Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
TITLE: ~AM~ INCORPORATING AN INCLI~ED RAMP IN A
BALL L~UNCHING MECHANISM
~ACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a game which incor-
porates an inclined ramp as part of a delivery system
for a series of balls. Associated with the lower end
of the inclined ramp is a propulsion mechanism which,
if activated at the correct time, will strike a ball
coming d~wn the inclined ramp and propel the same
toward the target. A counter mechanism is associated
with the target to tell the player how many balls he
has successfully deposited in the target.
Many games are known which use the principle of
gravity to feed a ball from a launcher to a target.
Games such as the one described in U. S. Patent
3,498,615 utilize a large inclined ramp having a
series of baffles tilereon. A ball traverses these
baffles and is deposited in a target area. The
tar~et is movable by the operator of the game.
Other patents such as U. S. Patent 3,934,881
allow a ball to descend vertically over a series of
platforms placed one under the other which are
tiltable. As the ball is successfully transferred
to lower and lower platforms means are provided to
assign a score totally dependent on the number of
platforms successfully traversed.
U. S. Patent 3,834,701 describes a toy basket-
ball game which includes a counter mechanism associated
witll the basket which counts the number of times a
ball is successfully passed through the basket.
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U. S. Patent 3,358,997 is directed to a toy
baseball game which utilizes a pivotable inclined
ramp as a launching means for launching a ball toward
a movable bat. After coming down the inclined ramp
the ball strikes a small abutment which causes it to
lift up and fly through the batting area in a
trajectory which places it within the pathway of
the movable bat. If the bat successfully strikes
the ball, attempts can be made to capture it with a
series of upstanding projections which are movable
in unison through an ark centered at approximately the
pitcher mound area of the game.
All of the above described games contain one
detail or another which gives them certain play
value. There are, however, certain limitations
found in each of these games which, if improved,
would further improve the play value of the game.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THfi INVENTION
In view of the above it is considered there
exists a need for a new and improved game which in-
corporates many of the features having very positive
play values found in the above noted patents, but
which additionally presents these features in new
and novel ways rendering the new game extremely
interesting and therefore of a very positive play
value. It is therefore a broad object of this
invention to provide a game which is interesting
and fascinating to the user, but which is also
variable in operation so that its play value is
accessible to a younger child. It is a further
object to provide a game which, because of its
simplicity of parts, is easily manufactured and thus
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economical to the consumer and because of its
engineering details has a long and useful life.
These and other objects as will become obvious
from the remainder of this specification are
achieved in a game of the type having a housing
and including a ball launching mechanism, a ball
propulsion mechanism and at least one target, the
improvement which comprises: a plurality of balls
contained within the housing, a reservoir means
located in the housing to store said plurality of
balls, a ball launching mechanism including an
inclined ramp and a ball injection means located
near the uppermost periphery of the inclined ramp,
said ball injection means operatively associated
with said ball reservoir means to receive said ball
from said ball reservoir means and inject said ball
onto said inclined ramp, said ball propulsion
mechanism located near the lower end of said inclined
ramp such that as said ball rolls down said inclined
ramp said ball can be acted on by said ball propulsion
mechanism propelling said ball toward said target.
Operatively associated with the target is a ball
counter means which is capable of indicating the
number of said balls which have been successfully
propelled toward and captured by the target. The
ball counter means includes a movable member moving
in a ball holding chamber and capable of indicating
30 how many balls are located in the ball holding
chamber.
The ball propulsion mechanism includes a
propelling member which is movable such that the
locus of its movement is in the same area through
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which the balls must traverse when passing down the
inclined ramp. Thus, if the propelling member is
activated in coordination with movement of the balls
down the inclined ramp the propelling member is
capable of striking the balls.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
This invention will be better understood when
taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is an isometric view of the game of the
invention;
Fig. 2 is an isometric view partially exploded
showing the game of Fig. 1 with certain of the
overlaying components removed;
Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the game shown
in Fig. 1 in partial section;
Fig. 4 is an end elevational view about the
line 4-4 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 5 is an end elevational view about the
line 5-5 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 6 is an end elevational view identical to
Fig. 5 except certain components are shown in a
different spatial relationship; ana
Fig. 7 is a partial plan view of that portion
of the game shown in the lowermost center section
of Fig. 2, differing however from Fig. 2 in that
certain components are shown in a different spatial
relationship.
The invention described in this specification
and shown in the drawings utilizes certain principles
and/or concepts as are set forth and claimed in the
appended clainls. Those skilled in the toy arts to
which this invention pertains will realize that
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these principles and/or concepts could be utilized
in a number of differently appearing embodiments
differing from the exact embodiment described herein.
For this reason, this invention is to be construed
in light of the appended claims and is not to be
construed as being limited to the exact embodiment
herein described.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The game 10 has a lower housing component 12
and an upper transparent housing component 14.
Located within the interior of the game 10 and
essentially dividing the game is a surface 16. A
plurality of indicia are painted on this surface
16 giving the game a baseball theme.
Integrally formed with upper housing 14 and
projecting toward surface 16 is an inclined ramp 18.
