Abstract:
A sculptural toy or building block designed and adapted to be joined to other identical sculptural toys or building blocks to create infinite figures and shapes. The sculptural toy or building block is an elongated member that is comprised of five portions: two legs, two feet, and an opening. Each leg is provided with a foot at its distal end and is separated from the other leg by the opening located in the center of the elongated toy member. The legs, feet, and opening are linearly oriented in the same plane with each formed into rectangular or square configurations. The leg configurations also include slots that extend along the entire length of the leg. The feet of one toy member can be received at various angles along the slots in the legs of another toy member. Also, the leg of one toy member can be slidably received into the opening of another toy member.

Description:
RELATED PATENT APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 09/575,388 filed on May 22, 2002, now abandoned. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to sculptural toys and, more particularly, to a symmetrical toy member or building block that is designed to be slidably received or frictionally engaged with other toy members or building blocks to build or design an infinite number of artistic creations. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
     Sculptural toys or building blocks have provided a great source of entertainment to children and adults. Typically, the sculptural toys or building blocks are formed of a basic geometric shape such as a square or rectangular member that is provided with a number of male ends or connecting studs for attachment to a number of complementary female ends to interconnect one sculptural toy or building block to another. 
     An example of a typical sculptural toy or building block is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,374,917 to Troy entitled “Interlocking Structural Elements”. This patent discloses a block that consists of four sides and two ends. The four sides are provided with an indented female member and the two ends are provided with a raised male member. The raised male member is then inserted into the indented female member of another block to join the two blocks together. In this manner, a plurality of blocks are connected to form numerous designs and configurations. 
     Other building blocks or toy shaped members that use similar means to join or snap the blocks or toy shaped members together are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,373 to Chatani entitled “Interconnecting Toy Block Arrangement”; U.S. Pat. No. 4,305,221 to Chatani entitled “Block Of Members Having Interior Interlock Means”; U.S. Pat. No. 3,566,531 to Hasel entitled “Mating Blocks Having Beaded Studs And Resilient Sidewalls”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,518,434 to Ziegler entitled “Snap Fit And Twistable Toy Construction Modules”; U.S. Pat. No. 2,577,702 to Swart entitled “Toy Construction Element”; U.S. Pat. No. 2,063,895 to Mack entitled “Joint For Structural Toys”; and Canadian Patent 595,883 to Hansen entitled “Model Box of Bricks”. 
     The above identified sculptural toys or building blocks have several inherent shortcomings. First, the designs are limited to joining the blocks together by male members being received in frictional engagement by complementary female members or by a member of one building block being snapped to a complementary member of another building block. The designs, however, are devoid of a complete opening in the blocks to receive a portion of another block through that opening. Second, as the blocks are joined together by the frictional engagement of male and female members, the blocks do not enable one block to be interlocked to another block at any angle other than ninety degrees to each other. Third, the blocks are only capable of being joined at the ends or at another designated portion of the block. As a result, the blocks are limited in their use and the artistic expressions created by the joining of one block to another. Fourth, as the blocks are only capable of being joined at the ends or at another designated portion of the block, the blocks do not permit one block to be frictionally engaged by another block and then slidably moved into a different position within the same receiving block. Fifth, due to the design of the male and female members to join one block to another, the number of blocks that can be joined to any one single block is limited. 
     Thus, there is a need and there has never been disclosed a sculptural toy or building block that can be received by another building block in the unique manner of the present invention. Applicant&#39;s building block can be slidably received in an opening in a second building block or can be frictionally received in a slot in the second building block which also permits repositioning of the first building block anywhere along the slot in the second building block. 
     OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a symmetric toy member with a plurality of different members to be received by another toy member. A related object of the present invention is to provide a toy member with a plurality of female receiving members to receive another toy member. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a toy member that is capable of slidably receiving a portion of another toy member. A related object of the present invention is to provide a toy member with a means to restrict the extent of movement of one toy member as it is slidably received by another toy member. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a toy member that frictionally engages another toy member. A related object is to provide a toy member that can frictionally engage another toy member at various angles. 
     Still another related object of the present invention is to provide a toy member that is capable of providing an infinite number of artistic creations that stimulates artistic expression. 
