Self-powered toy animal with openable and closable eyes

A self-powered toy animal comprises a relatively small toy animal and a relatively large toy animal having an openable mouth. Drive means is provided inside one of the animals connected to a line having its other end connected to the other animal and passing through the mouth of the large animal. In addition, the large animal has a pair of eyes provided with lids which automatically close when the mouth opens. This large animal, which may be constituted as a fish or the like, will therefore appear to pursue and then eat the small animal as it pulls the small animal into its openable mouth, simultaneously closing its eyes as the small animal passes through the mouth into the interior of the large animal.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a self-powered toy animal. More 
particularly this invention concerns a toy animal of the wind-up type. 
Toys are known which resemble animals and are capable of displacing 
themselves along the land or in water. Such a toy frequently is very 
limited in its function, so that its appeal for a child is similarly 
limited. Thus after a very short time a child is bored with his or her toy 
and abandons it. 
In my above-cited copending patent application I describe a toy comprising 
a relatively small toy animal and a relatively large toy animal connected 
via a line to the small animal and provided in its interior with a reel 
drivable for reeling in the small animal. The large animal has an openable 
mouth through which the line extends so that as it reels in the smaller 
animal it appears to eat this animal. 
As further described in my earlier application both of the toy animals are 
made to float and the smaller animal is formed as a fish. The larger 
animal may be another fish, a hippopotamus, a duck or a similar 
fish-eating animal. This larger animal has a body part and a face part 
hinged on the body part and defining therewith the openable mouth. 
In the toy according to my earlier application the drive means is a spring 
windup mechanism carrying the reel to which the one end of the line is 
attached. This line may be a flexible string, chain, or other flexible 
relatively inextensible element. In order to simplify functioning of the 
device the spring windup mechanism is wound up simply by opening the mouth 
of the large animal and pulling the small animal out of the interior of 
the large animal. This causes the line to unwind from the reel and thereby 
winds up the larger animal so that when the smaller animal is released the 
windup mechanism will automatically reel it in. Means is provided as 
described in my earlier application for displacing the larger animal 
through the water or on the land. This means is connected to the drive 
means so that as the smaller animal is being pulled in the larger animal 
follows along behind it, appearing to pursue, catch, and eat the smaller 
animal. Such displacement means may be a paddle formed as a tailfin of a 
fish constituting the larger animal, paddles carried on feet of a 
hippopotamus constituting the large animal, or paddles constituting the 
feet of a duck that is the larger animal. 
As further described in my earlier application the paddles of the 
displacement means are displacable through substantially 90 degrees 
between a position extending parallel to the normal direction of travel of 
the animal and backwardly therein in a position extending transverse to 
this direction. Thus as the element carrying the paddle moves forward the 
paddle swings into a position parallel to the direction of travel so that 
it does not tend to pull the large animal backwardly, but when moved in 
the opposite direction the paddle straightens out and gives the large 
animal a forward impetus. 
The toy according to my earlier invention has a long-lasting appeal for a 
youngster, as it does more than simply paddle along the water. 
Furthermore, such a toy can be produced at relatively low cost and will 
have a long service life. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is an object of the present invention to improve on the above-described 
toy. 
Another object is the provision of an improved toy. 
These objects are attained according to the present invention in an 
arrangement essentially as described above, but wherein the large animal 
is provided with a plurality of ground-engaging idler wheels permitting it 
to roll along the ground. The small animal is provided with 
ground-engaging drive wheels which are in turn connected to the drive 
means which is mounted inside the small animal. Thus, this drive means 
inside the smaller leading animal serves to displace the animals along the 
ground as the small animal is pulled into the large animal. Thus an 
extremely lifelike effect is achieved with the small animal appearing to 
try to get away from the large animal which slowly catches up to it and 
eats it, stopping moving as soon as it has consumed the small animal. 
According to a further feature of this invention the large animal is 
provided with at least one eye having a lid displaceable between an open 
and a closed position. Means in the large animal is connected between the 
face part for the eyelid for displacing this lid into the closed position 
during passage of the small animal through the mouth into the interior of 
the large animal. Thus as the large animal opens its mouth and apparently 
consumes the small animal it closes its eye or eyes in a lifelike and 
amusing manner. 
According to further features of this invention the large animal has a pair 
of such eyes carried on the face part and each having a respective pivotal 
lid. An actuating member is connected to these lids engageable with the 
body part only when the mouth is closed to hold the lids in the open 
position. Thus when the mouth is closed the eyes are open and when the 
mouth opens the eyes are closed. This actuating member is a pin connected 
to the lids and extending through a hole in the face part toward the body 
part. 