A ball eject hole 20 is located at the upper end 22
of inclined ramp 18 and a ball batting member 24 is
located at the lower end 26 of inclined ramp 18.
~wo target holes 28 and 30 respectively are located
in the upper left-hand corner of the game 10 as seen
in ~ig. 1. Target hole 28 differs from target hole
30 not only in its position but in its method of
accumulating balls collectively identified by the
numeral 32 as hereinafter explained. Two shelves 34
and 36 respectively are integrally formed with upper
housing 14 and project downwardly toward surface 16
and are located directly beneath target holes 28 and
30 respectively. A baffle 38 integrally formed with
upper housing 14 and projecting toward surface 16
serves to feed the balls 32 after completion of play
into reservoir feed hole 40.
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Projecting out of lower housing 12 in t~e right
hand side of Figs. 1 and 2 is batter button 42.
Located on the bottom of lower housing 12 is scoring
button 44. Located on the left-hand side of the
lower housing 12 is home run button 46. Just above
scoring button 44 on surface 16 is scoring indicator
hole 48. Located on the upper surface of lower
housing 12 is ball ejection button 50.
Before indicating how all of these components
are mechanically related and work, a brief summary
of how the game is played will help to appreciate the
interreaction of the components. The batting member
24 is coc~ed by depressing the batter button 42 in a
downward motion. A ball 32 is then ejected from the
ball eject hole 20 by depressing the ball eject button
50. The ball 32 rolls down the inclined ramp 18 and
when it is near the lower end 26 of ramp 18 the batter
button 42 is released causing the batting member 24
to rotate clockwise, and if the release of the button
42 is coordinated with the position of the ball 32
the batting member 24 will strike the ball 32 and
propel it toward the left hand side of the game.
If the batting button 42 is released at the
proper time the ball will be given an upward motion
along with its sideways motion. If properly struck
it will come to rest on either shelE 34 or 36. The
ball 32 rolls down the shelves 34 and 36 to be
located over the target holes 28 and 30. The ball
32 then passes through the target holes 28 and 30
as hereinafter more fully explained, and comes to
rest inside the lower left-hand side of the lower
housing 12. After all of a plurality of balls have
been either (a) successfully hit so that they are in
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the area of the target holes or (b) they have been
missed or hit but misdirected and have come to rest
against the bottom edge 52 of the upper housing 14,
the scoring button 44 is slid toward the left. The
number of balls that have been deposited through
either of the target holes 28 or 30 will be
indicated by a numeral viewable in the scoring
indicator hole 48. The game 10 is then inverted
and shook to locate all of the balls 32 between the
upper housing 14 and the surface 16 and then the
game is turned right side up again so that the balls
can be guided by baffles 38 and deposited in
reservoir feed hole 40. At this time play of the
game can be started once again.
The batting member 24 is controlled as follows.
On the lower surface 54 of lower housing 12 is a
slidable cage 56. An upstanding rib 58 projects
from the lower surface 54. The cage 56 has two
notches collectively identified by tlle numeral 60
one located on either of its ends which fit over the
rib 58 and serve to guide the cage 56 along the
length of the rib 58. ~ spring 62 fitting around
an upstanding peg 64 which projects from the lower
surface 54 attaches to the cage 56 and biases it
toward peg 64. Batting button 42 is integrally formed
with cage 56 and projects throug}l the lower housing
12 via opening 66. A rack of gears 68 are formed on
cage 56 in a parallel relationship with rib 58. A
small axle (not seen nor numbered) projects upwardly
from the lower surface 54 and serves as an axle for
pinion 70. Pinion 70 engages the rack of gears 68
and is rotated as the cage 56 slides up and down
along the surface or rib 58. Pinion 70 has a trapezoid
shaped opening 72 in its upper surface which receives
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batting arm 74 and fixedly locks the movement of
batting arm 74 with respect to the position of the
batter button 42 via the interaction of the pinion
70 with the rack of gears 68. Arm 74 is located over
surface 16 and is thus visible to the player using
the game 10.
The lower end 26 of inclined ramp 18 is split
such that a channel 76 is formed therein. Arm 74
is positioned with respect to inclined ramp 18 such
that when the arm 74 rotates it travels through the
channel 76 insuring that the arm 74 will meet with
and strike any ball 32 which is located at the lower
end 26 of the ramp 18 at the same time the arm 74 moves.
In play the player pushes the batting button 42 such
that the arm 74 rotates counterclockwise to cock the
arm 74 and places spring 62 under tensioll. When the
button 42 is released the tension of sl)rin~ 62 causes
the cage 56 to move and rapidly rotates the arm 74.
A ball reservoir 76 is located beneath surface
16. Two upstanding ribs 80 and 82 which are inte-
grally formed with lower housing 14 and project
upwardly toward surface 16 between the reservoir
feed hole 40 and the ball eject hole 20 form this
reservoir 76. The reservoir 76 is sized to be able
to contain all of the balls which are used in playing
the game 10.
