Patent Publication Number: US-2020282300-A1

Title: Toy grabbing mechanism

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation-in-part patent application of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/280,056 filed on Feb. 20, 2019, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference for which priority is claimed under 35 U.S.C. § 120. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a toy grabbing mechanism, and more particularly to a toy grabbing mechanism for catching or gripping a toy. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Since ancient times, many games have been invented and improved, thereby enhancing the relationship and friendship between parents and peers and helping the development of physical and mental health and coordination. A fishing toy is one of the common toys, which simulates the activity of catching fish. Toy fish and toy fishing poles are equipped with magnetic parts. The toy fishing poles are used to catch toy fish by means of magnetic attraction. However, a conventional fishing toy is relatively easy to play the toy fishing game. It uses the toy fishing pole to catch toy fish only, but cannot catch other items. Moreover, the toy fishing game does not require physical coordination, reducing the fun for challenge. 
     In the meantime, a claw machine is a fixed electronic machine that uses electrically to drive suspended claws and control the position of the claws through buttons provided on the machine to catch the prizes placed in the machine. However, the existing claw machines are large-sized electronic machines for playing a game by catching prizes. The user needs to go to the machine and drops coins into the machine to play the game, thereby providing the user with amusement, which limits the place where the user entertains. 
     Accordingly, the inventor of the present invention has devoted himself based on his many years of practical experiences to solve these problems and develop a toy grabbing mechanism that improves the shortcomings of conventional fishing toys and claw machines and enhances the user&#39;s physical coordination and has better amusement and challenge. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The primary object of the present invention is to provide a toy grabbing mechanism for catching or gripping a toy, which is a simple and fun toy. 
     In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a toy grabbing mechanism for catching or gripping a toy. The toy grabbing mechanism comprises a main body, three claw members, and a movable member. a main body, having three elliptical holes which are separated from each other with equal distance; three claw members, each being a curve plate structure corresponding to a shape of the toy, the claw members each having a gripping portion having a curve surface, wherein a middle portion of each of the claw members has a pivoting portion having a ring shape, and a balancing portion is provided at one end of the claw members penetrating through the elliptical holes respectively, wherein a gripping space is defined between the gripping portions of the claw members, the gripping portions are separated by a predetermined distance respectively; and a movable member, being an annular torus having a radius larger than a radius of the main body, the movable member being provided with three recesses, and the pivoting portions of the claw members being pivotally connected to the recesses, during operation, when the three claw members are in contact with a surface of the toy and the toy exerts pressure on all of the three claw members, the three claw members are extended in a way such that a volume of the gripping space is increased to completely encompass the surface of the toy. Thereby, the toy grabbing mechanism improves the shortcomings of conventional fishing toys and claw machines, and enhances the user&#39;s physical coordination during the game by controlling the main body, and has better amusement and challenge. 
     In addition, the movable member has an annular configuration and a plurality of recesses, and the pivoting portions of the claw members are pivotally connected to the recesses respectively to increase the stability of the pivoting portions pivotally connected to the movable member. 
     Furthermore, the pivoting portion has an arc shape for being pivotally connected to a corresponding one of the recesses. Thereby, the stability of the pivoting portions pivotally connected to the recesses can be improved, and the stability that the claw members are pivoted about the pivoting portions can be improved. 
     Preferably, the gripping portion has a curved configuration, which is beneficial for gripping the toy and increases the gripping stability. 
     Besides, the toy grabbing mechanism further comprises a long rod connected to the main body for a user to hold the long rod to control the main body. 
     Furthermore, the long rod is provided with a telescopic portion for changing a length and flexibility of the long rod, increasing the difficulty of the game and enhancing the amusement effect. 
     In addition, one side of the gripping portion for gripping the toy has a plurality of protrusions to increase the stability of the gripping portion for gripping the toy. 
     In another embodiment, one side of the gripping portion for gripping the toy has at least one pad to increase the friction coefficient of the gripping portion, thereby improving the stability of the gripping portion for gripping the toy. 
     Besides, the main body, the movable member and the claw members are made of a plastic material. Through the low-density properties of plastic materials, it is easy for users to play the game. 
