Patent Publication Number: US-6663462-B1

Title: Aggression-relieving stuffed doll

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present application relates generally to dolls and, more particularly, to a stuffed doll in the form of a sports player and having pins that may be selectively inserted into the front of the doll but are prevented from passing entirely through the doll. 
     Sports fans often become quite agitated or even infuriated by the performance or antics of players on their favorite sports team or the opposing team. It is both entertaining and relieving for these sports fans to have an outlet by which to vent their emotion. 
     Therefore, it would be desirable to have a stuffed doll that simulates a sports player into which sharp pins may be inserted. Further, it is desirable to have a stuffed doll that may be penetrated by pins while still protecting the person holding the doll from becoming inadvertently wounded by the pins. In addition, it would be desirable to have a stuffed doll with a compartment for holding a plurality of pins. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A general object of this invention is to provide a stuffed doll that simulates a player on a sports team. 
     Another object of this invention is to provide a stuffed doll, as aforesaid, that may be partially penetrated by a pin so as to relieve a sports fan&#39;s aggression toward an actual player. 
     Still another object of this invention is to provide a stuffed doll, as aforesaid, which prohibits full penetration by a pin so as to protect a user from being inadvertently wounded by the pin. 
     Yet another object of this invention is to provide a stuffed doll, as aforesaid, having replaceable indicia for associating the doll with an actual sports player. 
     An aggression-relieving stuffed sports doll according to the present invention meets the above-mentioned objects and will be described more fully below. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a stuffed doll according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a fragmentary rear perspective view of the doll as in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view of an arm assembly of the doll as in FIG. 1 with a portion of the doll body broken away; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inner plates that are held within the doll body of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 5 is a side view of the doll as in FIG. 1 with the outer layer of the doll body broken away. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     An aggression-relieving stuffed doll  10  simulative of a sports player according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 through 5 of the accompanying drawings. The doll  10  includes a doll body  12  with an inner framework  50  situated therein. More particularly, the doll body  12  includes a torso  14  with a head  16  connected to an upper end thereof (FIG.  1 ). The doll body  12  also includes a pair of arms  18  fixedly attached to opposed sides thereof. In addition, a pair of legs  20  depend from a lower end of the torso  14  of the doll body  12 . Of course, the doll body  12  may include hands  22  and feet  24  as well. 
     The doll body  12  includes an outer layer formed of a soft, flexible material substantially filled with a soft, flexible stuffing material  30  (FIG.  5 ). It is understood that the head, torso, arms, and legs are all substantially filled with stuffing material  30  such as cloth, pellets, foam, or the like. The doll body  12  includes several elements that stimulate a sports player, such as a football player. It should be appreciated, of course, that doll bodies resembling players of other sports would also be suitable, e.g. baseball, hockey, soccer, or basketball players. More particularly, a head covering  32  such as a football helmet is attached to the head  16  of the doll body  12  so as to contribute to the simulation of a football player (FIG.  1 ). Further, clothing  34  simulative of an appropriate sports player is attached to the torso  14 , arms  18 , and legs  20  of the doll body  12 . It is understood that the clothing may include padded sections to simulate shoulder pads or may include other indicia such as leg pads  36  or the like. 
     Similarly, the stuffed doll  10  may include player identification means. More particularly, the clothing that is attached to the torso  14  of the doll body  12  (e.g. a player jersey) or the torso  14  itself if no clothing is included includes a player indicia receiving area  40  (FIG.  1 ). Preferably, the player indicia receiving area  40  includes hook and loop fastening material. The doll also includes a player identification sheet  42  having player identification indicia  44  (i.e. a player number) imprinted on a front side thereof. A rear surface of the sheet  42  includes another hook and loop fastening material  30 . Therefore, a player identification sheet  42  having a desired player number may be releasably retained on the doll body  12  by engaging the hook and loop fastening materials. It should be appreciated that multiple identification sheets  42  may be included with the stuffed doll  10  so that player numbers may be interchangeably attached by a user as desired. 
