Patent Publication Number: US-2004055190-A1

Title: Crystal ball structure delivering multi-layer rotation and light effects

Description:
F IELD OF  I NVENTION    
       [0001] This invention is related to a crystal ball structure delivering multi-layer rotation and light effects, comprising a crystal ball, a seat, ornaments, a rubber plug, model containers, a rotation mechanism, a driving mechanism, a light, and a music box, wherein the rotation mechanism comprises a fixed plate, first rotation plate, second rotation plate, a follower, and at least an idle gear between said first rotation plate and said second plate. The mechanic energy released from the fastened spiral power spring drives the driving mechanism, the follower, the first rotation plate, the idle gear, and the second rotation plate to rotate. The light fixed on the first rotation plate or the fixed plate can rotate or stay still when it illuminates, setting off the dynamic decorative effect of the ornaments.  
       B ACKGROUND OF  I NVENTION    
       [0002] A “dynamic scenic ornament” refers to a crystal ball enclosing decorative models of trees, houses, castles, cartoons, or their combinations with a decorative background (e.g., virtual snowfall). The convex glass effect resulted from the crystal ball filled with liquid highlights the scenic ornament in the crystal ball. Moreover, if a music box with a manual spiral power spring is mounted in the seat of the crystal ball, both visual and audio effects will occur.  
       [0003] In order to enhance the dynamic effect of scenic ornaments, most of them can move regularly, such as a kind granny weaving a sweater on a swaying rocking chair, a rotating Santa Claus on a sledge driving deer, even a crystal ball filled with paillettes falling down slowly in the liquid, generating a scene of virtual snowfall. All of above dynamic ornaments are aimed to enhance the visual effect of crystal balls.  
       [0004] However, conventional dynamic scenic ornaments can only rotate in clockwise or counter clockwise, limiting the layouts of them and degrading the dynamic effect. If multi-layer rotation can be implemented, the dynamic scenic ornaments will be more vivid. For example, in a virtual scene, if an ornament rotates clockwise and another ornament rotates clockwise or counter clockwise, at a same speed or at a different speed, the entire scene will be more attractive in visual effect for the multi-layer rotation.  
       [0005] Further, besides the vivid 3D visual effect of multi-layer rotation, if decorative light is added in above visual scene, it will set off significantly the visual effect of the scene under the help of the convex glass effect of the crystal ball and the reflective effect of the liquid in the crystal ball. On the basis of years of experience in design of dynamic scenic ornaments, the inventor invents a crystal ball structure delivering multi-layer rotation and light effects.  
       S UMMARY OF  I NVENTION    
       [0006] The main purpose of this invention is to provide a crystal ball structure delivering multi-layer rotation effect, comprising a crystal ball, a seat, ornaments, a rubber plug, model containers, a rotation mechanism, a driving mechanism, a light, and a music box, wherein the rotation mechanism comprises a fixed plate, first rotation plate, second rotation plate, a follower, and at least an idle gear between said first rotation plate and said second plate. The mechanic energy released from the fastened spiral power spring drives the driving mechanism, the follower, the first rotation plate, the idle gear, and the second rotation plate to rotate simultaneously. The first rotation plate and the second rotation plate can rotate in the same direction or in contrary directions at the same speed or at different speeds, depending on the number of idle gears between them. Thus the dynamic effect of the ornaments on the first rotation plate and the second rotation plate will be much richer.  
       [0007] Another purpose of this invention is to provide a crystal ball structure with light effect, i.e., a light is mounted on said first rotation plate or said fixed plate, and the light can rotate or stay still on the fixed plate when it illuminates, setting off the dynamic decorative effect of said scene.  
       [0008] The foregoing and other technical contents of the invention can be further realized with the drawings and detailed explanations of the embodiments. 
     
    
    
     B RIEF  D ESCRIPTION OF  D RAWINGS    
     [0009]FIG. 1 is a 3D exploded view according to the first embodiment of this invention.  
     [0010]FIG. 2 is a sectional view according to the first embodiment of this invention.  
     [0011]FIG. 3 is an assembly drawing of the invention.  