     In summary, the toy grabbing mechanism of the present invention is used for catching or gripping a toy, thereby training the user&#39;s physical coordination. The user can manipulate the main body to move the movable member and further manipulate the claw members for catching and gripping the toy. Therefore, the toy grabbing mechanism has better amusement and challenge. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2A  is a first schematic view of the operating toy grabbing mechanism in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; 
         FIG. 2B  is a second schematic view of the operating toy grabbing mechanism in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; 
         FIG. 2C  is a third schematic view of the operating toy grabbing mechanism in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; 
         FIG. 2D  is a fourth schematic view of the operating toy grabbing mechanism in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; 
         FIG. 3  is another view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the main body in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the movable member in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the claw member in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the claw member in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1-6 , the present invention discloses a toy grabbing mechanism  1  for catching or gripping a toy  2 , comprising a main body  10 , three claw members  11 , and a movable member  12 . The main body  10  has three elliptical holes  101  which are separated from each other with equal distance. The toy grabbing mechanism  1  further comprises an accommodating space  102 . The accommodating space  102  is in communication with the holes  101 . In the embodiment, the main body  10  further has a pull ring  103 . In addition, each of the three claw members  11  is a curve plate structure corresponding to a shape of the toy  2 ; each of the claw members  11  has a gripping portion  111  which is a curve surface. A middle portion of each of the claw members  11  has a pivoting portion  112  having a ring shape, and a balancing portion  113  is provided at one end of the claw members  11  penetrating through the elliptical holes  101  respectively. A gripping space  114  is defined between the gripping portions  111  of the claw members  11 , the gripping portions  112  are separated by a predetermined distance  115  respectively. It is worth noting that the balancing portion  113  is slightly larger than the holes  101 . And the upper part of the holes  101  is slightly larger than an end of the balancing portion  113 . The movable member  12  is an annular torus larger than the main body  10 . The movable member  12  is provided with three recesses  121 , and the pivoting portions  112  of the claw members  11  are pivotally connected to the recesses  121 . When the movable member  12  is moved, the movable member  12  is moved up and down relative to the main body  10 . The claw members  11  are pivotable about the pivoting portions  112  to change the gripping space  114  for the gripping portions  111  to catch and grip the toy  2 . 
     Preferably, as seen in  FIG. 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D , when the user plays the game, the user controls the main body  10  to change the relative position between the main body  10  and the movable member  12 , such that the movable member  12  is moved up and down relative to the main body  10 . In this embodiment, the toy  2  is a toy ball and placed on a plane, such as on the ground or on a table. The user uses the toy grabbing mechanism  1  to grip the toy  2  for playing the game. During operation, when the three claw members  11  are in contact with a surface of the toy  2  and the toy  2  exerts pressure on all of the three claw members  11 , the movable member  12  is pushed upward and the three claw members  11  are extended in a way such that a volume of the gripping space  114  is increased to completely encompass the surface of the toy  2 . 
     In addition, the balancing portions  113  are disposed in the holes  101  and actuated in the accommodating space  102 , so that the balancing portions  113  are limited by the size of the accommodating space  102 .  FIG. 4  illustrates the structure of the main body. The holes  101  each have a capsule-like shape. The hole  101  includes two arcs with different radii to limit the actuation of any one of the balancing portions  113 . In a specific situation, the balancing portions  113  are moved to touch each other, thereby limiting the angle of rotation of the balancing portions  113  relative to the pivoting portions  112 . In this way, the balancing portions  113  can be prevented from being disengaged from the min body  10  to facilitate the gripping operation. 
     Furthermore, following the above description, when the movable member  12  is moved upward relative to the main body  10 , the pivoting portions  112  are moved upward together with the movable member  12 . Since the lengths of the gripping portions  111  and the balancing portions  113  relative to the pivoting portions  112  are different, and the movable member  12  may have a leftward or rightward movement relative to the min body  10 , and the factors such as relative acceleration and air resistance, the balance of the claw members  11  may be affected. Therefore, the balancing portions  113  are rotated relative to the pivoting portions  112  toward the center of the main body  10 . The gripping portions  111  are rotated relative to the pivoting portions  112  away from the gripping space  114 , so that the gripping space  114  is enlarged for gripping the toy  2 . 
       FIG. 3  is a second schematic view of the present invention when in use. When the toy  2  is already in the gripping space  114 , if the user wants to release the toy  2 , the user need to move the movable member  12  upward manually. Similarly, at this time, the balancing portions  113  are rotated relative to the pivoting portions  112  toward the center of the main body  10  to sequentially open the claw members  11 , and the gripping portions  111  are rotated relative to the pivoting portions  112  toward the gripping space  114 , so that the gripping space  114  is reduced to grip the toy  2 . Then, the main body  10  is controlled to be away from the plane on which the toy  2  is placed, so that the toy grabbing mechanism  1  and the toy  2  are moved together away from the plane to achieve the gripping effect. 