In accordance with this invention both of these animals may be constituted 
as fish. The large animal may be a fish of the goby type having protruding 
eyes, and the small animal may be a relatively small fish of the type 
typically eaten by the goby. It is also possible to form the large animal 
as any other animal which might eat a small animal as a fish or insect. 
Thus the large animal could be a duck or hippopotamus, and the small 
animal could be a fish or insect. It is also within the scope of this 
invention to make both of the animals floatable and provide one or the 
other of them with drive means for displacing them through the water as 
described in my above-cited copending patent application. 
In accordance with yet another feature of this invention the drive means 
includes a spring windup mechanism having a windup spring with one end 
fixed in the respective animal and another end secured to the reel. A 
governor is provided for preventing the reel from rotating too fast so 
that the smaller animal will be pulled into the larger animal with a 
uniform speed. Such an arrangement is extremely simple and allows the 
spring mechanism to be wound up simply by pulling the small animal out of 
the large animal. 
The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention 
are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, 
however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together 
with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood 
from the following description of specific embodiments when read in 
connection with the accompanying drawings.

SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toy according to this invention comprises a 
relatively large fish 1 of the goby type and a relatively small fish 2 
resembling a minnow. A line 3 interconnects these fish 1 and 2. 
The large fish 1 has a body 4 comprising a wheel base 5 and lower jaw 6. A 
face part 7 forms an upper jaw 8 that is pivoted at pins 11 on the body 4 
and forms a mouth 9 with the lower jaw 6. In addition wheels 10 adapted to 
engage the ground are provided on the body part 4. Similar wheels 20 are 
provided on the prey fish 2. 
In addition there is provided on the face part 7 a pair of forward-looking 
eyes 12 fixed in lower lids 13 and each having an upper lid 14 pivoted on 
the respective lower lid 14 at 15 and connected to the other upper lid 14 
by means of a linking bar 16. An abutment pin 17 extends down from the 
linking bar 16 to a hole 18 in the face part 7 and engages a forwardly 
directed tongue portion 19 formed on the body part 4. When the face part 7 
is in the closed position as indicated in FIG. 2, the pin 17 rests on the 
tongue 19 and holds the lids 14 in the illustrated open position. 
In addition, the large animal 1 is provided internally with a windup 
mechanism 21 of the spring-type described in my above-cited copending 
patent application and having a reel 22 to which is connected one end of 
the line whose other end passes through the mouth 9 and is connected to 
the tail of the fish 2. This mechanism 21 is also connected to the rear 
drive wheels 10 in order that the mechanism 21 can displace the fish 1 
along the ground. 
FIGS. 3 - 5 show an arrangement wherein identical reference numerals are 
used for the same structure, but wherein the windup mechanism 21 is 
provided in the smaller fish 2 at the opposite end of the line 3 and is 
connected to the wheels 20 thereof. In this case the wheels 10 of the fish 
1 are the idler type and the hollow interior is somewhat larger so as to 
accommodate the somewhat larger prey fish 2. 
With both such arrangements the small animal 2 can fit inside the large 
animal 1. When the two are pulled apart so as to stretch the line 3 
straightly between them the spring mechanism 21 is wound up. Thereafter, 
if the two are released the larger fish 1 will move toward the smaller 
fish 2 and pull it via the line 3 into its mouth 9. As this happens the 
face part 9 will pivot up on the pins 11, causing as shown in FIG. 4 the 
pin 17 to move out of contact with the pin 19. This action allows the 
upper lids 14 to close down onto the lower lids 13 and, therefore close 
the eyes. Thus the large fish 1 appears to close its eyes as it opens its 
mouth to swallow the small fish 2. 
In the arrangement of FIGS. 1 and 2 the large fish will move forwardly 
toward the small fish 2 and may even pull this small fish 2 backwardly 
toward itself as it moves forward to eat it. 
In the arrangement of FIGS. 3 - 5, however, the small fish 2 will appear to 
try to run away from the large fish 1, as it has the drive mechanism 2. 
Thus the small fish 2 will pull along the large fish 1, but as it winds up 
the line 3 the large fish 1 will come closer and closer to it, eventually 
opening its mouth and closing its eyes to pull the small fish 2 into its 
hollow interior. With this arrangement as soon as the small fish 2 is 
inside the large fish 1, this large fish 1 will come to rest, again with 
its eyes open. 
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or 
more together, may also find a useful application in other types of 
structure differing from the types described above. 
While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in toy, 
it is not intended to be limited to the details shown since various 
modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any 
way from the spirit of the present invention. 
Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of 
the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, 
readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, 
from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential 
characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention.