically illustrated by dot and dash lines displaced 90 at the right of this figure of the drawing. In this arrangement, it will be seen that as the operating lever 2S is grasped and moved clockwise, as viewed in Figure l of the drawings or toward the viewer as shown in Figure 2 of the drawing, the ratchet engaging dog 24 will be operative to turn the shaft 19 and thus cause the spiral spring 22 to become wound and store up suflicient energy to impart an oscillating movement through the shaft 19 to the play piece supporting member la and cause the play pieces to be tumbled about until the parts come to rest. Under these conditions, it; will be seen that the play pieces 13 resting thereupon` will eventually come to rest in various positions and indifferent zones on the playing surface for game scoring purposes` While I have described the device as having a single operating lever 25 which may be operated in turn byI several different players. I have also shown inthe draw-` ings two of these operating levers which move in oppo sitely disposed arcs and toward oppositely seated players. The second lever, here designated by the numeral 29 carries a dog 31 corresponding with the ratchet engaging dog 24 and also a lever 32 which is adapted to engage a second tripping pin (not shown) similar to the pin l the inactive player will be held in a position where theratchet engaging dog 24 or 31 carried thereby will be out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 23 and thus permit the opponents operating lever to be operative for Winding the spiral spring 22 up to its automatic release. Following this, the particular operating lever will be held in its ratchet releasing position so that the other operating lever can be used for a subsequent operation ofthe device.

.The various zones as outlined upon the play piece supporting members 14 and 17 may take various shapes and size. In accordance with one particular set of game rules, this play surface is marked with scoring and play indicating indicia in accordance with the `design which forms the subject matter of a copcnding application en titled, Play Surface for Garne Apparatus, Serial Number D. 44,118 iiled December 7, 1956.

While I have, for the sake of clearness and in order to disclose my invention so that the same can be readily understood, described and illustrated a speciiic form and arrangement, I desire to have it understood that this invention is not limited to the specific form disclosed, but may be embodied in other Ways that will suggest themselves to persons skilled in the art. It is believed that this invention is new and all such changes as come within the scope of the appended claims are to be considered as part of this invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: v

l. In a game apparatus, the combination of a housing having an open cylindrical cavity of a depth suticient t0 permit the tumbling of dice and like play pieces therein, means forming a play piece supporting surface at the bottom ef said cavity having Zones upon which said Play pieces may come to rest, said means being carried by a depending vertical shaft, a spiral clock spring secured at its inner end to said shaft with its convolutions extending spirally therearound and attached at its outer end to a stationary part of said housing, a ratchet wheel carried by said means, a radially extending lever journallcd upon said shaft, a ratchet engaging dog carried by said lever and engaging said ratchet wheel for imparting a spring winding movement to said shaft as said lever is operated through an arc about theaxis of said shaft by a player, and means operative to disengage said dog from said ratchet wheel as said operating lever reaches the end of its spring winding are of travel about said shaft, whereby said spiral spring will be Wound and released and impart an oscillating movement to said means that will cause play pieces located thereupon to be tumbled about and establish game` scoring values as they come to rest in said cavity.

2. A game apparatus of the character delined by claim 1, characterized by the fact that the zones on the play piece supporting surface of said means are dened by raised and intersecting ridges with upstanding hernispherical protuberances at their points of intersection to avoid the possibility of a play piece coming to rest upon said ridges at said points of intersection.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,594,016 Marshall July 2.7,v 1926

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