WO2005055176A1

WO2005055176A1 - Instructional toy

Info

Publication number: WO2005055176A1
Application number: PCT/GB2004/002750
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jeremy Clive Clapich
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-11-18
Filing date: 2004-06-24
Publication date: 2005-06-16
Anticipated expiration: 2006-05-18
Also published as: GB0326851D0

Abstract

A constructional toy comprising a substantially spherical support on which is carried a representation of a terrestial globe parts of the surface of which are provided by removable representations of land and/or sea areas.

Description

INSTRUCTIONAL TOY

This invention relates to an instructional toy in the form of a terrestial globe which is intended to provide educational entertainment by not only indicating where certain areas are on the earth's surface but to provide an entertaining way of explaining this to the user.

According to the present invention an instructional toy comprises a substantially spherical support on which is carried a representation of a terrestial globe parts of the surface of which are provided by removable representations of land and/or sea areas.

The removable representations could define individual continents, countries, states, oceans and/or seas.

As the various areas are removable it presents a challenge to the user to replace them in the correct position so that even young children, after using the toy, will know where the main areas of the globe are located.

The removable representations are preferably provided with detachable attachment means for holding them onto the spherical support and these means could be magnetic or by snap-fit connections.

If desired the removable representations of the countries or states can carry the national flag of the area.

The rear portions of the removable representations can be provided with information and/or a model of the subterranean area beneath the representation. Thus, the information and/or model could represent the area's resources. If desired the spherical support could be rotatably mounted on a support base.

The invention can be performed in various ways and some embodiments will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :

Figure 1 is an isometric view from above of the instructional toy according to the invention; Figure 2 shows part of the surface of the toy shown in Figure 1 but in a removed position; Figure 3 is a pictorial side elevation of the toy showing various means of attachment of the removable representations; Figure 4 is a side elevation of a construction in which the spherical support is in two separate parts; and, Figure 5 is a side elevation similar to Figure 4 in which the two parts are hinged together.

As shown in Figure 1 the instructional toy, according to the invention, comprises a spherical support 1 on which is carried a representation of a terrestial globe parts of the surface of which are provided by removable representations of land and/or sea areas. In Figure 1 some of the main areas are shown, for example the Atlantic Ocean is indicated by reference numeral 2, Europe by reference numeral 3 and Africa by reference numeral 4. Individual countries, in this case, Greenland, Spain, Italy and Eire are indicated by reference numeral 5. Great Britain, in the form of England, Wales and Scotland is indicated by reference numeral 6. The various areas are provided on removable representations and that which represents England, Wales and Scotland is shown in Figure 2 having been removed from the support 1. The representation is in the form of a thin layer which can be pushed back into place on the support 1. It will be appreciated that the removable representations of the countries and/or seas can be arranged so that they could ail be removed and all put back into place.

For smaller children it would be easier merely to have removable continents and for those somewhat older removable individual states. if desired the oceans and seas could be permanently secured to the support 1 and only the countries and continents removable.

In order to identify the individual countries or states they can carry the colour or representation of their national flag on the upper surface of the representation as shown in Figure 2. The rear portion 8 of the representation can carry information and/or a model of the subterranean area, for example in bas relief. Thus, the information could represent the area's resources or it could indicate the underground resources beneath it. Areas representing an ocean or sea can carry details of the fish population.

The information can be in simple form of that country's or state's resources, for example Saudi Arabia could be represented by a barrel of oil.

As shown in Figure 3 the spherical support 1 can be mounted on a base 9 on a rotatable spindle 10.

The construction of the spherical support and detachable attachment means can take various forms, for example the support could be a lattice or grid 11 which can either carry magnetic strips 11a which secure appropriate metallic areas, not shown on the representations, or the countries, states or seas could have shaped projections lib, as shown in Figure 2, which plug into the lattice 11 to hold the representations in place. The right hand side of the Figure 3 shows a construction in which the surface of the support is continuous but which is provided with a series of projecting snap-fit abutments 12 onto which the removable representations can be pressed, the representations carrying an appropriate co-operating button, shown in chain lines 12a on Figure 3, and which would be provided in place of projections lib, or magnetic areas.

