Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
"EDUCATIONAL BOOK FOR CHILDRE~"
BACKGRO~ND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an educational book for
children and particularly for younger children of the type
having a plurality of pages which have attached to the page
various moveable and removeable parts to provide various
activities for the child.
Various books of this type have previously been
manufactured and in many cases the books have been manufac-
tured from fabric pages since these are hard-wearing and
resistent to damage from unskilled fingers. In one example,
shown in U.S. Patent 2, 527,242, a number of pages have
mounted on them various fastening mechanisms of clothing of
the type which would normally be worn by the child so that
the child can practise the various activities necessary to
complete dressing and undressing without parental assist--
ance.
However, such activities are very limited and
provide scope for only a single type of book with little
variety, thus failing to provide continuing amusement for
the child which is necessary for continued learning.
It is one object of the present invention, there-
fore, to provide an improved book providing a number of
different concepts of activities on the various pages which
can be used to provide a wide variety of activities which
will continually amuse the child. It is a further object
of the present invention to provide an improved structure
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of such a book which enables it to be more easily handled
by a young child.
According to a first aspect of the invention,
therefore, there is provided an educational book for chil-
dren comprising an outer cover formed from fabric which is
doubled to form two layers and stitched with a stiffening
material between the double layers, a plurality of pages
each formed from fabric and fabric handle means attached to
side edges of the outer cover so that the book can be
carried depending downwardly from the handles with the
pages contained by the outer cover.
According to a second aspect of the invention,
there is provided an educational book for children com-
pris;ng an outer cover formed from fabric and a plurality
of pages each formed from fabric, one of said pages having
attached thereto a plurality of stiff projecting members
each attached to the page at one end of the member so that
the member lies parallel to the page with the other end
free from the page, and a plurality of cap members each
having an opening in a lower edge thereof for slipping over
a respective one of the projecting members.
~ According to a third aspect of the invention,
there is provided an educational book for children com-
prising an outer cover formed from a plurality o~ pages
each formed from fabric, at least one of said pages being
formed from doubled fabric so as to define two separate
layers, opening means in said page for providing access to
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a pocket therein, a piece having means thereon for attach-
ment to an exterior of said page and arranged so as to be
insertable through said opening into said pocket.
According to a further aspect of the invention,
there is provided an educational book for children com-
prising an outer cover formed from fabric and a plurality
of pages each formed from fabric, at least one of said
pages being formed from doubled fabric so as to define two
separate layers, opening means in said page for providing
access to a pocket therein, a piece separate from said page
and elastic attachment means attached to said piece and to
said page inside said pocket.
These various activities and concepts for acti-
vities thus can be used in a wide variety of co~binations
to provide continuing enjoyment for the child.
Further pages can use various techniques such as
"Velcro" (trade mark) fasteners, press fasteners, hooks and
eyes, zippers and insertion of various parts into pockets
to provide a wide variety of further activities.
A book of this type can use these concepts in
various different ways in combination wlth pictures of
various well-known items easily recognizable by the child.
The pictures can be formed either by printing on the fabric
pages or by further fabric and stiff parts attached to the
page by sewing, gluing, etc.
Various types of materials can be used to provide
di~ferent visual and tactile effects for entertaining the
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child. For example, various types of fabric, carpet, stiff
plastics materials, laces, buckles, felt, and clear plastics
materials.
Relatively stiff plastics material can be used to
form the projecting members as previously defined. By "stiff"
the present specification is intended to define a material
which has resistence to bending, for example, a plastics
material, which thus is distinguished from fabric. The
amount of resistence to bending, of course, can depend upon
the thickness of the material used and can be varied in
accordance with various designs or requirements for the
activities concerned.
With the foreoing in view, and other advantages
as will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which
this invention relates as this specification proceeds, the
invention is herein described by reference to the accom-
panying drawings forming a part hereof, which includes a
description of the preferred typical embodiment of the prin-
ciples of the present invention, in which:
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is an isometric view of an educational
book for children according to the invention.
Figure 2 is a plan view of a first page of the
book.
Figure 3 is a plan view of a second page.
Figure 4 is a plan view of a third page.
Figure 5 is a plan view of a fourth page.
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Figure 6 is a plan view of a fifth page.
In the drawings like characters of reference indi-
cate corresponding parts in the different figures.
The educational book comprises an outer cover 10and the plurality of Pages 11, all of which are formed from
fabric. Thus, the outer cover 10 comprises a doubled sheet
of fabric which when opened up is substantially twice the
size of each individual Page 11 so that when closed the
cover wraps around the whole of the pages. The doubled
sheet forming the outer cover 10 is stitched around the
outer edge indicated at 12 so as to form two layers of
fabric with an inner space which receives a stiffening
material as shown at the cutaway 13, the stiffening material
being indicated at 14. The stiffening material can be
provided by any suitable material which is flexible but
resistent to bending, for example, thin carpet or various
plastics materials.
Each Page 11 is similarly formed by two integral
page portions, again formed by overlapped doubled fabric
so as to define an inner space within the pages which is
closed by stitchlng around three edges of the integral
double page.
The book is completed by a line of stitching 15
centrally of the pages which interconnect the pages
together~with a loop 16 which connects the pages to the
outer coYer without the stitches 15 passing through the
outer cover.
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When forming the edges indicated at 17 of the
outer cover, two looped fabric handles 18 are sewn into
the edges 17 so that the looped handles can be grasped
and the whole book carried depending downwardly from the
handles with the cover being held together at the upper
edge 17 by the handles thus enclosing the Pages 11.
Turning now to the details of the individual
pages, which are not shown in detail in Figure 1 but are
shown in plan in Figures 2 through 6, it will be appreci-
ated that the pages shown are only examples which indicate
or illustrate principles of various activities which can be
carried out using the book.
A first principle is illustrated in Figure 2
where, for example, a bird and birdhouse are shown on the
page. A lower portion of the birdhouse providing an illus-
tration of an upright post 20 and platform 21 is indicated
on the page as by colouring or drawing the necessary lines.
A depiction~of a birdhouse 22 is then mounted on the plat-
form. The depiction 22 is cut from a fabric layer in the
outline of the house and the necessary lines showing the
roof portions drawn on the cut fabric as at 24. The outer
~edge of the cut fabric is indicated at 23. An opening 25
is cut in the depiction to illustrate a front opening of
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the house 22 and exposing the front face of the page 19.
~ A depiction o a bird is cut from a plastics
material so as to provide some rigidity for the depiction
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which can be picked up and held separately from the page.
The bird depiction is indicated at 26 and carries sui~able
markings 27. A press fastener 28 is attached to the rear
side of the bird 26 with a co-operating attached to the
front face of the house 22 adjacent the opening 25. '
The house 22 is sewn to the page along a sewing
line 29 so the house is permanently attached to the page
while the bird is removeable from the page. The bird can
thus be attached on the press fastener 28 to the page so
as to sit at the opening to the house or can be removed
from the press fastener and held by the child or inserted
into the opening 25 to simulate entering the house.
It will be appreciated that this principle where-
in a pocket is formed in the page with an opening providing
access into the pocket and a separate piece is provided
which can be attached by a press fastener or by other
fastening means to the outside of the pocket or inserted
into the pocket through the opening, can be used in various
arrangements. The opening can be closable as by a zipper
or other press fasteners. The pocket can contain a number
of pieces, for example, numbers or letters, and the pieces
can be attached to the page by various techniques including
"Velcro" (trade mark).
