Patent Publication Number: US-5421575-A

Title: Ball game toy

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to a game of skill which tests the manual dexterity of the user in moving a ball along a drop path and through a series of holes formed in respective spaced, parallel aligned platforms without the ball rolling off a platform and prematurely interrupting play. 
     2. Background Art 
     Ball game toys are well known to adults and children, alike. Typically, the toy is manually manipulated by the user to move a ball into a hole that is formed in a single planer playing surface. Many of these games are often played quickly and require a relatively low level of skill. It would therefore be desirable to have available a ball game toy to be played by both adults and children that will require a great deal of skill and typically consume a large amount of time to successfully complete. Rather than merely locating a ball within a hole in a single playing surface, the ball of the new toy must be moved through a series of holes in successive playing surfaces stacked one above the other. The failure of the user to move the ball from one playing surface to the next will result in the ball rolling off the stack of playing surfaces thereby requiring that the game be restarted anew. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In general terms, a ball game toy is disclosed having top and bottom end caps and a hollow, cylindrical body extending therebetween. A control rod extends longitudinally through the body and outwardly from the top and bottom ends. A finger control ball is located at each end of the control rod to facilitate manipulation of the toy by the user so that the corresponding movement of a ball may be controlled. The control rod supports a stack of disk-like platforms that are retained in spaced, parallel alignment with one another through the housing. Each platform of the stack has a hole formed therethrough to establish a drop path from the first platform to the last. Each platform also has a guide rail located diametrically opposite the hole so as to prevent the ball from rolling off the platform. The stack of platforms is spaced radially inward from the cylindrical body to establish a fall path between the stack and the body. 
     During play, the user tilts and rotates the toy by means of the finger control balls in an effort to maneuver the ball along the drop path and through each of the holes formed in the stack of platforms. Play is successfully concluded when the ball is received by a catch located below the hole formed through the last platform of the stack. However, play is prematurely interrupted in the event that the ball rolls off a platform of the stack and falls, under the influence of gravity, along the drop path into the bottom end cap. In this case, play may be resumed (i.e. started anew) by returning the ball to a starting disk located in the housing above the stack of platforms. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the ball game toy which forms the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the ball game toy of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the ball game toy of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the toy taken along lines 4--4 of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the ball game toy of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 6 is a cross-section of the ball game toy taken along lines 6--6 of FIG. 2. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Details of the ball game toy 1 which form this invention are now disclosed when referring concurrently to FIGS. 1-6 of the drawings. The toy 1 includes a cylindrical body 2 having a hemispherically shaped cap 4 and 6 secured to each end thereof. The body 2 and end caps 4 and 6 are manufactured from a transparent, impact resistant material, such as clear plastic, or the like. An elongated control rod 8 extends longitudinally through the toy 1 in coaxial alignment with the cylindrical body 2. A finger control ball 9 and 10 is located at each end of the control rod 8 to permit the user to grasp the control rod and thereby manipulate the toy 1 in a manner that will be described in greater detail hereinafter. 
     A vertical (i.e. longitudinally extending) stack of disk-like platforms 12 are supported in spaced parallel alignment with one another along the control rod 8 at the interior of cylindrical body 2. As is best shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the stack of platforms 12 is spaced radially inward from the cylindrical body 2. In the embodiment illustrated, the control rod 8 supports a stack of eleven platforms 12. While the number of platforms 12 carried on control rod 8 within cylindrical body 2 determine the skill required to successfully play the ball game toy 1, it is to be expressly understood that the precise number of platforms 12 is not to be regarded as a limitation of the present invention. 
