Abstract:
A pet toy includes a handle, a cord, a retractable cord apparatus coupled with a first end of the cord and being structured to retract the cord into itself after the cord has been pulled out, an attachment mechanism coupled to the second end of the cord and structured to releasably couple to an object, and a telescopic pole having a first end coupled to the handle and a second end coupled to the retractable cord apparatus.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This patent application claims the priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/951,214 filed on Mar. 11, 2014, and entitled, “TELESCOPING WAND WITH RETRACTABLE CORD AND FIXING TOY,” the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The disclosed concept relates generally o pet toys and, more particularly, to a pet toy including a wand with an attached object. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    It is generally well known in the relevant art to attach an object to the end of a wand using a string or chain to create a pet toy. These types of pet toys are particularly suitable as cat toys. Swinging the wand causes the object to move about as if it were flying or running which entice a cat to chase and catch the object. One example of such a cat toy is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,300. 
         [0006]    Although the types of pet toys using a wand with an object attached to it are suitable for entertaining pets, they are not without their drawbacks. For instance, the wand is generally an elongated piece that can be several feet long making it difficult or impractical to ship the pet toy. Also, the string or chain tends to become tangled when using the pet toy. Furthermore, the object attached to the string tends to wear out before the wand, and it can be difficult or impossible to attach a. new object to the string. 
         [0007]    It would thus be desirable to provide an improved pet toy that overcomes these and other shortcomings in the relevant art. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    These needs and others are met by embodiments of the disclosed concept in which a pet toy includes a telescoping wand and a retractable cord apparatus. 
         [0009]    In accordance with aspects of the disclosed concept, a pet toy comprises a handle; a cord; a retractable cord apparatus coupled with a first end of the cord and being structured to retract the cord into itself after the cord has been pulled out; an attachment mechanism coupled to the second end of the cord and structured to releasably couple to an object; and a telescopic pole having a first end coupled to the handle and a second end coupled to the retractable cord apparatus. 
         [0010]    In accordance with other aspects of the disclosed concept, a pet toy, comprises: an object; a handle; a cord; a retractable cord apparatus coupled with a first end of the cord and being structured to retract the cord into itself after the cord has been pulled out; an attachment mechanism coupled to the second end of the cord and structured to releasably couple to the object; and a telescopic pole having a first end coupled to the handle and a second end coupled to the retractable cord apparatus. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    A further understanding of the disclosed and claimed concept can be gained from the following Description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which: 
           [0012]      FIGS. 1A and 1B  are isometric views of a telescoping wand with a retractable cord apparatus in accordance with an example embodiment of the disclosed concept; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a view of a handle in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosed concept; 
           [0014]      FIGS. 3A-3D  are views of a retractable cord apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosed concept; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a view of an attachment mechanism in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosed concept; 
           [0016]      FIGS. 5A and 5B  are isometric view of an assembled pet toy in accordance with an example embodiment of the disclosed concept; and 
           [0017]      FIGS. 6-9  are views of flying toys in accordance with embodiments of the disclosed concept. 
       
    
    
       [0018]    Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the specification. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
       [0019]    Directional phrases used herein, such as, for example, left, right, front, back, top, bottom and derivatives thereof, relate to the orientation of the elements shown in the drawings and are not limiting upon the claims unless expressly recited therein. 
         [0020]      FIGS. 1A and 1B  include isometric views of a portion of a pet toy  1  in an extended ( FIG. 1A ) and a retracted ( FIG. 1B ) position. The pet toy  1  includes a telescoping wand  2 . A handle  4  is attached to one end of the telescoping wand  2  and a retractable cord apparatus  6  is attached to the other end of the telescoping wand  2 . A cord  7  extends from the retractable cord apparatus  6  and its distal end is attached to an object via an attachment mechanism, as will be described in more detail in the description related to  FIGS. 5A and 5B . The telescoping wand  2  includes several segments that are able to retract into each other when the pet toy  1  is in the retracted position. 
         [0021]    The telescoping wand  2  can be made from any suitable material. For example and without limitation, in some embodiments of the disclosed concept the telescoping wand  2  is made from a metallic material such as stainless steel, in other embodiments of the disclosed concept, the telescoping wand  2  is made from a plastic material. 
         [0022]    As shown in  FIG. 1B , when the telescoping wand  2  is retracted, the size of the pet toy  1  is considerably reduced. When the telescoping wand  2  is retracted, the majority of it fits within the handle  4 . This reduction in size makes it much easier to ship or travel with the pet toy  1 . 
         [0023]      FIG. 2  is a view of the handle  4  that is used in conjunction with the pet toy  1 . The handle  4  is generally hollow so that the telescoping wand  2  can fit inside of it. The handle  4  can be made of any material, but it is preferable that the handle  4  is made of a material that is comfortable and easy to grip. 
         [0024]      FIGS. 3A-3D  are views of the retractable cord apparatus  6 .  FIG. 3A  is an isometric view of the retractable cord apparatus  6 ,  FIG. 3B  is a front view of the retractable cord apparatus  6 ,  FIG. 3C  is a side view of the retractable cord apparatus  6 , and  FIG. 3D  is a rear view of the retractable cord apparatus  6 . As shown in  FIGS. 3A-3D , the retractable cord apparatus  6  is attached to the end of the telescoping wand  2 . One end of the cord  7  is attached to the retractable cord apparatus  6  inside the retractable cord apparatus  6 . The cord  7  extends from the retractable cord apparatus  6 . The retractable cord apparatus  6  is functional to retract the cord  7  into it after the cord  7  has been pulled out. 