     Another object of the invention is to provide a toy member that is easy to use, capable of withstanding continuous use, and safe for the user. A related object is to provide a toy member that is appropriately dimensioned to be safe for use and enjoyment by children. 
     Other objects of the present invention will become more apparent to persons having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is an elongated toy member that is comprised of five portions: two legs, two feet, and an opening. Each leg is provided with a foot at its distal end and is separated from the other leg by the opening located in the center of the elongated toy member. The legs, feet, and opening are linearly oriented in the same plane with each formed into rectangular or square configurations. The leg configurations also include slots that extend along the entire length of the leg. 
     The toy members are adapted to be joined to other identical toy members to create infinite figures and shapes. The feet of one toy member can be received at various angles along the slots in the legs of another toy member. Also, the leg of one toy member can be slidably received into the opening of another toy member. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The Description of the Preferred Embodiment will be better understood with reference to the following figures: 
     FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the inventive construction element. 
     FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the inventive device. 
     FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the inventive device depicting the portions of the device for receiving another device. 
     FIG. 4 is an end elevational view of the inventive device. 
     FIG. 5 is a top elevational view of the inventive device. 
     FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view taken along line  6 — 6  of FIG.  5 . 
     FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view taken along line  7 — 7  of FIG.  5 . 
     FIG. 8 is a top plan view illustrating the construction element slidably receiving another construction element through the opening in the inventive device. 
     FIG. 9 is a top plan view illustrating the construction element frictionally receiving two other construction elements. 
     FIG. 10 is a top plan view depicting an artistic expression of the inventive device as interlocked with several other construction elements at differing angles to illustrate an alternate embodiment. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Turning first to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a sculptural toy or element  20  as depicted from a front perspective view. The sculptural toy  20  is comprised of legs  22  and  24  separated by an opening  26 . Each leg  22 ,  24  has an interior end  25  and a distal end  27 . Preferably, the opening  26  is located in the center of the sculptural toy  20  and is completely hollow through the sculptural toy  20 . The legs  22  and  24  each have a foot  28  and  30  located opposite the opening  26  and at the distal end  27  of the legs  22  and  24 . The legs  22  and  24 , opening  26 , and feet  28  and  30  form an elongated linear member along a central axis lying in a horizontal plane of the sculptural toy  20 . The legs  22  and  24  have a leg length  32  and  34 . Preferably, the leg length  32  is approximately equal to the leg length  34 . In an alternate embodiment, the leg length  32  may be larger or smaller than the leg length  34 . The opening  26  has an opening length  36 . In the preferred embodiment, the opening  26  is approximately one-half of the length of the leg length  32  and the leg length  34 . The feet  28  and  30  protrude out from the distal end  27  and have a foot length  38  and  40 , respectively. In the preferred embodiment, the foot length  38  is approximately equal to the foot length  40 . Alternatively, it is contemplated that the foot length  38  or the foot length  40  may be larger or smaller as discussed in further detail later in the specification. 
     The legs  22  and  24  each have slots  42  and  44 . The slots  42  and  44  receive in frictional engagement the foot  28  or  30  of another sculptural toy  20 . In the preferred embodiment, slots  42  and  44  extend the entire leg length  32  and  34  of legs  22  and  24 , respectively. The advantage of the slots  42  and  44  extending the entire length of leg length  32  and  34  is that the slots  42  and  44  enable additional sculptural toys  20  to be attached within the slots  42  and  44 . The slots  42  and  44  further allow the second or subsequent sculptural toy  20  to be inserted or slid anywhere along the length of the sltos  42  and  44 . Alternatively, the slot  42  may be larger or smaller than slot  44  and slot  44  provided that at least one foot  28  or  30  is likewise made larger or smaller to frictionally engage the larger or smaller slot  42  or  44 . The feet  28  and  30  each have ports  46  and  48 . 
     Preferably, the legs  22  and  24 , the opening  26 , and the feet  28  and  30  are injection molded from plastic resins to form the sculptural toy  20 . The injection molded method is the most efficient and least expensive means to manufacture the sculptural toy  20 . Alternatively, the sculptural toy  20  may be made from different types of wood by saw and router cutting machinery or die cast from metal. An advantage of manufacturing the sculptural toy  20  from metal is that a mixture of metals may be used to create different color patterns and provide a unique appearance for each sculptural toy  20 . 