     Each disk-like platform 12 has a round hole 14 extending therethrough. To increase the difficulty in playing the toy, the location of the holes 14 in successive platforms 12 alternates between diametrically opposite positions. In this regard, the series of holes 14 from one platform 12 of the stack to the next platform therebelow forms a drop path (best illustrated in FIG. 4 and designated by the reference numeral 16). In the case of the last or bottom platform 12-1 of the stack, a catch 18 (also best shown in FIG. 4) is secured (e.g. glued) immediately below the hole 14 therethrough. The catch 18 receives a ball 30 that has completed the drop path 16 and fallen through each of the holes 14 in platforms 12 and 12-1, whereby to successfully conclude the game. 
     To assist the player in maneuvering the ball 30 through the holes 14 of platforms 12 and along the drop path 16, an arcuate guide rail 20 is disposed circumferentially around a portion of each disk-like platform 12 of the stack. Each guide rail 20 is located diametrically opposite the hole 14 formed through each platform 12, such that the positions of the rails 20 alternate from one platform 12 to the next. The guide rails 20 function to intercept and block the ball 30 from inadvertently rolling off a platform 12 of the stack and falling downwardly along a fall path (best illustrated in FIG. 4 and designated by the reference numeral 26) established in the space between the platforms 12 and the cylindrical body 2 of the toy 1. In this case, the ball 30 will fall under the influence of gravity to the bottom end cap 6 (best shown in FIG. 1). 
     Extending laterally and completely across the ball game toy 1 above the stack of platforms 12 at the interface of the top end cap 4 with the body 2 is a starting disk 22. The starting disk 22 has a hole 14-1 formed therethrough similar to the holes 14 formed through respective disk-like platforms 12 of the stack of platforms located below starting disk 22. Located diametrically opposite the opening 14-1 through starting disk 22 is an entry port 24. The purpose of entry port 24 is to provide an access opening to permit the ball 30 which has rolled off a platform 12 and moved along the fall path 26 (of FIG. 4) to the bottom end cap 6 to be returned to the starting disk 22 by way of a return path (best illustrated in FIG. 4 and designated by the reference numeral 28) established in the space between the stack of platforms 12 and the cylindrical body 2. In this regard, it will be necessary to turn the ball game toy 1 upside down so that the ball 30 will fall through the entry port 24. When the toy is turned over again, the ball 30 is free to roll along the starting disk 22 above the stack of platforms 12 until play begins anew. 
     It may be appreciated that the aforementioned fall path 26 and return path 28 (of FIG. 4) are established in the same space between the stack of disk-like platforms 12 and the cylindrical body 2 of toy 1. However, it should be similarly recognized that the ball 30 will move in a first (e.g. downward) direction along the fall path 26 after rolling off a platform 12 to end play and in an opposite (e.g. upward) direction along the return path 28 for receipt through the entry port 24 to restart play. 
     More particularly, play begins when the ball 30 drops through the hole 14-1 in the starting disk 14-1 to be received by the first platform 12 of the stack of platforms located below disk 14-1. The object of the ball game toy 1 of this invention is for the player to exercise skill and manual dexterity to carefully roll the ball 30 around each of the disk-like platforms 12 so that the ball 30 will eventually fall through each of the holes 14 in successive platforms 12. To this end, the user grasps the finger control balls 9 and 10 at the ends of the control rod 8 in order to manipulate (e.g. rotate or tilt) the toy 1 so that the ball 30 completes the drop path 16 (of FIG. 4) through the holes 14 in successive platforms 12 of the stack until the ball 30 is safely received within the catch 18 at the last platform 12-1. Play is concluded when the ball is moved from the starting disk 22 to the catch 18 without rolling off any of the platforms 12 or 12-1 therebetween. 
     Although the guide rails 20 can be used to the advantage of the player to prevent the ball 30 from rolling off the platforms 12, play will be prematurely interrupted in the event that the ball 30 moves out of the drop path 16 and rolls into the fall path 26 (of FIG. 4). In this case, the ball 30 will fall downwardly past the stack of platforms 12 to the bottom end cap 6. Play may resume and start anew in the manner described above by returning the ball 30 to the starting disk 22 via the return path 28 and the entry port 24. 
     It will be apparent that while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention.