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(11) | EP 2 692 396 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Toy ball |
| (57) A toy ball includes a stack of elastic corolla-like units (1), each having a central
portion (10) and a plurality of petal-like portions (11) extending radially outwards
therefrom. The central portions are formed with one or more through-holes. A connector
(2) is configured to pass through the through-holes and hold the corolla-like units
together. The connector squeezes the central portions inwards thereby bending the
petal-like portions outwards around the squeezed central portions and turns the petal-like
portions from a stacked configuration to a substantially spherical configuration.
The connector may be a cable tie or a plug-and-socket fastener.
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority of Hong Kong Short-Term Patent Application No. 12107641.4 filed on August 3, 2012, the entire content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY
BACKGROUND
[0003] Koosh ball is also known as rubber filament ball. It is a toy ball made of numerous fine rubber filaments formed around a center. A rubber filament ball includes a rubber core at the center and numerous rubber filaments extending radially outwardly from the core. These rubber filaments form into a substantially spherical configuration. These rubber filament balls are elastic and soft. They are suitable for children to play with. Children can use these rubber filament balls in a catch-and-throw game or training.
[0004] The above description of the background is provided to aid in understanding a toy ball, but is not admitted to describe or constitute pertinent prior art to the toy ball disclosed in the present application, or consider any cited documents as material to the patentability of the claims of the present application.
SUMMARY
[0005] According to one aspect, there is provided a toy ball including a stack of elastic corolla-like units, each having a central portion and a plurality of petal-like portions extending radially outwards therefrom. The central portions can be formed with at least one through-hole extending therethrough. A connector may be configured to pass through the at least one through-hole and hold the stack of corolla-like units together. The connector can squeeze the central portions inwards, thereby bending the plurality of petal-like portions outwards around the squeezed central portions and turning the plurality of petal-like portions from a stacked configuration to a substantially spherical configuration.
[0006] In one embodiment, the connector may include an auto-locking cable tie having a tail portion adapted to pass through two through-holes formed on the central portions and through a locking head portion of the cable tie, thereby tying the stack of corolla-like units together. The connector may further include a plug-and-socket fastener having first and second members. The second member may have two apertures and the first member may have two stems inserted through another two through-holes formed on the central portions and into the two apertures of the second member respectively. One of the first and second members may have a compartment for accommodating therein the head portion of the cable tie.
[0007] In another embodiment, the connector may include a plug-and-socket fastener having first and second members. The second member may have at least one aperture and the first member may have at least one stem inserted through the at least one through-hole and into the at least one aperture of the second member. The central portions can be squeezed and held between the first and second members.
[0008] According to another aspect, there is provided a toy including a stack of elastic corolla-like units, each having a central portion and a plurality of petal-like portions extending radially outwards therefrom. The central portions may be formed with at least one through-hole extending therethrough. A connector may be configured to pass through the at least one through-hole and hold the stack of corolla-like units together. The connector can squeeze the central portions inwards, thereby bending the plurality of petal-like portions outwards around the squeezed central portions and turning the plurality of petal-like portions from a stacked configuration to a substantially spherical configuration.
[0009] In one embodiment, the connector may include an auto-locking cable tie having a tail portion adapted to pass through two through-holes formed on the central portions and through a locking head portion of the cable tie, thereby tying the stack of corolla-like units together. The connector may further include a plug-and-socket fastener having first and second members. The second member may have two apertures and the first member may have two stems inserted through another two through-holes formed on the central portions and into the two apertures of the second member respectively. One of the first and second members may have a compartment for accommodating therein the head portion of the cable tie. The first and second members may be semi-spherical in shape.
[0010] In another embodiment, the connector may include a plug-and-socket fastener having first and second members. The second member may have at least one aperture and the first member may have at least one stem inserted through the at least one through-hole and into the at least one aperture of the second member. The central portions can be squeezed and held between the first and second members.
[0011] In yet another embodiment, the connector may include a plug-and-socket fastener having first and second members. The second member may have four apertures and the first member may have four stems inserted through four through-holes formed on the central portions and into the four apertures of the second member respectively. The central portions can be squeezed and held between the first and second members.
[0012] In one embodiment, each petal-like portion may be in the form of a plate having its width increasing outwards from the central portion. Each petal-like portion may also be in the form of an elongated strip, a filament, or a curled filament. Each petal-like portion may have a cross-shaped cross section. An outer end of each petal-like portion may be formed with a piece of ornament in the shape of a star or a heart.
