TOY TEA KETTLE

Abstract: A toy tea kettle (10) or the like has a spout (18) and whistling means to simulate the sound made by steam escaping from a boiling kettle. The spout has a lid (60), and the kettle has a toothed rack (94) coupled to the lid for oscillating the lid to simulate the action of an actual kettle lid in response to steam escaping from the spout. The kettle further has a reciprocally movable plunger (64) coupled to the toothed rack for moving the lid to a fully opened position upon depression of the plunger to prepare the kettle for pouring.

Description: This invention relates generally to toys, and more particularly to a toy tea kettle. Children love to imitate adults, and it is not uncommon to observe them in the act of "playing house". One aspect of "playing house" which they love involves entertaining guests by serving beverages to them, such as hot coffee or tea, in toy tea kettles or the like. These tea kettles simulate actual tea kettles except that they are smaller and the only moving parts are possibly a removable cover and a pivotally movable handle. Although the known toy tea kettle or the like serves a useful function, it fails realistically to simulate an actual tea kettle in which the liquid therein is boiling and the steam escaping from the kettle emits a whistling sound and causes the spout lid to oscillate. Also, no toy tea kettle is known wherein, by pressing a button or plunger, the spout lid can be held in a fully opened position to enable the child to pour make-believe tea or the like into miniature teacups. US-A-3205610 discloses a toy stove and tea kettle comprising a hollow body having a spout and a handle, the kettle being movable between a lowered and a raised position and a bellows on the stove movable between a normal deflated condition and coupled to the movable kettle, there being whistling means coupled to the bellows such that movement of the kettle to its raised position inflates the bellows by drawing air therein and movement of the kettle to its lowered position deflates the bellows expelling air through the whistling means to produce a whistling sound simulating steam escaping through the spout of the kettle. This toy comprises two relatively movable parts, namely the kettle and the stove, and only by moving the kettle relative to the stove is the whistling means operated. It suffers from the disadvantage that it is easily broken since children will constantly try to remove the kettle completely from the stove. The present invention seeks to provide a more simple robust and effective toy. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, we provide a toy tea kettle comprising a hollow body having a spout, a cover having a pair of spaced apart openings, a U-shaped handle having a centre handle portion and parallel legs slidably movable in the openings for movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, a bellows movable between a normal deflated condition and an inflated condition, and having a flat rigid top member having a pair of spaced apart spindles coupled to the ends of the legs, and a pleated expandable cylindrical member having one end secured to the top member and the opposite end secured to the body, and a whistling means coupled to the bellows such that movement of the handle to its raised position inflates the bellows by drawing air therein, and movement of the handle to its lowered position deflates the bellows expelling air through the whistling means to produce a whistling sound simulating steam escaping through the spout. According to another aspect of the present invention, we provide a toy tea kettle comprising a hollow body having a spout, a cover having a pair of spaced apart openings, a lid on the spout movable between a normal closed position and a partially opened position, a U-shaped handle having a centre handle portion and parallel legs slidably movable in the openings for movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, linear drive means coupled to the handle for generating a driving force as the handle is moved from its raised to its lowered position; and driven means on the lid coupled to and actuated by the linear drive means for oscillating the lid between its closed and partially opened positions, upon movement of the handle from its raised position to its lowered position, thereby simulating an actual oscillating lid caused by steam escaping through the spout. Preferably, the linear drive means for oscillating the lid comprises a toothed rack and the lid is pivotally mounted on the spout and the driven means on the lid comprises an extending finger ridable on the toothed rack. Preferably also, the toothed rack is slidably mounted on the handle, cam follower means are mounted on the rack, a reciprocally movable plunger is mounted on the handle for movement between a normal up position and a down position, cam means are mounted on the plunger for actuating the cam follower means upon movement of the plunger to its downward position, and guide means are provided between the rack and the handle for guiding the rack in a laterally downward direction for moving and holding the lid in a fully opened position upon movement of the plunger to its down position. Preferably, the handle has a hollow depending leg having a slot within which the rack is slidably mounted, the plunger is reciprocally movable within the hollow leg, the cam follower means comprises a laterally extending pin on the rack, the cam means comprises an inclined surface on the plunger in engagement within the pin, and the guide means comprises a lug on the rack sliding in a groove in the leg. A spring is preferably interposed between the handle and plunger for biasing the plunger to its normal up position. A primary advantage of the present invention is to provide a toy tea kettle or the like that more realistically simulates an actual tea kettle used by adults. For example, the toy tea kettle makes a whistling noise simulating the sound made by steam escaping from the tea kettle, has an oscillating lid to simulate the action of a lid under the influence of steam escaping from the spout, and a depressible plunger for moving the spout lid to a fully open position to enable the child to pour make-believe tea or the like into miniature cups. A preferred embodiment of toy tea kettle according to the present invention is now described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- FIG.1 is a side elevation view, partially in section, of the toy tea kettle with the handle thereof in its normal lowered position and the plunger thereof in its normal up position; FIG.2 is a side elevation view similar to Fig.1 showing the handle in its raised position; FIG.3 is a segmental section view taken substantially along line 2-2 of Fig 1; and FIG.4 is a segmental section view showing the plunger in its down position for holding the lid in its fully opened position in preparation for pouring. Detailed Description of the Invention Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings, a preferred embodiment of the toy tea kettle 10 of this invention is shown in its normal position, in which all of the parts thereof are at rest. The kettle 10 generally comprises a hollow body 12 having a circular bottom 14, a cover 16 and a simulated spout 18. The cover 16 has a pair of spaced apart sleeved openings 20 for slidably supporting legs 22 of a U shaped, preferably tubular handle 24. The handle 24 is manually slidably movable from its lowermost position shown in Fig. 1 to its uppermost position shown in Fig. 2. The mechanism for simulating a whistling sound comprises a bellows 26 having a circular plate-like base member 28, a circular plate-like top member 30, and a pleated expansible cylindrical member 32 joining the base and the top members together. The bellows base member 28 is secured by any suitable means to kettle bottom 12, and a circular raised wall 34 in base member 28 defines a chamber 36 having an opening 38 communicating with the interior cavity 40 of bellows 26. A whistle reed 42 is interposed between the raised wall 34 and kettle bottom 14 with the reed overlying an opening 44 in kettle bottom 14. The top member 30 of bellows 26 has upstanding rings 46, 48 defining an annular cavity for receiving a doughnut-shaped weight 50. The weight forces top member 30 of bellows 26 downwardly compressing or deflating the bellows until a pair of rings 52 depending from the top member engage the base of member 28. The top member 30 of bellows 26 is connected to handle 24 by a pair of upstanding spindles 54 secured to top member 30 and having upper rims 56 that are forced through openings in flexible diaphragms 58 at the lower end of the handle legs 22. Accordingly, when handle 24 is raised from its lowermost position shown in Fig. 1 to its raised position shown in Fig. 2, bellows 26 is inflated with air drawn through openings 38, 44. When handle 24 is released, weight 50 moves bellows 26, top member 30 and handle 24 downwardly, deflating the bellows and forcing air through openings 38, 44 causing whistle reed 42 to vibrate and emit a sound simulating the whistle sound made by a tea kettle in which the liquid therein is boiling. The mechanism for oscillating a lid 60, which is pivotally mounted on spout 18 about a pivot 62, to simulate the action of the spout lid when steam is escaping therethrough will now be described. A plunger 64 is slidably mounted within hollow leg 22 adjacent spout 18. The plunger is normally maintained in its up position by a spring 66 within the hollow leg having one end bearing against a laterally extending shelf 68 on the leg and its opposite end bearing against a laterally extending plunger shelf 70 on the plunger, as best seen in Fig. 3. The spring forces plunger shelf 70 into engagement with an annular shoulder 72 on the leg for holding the plunger in its normal up position. The opposite end of plunger 64 comprises a flat plate-like cam member 74 comprising an inclined slot 76 and an inclined surface 78. A flat follower plate 80 is slidably coupled to cam member 74 by a pair of pins 82, 84 laterally extending from plate 80, one pin 82 extending into inclined slot 76 and the other pin 84 positioned adjacent inclined surface 78. The lateral and downward movement of follower plate 80 is guided by a lug 86 on the rear surface of follower plate 80 slidable within an inclined groove 88 in the leg 22, and also by a pin 90 on the leg extending through an inclined slot 92 in follower plate 80. The follower plate further has a toothed rack 94 on one side thereof, extending through a slot 96 in the leg. Accordingly, as plunger 64 is depressed, cam slot 76 and inclined surface 78 move the cam follower pins 82, 84 and follower plate 80 laterally and slightly downwardly by virtue of the guiding action of lug 86 in groove 88 and pin 90 in slot 92. In the normal up position of plunger 64, as seen in Fig. 1, follower plate pin 82 is engaged by an end of inclined cam slot 76 for holding follower plate 80 in a captive position with the toothed rack 94 in slight engagement with a flexible finger 98 extending from lid 60. Accordingly, when handle 24 is manually raised to its raised position, as seen in Fig. 2, follower plate 80 is lifted with plunger 64 and leg 22 without affecting lid 60 which is intermittently urged into tighter engagement with spout 18 by the finger 98 and toothed rack 94 interconnection as the rack is raised. When handle 24 is released, weight 50 causes bellows 26 to deflate and the handle to be lowered. During this action, the teeth on toothed rack 94 intermittently engage finger 98 on lid 60 and intermittently pivot the lid as the finger rides on the teeth, causing the lid to oscillate, that is, partially open and close as the lid passes each tooth. The oscillating lid 60 simulates the oscillating lid of an actual kettle caused by steam escaping through the spout. With reference to Fig. 4, plunger 64 is manually depressed into its down position to move and hold lid 60 in its fully opened position to pour make-believe tea or the like into suitable cups. Depression of plunger 64 causes cam member 74 to cam pins 82, 84 on the follower plate 80 and toothed rack 94 laterally, via inclined slot 76 and inclined surface 78, and downwardly, via lug 86 in inclined