Abstract:
A combination euchre score and trump indicating device. The system includes a pair of scoring dials that are mounted to the interior face of a pair of end caps. The end caps removably mate with a body. The body is generally cube-shaped having four flat outer surfaces. Each outer surface prominently bears one of the four trump suits. When the end caps are coupled to the body, the interior faces and scoring dials are hidden by the body, protecting the scoring dials from damage and fully enclosing an internal storage compartment.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application filed Jul. 28, 2008 having Ser. No. 61/083,978. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention is related to game scoring signals or indicators and, more particularly, to a euchre score indicator. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Euchre is a game played using conventional playing cards. Each game is traditionally played to a score of ten, requiring players to keep track of the score during play and is updated after each hand. Furthermore, one suit is selected as trump for each hand requiring the players to remember which suit is trump for each hand. 
         [0004]    While it is usually not necessary to remind players what suit is designated trump for a given hand, there are often times during play when a player forgets, does not hear, or was not paying attention while trump was designated. To speed play and avoid both embarrassment to the heedless player and upsetting the other players, it is desirable to provide a visual marker showing all players the current trump suit. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The broad purpose of the present invention is to provide a combination score and trump indicating device for the game of euchre. The device includes a pair of scoring indicators and a central body having trump identifiers around its outer surfaces. The scoring indicators and body are configured such that the two scoring indicators can be removably coupled to the body. The body has a generally tubular shape and the scoring indicators are removably mounted to cap the open ends of the tubular body. 
         [0006]    It is an advantage of the present invention that when the scoring indicators are in the stowed position, the scoring indicators and walls of the body define and enclose a storage compartment within the tubular body. 
         [0007]    It is another advantage of the present invention that the means for displaying the score is mounted to a portion of the scoring indicator that is covered and protected by the body when the scoring indicator is placed in the stowed position. 
         [0008]    It is still another advantage of the present invention that when the scoring indicators are coupled to the body in a stowed position, the outer surfaces of the body and scoring indicators present a substantially smooth, solid, and cube-like shape. 
         [0009]    It is yet another advantage of the present invention to provide a combination euchre score and trump indicating device. The device comprising a tubular body having four distinct outer walls, each of the four walls including a marking of one of each euchre trump suit. The device further including a pair of end caps, each end cap having an inner face and an outer face. The inner face including means for displaying a score mounted thereon. Each end cap further including means for removably mounting the end cap to the body whereby the score displaying means is hidden by the body and the outer face. 
         [0010]    Still further objects and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains upon reference to the following detailed description. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The description refers to the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views; and in which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the euchre score and trump identifier embodying the invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the cube showing the remaining trump indicating sides; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a front view of one of the scoring indicator end caps; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is perspective view of an alternate end cap and body embodiment of the invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a partially exploded perspective view of an alternate embodiment illustrating a transparent body and interior mounted trump markings; and 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternate end cap having additional frictional fit ridges. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0018]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1-3 , a euchre score and trump indicating device  10  is shown and includes a body  12  and pair of end caps  14 ,  16 . As will be discussed in greater detail below, the body  12  provides a visual aid for displaying the current trump in a hand of euchre, while the end caps  14 ,  16  provide a pair of counters for tracking or registering each team&#39;s score. 
         [0019]    Body  12  is preferably shaped as a generally cube-shaped tube having four flat walls  18 ,  19 ,  20 , and  21  and two opposing open ends  22 ,  24 . Each of the outer surfaces  18   a - 21   a  of walls  18 - 21  prominently displays one of the four card trump suits, i.e., a heart  26 , spade  27 , diamond  28 , and club  29 . The suit markings  26 - 29  are applied to the walls  18 - 21  in a conventional manner, such as painting, adhesive labels, and/or etching. 
         [0020]    Walls  18 - 21  cooperate to define a central passage or chamber  25  that is accessible through openings in ends  22 ,  24 . In one embodiment, walls  18 - 21  are sized such that chamber  25  accommodates a deck of playing cards. As will be discussed in greater detail below, each end  22 ,  24  includes means to mount the two end caps  14 ,  16  to the body  12 . 
         [0021]    The two end caps  14 ,  16  are preferably identical in configuration and any discussion of an element or feature of one end cap can be generally considered applicable to the other end cap. The end caps  14 ,  16  have a flat and square bottom or wall  30 . Bottom  30  is preferably the same size as the combined walls  18 - 21 , whereby each side of bottom  30  matches the four sides of ends  22 ,  24  in size and shape. 
         [0022]    An inner face or surface  30   a  of the end cap includes a euchre scoring indicator  32 . Indicator  32  preferably includes a pointer arm  34  pivotally mounted to a post or axle  36 . Indicator  32  includes a plurality of markings  38  that radially surround post  36 . These markings  38  preferably display the numerals zero to nine. The markings  38  are disposed relative to post  36  and pointer  34  to permit a user to quickly rotate the pointer  34  to point at the marking equal to the current score for his euchre team. 