If desired, each of the removable representations couid be provided with a small knob or button 13 to assist removal and replacement.

The spherical support and removable representations can be made from any convenient material, for example wood, metal, a synthetic plastics material or a combination thereof.

Figure 4 shows how the spherical support 1 can constructed so as to provide access to its hollow interior. In Figure 4 the spherical support is formed from two half-spheres 20, 21 which are intended to be placed together to form the full sphere. The half- sphere 20 has an outer reinforcing rim 22 on which is formed a projecting circular flange 23. The half sphere 21 is also formed with a reinforcing rim 24 and this rim carries a half-groove 25. The sphere is intended to be made from a resilient plastics material and the dimensions of the flange 23 and half-groove 25 are arranged so that when the two halves are pressed together the flange 23 enters the half-groove 25 and resilientiy engages its wails so that the two halves are held together but can easily be pulled apart.

The general construction of the half-spheres can be, for example, as shown in Figure 3 and the hollow interior can be used in various ways. For example, the hollow interior could be used to store all the removable representations or, it could house representations of various products relevant to the different countries and oceans.

When the spherical support is mounted on a base, as shown in Figure 3, this would merely be attached to one of the half-spheres 20 or 21. It will be appreciated that when the various representations are placed in position on the exterior surface of the globe the join between the two parts 20 and 21 will be covered but the two half-spheres can be easily pulled apart merely by removing the representations that extend over their joint peripheries.

The interior surfaces of the half-spheres 20 and 21 can be covered with markings or indicea indicating the positions of the representations of the countries which are attached to the outer surfaces and these markings could include information which is similar or different to that set out on the back surfaces of the representations.

The interior markings could be marked, for example, on an applied sheet of material, for example paper, or they could be moulded onto the inner surfaces. Such a marking is indicated by reference numeral 26 in Figure 4.

Figure 5 shows an alternative construction in which the same reference numerals are used to indicate the same parts as shown in Figure 4. In this construction however, although the two half-spherical portions 20, 21 are intended to be a press fit together, they are connected by a hinge 27. Their construction could otherwise be substantially as described with regard to Figure 4.

Claims

1. A constructional toy comprising a substantially spherical support on which is carried a representation of a terrestial globe parts of the surface of which are provided by removable representations of land and/or sea areas.

2. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 1 in which the removable representations define individual continents, countries, states.

3. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 2 in which the removable representations of the countries or states carry the national flag of the area.

4. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3 in which the removable representations also include oceans or seas.

5. A constructional toy as claimed in claims 1 to 4 in which the removable representations are provided with detachable attachment means for holding them onto the spherical support.

6. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 5 in which the detachable attachment means are magnetic.

7. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 5 in which the detachable attachment means include snap-fit connections.

8. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 5 in which the detachable attachment means include shaped projections adapted to plug into the cylindrical support.

9. A constructional toy as claimed in claims 1 to 6 in which a rear portion of the removable representations carries information and/or a model of the subterranean area beneath the representation.

10. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 6 in which the information and/or model represents the area's resources.

11. A constructional toy as claimed in claims 1 to 10 in which the spherical support is rotatably mounted on a base.

12. A constructional toy as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the spherical support is constructed to provide access to a hollow interior.

13. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 12 in which the spherical support is formed from two separate half-spheres.

14. A constructional toy as claimed in claim 13 in which the separate half-spheres are hinged together.

15. A constructional toy as claimed in claims 12 to 14 in which the hollow interior of the support is adapted to accommodate the removable representations.

16. A constructional toy as claimed in claims 12 to 15 in which the surface of the hollow interior of the spherical support is provided with marking as indicea to indicate the position of the representations attached to the interior surface.