groove 88 and pin 90 in inclined slot 92, causing a tooth on rack 94 to engage finger 98 and pivot lid 60 into its fully opened position. The lid remains in this position as long as the plunger 64 is depressed. If desired, the angles of the cam surface 78 and guide slot 92 could be selected to impart a slight pivotal movement to follower plate 80 as it is moved slightly laterally and downwardly. While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described with particularity, it will be appreciated that various changes and modifications may suggest themselves to one having ordinary skill in the art on being apprised of the present invention. It is intended to encompass all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims: A toy tea kettle (10) comprising a hollow body (12) having a spout (18), a cover (16) having a pair of spaced apart openings (20), a U-shaped handle (24) having a centre handle portion and parallel legs (22) slidably movable in the openings (20) for movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, a bellows (26) movable between a normal deflated condition and an inflated condition, and having a flat rigid top member (30) having a pair of spaced apart spindles (54) coupled to the ends of the legs (22), and a pleated expandable cylindrical member (32) having one end secured to the top member (30) and the opposite end secured to the body (12), and a whistling means (42) coupled to the bellows (26) such that movement of the handle (24) to its raised position inflates the bellows (26) by drawing air therein, and movement of the handle (24) to its lowered position deflates the bellows (26) expelling air through the whistling means (42) to produce a whistling sound simulating steam escaping through the spout (18). A toy tea kettle according to claim 1 and further comprising a lid (60) on the spout (18) that is movable between a normal closed position and a partially opened position, and means (94) on the handle coupled to the lid (60) for oscillating the lid (60) between its closed and partially opened positions, upon movement of the handle (24) from its raised position to its lowered position, thereby simulating an actual oscillating lid caused by steam escaping through the spout (18). A toy tea kettle comprising a hollow body (12) having a spout (18), a cover (16) having a pair of spaced apart openings (20), a lid (60) on the spout (18) movable between a normal closed position and a partially opened position, a U-shaped handle (24) having a centre handle portion and parallel legs (22) slidably movable in the openings (20) for movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, linear drive means (94) coupled to the handle (24) for generating a driving force as the handle (24) is moved from its raised to its lowered position; and driven means (98) on the lid (60) coupled to and actuated by the linear drive means (94) for oscillating the lid (60) between its closed and partially opened positions, upon movement of the handle (24) from its raised position to its lowered position, thereby simulating an actual oscillating lid caused by steam escaping through the spout (18). A toy tea kettle according to claim 2 or 3 wherein the linear drive means (94) for oscillating the lid (60) comprises a toothed rack (94) and wherein the lid (60) is pivotally mounted on the spout and the driven means (98) on the lid is an extending finger (98) rideable on the toothed rack (94). A toy tea kettle according to claim 4 wherein the toothed rack (94) is slidably mounted on the handle (24), cam follower means (80) are mounted on the rack, a reciprocally movable plunger (64) is mounted on the handle (24) for movement between a normal up position and a down position, cam means (74) are mounted on the plunger (64) for actuating the cam follower means (80) upon movement of the plunger (64) to its downward position, and guide means (86,88) are provided between the rack (94) and the handle (24) for guiding the rack in a laterally downward direction for moving and holding the lid (60) in a fully opened position upon movement of the plunger (64) to its down position. A toy tea kettle according to claim 5 wherein the handle (24) has a hollow depending leg (22) having a slot (96) within which the rack (94) is slidably mounted, the plunger (64) is reciprocally movable within the hollow leg (22), the cam follower means (80) comprises a laterally extending pin (84) on the rack (94), the cam means (74) comprises an inclined surface (78) on the plunger (64) in engagement within the pin (84), and the guide means (86,88) comprises a lug (86) on the rack (94) sliding in a groove (88) in the leg (22). A toy tea kettle according to claim 6 wherein a spring (66) is interposed between the handle (24) and the plunger (64) for biasing the plunger (64) to its normal up position. A toy tea kettle according to claim 5, 6 or 7 wherein the toothed rack (94) is on one of the legs (22) of the handle (24). A toy tea kettle according to claim 8 wherein the cam follower means (80) are mounted on the one leg (22), wherein the reciprocally movable plunger (64) is mounted on the one leg (22), wherein cam means (74) are mounted on the plunger (64) for actuating the cam follower means (80) upon movement of the plunger (64) to its down position, and wherein guide means (86) are provided between the rack (94) and the one leg (22) for guiding the rack in a laterally downward direction for moving and holding the lid (60) in a fully open position upon movement of the plunger (64) to its down position. A toy tea kettle according to claim 9 wherein the one leg (22) has a slot (96) within which the rack (94) is slidably mounted, the plunger (64) is reciprocally movable within the one leg (22), the cam follower means (80) comprises a laterally extending pin (90) on the rack (94), the cam means comprises an inclined surface (78) on the plunger (64) in engagement with the pin (84), and the guide means comprises a lug (86) on the rack sliding in a groove (88) in one leg (22).

Inventors: MOOMAW, DAVID E.
Applicants: FISHER-PRICE, INC.
Application year: 1987
Main classification: A63H33
IPC codes: A63H33