The ball eject button 50 is integrally formed
with the eject member 84. A peg 86 projects upwardly
from lower housing 14 and fits within a cutout 88 in
the eject member 84. A compression spring 90 fits
within the cutout 88 between peg 86 and member 84
and biases eject member 84 such that the button 50
is pushed outwardly from the lower housing 12.
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A wedge 92 is formed on the end of eject member
84 and is positioned below ball eject hole 20. A
rib 94 which in conjunction with peg 86 serves as a
guide for eject member 84 also defines portions of
an eject chamber 96. The other portions of this
chamber are defined by portions or ribs 80 and 82.
A ball 32 located in the reservoir 76 rolls through
the reservoir until it is located in eject chamber 96.
When eject member 84 is slid against the bias of
spring 90 the wedge 92 interacts with the ball 32
and because the movement of the ball 32 is inhibited
by portions of ribs 80, 82 and 94 the ball rides up
the inclined surface of wedge 92 and is injected
out of the ball eject hole 20.
Associated with movement of the ball 32 from
the ball eject hole 20 is movement of a disk 98
which simulates movement of a pitcher's arm. Located
on one side of eject member 84 is a rack of ge~rs 100.
These interact with a pinion 102 which is ~l~proyriately
rotatably mounted on an upstanding axle 104. On the
bottom of disk 98 is a second pinion 106 which fits
over an axle 108 projecting upwardly from lower
surface 54. The axles 104 and 108 position pinions
106 and 102 such that they intermesh. As eject
member 84 slides, pinion 102 is rotated by the rack
of gears 100 and it in turn rotates pinion 106 which
causes disk 98 to rotate counterclockwise simulating
movement of the pitcher arm 110 painted on the
surface of disk 98.
Connected to home run button 46 is barrier member
112. A peg 114 projects upwardly from surface 54
of lower housing 12 and serves as a holding point
for spring 116. A finger 118 formed as part of
barrier member 112 is connected to the other end of
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spring 116. Spring 116 biases barrier member 112
and home run button 46 toward peg 114 such that the
surface of barrier member 112 covers target hole
28. A cutout 120 in barrier member 112 is located
below target hole 30. Any ball 32 located on shelf
36 will descend through target hole 30 through the
cutout 120 and underneath barrier member 112.
However, any ball 32 located on shelf 34 will be
inhibited from passing through target hole 28 by the
surface of barrier member 112. When the home run
button 46 is depressed against the bias of spring
116 the surface of barrier member 112 moves away
from target hole 28 allowing any balls 32 located
on shelf 34 to freely pass through target hole 28
underneath barrier member 112.
A feed channel 122 composed in part by rib 124
and in part by rib 82 leads from underneath barrier
member 112 to holding chamber 126. Any ball 32 which
passes through either of the target holes 28 or 30
is conducted down channel 122 into the holding
chamber 126. One end 128 of holding chamber 126 is
fixed. The other end 130 of holding chamber 126 is
open. The holding chamber 126 is defined by part of
rib 124 and by part of a rib 134.
Movable member 132 has cutouts (not seen or
numbered in the figures) which allow it to slide
along rib 134 into the holding chamber 126.
Integrally formed with the movable member 132 is
scoring button 44. A peg 136 projects upwardly from
lower surface 54 of lower housing 12. A spring 138
attaches to this peg and attaches to the underside
(not seen) of movable member 132. This biases
movable member 132 away from holding chamber 126.
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When movable member 132 is slid via scoring button
44 into the holding chamber 126, depending on the
number of balls 32 located in holding chamber 126,
movable member 132 will be allowed to only occupy
that area of holding area 126 not occupied by any
of tlle balls 32. A plurality of numerical indicia
140 on the surface of movable member 132 are viewable
one at a time through scoring indicator hole 48.
The particular member of ~he indicia 140 which will
be exposed through scoring indicator hole 48 depends
on how far movable member 132 can slide into holding
chamber 126. The indicia on movable member 132 are
numbered from right to left. Normally 10 balls 32
would be used in the game 10; thus, the indicia are
numbered from zero to 10. If only one ball is located
in holding chamber 126 the movable member 132 will be
capable of moving to the left into holding chamber
126 a distance equal to nine balls, thus exposing
the number "1" through the scoring indicator hole 48.
If two balls are located in the holding chamber 126
as is shown in Fig. 7, the movable member 132 will
only be allowed to move to the left a distance
equal to the diameter of two balls, thus exposing
the number "2" and so on for the remaining number of
balls 32. In this way, the numeral exposed through
the scoring indicator hole ~8 exactly equals the
number of balls located in the holding chamber 126.
In order to assist the balls 32 in rolling
through the channels 76, 122 and the holding chamber
126 a sloping rib 142 is placed in the bottom of
channel 76 and, likewise, a sloping rib 144 is
placed through channel 122 and holding chamber 126.
The game 10 may be held during play such that
the surface 16 is inclined slightly to the llorizontal
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for easy play and this surface 16 is made more and
more vertical for more expert play. When the
surface 16 is completely vertical the balls 32
roll down the inclined ramp 18 at a faster rate than
when the surface 16 is less than vertical. This
allows the game 10 to be used by a variety of
players differing somewhat in their coordination
skills.