[0013] Although the toy ball disclosed in the present application is shown and described with respect to certain embodiments, it is obvious that equivalents and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of the specification. The present application includes all such equivalents and modifications, and is not limited only by the scope of the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] Specific embodiments of the toy ball disclosed in the present application will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a first embodiment of the present application;
Figure 2 is a top view of a corolla-like unit of the toy ball of the first embodiment of the present application;
Figure 3 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a second embodiment of the present application;
Figure 4 is a cross sectional view of a second member of a fastener of the toy ball of the second embodiment of the present application;
Figure 5 is a top view of a corolla-like unit of the toy ball of the second embodiment of the present application;
Figure 6 is a perspective view the corolla-like unit of the toy ball of the second embodiment of the present application;
Figure 7 is a bottom view of a toy ball according to a third embodiment of the present application;
Figure 8 is an exploded view of the toy ball according to the third embodiment of the present application;
Figure 9 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a fourth embodiment of the present application;
Figure 10 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a fifth embodiment of the present application;
Figure 11 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to another embodiment of the present application;
Figure 12 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to yet another embodiment of the present application; and
Figure 13 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to a further embodiment of the present application.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] Reference will now be made in detail to a preferred embodiment of the toy ball disclosed in the present application, examples of which are also provided in the following description. Exemplary embodiments of the toy ball disclosed in the present application are described in detail, although it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that some features that are not particularly important to an understanding of the toy ball may not be shown for the sake of clarity.
[0016] Furthermore, it should be understood that the toy ball disclosed in the present application is not limited to the precise embodiments described below and that various changes and modifications thereof may be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims. For example, elements and/or features of different illustrative embodiments may be combined with each other and/or substituted for each other within the scope of this disclosure and appended claims.
[0017] In addition, improvements and modifications which may become apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art after reading this disclosure, the drawings, and the appended claims are deemed within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
[0018] Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like parts throughout the drawings, Figure 1 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a first embodiment of the present application. The toy ball may include a stack of corolla-like units 1 and a connector 2 for holding the stack of corolla-like units 1 together. The corolla-like units 1 may be made of an elastic material or any other soft and flexible material. For example, the corolla-like units 1 may be made of thermoplastic rubber, thermoplastic elastomer, thermoplastic polyurethane resin, poly-carbamate or silicone. The corolla-like units 1 may be manufactured by injection molding, die-cast molding or any other suitable kind of molding.
[0019] Figure 2 is a top view of the corolla-like unit 1 of the toy ball of the first embodiment. Each corolla-like unit 1 may include a central portion 10 and a plurality of fins or petal-like portions 11 extending radially outwards from the central portion 10. The central portions 10 may be formed with two through-holes 101 allowing the connector 2 to pass therethrough. The two through-holes 101 can be formed by aligning holes 101 formed on the central portions 10 of the corolla-like units 1 when they are in the initial stacked configuration.
[0020] In the present embodiment, each stack may have eight corolla-like units 1 although it is understood that the number may vary according to the size of the toy ball to be made. Also, it can be seen that each corolla-like unit 1 has twelve petal-like portions 11 though the number may vary depending on the shape of the petal-like units 11 and the size of the toy ball to be manufactured.
[0021] According to the illustrated embodiment, the connector 2 can be in the form of a self-locking cable tie. The self-locking cable tie may be made of plastic or other suitable material. A tail portion 21 of the self-locking cable tie 2 can be adapted to pass through the two through-holes 101 formed on the central portions 10 and through a locking head portion 22 of the auto-locking cable tie 2, as illustrated in Figure 1, thereby tying the stack of corolla-like units 1 together.
[0022] When the auto-locking cable tie is tightened, the central portions 10 can be squeezed together inwards. The squeezing force can bend the plurality of petal-like portions 11 outwards around the squeezed central portions 10 due to elasticity and turn the plurality of petal-like portions 11 from the stacked configuration to a substantially spherical configuration. In this spherical configuration, the plurality of petal-like portions 11 radiates outwards from a core defined by the squeezed central portions 10. The substantially petal-like portions 11 in the substantially spherical configuration form a toy ball that can be played in children's games such as a catch-and-throw ball game.
[0023] In the illustrated embodiment, each of the petal-like portions 11 may be in the form of a flat plate having its width increasing outwards from the central portion 10. Although it has been shown and described that each petal-like portion 11 is in the form of a plate, it is understood that each petal-like portion 11 may be in any other possible form such as an elongated strip, a filament or a curled filament, etc.
[0024] Figure 3 is an exploded view of the toy ball according to a second embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, the toy ball may further include a plug-and-socket fastener having a plug or first member 30 and a socket or second member 31. The second member 31 may be formed with two apertures 311; and the first member 30 may be formed with two stems 301. The two stems 301 of the first member 30 can be inserted through another two through-holes 101 formed on the central portions 10 and into the two apertures 311 of the second member 31.
[0025] One of the first and second members 30, 31 may be formed with a compartment 302 for accommodating therein the head portion 22 of the auto-locking cable tie 2. The first and second members 30, 31 of the plug-and-socket fastener may be made of rubber or plastic or any other suitable material. The two apertures 31 of the second member 31 and the two stems 301 of the first member 30 may be fastened together by press-fitting, glue bonding, heat melting or other possible method.
Figure 4 is a cross sectional view of the second member 31 of the plug-and-socket fastener of the second embodiment of the toy ball. The first and second members 30, 31 may be semi-spherical in shape as shown in the illustrated embodiments or in any other appropriate shape.
Figures 5 and 6 are top and perspective views of the corolla-like unit 11 of the second embodiment of the toy ball respectively. The corolla-like unit 11 of the second embodiment of the toy ball is similar to the corolla-like unit 11 of the first embodiment. The difference is that the central portion 10 of the corolla-like unit 11 of the second embodiment has four through-holes 101, whereas the central portion 10 of the corolla-like unit 11 of the first embodiment has two through-holes 101 only for the auto-locking cable tie 2 to pass therethrough.
[0026] Figures 7 and 8 are bottom and exploded views of a toy ball respectively according to a third embodiment of the present application. The toy ball in this third embodiment is similar to the toy ball in the second embodiment except that it does not have the auto-locking cable tie 2. In the third embodiment, the toy ball may include only the plug-and-socket fastener having the first member 30 and the second member 31. The second member 31 may be formed with four apertures 311 and the first member 30 may be formed with four stems 301. The four stems 301 of the first member 30 can be inserted through four through-holes 101 formed on the central portions 10 and into the four apertures 311 of the second member 31 respectively. The central portions 10 of the stack of corolla-like units 1 can be squeezed and held together by the first and second members 30, 31. Since the toy ball does not have an auto-locking cable tie, the first and second members 30, 31 are not formed with any compartment 302. Again, the four apertures 311 of the second member 31 and the four stems 301 of the first member 30 may be coupled together by press-fitting, glue bonding, heat melting or any other possible method.
[0027] Although it has been shown and described that the plug-and-socket fastener has two or four stems and apertures, it is appreciated that the plug-and-socket fastener may have one, three or more than four stems and apertures depending on the size of the toy ball to be manufactured.
Figure 9 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a fourth embodiment of the present application. The toy ball in this fourth embodiment is similar to the toy ball in the third embodiment depicted in Figure 8. The difference is that in the fourth embodiment the first member 30 is provided with a cartoon figure 32. The cartoon figure 32 may be in the form of any cartoon characters or animals that are familiar to children. The cartoon figure 32 can make the toy ball more attractive to children and fun to play with.
Figure 10 is an exploded view of a toy ball according to a fifth embodiment of the present application. The toy ball in this fifth embodiment is similar to the toy ball in the third embodiment depicted in Figure 8. The difference is that in the fifth embodiment the first member 30 is provided with a key ring 33. The toy ball can also be used as a key ring. With the key ring, the toy ball can be attached to school bags and hand bags. The toy ball can also be hanged on a wall when not in use.
[0028] Although it has been shown that the plurality of petal-like portions 11 is in the shape of a plate, it is understood that the petal-like portions 11 can in many other possible shapes.
Figure 11 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to another embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, each petal-like portion 11 of the corolla-like unit 1 may have a cross-shaped cross section with its size increasing outwards from the central portion 10. The cross-shaped construction can strengthen the petal-like portions 11 of the corolla-like unit 1 so that they cannot be easily ripped apart by children during a ball game.
Figure 12 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to yet another embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, an outer end of each petal-like portion 11 of the corolla-like unit 1 may be formed with a piece of ornament in the shape of a heart. These ornaments can make the toy ball more attractive and fun to play with.
Figure 13 is a perspective view of a corolla-like unit according to a further embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, an outer end of each petal-like portion 11 of the corolla-like unit 1 may be formed with a piece of ornament in the shape of a star.
(a) a stack of elastic corolla-like units, each corolla-like unit comprising a central portion and a plurality of petal-like portions extending radially outwards therefrom, the central portions being formed with at least one through-hole extending therethrough; and
(b) a connector configured to pass through the at least one through-hole and hold the stack of corolla-like units together.
REFERENCES CITED IN THE DESCRIPTION
This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only. It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.
Patent documents cited in the description