     [0012]FIG. 4 is a 3D exploded view according to the second embodiment of this invention.  
     [0013]FIG. 5 is a sectional view according to the second embodiment of this invention.  
     [0014]FIG. 6 is a 3D exploded view according to the third embodiment of this invention.  
     [0015]FIG. 7 is a sectional view according to the third embodiment of this invention. 
    
    
     D ETAILED  D ESCRIPTIONS OF  E MBODIMENTS    
     [0016] Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 that are a 3D exploded view and a sectional view of the crystal ball according to the first embodiment of this invention. Said embodiment comprises a crystal ball, a seat, ornaments, a rubber plug, model containers, a driving mechanism, a light, and a music box.  
     [0017] Wherein the music box also serves as the power source for the rotation of the ornaments. After the spiral power spring is fastened manually via the pivot under the seat and then released, it will drive the wheel  81  of the music box, and at the same time, drive the vertical driving gear  82 .  
     [0018] The driving mechanism is mounted on a bracket  70  on top of the music box, and it is driven to rotate when the horizontal coronal gear  71  under the shaft and said driving gear  82  couple with each other. Thus the 4 driving arms  72  rotate along with the driving mechanism.  
     [0019] The follower  61  of the rotation mechanism comprises a central shaft  610  and a round ring  611 , wherein the central shaft  610  has a hole  612  to couple with the connecting shaft  602  connected to the first rotation plate  60 . There are 4 following arms  613  on the central shaft  610  at the position of the round plate  611 , and they can be coupled with said driving arms  72  to rotate, thus the first rotation plate  60  rotates with the following arms  613 .  
     [0020] The model container comprises a round containing plate  50  and a hollow cylinder  51 , wherein the containing plate  50  has a central hole  500 , a fixing hole  501  at the eccentric center, and a locating hole  502  at the eccentric center, and the hollow cylinder  51  is conglutinated with the rubber plug  4 .  
     [0021] The first rotation plate  60  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  600  on the top, a driving shaft  601  in the middle, and a connecting shaft  602  at the bottom. Each of the three shafts has a trough hole  603  at the center. The plate  600  on the top is used to fix an ornament. The driving shaft  601  in the middle has a spur gear  604 , which is used to drive a driving idle gear  62 . The connecting shaft  602  at the bottom penetrates the through hole  500  on said containing plate  50  and is fixed in the central hole  612  of said follower  61 .  
     [0022] The transparent tube  90  of said light is inserted in the through hole  603  of the plate  600  on the top of said first rotation plate  60 . The transparent tube  90  contains a lamp bulb  91 , the lead  92  of which runs through the through hole  603  of said first rotation plate  60  and extends downwards to the power supply unit (not shown).  
     [0023] The idle gear  62  of the rotation mechanism gears into the spur gear  604  on the driving shaft  601  in the middle of the first rotation plate  60 . The shaft  620  of said idle gear  62  is inserted in the location hole  502  at the eccentric center.  
     [0024] Please refer to view A in the FIG. 2. The second rotation plate  63  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  630  containing an ornament and an internal tooth ring  631  coupled with said idle gear  62 .  
     [0025] The fixed plate  64  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  640  containing an ornament and a fixing pin  641  extending downwards. The fixing pin  641  is fixed in the fixing hole  501  on the containing plate  50 , and it fixes the second rotation plate  63  on the containing plate  50 .  
     [0026] In assembling the first embodiment of the invention, firstly, install and fix said rotation mechanism and the light on the model container, and agglutinate the ornaments on the first rotation plate  60 , the fixed plate  64 , and the second rotation plate  63 , and fuse or agglutinate the rubber plug  4  onto the hollow cylinder  51  of the model container with ultrasonic technology. After fitting the opening of the crystal ball  1  onto the seat  2  and agglutinate together and fill the crystal ball with liquid, press the rubber plug  4  firmly into the opening of the crystal ball  1  to avoid potential leakage of the liquid from the crystal ball  1 . At last, fix the bottom plate (with a music box) onto the bottom of the seat.  
