Amusement device

An amusement device useful in spelling education includes a base structure having an upper playing board with a plurality of openings arranged in a matrix of rows and columns. A removable plug is provided for each of the openings and each plug is shaped to seat within an opening and includes a handle to facilitate manual withdrawal and replacement of the plug. A disk is mounted for rotation under the playing board with an upper surface viewable through the matrix of openings when the plugs are withdrawn. The upper surface of the disk is provided with a plurality of matrices rows and columns of alphabetic characters, and each matrix is positioned to align the characters below the openings in the playing board for viewing when the disk is indexed into any of several rotative indexing positions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a new and improved amusement device which 
is especially adapted for use in spelling education. The device offers 
amusement and in addition, provides spelling education as well as memory 
training for adults and children alike. Games played with the device 
provide an interesting pastime which requires mental activity and which 
activity is stimulated by competition between the players. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
In the past, many different types of amusement and game devices have been 
used to aid in spelling education. In addition, a variety of play objects 
such as blocks, game boards, etc. have been provided with letters and 
numbers thereon so that, for example, blocks may be aligned in a row to 
spell a word. Other "Dominoe" type spelling games have been developed for 
amusement and spelling education, and these games often provide spelling 
competition between players. 
The present invention relates to a new and improved amusement device for 
use in spelling education and memory development. More particularly, it is 
an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved amusement 
device of the character described for the above purposes. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved 
amusement device for use in spelling education which provides an 
interesting and competitive game for use by two or more players. 
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and 
improved amusement device of the character described which is compact in 
size, neat in appearance, light in weight, economical to make, easy to use 
and relatively low in cost. 
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and 
improved amusement device of the character described which is usable by 
adults and children for playing a competitive game which stimulates 
spelling education and provides memory training. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved 
amusement device of the character described which includes a single 
element providing a plurality of different spelling education programs. 
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a new and 
improved amusement device of the character described having an indexable 
disk with a plurality of alphabetic characters formed in a plurality of 
matrices of rows and columns which are visible through a matrix of window 
openings in a board. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved 
amusement device of the character described wherein the indexable, rotary 
disks are provided with sets of alphabetic characters in matrices on 
opposite sides and are reversible so that an even greater number of 
spelling programs are available with a single disk. 
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and 
improved amusement device adapted for use in a competitive game wherein 
spelling education and memory training are involved. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide an amusement device 
of the character described wherein a plurality of disks, each having a 
plurality of matrices of alphabetic characters on opposite sides thereof 
are supported in a base member for selective application and use in 
playing the game. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present invention are 
accomplished in an illustrated embodiment of an amusement device which 
includes a base structure having an upper playing board formed with a 
plurality of windows or openings therein arranged in a matrix pattern in 
rows and colums. A removable plug is provided for selectively covering 
each of said openings and each plug is shaped to seat within an opening 
and includes a handle means for facilitating the manual withdrawal and 
replacement of the plug. One or more rotary disks is mounted for rotation 
under the playing board surface of the base and the upper surface of the 
disk is viewable through the openings in the board when the plugs are 
removed. Each disk has opposite sides provided with a plurality of 
alphabetic characters arranged in a plurality of separate matrices. Each 
of the alphabetic character matrices is dimensioned so that the characters 
will properly align for viewing through the openings when the disk is 
indexed in one of several relative rotative positions on the base. The 
base is formed with a pocket adapted to hold a plurality of such disks so 
that a wide variety of spelling programs are available. 
During play, a first player lifts any two plugs and exposes two letters 
viewable through the openings in the board. The plugs are then replaced in 
the original position and a second player lifts any two plugs, also 
exposing two letters before replacing them in their original position. The 
second player may then try to spell a word using at least three of the 
exposed and recovered letters by lifting the plugs from their openings in 
a correct spelling order or sequence. If a word is correctly spelled, the 
plugs are permanently removed from the game and are retained by the 
players as tokens of score. Once the plugs are removed from the board, the 
letters exposed are dead for the remainder of the game and the play 
continues in this manner until all of the plugs are removed or until both 
players agree that there is no word which can be spelled out of the 
remaining covered letters on the matrix of the disk that is in play. At 
the end of the game, the player having the highest number of plugs wins 
and a new game may then be initiated by first replacing the plugs to cover 
all of the openings in the board and then indexing the disk to expose a 
different matrix of alphabetic characters through the openings in the 
board when the plugs are removed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring now more particularly to the drawings, therein is illustrated a 
new and improved amusement device referred to generally by the reference 
numeral 10 and constructed in accordance with the features of the present 
invention. 
The amusement device includes a relatively thin flat base structure 12 
rounded at the corners and of square or generally rectangular shape. The 
base is preferably formed of molded plastic material and includes a flat 
upper playing surface 14 having a plurality of frustroconical openings or 
windows 16 defined therein. The windows are arranged in a matrix pattern 
in spaced apart rows and columns as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The spacing 
distance between the rows and columns is equal and the matrix as a whole, 
occupies a substantial portion of the upper playing surface 14. 
In accordance with the invention, for each of the windows 16 there is 
provided a removable plug 18 having a circular, frustroconically shaped 
lower end or base adapted to fit and seat within a window and each plug 
includes an upwardly extending handle 18a suitable for grasping between 
the fingers when the plugs are removed or replaced in the windows. Along 
one edge, the base structure 12 is formed with a semicircular shaped cut 
out or recess 20 for exposing a peripheral edge portion of the upper one 
of a plurality of thin flat circular disks 22 which are mounted in a 
cylindrical recess 24 formed on the under section of the base as shown in 
FIG. 3. The disks are centered for rotation on a downwardly depending 
mounting pin or axle 26 as shown in the drawings. The upper surface of the 
uppermost disk 22 is visible through any of the windows 16 from which the 
plugs 18 have been removed. At equilaterally spaced intervals around the 
circumference of each disk, there is provided a color coding or other 
suitable indexing indicia 28 which is used for aligning and indexing the 
disks in any one of several relatively rotative positions within the 
pocket 24. When any one of the indicia 28 on a disk is visible in the cut 
out or edge slot 20 of the base structure the disk is properly indexed for 
play. 
On the upper and lower opposite faces of each of the disks 22 there are 
provided a plurality of matrices of alphabetic characters or letters. The 
letters in each matrix are patterned with appropriate spacing so that they 
appear directly centered beneath the windows 16 in the base whenever a 
corresponding index mark 28 is aligned in the recess 24 of the base 
structure. The angular or rotative spacing between the respective matrices 
on each disk face is selected in accordance with the total number of 
matrices on each face and the number of index marks 28 corresponding 
thereto. The inside diameter of the windows or openings 16 is selected so 
that only the letters of one matrix at a time are viewable through the 
openings and the letters of all of the other matrices on the disk are 
hidden from view. In the illustrated embodiment, each disk is provided 
with four different matrices and the letters in each matrices are 
differently positioned so that a variety of spelling programs are 
available on each disk face. In addition, because a set of disks are 
provided, an even greater number of spelling programs are available for 
use when a spelling game is played with the device 10. As illustrated, a 
total of three different disks are provided and each disk has four 
different matrices of alphabetic characters on each face so that in all, a 
total of 24 different spelling programs are available. 
A cap 30 is adapted to seat on the lower end portion of the axle pin 26 to 
hold the disks in place and this cap may be removed to interchange the 
order of the disks and move a new disk's surface into place just beneath 
the underside of the upper surface of the board. In utilizing the 
amusement device 10 for a competitive spelling game, a randomly selected 
disk is positioned in the top position in the stack of disks mounted on 
the pin 26 in the recess 24. The top disk is rotated until one of the 
color coded indexing indicia 28 is visible in the recess 20 in the edge of 
the base structure 12. Previously, all of the plugs 18 have been placed in 
position to cover the windows or apertures 16 in the playing surface. A 
first player then withdraws any two of the plugs from their windows and 
thus exposes the letters to both players. After this exposure is made, the 
plugs are returned to their original position and a second player then 
withdraws any two plugs 18 from their windows 16, and after exposure, 
these plugs are replaced. The second player then may attempt to spell a 
word by remembering the positions of the exposed letters in the matrix and 
removing the plugs one at a time in proper spelling order. If a word is 
correctly spelled, the player keeps the plugs that have been removed and 
these are used for tokens for keeping his score. The letters on the disk 
that are thus exposed are then dead for the remaining portion of the game. 
The players take turns in sequence by removing any two plugs and replacing 
them in the windows after exposure. On all subsequent plays, after the 
player lifts two plugs from their windows and then returns them to close 
the windows, he has a choice to try to spell a word or he can pass without 
trying to spell a word. Play continues in this manner until all of the 
plugs 18 have been removed from the board or until both players agree that 
there is no word which can be spelled from the remaining "live" letters in 
the matrix. At this point, the player having the most plugs in his 
possession wins the game and a new game may then be started by again 
replacing all of the plugs in covering positions in the windows 16 and 
re-indexing the disk 22 to align a new matrix into playing position. 
From the foregoing it will be seen that the amusement device provides an 
exciting competitive game between players and increases spelling skills 
and is useful in developing memory on the part of the players during the 
game. 
Although the present invention has been described with reference to a 
single illustrated embodiment thereof, it should be understood that 
numerous other modifications and embodiments can be devised by those 
skilled in the art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the 
principles of this invention.