     The stuffed doll  10  according to the preferred embodiment includes a plurality of pins  46 . Each pin  46  includes a blunt end  48  in the form of a sports ball, such as a football (FIG.  2 ). Each pin  46  further includes an opposed sharp end (not shown) that is capable of being inserted into the doll body  12 . In other words, the sharp end of each pin may be inserted through the soft, flexible outer layer of a selective portion of the doll body such as the head  16 , torso  14 , arms  18 , or legs  20  (FIG.  1 ). Once inserted, a pin  46  will be retained therein by the stuffing material  30 . 
     Further, the stuffed doll  10  includes an inner framework  50  that enables movement of the arms  18  and legs  20  and protects a user from inadvertently being pricked by full penetration of a pin through the doll body  12 . More particularly, the inner framework  50  includes a torso plate  52  with a head plate  54  fixedly attached thereto (FIG.  4 ). These plates are constructed of a rigid material that is substantially impenetrable such as ABS plastic, although a polypropylene, nylon, or even metal construction would also work. The torso plate  52  includes a generally V-shaped configuration that forms a receptacle for holding the plurality of pins  46  when not in use (FIG.  5 ). The torso  14  of the doll body  12  defines an opening  56  giving access to the receptacle and through which pins  46  may be inserted or removed. A cover  58  may be pivotally coupled to the torso  14  such that the receptacle opening  56  may be selectively covered. The cover  58  may be coupled with a hinge or just be constructed out of flexible material (e.g. a flap). The cover  58  may be held in a closed configuration using hook and loop fastening materials  59   a ,  59   b  (FIG.  2 ). 
     It should be appreciated that most of the stuffing material  30  is positioned in front of the torso and head plates into which the pins  46  may be freely inserted. The substantially impenetrable plates then form a barrier through which the pins  46  may not penetrate. The torso and head plates  52 ,  54  include height and width dimensions that are substantially equal to the dimensions of the torso  14  and head  16 , respectively, of the doll body  12  so as to prevent the complete penetration described above. This construction prevents the pins from penetrating completely through the doll body and impaling a user&#39;s hand. 
     The inner framework  50 . includes a pair of arm assemblies positioned within the arms  18  of the doll body  12  (FIG.  4 ). Each arm assembly includes first  60  and second  66  arm segments constructed of a generally impenetrable material similar to the rigid material described previously. The first arm segments  60  include respective opposed first  62  and second  64  ends. The inner framework  50  includes a pair of first arm coupling elements  70  for coupling first ends  62  of respective first arm segments  60  to opposed sides of the torso plate  52 . Each first arm coupling element  70  includes a ball section  72  and a socket section  74  capable of rotatably retaining a corresponding ball section  72 . The ball and socket sections of each first arm coupling element  70  maintain a relatively tight friction fit relationship such that the first arm segments  60  will maintain whatever orientation a user adjusts them to. The inner framework  50  also includes a pair of second arm coupling elements  76  for coupling respective first ends  68  of the second arm segments  66  with corresponding second ends  64  of respective first arm segments  60 . Each second arm coupling element  76  includes ball  78  and socket  80  sections having a construction substantially similar to the first arm coupling elements  70  previously described. 
     The inner framework  50  further includes a pair of leg assemblies, each leg assembly having substantially impenetrable first  82  and second  84  leg segments. In the same manner as described previously, respective first leg segments  82  are coupled to a bottom edge of the torso plate  52  with first leg coupling elements  86 . Respective second leg segments  84  are coupled to corresponding first leg segments  82  with second leg coupling elements  88 . The leg coupling elements are preferably constructed of ball and socket combinations although other rotatable or pivotal constructions, such as hinges, would also be suitable. 
     It is understood that the stuffed sports dolls according to this invention may present various colors and players from various sports. The dolls may also be formed as referees, umpires, or other usual participants. It is also contemplated that sets of team indicia may be included so that a user may customize the doll to a particular team. 
     In use, the plurality of pins  46  are first stored in the receptacle but may be removed through the receptacle opening  56  when needed. A user may place the desired player identification sheet  42  on the front of the torso  14  and may orient the arms  18  and legs as desired. When aggravated by an actual sports player, the user may remove one or more pins  46  from the receptacle and insert them into the doll body  12  at desired locations. The pins  46  will easily penetrate the doll body  12  but will be prevented by the inner plates from going all the way through. Player identification sheets  42  may be interchanged as desired and the pins  46  may be removed and stored in the receptacle when finished. 
     It is understood that while certain forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims and allowable functional equivalents thereof.