     [0027] Please refer to FIG. 3. After this invention is assembled, when the spiral power spring is fastened and then released, the spiral power spring will drive the wheel  81  of the music box to play the music and at the same time drive said driving arms  72 , following arms  613 , the first rotation plate  60 , the driving idle gear  62 , and the second rotation plate  63  to rotate. Because that the second rotation plate  63  is driven by the first rotation plate  60  via the idle gear  62 , the first rotation plate  60  and the second rotation plate  63  rotate in contrary directions. Thus the ornaments on them also rotate in contrary directions, setting off the dynamic result and make the scene more vivid. As shown in FIG. 3, the train model  3   a  is fixed on said second rotation plate  63 , which rotates counter clockwise. The model  3   b  of tunnel and houses is fixed on said first rotation plate  60 , which rotates clockwise. Under the drive of the rotation mechanism, the model  3   b  of tunnel and houses stays still; the model  3   c  of Santa Claus driving a sledge rotates clockwise; the train model  3   a  rotates counter clockwise. The combination of moving scenes and static scene makes the invention more vivid. Furthermore, the light (not shown) on the first rotation plate  60  rotates and illuminates as the models rotate, setting off the beauty of the invention.  
     [0028] In above first embodiment of this invention, if more idle gears are applied between the first rotation plate  60  and the second rotation plate  63 , for example, another idle gear may be installed beside said idle gear  62 , and it may be geared to the second rotation plate  63 . Thus the first rotation plate  60  and the second rotation plate  63  will rotate in the same direction through the two idle gears. Furthermore, the size of the second idle gear may be different to that of the first idle gear  60  to change the rotation speed of the second rotation plate  63 . In this way, multi rotation patterns can be implemented.  
     [0029] In above first embodiment of this invention, because that the light is mounted on the first rotation plate  60 , it rotates along with the first plate  60 . However, in some scenic designs, it is required that the light stays still to match the entire scene. Therefore, in the second embodiment of this invention, the light may be fixed on the fixed plate on the rotation mechanism to keep it stay still.  
     [0030] Please refer to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 that are a 3D exploded view and a sectional view of crystal ball according to this invention, wherein:  
     [0031] The model container comprises a round containing plate  50  and a hollow cylinder  51 . The containing plate  50  has a central though hole  500 , a fixing hole  501  at the eccentric center, a location hole  502  at the eccentric center, and a power lead hole  503 . The hollow cylinder  51  is agglutinate with the rubber plug  4 .  
     [0032] The first rotation plate  60  comprises a top gear  601  to drive the idle gear and a connecting shaft  602  fitted with a shaft gland  605 . The connecting shaft  602  runs through the through hole  500  of said containing plate  50  and is fixed in the central hole  612  of the follower  61 .  
     [0033] The idle gear  62  on the rotation mechanism is geared to the top gear  601  on said first rotation plate  60 . The shaft  620  of the idle gear  62  is inserted into the location hole  502  at the eccentric center of the containing plate  50 .  
     [0034] Please refer to view A in the FIG. 4. The second rotation plate  63  on the rotation mechanism comprises a hollow plate  631  containing an ornament and an internal tooth ring  631  geared to said idle gear  62 .  
     [0035] The fixed plate  64  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  640  containing an ornament and a fixing pin  641  extruding downwards. The fixing pin  641  is fixed in the fixing hole  501  of the containing plate  50 , and it fixes the second rotation plate  63  on the containing plate  50 . The fixed plate  64  has a shaft hole  642  at the center, which has an end tube  643  at the top. There is a notch  644  on the end tube  643  along the axis. There is also a horizontal long groove  645  on the fixed plate  640 , against the notch  644  on the end tube  643 ;  
     [0036] The transparent tube  90  of the light is inserted in the end tube  643  at the center of said fixed plate  64 . The transparent tube  90  contains a lamp  91 , the lead  92  of which runs through the L-type gap formed by the notch  644  on said end tube  643  and the long groove  645  on the fixed plate  640  and the power lead hole  503  on the containing plate  50  and reaches to the power supply unit (not shown). In order to avoid any leakage of the liquid from the crystal ball, a rubber seal  93  should be applied at the power lead hole  503  on the containing plate  50 , where the power lead  90  runs through.  