     In another embodiment, the toy  2  is a mobile toy ball, and the user can catch the toy  2  as the foregoing description. Thereby, the invention improves the shortcomings of conventional fishing toys and claw machines. Manipulating the main body  10  requires physical coordination and is more challenging to catch or grip the toy  2 . In this way, the toy grabbing mechanism  1  is a challenging and fun toy that can be played at home or outdoors. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates the structure of the movable member. The movable member  12  has an annular configuration. In this embodiment, the movable member  12  is provided with a plurality of outer casings  122 . A recess  121  is formed between every adjacent two of the outer casings  122  so that the pivoting portion  12  is pivotally connected to the recess  121 . The outer casings  122  are in a fixed state to limit and retain the size of the recess  121 , thereby avoiding the horizontal movement of the pivoting portions  112  on the movable member  12  during the game, such that the pivoting portions  112  are pivotally connected to the recesses  121  stably to enhance the stability. Furthermore, the pivoting portion  112  has an arc shape for being pivotally connected to the recess  121 . In this way, the stability of the pivoting portions  112  pivotally connected to the recesses  121  can be improved, and the stability that the claw members  11  are pivoted about the pivoting portions  112  can be improved. 
     Furthermore,  FIG. 6  illustrates the structure of the claw member. One side of the gripping portion  111  for gripping the toy  2  has a plurality of protrusions  1111 . In another embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 8 , one side of the gripping portion  111  for gripping the toy  2  has at least one pad  1112 . Therefore, the frictional coefficient of the side of the gripping portion  111  for gripping the toy  2  can be increased through the protrusions  1111  or the pad  1112 , thereby enhancing the stability for the gripping portions  111  to grip the toy  2 . 
     Preferably, the gripping portion  111  has a curved configuration. The concave surface of the gripping portion  111  faces the gripping space  114 . Therefore, the gripping portion  111  has a large contact area with the toy  2 , which is beneficial for gripping the toy  2 , in particular to grip a spheral toy  2 . Moreover, the clamping stability can be enhanced. 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. The toy grabbing mechanism  1  further comprises a long rod  13 . The long rod  13  is provided with a buckle ring  132 . The buckle ring  132  is connected to the pull ring  103 . Therefore, the user can hold the long rod  13  and control the main body  10  to play the game through the long rod  13 . In addition, by manipulating the long rod  13  to control the main body  10 , the difficulty of manipulating the main body  10  is increased and the challenge of the game is increased, thereby enhancing the amusement effect. 
     Furthermore, the long rod  13  is provided with a telescopic portion  131 . In this embodiment, the telescopic portion  131  is a telescopic collar structure. The collar structure of the telescopic portion  131  includes a plurality of collars each having an equal cross-sectional area and connected to each other, and has elasticity and bounce property for changing the length and flexibility of the long rod  13 . Thereby, the toy grabbing mechanism  1  not only simulates the activity of fishing but also enhances the difficulty of the game, further enhancing the challenge and amusement effect. 
     Preferably, the number of the claw members  11  is three, which is beneficial for gripping the toy  2 . When the number of the claw members  11  is two, the catching stability is poor. It is more difficult to grip the toy  2  through the claw members  11 , reducing the user&#39;s willingness to play the game. On the other hand, when the number of the claw members  11  is four, there may be too many of the balancing portions  113  in the accommodating space  102 , causing the balancing portions  113  to collide with each other easily during the game and reducing the maximum rotation angle when any one of the balancing portions  113  is actuated. Similarly, when the number of the claw members  11  is five or more, it is more unfavorable for operation. On the other hand, since the claw members  11  are connected to the holes  101  and the recesses  121 , the numbers of the claw members  11 , the holes  101  and the recesses  121  must be the same. If the number of the claw members  11  is four or more, the production cost of the toy grabbing mechanism  1  is increased. In this way, the toy grabbing mechanism  1  is provided with three claw members  11 , which is cost-effective and provides a better gripping effect. 
     In addition, the main body  10 , the movable member  12  and the claw members  11  are made of a plastic material, and more particularly to a hard material. Preferably, the toy  2  is also made of a plastic material. Thereby, through the low density, good toughness and low cost of plastic materials, it is easy for users to play the game. 
     In summary, the toy grabbing mechanism  1  of the present invention is used for catching or gripping the toy  2 , thereby training the physical coordination and providing amusement and challenge. The user can manipulate the main body  10  to move the movable member  12  relative to the main body  10  and further manipulate the claw members  11  to change the gripping space  114  for catching and gripping the toy  2 . The pivoting portions  112  each having an arc shape are pivotally connected to the recesses  121 , thereby improving the stability. The toy grabbing mechanism  1  improves the shortcomings of conventional fishing toys and claw machines and enhances the user&#39;s physical coordination during the game and has better amusement and challenge. 
     Although particular embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.