Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A TOY BUILDING SET
FIELD OF APPLICATION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a toy building set comprising at least one
building element having a surface on which at least two coupling studs are
arranged that extend from the surface, and wherein those coupling studs are
configured in a pattern by which there is an mutually fixed distance between
adjacent coupling studs, and wherein the toy building set further comprises a
perforator, said perforator comprising means for punching material from a
sheet material configured from a sheet element made of a thin material, such
as a sheet of eg paper, plastics or fabric in such a way that the perforator
is
capable of punching a hole in the sheet, said hole having such expanse that
one or more coupling studs can be introduced into the punched hole.
The invention also relates to a perforator as such.
STATE OF THE ART
Perforators for punching holes in paper, foil, fabric and other sheet
materials
are known today in many configurations. Such perforators can be used in
connection with toy building sets of the above-mentioned type with the
purpose of building a given structure by use of a plurality of building
elements
that are interconnected by use of the coupling studs on the building
elements, and wherein, on such structure, sheets of paper and the like sheet
material can be mounted if, by means of the perforator, one or more holes
have been punched through which the coupling studs can be introduced to
the effect that the sheet of paper will, after having been mounted on the
coupling studs of a given building element, be secured in an efficient manner
thereon when another building element is mounted on the same coupling
studs.
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Toy building sets often containing building elements with more than one
coupling stud, today, a perforator is known having an associated template
which, along with the perforator, can be used to ensure that the individual
holes are punched at the same mutual distance as the distance between two
adjacent coupling studs on the building elements.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
In the light of this, it is the object of the present invention to provide a
toy
building set by which it is considerably easier to punch holes in eg a sheet
of
paper, to the effect that it is subsequently easier to mount that sheet on a
given structure built from several of the building elements forming part of
the
toy building set.
This is accomplished in that the perforator comprises at least two punching
tools arranged at a distance from each other to the effect that there is a
clearance between the outer faces of two adjacent punching tools that
corresponds to or is smaller than the clearance between two adjacent
coupling studs on the building element.
Thereby it is enabled that it is possible to simultaneously punch at least two
holes at the correct mutual distance to the effect that it is thereby
considerably easier to mount the sheet on a building element having a given
number of coupling studs.
By a preferred embodiment of the invention, the perforator comprises four
punching tools arranged in a square pattern. Thereby it is possible to punch,
in one and the same operation, four holes at precisely the correct distance to
the effect that a building element having four coupling studs can easily be
arranged in the same pattern.
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The term "square pattern" is intended to designate, in this context, that the
holes and the coupling studs are arranged at the corners of a square, but the
same principle may apply if the holes and the coupling studs are arranged at
the corners of a rectangle, a trapeze, a triangle, or another pattern.
It is possible to configure the perforator in such a way that the perforator
is
configured such that each individual punching tool in the perforator has such
expanse that makes it possible, in each hole that can be punched by means
of the perforator, to introduce two or more coupling studs. According to a
preferred embodiment, however, the punching tools are configured such that
they precisely punch a hole of such expanse that it allows only one coupling
stud to be introduced into the hole to the effect that the number of holes
that
can be punched by the perforator corresponds precisely to the number of
coupling studs on the building element.
In this context, both the coupling studs and the punching tools conveniently
have a circular cylindrical cross section with essentially the same diameter.
According to a preferred embodiment, the perforator is moreover provided
with means for activating at least one of the punching tools independently of
at least one other of the punching tools, to the effect that the number of
holes
punched in the same operation can be varied as needed.
To that end, the perforator may advantageously comprise one single manual
operating handle which is configured such that it may effect a simultaneous
activation of at least two of the punching tools, and wherein, between the
operating handles, a switch is arranged which is configured in such a manner
that it is capable of occupying at least two different positions, viz a first
position in which only one of the punching tools is activated and a second
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position in which two or more of the punching tools are activated
simultaneously by manual operation of the operating handle.
According to a further preferred embodiment, the perforator has a total of
four
punching tools, and the switch has a total of three different positions, viz,
one
in which it is capable of activating only one punching tool, a second position
in which it is capable of activating only two punching tools simultaneously,
and a third position in which it activates all four punching tools essentially
simultaneously.
In order to facilitate correct positioning of the punched holes on the sheet,
the
perforator comprises, in a preferred embodiment, a housing wherein a slot is
configured; wherein the punching tools are configured so as to be
displaceable transversally of the slot; and wherein the housing is configured
with a number of coupling means that are complementary to the coupling
studs to the effect that the housing can be mounted on a building element.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, whereby the perforator
is suitable for use in a commonly known toy building set, the perforator then
comprises at least two punching tools, each of which has a cross section in
which a centre can be defined to the effect that the distance between centres
on the two punching tools is 8 mm, and wherein the distance from centre to
the outer face of the punching tool is equal to or larger than 2.4 mm and
smaller than 5.6 mm to the effect that the clearance between the outer faces
of the punching tools is equal to or smaller than 3.2 mm.
According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, whereby the
perforator is suitable for use in another commonly known toy building set, the
perforator then comprises two punching tools, each of which has a cross
section in which a centre can be defined to the effect that the distance
between centres on the two punching tools is 16 mm, and wherein the
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distance from centre to the outer face of the punching tool is equal to or
larger than 4.8 mm and smaller than 11.2 mm to the effect that the clearance
between the outer faces of the punching tools is equal to or smaller than 6.4
mm.