     [0037] In that way, the second embodiment of the invention provides another driving pattern, i.e., the light and scenic model fixed on the fixed plate  64  stay still. However, the scenic model fixed on the second rotation plate  63  rotates around the fixed scenic model on said rotation plate  64 . At the same time, the light fixed on the fixed plate  64  keeps illuminating, highlighting the scene.  
     [0038] In above first embodiment and the second embodiment, if the light is mounted on the first rotation plate  60  on the rotation mechanism, the light will rotate along with the first rotation plate  60 ; however, if the light is mounted on the fixed plate  64 , the light will stay still. But in some cases, due to the limitation on scene design or the cost, the light has to be omitted. In the third embodiment of this invention, which is described hereunder, a crystal ball structure with multi-layer rotation effect but no light component is disclosed.  
     [0039] Please refer to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 that are a 3D exploded view and a sectional view of crystal ball according to the third embodiment of this invention. Wherein:  
     [0040] The model container comprise a round containing plate  50  and a hollow cylinder  51 , wherein the containing plate  50  has a through hole  500 , a fixing hole  501  and a position hole  502 . The hollow cylinder  51  is agglutinate with a rubber plug  4 ;  
     [0041] The first rotation plate  60  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  600  containing a thematic model, a spur gear  604  under the plate  600 , and a connecting shaft  602  under the plate  600 , wherein the connecting shaft  602  is fitted with a shaft gland  605 . The connecting shaft  602  runs through the through hole  500  of said containing plate  50  and is geared to the follower  61 .  
     [0042] The follower  61  on the rotation mechanism comprises a central shaft  610  and a round ring  611 , wherein the central shaft  610  has a hole  612 , through which the central shaft  610  is coupled firmly with the connecting shaft  602  of the first rotation plate  60 . The central shaft  610  extends downwards and has 4 following arms  613  at the bottom, which are coupled with said driving arms  72  and rotate with the first rotation plate  60  under the drive of said driving arms  72 ;  
     [0043] The idle gear  62  on the rotation mechanism is geared to the top gear  601  on said first rotation plate  60 . The shaft  620  of the idle gear  62  is inserted into the location hole  502  of the containing plate  50 .  
     [0044] Please refer to view A in the FIG. 6. The second rotation plate  63  on the rotation plate comprises a hollow plate  630  containing a thematic model and an internal tooth ring  631  geared to said idle gear  62 ;  
     [0045] The fixed plate  64  on the rotation mechanism comprises a plate  640  containing a thematic model and a fixing pin  641  extending downwards. The fixing pin  641  is fixed in the fixing hole  501  on the containing plate  50 , and it fixes the second rotation plate  63  on the containing plate  50 .  
     [0046] In assembling the third embodiment of the invention, firstly, install and fix the components of said rotation mechanism on the model container, and agglutinate the thematic models on the first rotation plate  60 , the fixed plate  64 , and the second rotation plate  63 , and fuse or agglutinate the rubber plug  4  onto the hollow cylinder  51  of the model container with ultrasonic technology. After fitting the opening of the crystal ball  1  onto the seat  2  and agglutinate together and fill the crystal ball with liquid, press the rubber plug  4  firmly into the opening of the crystal ball  1  to avoid potential leakage of the liquid from the crystal ball  1 . At last, fix the bottom plate  80  (with a music box) onto the bottom of the seat.  
     [0047] After that embodiment is assembled, when the spiral power spring is fastened and then released, the spiral power spring will drive the wheel  81  of the music box to play the music and at the same time drive said driving arms  72 , following arms  613 , the first rotation plate  60 , the driving idle gear  62 , and the second rotation plate  63  to rotate. Because that the second rotation plate  63  is driven by the first rotation plate  60  via the idle gear  62 , the first rotation plate  60  and the second rotation plate  63  rotate in contrary directions. Thus the thematic models on them also rotate in contrary directions, setting off the dynamic result and make the scene more vivid.