         [0023]    It should be appreciated that other scoring indicator  32  configurations and types can be readily adapted to be mounted to end cap inner surface  30   a  and the present invention should not be strictly limited to the embodiments disclosed herein. 
         [0024]    In one embodiment, each end cap  14 ,  16  may also include a second indicator or counter  40  that utilizes markings  38  to show the players the number of games won by a team. In the embodiment illustrated, ten apertures  42  are formed into scoring indicator  32 . Each aperture  42  is radially aligned with one of the numbers zero-to-nine comprising markings  38 . In this embodiment, a peg  44 , sized to fit within apertures  42 , is provided to allow a user to keep track of the number of games won by his team. In other embodiments, a second pointer arm  34 ′, shown in phantom in  FIG. 3 , may be mounted to post  36  for the same purpose. 
         [0025]    The end caps  14 ,  16  include mounting structures that are complementarily-shaped to and frictionally mate with the open ends  22 ,  24  of the body. In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 1 , body ends  22 ,  24  provide the female structure, while end caps  14 ,  16  providing the mating male structure, while in the embodiments illustrated in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the reverse is true. It should be appreciated that in either configuration, the scoring indicator  32  is substantially enveloped within passage  25  and covered by the device&#39;s body when the end cap is placed in the stowed position. Further, the device has a relatively flat surface across the mating lines  45  between the caps and body when the end caps  14 ,  16  are placed in the stowed position (i.e., mounted to body  12 ). 
         [0026]    Referring now to the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 1 , body  12  is configured as a tube, having walls  18 - 21  cooperating to define two openings to internal passage  25  at the opposite ends  224 ,  24 . The interconnected walls  18 - 21  terminate at both ends at substantially flat edges  50 . In the embodiment illustrated, walls  18 - 21  present a substantially square cross-sectional shape. 
         [0027]    Scoring indicator  32  on end caps  14 ,  16  has raised walls  52  extending from inner surface  30   a.  The walls  52  are offset from the outer edges  30   c  of wall  30  a distance that is approximately the same as the thickness of walls  18 - 21 . In this manner, the wall&#39;s outer surfaces are sized to frictionally abut the body&#39;s inner wall surface to mate the end caps  14 ,  16  to body  12 . The offset of walls  52  from edges  30   c  forms a shoulder  54  which abuts the body edges  50  when the end caps  14 ,  16  are placed in the stowed position. 
         [0028]    Referring now to the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the device, denoted  110 , is shown having a body  112 , and end caps  114 ,  116 , which are substantially the same as body  12 , and end caps  14 ,  16  except for the means in which the end caps are mounted to the body. In this embodiment, body ends  22 ,  24  each include a raised annular wall or lip  60  that surrounds the respective openings in ends  22 ,  24 . Lip  60  is offset from the four outer surfaces  18   a - 21   a  leaving a peripheral shoulder  62 . In this embodiment, end caps  114 ,  116  have raised annular walls  64  extending from the outer periphery of inner surface  30   a.  The walls  64  are sized such that their inner surfaces  64   a  frictionally abut the lip&#39;s outer surfaces  60   a,  when the end caps  114 ,  116  are mated to the body  112 . The uppermost wall surfaces  64   b  further abut shoulder  62  when placed in this mated or stowed position. 
         [0029]    In another embodiment, shown in  FIG. 5 , the body, denoted  212 , is substantially the same as body  112 , but is formed from a clear material, such as acrylic, such that body walls  18 - 21  are substantially transparent. In this embodiment, the markings  26 - 29  can not only be applied to the outer surfaces, but can be applied to the inner surfaces  18   b - 21   b  of the tubular body  112  facing out through the body walls. In the embodiment shown, markings  26 - 29  are printed upon a contiguous sheet  220  of paper-like material, which is folded to conform to the shape of the opening  25 . 
         [0030]    It should be appreciated that in all of the above-described embodiments of the present invention, the outer surface  30   b  and edges  30   c  of bottom  30  are substantially flat, such that when the device  10  is in the stowed position illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the body outer surfaces  18   a - 21   a,  the bottom outer surfaces  30   b,  and edges  30   c  cooperate to define a substantially smooth and uniformly-shaped cube or rectangle. 
         [0031]    It should be appreciated that the frictional fit of the end caps to the body can be readily supplemented with additional means for retaining the end caps in the stowed position. That is, the frictional mating of the end caps to body may be supplemented with or replaced by other conventional interconnection structures or techniques, such as, but not limited to a radially outwardly projecting peripheral ridge  300  (shown in  FIG. 6 ) along the outer wall  52  of an end cap  14 ,  16  increases the frictional fit between the mated components by wedging between the abutting surfaces. Other interconnection structures or techniques include: mating threaded structures; latches; hook and loop fasteners; and complementary studs and recesses (e.g., LEGO® bricks). 
         [0032]    From the foregoing description, one skilled in the art will readily recognize that the present invention is directed to a combination euchre score and trump indicator. While the present invention has been described with particular reference to various preferred embodiments, one skilled in the art will recognize from the foregoing discussion and accompanying drawings that changes, modifications, and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.