Patent Publication Number: US-2005136789-A1

Title: Multipurpose saucer-shaped toy

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to a multipurpose saucer-shaped toy, and more particularly to a saucer-shaped toy having a manufactured form that can be easily modified in a manufacturing process and adapted to provide different applications, such as serving as a throwing toy, a toy stamp, or an item for collection.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      There are various kinds of toys available in the market. Some of these toys, such as electronic games and remotely controllable models, are complicate and expensive, while others, such as cards, cartoon figure collection cards, and sectional chips or blocks, have small volume and simple structure to provide multiple intellectual games. Unlike the electronic games and remotely controllable models, the small and simple toys are almost indispensable in most children&#39;s growth process. However, most of these small and simple toys have the following disadvantages: 
      1. They are designed to have only one or a few applications and fail to provide diverse games. For example, the cartoon figure collection card is designed for collection only, and the sectional chips or blocks are designed for intellectual assembling only.     2. They have a structure or composition subject to breaking or wearing and fail to maintain at a perfect condition over a long time.     3. They are manufactured to have a fixed form and function. When it is desired to provide the same toy with an additional playing effect, the manufacturing process for the toy must be largely modified. For example, the toy stamp and the collection card could not be manufactured using the same one process.    

      Therefore, most toy manufacturers have to produce a large number of different toy products that require considerably high management and manufacturing costs. And, most of these toys fail to always reflect the newest trend in consumers&#39; preference.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      A primary object of the present invention is to provide a multipurpose saucer-shaped toy that has multiple applications to serve either as a throwing toy, stationery, an item for collection, or a toy that can be played in different manners as can be freely imagined by children.  
      Another object of the present invention is to provide a multipurpose saucer-shaped toy that could be maintained at a perfect condition over a long time, and may be easily changed in a manufactured form thereof to enable more than one type of playing effect.  
      To achieve the above and other objects, the multipurpose saucer-shaped toy of the present invention includes an integrally formed circular shallow plate that has a substantially U-shaped cross section, and includes a flat bottom, a protective ring portion integrally formed around or connected to an outer periphery of the flat bottom, and a design portion raised or depressed from the flat bottom and having a specific configuration, such as a hexagon. Different embossed figures or designs are selectively provided on the design portion by way of printing, engraving, or pressing, so that the saucer-shaped toy has a variety of applications, such as serving as a throwing toy, a toy stamp, and an item for collection. Moreover, since the figures or designs provided on the design portion may be maintained at a perfect condition over a long time, the saucer-shaped toy of the present invention has increased value for collection. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The structure and the technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above and other objects can be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein  
       FIG. 1  is a top perspective view of a saucer-shaped toy of the present invention having a raised design portion formed on a bottom thereof;  
       FIG. 2  is a top plan view of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 3  is a sectioned side view of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 4  is a top perspective view of a saucer-shaped toy of the present invention having a depressed design portion formed on a bottom thereof;  
       FIG. 5  is a sectioned side view of  FIG. 4 ;  
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the saucer-shaped toy of the present invention having an embossed design pressed on the design portion of the bottom to provide a toy stamp; and  
       FIG. 7  shows the saucer-shaped toy of the present invention may have a flat block or a sticker attached to the design portion on the bottom. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
      Please refer to FIGS.  1  to  3 , in which a multipurpose saucer-shaped toy  1  according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.  
      The saucer-shaped toy  1  is a circular member integrally formed from a plastic or a metal material, so that it looks like a round shallow plate having a generally U-shaped cross section. The saucer-shaped toy  1  includes a flat bottom  3 , a circular protective ring portion  2  integrally formed around or connected to an outer periphery of the bottom  3 , and a design portion  4  formed within the bottom  3  to show a specific design. In the illustrated embodiment, the design portion  4  is a hexagon. The design portion  4  may be raised from the flat bottom  3 , as shown in FIGS.  1  to  3 , or depressed from the flat bottom  3 , as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . Different figures or designs may be printed, engraved, or pressed on the design portion  4 .  
      With the U-sectioned shallow plate-like structure and the circular protective ring portion  2 , the saucer-shaped toy  1  of the present invention may serve as a throwing toy to play games just like tossing a card or a ball. The circular protective ring portion  2  not only eliminates any sharp edge on the saucer-shaped toy  1  to protect a user from being cut or scraped during playing the toy  1 , but also enables the toy  1  to be more easily picked up.  
      As mentioned above, different cartoon figures or other designs (not shown) may be printed or engraved on the design portion  4 . Therefore, the saucer-shaped toy  1  also forms a good item for collection purpose. Since the design portion  4  is either raised or depressed from the bottom  3 , figures or designs provided on a lower surface of the raised design portion  4  or on an upper surface of the depressed design portion  4  are always protected from scraping or wearing. That is, the figures or designs on the saucer-shaped toy  1  may be reserved in a perfect condition over a long time to increase the value of the saucer-shaped toy  1  as a special collection.  
      The design portion  4  raised or depressed from the bottom  3  also allows the saucer-shaped toy  1  to serve as a toy stamp to provide differently shaped imprints, such as a hexagon, or a circle having a blank hexagon therein. Please refer to  FIG. 6 . The design portion  4  may be selectively provided with embossed cartoon figures or other designs  7  through molding or pressing. The embossed design  7  on the design portion  4  allows the saucer-shaped toy  1  to serve as an even interesting toy stamp and provide rich and changeful applications. The embossed designs  7  on the design portion  4  for forming the toy stamp may be frequently and easily changed according to new trends without the need of changing a basic structural form of the saucer-shaped toy  1 .  
      In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, a flat block  5  or a sticker  6  having a configuration corresponding to that of the design portion  4  and showing different pictures or designs may be fitted in a recess defined by the raised or the depressed design portion  4  on a lower or an upper side of the bottom  3 , as shown in  FIG. 7 . The flat block  5  or the sticker  6  may be imprinted with fashionable cartoon figures, including human and animal, to meet the demands of general consumers. With the flat block  5  or the sticker  6 , it is not necessary for a toy manufacturer to frequently change the basic structural form of the saucer-shaped toy  1  or produce the saucer-shaped toy  1  with different imprints or engraved designs directly provided on the design portion  4 .  
      In brief, with the embossed  FIG. 7  and the flat blocks  5  or the stickers  6 , saucer-shaped toys  1  having the same basic structure may be easily produced at reduced manufacturing and management costs to create changeful appearances and diverse applications, such as being a throwing toy, a collection item, a toy stamp, etc.