         [0025]    The retraction can be initiated by pressing a button  8  (shown in  FIG. 3D ) included on the retractable cord apparatus  6 . Although the button  8  is shown on the rear of the retractable cord apparatus  8 , it will be appreciated that the button  8  may be located at any suitable position on the retractable cord apparatus  6  without departing from the scope of the disclosed concept. Retracting the cord  7  into the retractable cord apparatus  6  helps to prevent the cord  7  from becoming tangled. 
         [0026]    The cord  7  can take any suitable form, For example and without limitation, the cord may be a string, chain, or plastic cord without departing from the scope of the disclosed concept. 
         [0027]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , an attachment mechanism  10  is shown. The attachment mechanism  10  is structured to releasably attach the cord  7  to an object such as a flying ribbon toy  30  (See  FIGS. 5A and 5B ). The attachment mechanism  10  shown in  FIG. 4  has two primary parts, a swivel attachment  11  and a releasable hook  12 . The swivel attachment  11  is coupled with the cord  7  on one end and the releasable hook  12  on the other end, The swivel mechanism  11  is structured to be capable of swiveling. That is, when the object attached to the releasable hook  12  spins, the swivel mechanism  11  will swivel so that the cord  7  does not also spin. This swiveling capability further prevents the cord  7  from becoming twisted or tangled. 
         [0028]    Referring to  FIGS. 5A and 5B , the pet toy  1  including a flying ribbon toy  30  is shown. As shown in  FIGS. 5A and 5B , one end of the swivel mechanism  11  is coupled to the releasable hook  12 . The other end of the releaseable hook  12  is releasably attached to the flying ribbon toy  30  via an attachment point  15  included on the flying ribbon toy  30 . The attachment point  15  may be a loop, as shown in  FIGS. 5A and 5B , or any other structure suitable to attach to. In some embodiments of the disclosed concept, a cord extends a short distance from the object and the attachment point is disposed at the end of the cord. 
         [0029]    The releaseable hook  12  can be easily operated to detach the flying ribbon toy  30  from the releaseable hook  12 , The flying ribbon toy  30  can then be easily reattached or another object can be easily attached to the releaseable hook  12 . Thus, the attachment mechanism  10  makes it easy to detach an attached object when it becomes worn out and to attach a new object without discarding the other components of the pet toy  1  such as the telescoping wand  2  and retractable cord mechanism  6 . 
         [0030]      FIGS. 6-9  are examples of objects that can be attached to the distal end of the cord  7  and used in conjunction with the telescoping wand  2  and the retractable cord mechanism  6 , For example, referring to  FIG. 6 , a flying insect toy  20  is an example of an object that can be attached to the cord  7 . 
         [0031]    The flying insect toy  20  includes a body  22 . The body  22  is transparent and includes balls (not shown) inside of it. The flying insect toy  20  also includes wings  26  that are preferably made of a fabric material. Inside the wings  26 , a crinkle plastic material (not shown) may be used which will generate some noise when a pet interacts with it. The flying insect toy  20  also includes wing supports  28  which are structured to support the wings  26 . The wing supports  28  are preferably made of a rigid material such as a metallic material like stainless steel. 
         [0032]    Referring to  FIG. 7 , a flying ribbon toy  30  is another example of an object that can be attached to the cord  7 . The flying ribbon toy  30  includes a tip section  32  and a number of ribbons  34  that are attached to the tip section  32 . The tip section  32  is preferably made of a rigid material such as plastic. 
         [0033]    Referring to  FIG. 8 , a flying squirrel toy  40  is another example of an object that can be attached to the cord  7 . The flying squirrel toy  40  includes a head  42 . The head  42  is preferably made of a soft rubber material. The flying squirrel toy  40  also includes a body  44 . The body  44  includes legs, a torso, and a tail made of a soft material such as fabric. The body  44  also includes a rigid skeleton structure that structurally supports the shape of the body  44 . The flying squirrel toy  40  further includes wings  46  that extend between the front and rear legs. 
         [0034]    Referring to  FIG. 9 , a flying bird toy  50  is another example of an object that can be attached to the cord  7 . The flying bird toy  50  includes a body  52 . The body  52  is preferably made of a soft rubber material. The flying bird toy  50  also includes wings  54 . The wings  54  may be constructed of rigid supports with feathers extending therefrom. The flying bird toy  50  further includes a tail  56  that is made of feathers. A knotted cord  58  extends through the body  52  of the flying bird toy  50  and serves as legs for the flying bird toy  50 . 
         [0035]    While some example of objects that can be attached to the cord  7  have been described with respect to  FIGS. 6-9 , it will be appreciated that any suitable object may be attached to the cord  7  without departing from the scope of the disclosed concept. The flying insect toy  20 , the flying ribbon toy  30 , the flying squirrel toy  40 , and the flying bird toy  50  are all flying toys which are particularly suitable for use with the telescoping wand  2  and the retractable cord apparatus  6 . Swinging the telescoping wand  2 . from side to side causes the attached object to swing around as though it were flying. 
         [0036]    Although the foregoing discussion has presented specific embodiments, persons skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments to achieve similar functionality and utility to the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein. Moreover, it should be appreciated that features from a particular embodiment may be implemented in another embodiment disclosed herein to achieve a desired functionality. Accordingly, the specific embodiments described herein should be understood as examples and not limiting the scope of the disclosure.