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: is a perspective view of a perforator according to the present
invention, seen in an inclined view from above and from the front;
Figure 2: is a perspective view of a building element for a toy building set
according to the present invention, seen in an inclined view from above;
Figure 3: is a perspective sectional view showing a part of the perforator
shown in figure 1, in a section longitudinally of the perforator and seen in
an
inclined view from above and from the front;
Figure 4: is a perspective view of the perforator shown in figure 1, seen in
an
inclined view from above and from the front, and wherein the uppermost
cover of the housing has been removed;
Figure 5: is a perspective view of the perforator shown in figure 1, seen in
an
inclined view from above and from behind, and wherein the upper cover, the
operating handle, and the handle for operating the hole selector have been
removed.
EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
Thus, figure 1 shows a perforator 1 according to the present invention, said
perforator 1 comprising a housing 2, wherein a slot 3 is configured wherein a
sheet of a (not shown) thin material, such as paper, plastics, fabric, or
other
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material can be introduced, and an operating handle 4 which, when operated,
is pressed downwards in a direction towards the housing 2 of the perforator,
and thereby activates a number of punching tools that are driven to shift
transversally of the slot 3, whereby the punching tools are driven through the
not shown sheet of a thin material and produce one or more holes in the
paper depending on the number and configuration of the punching tools.
The punching tool shown in figure 1 having several separate punching tools,
it further comprises a second operating tool 5 which is used to change how
many of the punching tools that are activated at the same time when the
operating handle 4 is depressed.
According to one embodiment of the invention, it is part of a toy building
system or a toy building set, by which is intended a number of building
elements or building blocks of the type which is shown eg in figure 2 showing
a building element 6 having a surface 7 which is provided with a total of four
coupling studs 8. It will thereby be obvious to the person skilled in the art
that
the perforator can be a separate product suitable for use in existing products
or as a tool sold along with a number of building elements.
Moreover, it will be obvious to the person skilled in the art that the
building
element shown in figure 1 is one of many embodiments of building elements,
and that the invention can be used in connection with building elements
having more or fewer coupling studs 8 than is shown in figure 1 and
optionally having studs of other configurations or mutual distances than the
one shown in figure 1.
The perforator 1 as shown being provided with a number of indentations 9 on
its essentially plane bottom face, said indentations being configured such
that
they each form a number of coupling means that are complementary relative
to the coupling studs 8 on the building element 6, it is possible to mount the
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perforator on a building element of a toy building set, if that building
element
is provided with coupling studs having the same shape and mutual distance
as the one shown in figure 2. If the perforator 1 is mounted eg on a building
element or a building plate having many more coupling studs 8 than the
building element 6 shown in figure 2, such building plate will be able to
serve
as a kind of boring template for accurate mutual positioning of several groups
of holes on a sheet.
Now, figure 3 shows a part of the same perforator 1 as the one shown in its
entirety in figure 1. Herein it is primarily the frontmost end of the
perforator
that is shown, in a sectional view, wherein the sectional plane is arranged in
parallel with and slightly displaced relative to the plane of symmetry of the
housing 2. As will appear, the operating handle 4 is journalled, relative to
the
housing 2, about a shaft 11, and upon depression of the operating handle 4
in the direction of the housing 2, the operating handle 4 will press the
piston
12 downwards towards a selector disc 13 that subsequently presses one or
more of the punching tools 14 downwards transversally to the slot 3 to the
effect that the punching tools 14 are, in a known manner, pressed through a
not shown sheet that has been shifted into the slot 3 and extends below the
punching tools.
According to an embodiment of the invention, it is possible to vary the
number of punching tools 14 that are activated simultaneously by depression
of the operating handle 4. Thus, figures 4 and 5 will show the frontmost part
of the perforator shown in figure 1, wherein the upper shell that constitutes
a
part of the housing 2 in figure 1 has been removed in figure 4, and wherein
the operating handle 4 and the second operating handle 5 have moreover
been removed in figure 5.
Herein, it will thus appear that the second operating handle 5 is, via the
piston 12, connected to a hole selector 15, herein shown in the form of a
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circular disc with a number of cut-outs that are configured such that, when
the hole selector, when positioned as shown in figure 5, is pressed
downwards towards the punching tools 14, all four punching tools 14 will be
pressed simultaneously down towards the slot 3, and in this manner all four
punching tools are activated to punch a hole in the sheet.
If the hole selector 15 is subsequently rotated a small distance in the
counter-
clockwise direction, the two pointers 16 on the hole selector 15 will be
precisely clear of two of the four punching tools 14, and if the hole selector
is
rotated a further distance in the counter-clockwise direction, it will further
be
capable of occupying a position in which only one of the four punching tools
is activated when the operating handle 4 is depressed.
It will be obvious to the person skilled in the art that embodiments of
perforators may be suggested that are different from the one described
above and shown in the drawing. Thus, the principle of the invention can also
be used in an embodiment where the perforator is configured as a pair of
thongs having two operating handles that can be pressed towards each other
and more or fewer punching tools than the four provided herein can be
provided.