     Turning to FIG. 2, the back of the sculptural toy  20  is depicted. In the preferred embodiment, the sculptural toy  20  is symmetrical both vertically and horizontally about a lengthwise central axis through the sculptural toy  20  such that the front of the sculptural toy  20  of FIG. 1 is approximately identical to the back of the sculptural toy  20  of FIG.  2 . In this manner, the legs  22  and  24  each have slots  50  and  52 . Slots  50  and  52  each have a slot length  54  and  56 . In the preferred embodiment, the slot length  52  and  54  is approximately equal to the length of slots  42  and  44 , respectively. Alternatively, the slot length  54  may be larger or smaller than slot length  56  and may be larger or smaller than the lengths of the slots  42  or  44 . Legs  22  and  24  have a central dividing wall  58  and  60  which separate slot  42  from slot  52  and slot  44  from slot  50 . 
     The feet  28  and  30  each have ports  62  and  64 . In the preferred embodiment, the ports  62  and  64  are approximately equal to the ports  48  and  46 . The ports  62  and  64  have a port length  66  and  68 . Preferably, the port length  66  of port  62  is approximately equal to the port length  68  of port  64  and the port length  40  of the port  48 . The port length  68  is also preferably equal to the port length  38  of the port  46 . 
     The front of the sculptural toy  20  is more clearly illustrated in FIG.  3 . The sculptural toy  20  has three heights: a foot height  70 , a leg height  72 , and an opening height  74 . The feet  28  and  30  have a foot top surface  76  and a foot bottom surface  78  which are separated by the foot height  70 . The legs  22  and  24  have a leg top surface  80  and a leg bottom surface  82  which are separated by the leg height  72 . The opening has a top surface  84  and a bottom surface  86  which are separated by the opening height  74 . In the preferred embodiment, the feet  28  and  30  have approximately the same foot height  70  and the legs  22  and  24  have approximately the same leg height  72 . Also, in the preferred embodiment, the foot height  70  is smaller than the leg height  72  and the leg height  72  is smaller than the opening height  74 . 
     At the distal end  27  where the feet  28  and  30  are formed with the legs  22  and  24 , a heel  88  is created. The heel  88  has a height which is approximately equal to the difference between the foot height  70  and the leg height  72 . At the interior end  25  of the legs  22  and  24  where the legs  22  and  24  connect to the opening  26 , there is formed a shoulder  90 . The shoulder  90  has a height which is approximately equal to the difference between the leg height  72  and the opening height  74 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the feet  28  and  30  are rectangular in shape with the foot length  38  and  40  being smaller than the foot height  70 ; the legs  22  and  24  are rectangular in shape with the leg length  32  and  34  being larger than the leg height  72 ; and the opening  26  is square in shape with the opening length  36  being approximately equal to the opening height  74 . 
     The slots  42  and  44  of the legs  22  and  24  have a slot height  92 . In the preferred embodiment, the slot height  92  is approximately equal to the foot height  70  so that the slot frictionally engages the feet  28  or  30  to another sculptural toy  20  as illustrated and described in further detail in FIGS. 9 and 10. 
     The opening  26  has an interior height  94 . The interior height  94  is approximately equal to the leg height  72  such that the leg  22  or  24  of one sculptural toy  20  may be slidably received into the opening  26  of another sculptural toy  20  as illustrated and described in further detail in FIG.  8 . The differences of each of the heights between the feet  28  and  30 , the legs  22  and  24 , and the opening  26  are further illustrated in FIG.  4 . Preferably, the differences between each of the heights is approximately equal. Alternatively, the differences in height could be larger or smaller provided that the frictional engagement and slidable relationship between two sculptural toys  20  remain the same. 
     In FIGS. 5-7, the central dividing wall  58  and  60  is depicted. In the preferred embodiment, the central dividing wall  58  extends the entire slot height  92  within legs  22  and  24 . The legs  22  and  24 , with the inclusion of the central dividing wall  58  and  60 , form an I beam in cross section. The central dividing wall  58  equally separates the slot  42  from the slot  52  and the central dividing wall  60  equally separates the slot  44  from the slot  50  such that slots  42  and  52  and slots  44  and  50  each have an equal slot depth  96 . Preferably, the slot depth  96  is approximately equal to the foot length  38  and  40  such that the foot  28  or foot  30  of one sculptural toy  20  may be frictionally engaged with the any one of slots  42 ,  44 ,  50 , or  52  of another sculptural toy  20  as illustrated and described in further detail in FIG.  9 . 