Turning now to Figure 3, there is shown a depic-
tion of a second page of the book which has sewn onto the
page a plurality of plastics stems 30. The stems 30 are
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sewn at one end indicated at 31 by suitable stitches or
other attachment mechanism so that the other end is free
from the page but lies parallel to the page providing an
upstanding finger or projection member for receiving a
hat portion indicated at 32. The hat portion in the arrange-
ment illustrated is in the shape of a mushroom head which
can be slipped on to the mushroom stalk provided by the
stem 30. The mushroom head is formed from a stiff plastics
layer 33 and an upper fabric layer 34 which is sewn to the
plastics layer to leave an opening at 35 at a lower surface
which can be slipped over the stem 30.
Again it will be appreciated that this technique
provides a specific activity which can appear in a number
of forms, for example, hats on figures of people or a ring
on a finger.
Turning now to Figure 4, there is illustrated a
further principle of activity wherein there is sewn on the
page a separate layer, in this case in the form of a foot-
ball which has two pieces leaving a space 41 between the
fabric 40 forming the football. On either side of the
space 41 is provided a plurality of eyelets 42 which can be
threaded by a lace 43 to simulate the lacing of a football.
This activlty can be used to teach the child the skills of
threading a lace through various openings and can be embodied
in a number of different arrangements, for example, the bars
of a cage~, the power li~es strung between a number of posts.
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Figure 5 illustrates a yet further arrangement in
which a pocket is formed on the page by a fabric portion 50
stitched along the lines 51, 60 leaving an opening at the
upper edge 52. A simulated cover 53 for the box simulated
by the fabric portion 50 is sewn along a line 54 to the
page so that the cover can be lifted from the page to
expose the upper edge 52. A press fastener 55 can be
attached to the outer face of the portion 50 and the under
face of the portion 53 to snap the cover over the lower box
portion 50. It will be appreciated, therefore, that these
portions simulate a box on the page although, of course,
only in two dimensions. A separate piece 55 in this embodi-
ment in the shape of a clown can be cut from plastics
material so as to provide some rigidity or stiffness and
marked with ink lines or the like to enhance the appearance.
An elastic strip 56 is coupled at one edge to the piece 55
and at the other end to a position inside the pocket formed
by the portion 50, thus simulating a jack-in-the-box elas-
tically coupled into the pocket or box simulated on the
page.
It will be appreciated that this arrangement can
be used to depict other scenes, for example, a pail in a
well.
Figure 6 illustrates a yet further principle in
which the page 70 has depicted thereon a scene, in this
case;a lighthouse 71, made by ink markings on the page.
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A simulation of a ship's wheel is attached to the page,
the simulation indicated at 72 and being formed from a
sheet of plastics material so as to provide a separate
piece which can be attached onto the page and can rotate
relative to the page. The piece 72 is attached to the
page by a thread 73 which passes through a central hole in
the piece and is held on the upper face of the piece by a
washer 74 which again, is formed from a sheet of plastics
material with a pair of openings 75 through which the
thread can pass before returning to the page. Thus, the
washer 75 allows the piece 72 to rotate but maintains it
attached to the page.
This technique can be used to depict various
different scenes including wheels of trains.
Other activities on other pages of the book which
are not illustrated can comprise various attachment members
for fabric pieces which are otherwise separable from the
page, for example, illustrating flowers or fruits. In yet
further arrangements pockets are formed on the page into
which plastics sheets depicting various items can be slip-
ped, for example, pencil cases or tool boxes. Yet further
pages can use various techniques such as "Velcro" (trade-
mark) fasteners, press fasteners, hooks and eyes~ zippers
and including magnetic devices, buttons, laces and elastics.
It will be appreciated, therefore, that the book
provides a numbGI ot di~'erent activities ~hich can be de-
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picted in various forms so that a series of books can be
manufactured using the various principles but yet remain-
ing individual and thus retaining the child's attention.
Since various modifications can be made in my
invention as hereinabove described, and many apparently
widely different embodiments of same made within the spirit
and scope of the claims without departing from such spirit
and scope, it is intended that all matter contained in
the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as
illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.
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