     The sculptural toy  20  permits the leg  22  or  24  of one sculptural toy  20  to be slidably received into the opening  26  of another sculptural toy  20 . For example, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the leg  24  of a first sculptural toy  20 , positioned with the front of the sculptural toy  20  facing the user, is inserted into and through the opening  26  of a second sculptural toy  20 . The shoulder  90  of the opening  26  of the first sculptural toy  20  engages the front of the second sculptural toy  20  to act as a stopping means and prevent the first sculptural toy  20  from being further received into the opening  26  of the second sculptural toy  20 . Alternatively, the first sculptural toy  20  may be slidably received into the opening  26  of the second sculptural toy  20  in three other positions with the top, bottom, or back side facing the user. Preferably, the leg  22  or  24  has a leg length  32  or  34  (FIG. 1) that is approximately two times the opening length  36  (FIG.  1 ). Such a length permits the leg  22  or  24  of the first sculptural toy  20  to be slidably received into the opening  26  of a second and third sculptural toy  20  simultaneously (not illustrated). In this manner, one sculptural toy  20  may be connected to two sculptural toys  20  by the leg  22  being slidably received into the opening  26  of the second and third sculptural toys  20 . The one sculptural toy  20  may also be connected to two more sculptural toys  20  by the leg  24  being slidably received into the opening  26  of a fourth and fifth sculptural toys  20 . 
     FIG. 10 illustrates the simultaneous connection of several sculptural toys  20  to the legs  22  and  24  of other sculptural toys  20 . In this manner, infinite configurations can be created to join the sculptural toys  20 . Alternatively, the leg length  34  of leg  22  or  24  may be longer to permit the connection to more than two sculptural toys  20 . 
     The sculptural toy  20  also permits the foot  28  or  30  of one sculptural toy  20 , positioned with the front of the sculptural toy  20  facing the user, to be frictionally engaged anywhere within the slots  42 ,  44 ,  50 , or  52  of legs  22  or  24  of another sculptural toy  20 . For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the foot  28  of leg  22  of a first sculptural toy  20  is frictionally engaged with the slot  44  of leg  24  of a second sculptural toy  20 . The entire foot length  38  of the foot  28  of the first sculptural toy  20  is received into the slot  44  of the second sculptural toy  20  with the heel  88  of the first sculptural toy  20  acting as a stop means to prevent the foot  28  from being inserted any further into slot  44  of the second sculptural toy  20 . The central dividing wall (FIGS. 5-7) also acts as additional stopping means to prevent the first sculptural toy  20  from being received any further into the slot  44  of the second sculptural toy  20 . In the preferred embodiment, the foot height  70  is approximately equal to the slot height  92  of slot  44  (FIG. 3) such that foot top surface  76  and foot bottom surface  78  apply equal and opposite forces upon the interior of the leg top surface  80  and the leg bottom surface  82 , respectively. This provides a snug yet releasable frictional engagement of the first sculptural toy  20  to the second sculptural toy  20 . Alternatively, the first sculptural toy  20  may be frictionally received into the slot  44  of the second sculptural toy  20  in three other positions with the top side facing the user as illustrated in the leg  22  also illustrated in FIG. 9, the bottom side facing the user, or back side facing the user. 
     The sculptural toys  20  are depicted in FIG. 9 to be frictionally engaged to other sculptural toys  20  at a ninety degree angle to each other. As illustrated in FIG. 10, the sculptural toy  20  may also be frictionally engaged to other sculptural toys  20  at engagement angles  98  and  100 . The sculptural toy  20  is capable of being frictionally engaged with a second and third sculptural toy  20  at the engagement angle  98  and  100 . FIG. 10 illustrates the engagement angle  98  and  100  to be approximately equal. Alternatively, the engagement angles of  98  and  100  may be any other angle between approximately thirty (30) degrees and one hundred and fifty (150) degrees. 
     Thus, there has been provided a unique sculptural toy that is capable of being slidably received and frictionally engaged with a plurality of other sculptural toys for a user to build or design an infinite number of artistic creations. While the invention has been described in conjunction with a specific embodiment, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly, it in intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.