Patent Abstract:
A game that includes a stylus with differently shaped ends and a housing having stylus-receiving holes therein that are in at least two sets corresponding to the shapes of the stylus ends. Variable visual indicators and sensors are associated with each hole, with the sensors operative to detect the presence of the stylus in the corresponding hole. A controller causes the visual indicators to be sequentially activated. The controller causes a different indictor to be activated in response the stylus being present in the targeted hole. Thus, the stylus-receiving holes are progressed through in a targeting sequence. The controller is configured to terminate an active game session in response to the earlier occurring of: expiration of the timer and detection of the insertion of the stylus into an untargeted hole. Various game modes are described, including with a vibration sensor and a moving housing.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND 
     The present invention relates to a game of amusement that employs a housing with suitable electronics and a stylus with differently shaped ends. 
     Numerous games exist, many of which employ electronics for various reasons such as timekeeping, scoring, and the like. Further, many games employ a hand-held stylus or pointer, which is sometimes used to interact with a housing. And, a few games require substantial dexterity to successfully conclude the game. However, few games combine these attributes in a fun and amusing way. As such, there remains a need for alternative games, particularly games that require substantial manual dexterity. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present invention is a game that includes a stylus with differently shaped ends and a housing having stylus-receiving holes therein that are in at least two sets corresponding to the shapes of the stylus ends. In one embodiment, the game comprises a housing having electronics associated therewith, and a stylus having first and second ends, with the first and second ends having different cross-sectional shapes. The housing has a first plurality of holes of a first shape and a second plurality of holes of a second shape, with the first shape corresponding to the shape of the stylus first end and the second shape corresponding to the shape of the stylus second end. The electronics comprise a plurality of variable visual indicators each associated with a corresponding one of the holes, with each of the visual indicators having an activated state where the indicator is relatively more visible and an deactivated state where the indicator is relatively less visible. A plurality of sensors are each associated with a corresponding one of the holes, with the sensors operative to detect the presence of the stylus in the corresponding hole. A controller circuit communicates with the lights and the sensors. The controller circuit causes not more than one of the plurality visual indicators to be activated at any given time during an active game session to indicate a target hole. The controller circuit is operative to cause a different indictor to be activated in response to detection, by the associated sensor, of the presence of the stylus in the target hole. Thus, the stylus-receiving holes are progressed through in a targeting sequence. The controller circuit is configured to terminate an active game session after initiation thereof in response to detection, by the associated sensor, of the insertion of the stylus into any non-targeted hole. 
     The controller may have a plurality of game modes. In a first game mode, the controller may be operative to cause the visual indicators to be activated in a predetermined adjacent sequence. In a second game mode, the controller may be operative to cause the indicators to be activated in a random sequence. In a third game mode, a vibration sensor may be employed, and the controller may be operative to also terminate the game session in response to detection, by the vibration sensor, of vibration of the housing. In a fourth game mode, a displacement mechanism may be employed that is capable of shaking the housing, and the controller may be operative to activate the displacement mechanism to cause the housing to intermittently move in an unpredictable fashion. 
     The various aspects and modes disclosed herein may be used alone or in any combination, as is desired. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a game according to one embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 2  shows a more detailed view of the stylus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  shows a cross-section of one end of the stylus of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4  shows a cross-section of another end of the stylus of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 5  shows top view of the housing of  FIG. 1  with the leftmost hole targeted. 
         FIG. 6  shows a block diagram of the electronics of the device of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention is directed to a game, with an exemplary embodiment shown in  FIG. 1  and generally designated  10 . The game  10  of  FIG. 1  includes a stylus and a housing having electronics therein. 
     The stylus  20  shown in  FIGS. 1-4  is a straight rod having first and second ends  22 ,  26  and an intervening midsection  24 . The first end  22  has a protrusion that has a first cross-sectional shape and the second end has a protrusion that has a second cross-sectional shape. For the exemplary stylus  20 , the first cross-sectional shape is round while the second cross-sectional shape is rectangular. However, it should be understood the cross-sectional shapes are not limited to round and rectangular, and any shape may be used, such as oval, square, star, multi-lobed, triangular, half-round, etc. Advantageously, the shapes of the ends  22 , 26  are selected to be mutually-exclusive. The midsection  24  should be of sufficient length to be readily gripped, and may include suitable grip enhancements, such as knurling or the like. By way of example, the stylus  20  may advantageously be about six inches long and about the size of a conventional wooden pencil. The stylus  20  should be rigid, and may therefore be made from any suitable rigid material such as metal (e.g., aluminum), rigid polymers, ceramics, or the like. Optionally, the stylus may be magnetized. 
     The housing  30  shown in FIGS.  1 , 5  is generally rectangular, with a top  32 , bottom  34 , and perimeter sidewalls  36 . The top  32  includes an opening  38  for a display  62  and a plurality of stylus-receiving holes  40 . The holes  40  are in two sets, a first set  40   a  having a first shape (e.g., round) and a second set  40   b  having a second shape (e.g., rectangular). For non-symmetric holes  40 , the holes  40  may be at a variety of orientations, if desired. The sets of holes  40   a , 40   b  are advantageously intermixed. The holes  40  may be arranged in any pattern, such as in the sweeping arch configuration shown in the figures. The housing  40  may also have a recess or other means (not shown) for retaining the stylus  20 . 
     The electronics  50  are housed in the housing  30 . The electronics  50 , in one embodiment shown in  FIG. 6 , include a control circuit (or simply “controller”)  52 , memory  54 , a power source  56 , a user control interface  58 , a timer circuit  60 , a display  62 , vibration sensor  64 , an audio output device  66 , a displacement mechanism  68 , a plurality of hole sensors  72 , and a plurality of lights  74 . The controller  52  controls the overall operation of the game and may take the form of suitable dedicated discrete circuitry, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or the like. The memory  54  communicates with the controller  52  and provides a location for storing control program(s), shortest times, scores, and the like, and may take any form known in the art, including internal to the controller  52 . The power source  56  supplies power to the rest of the electronics  50 , and typically takes the form of one or more batteries with suitable power conditioning circuitry as desired. The user control interface  58  may be simple or more complex as is desired. In a simple form the user control interface  58  may be a simple on/off switch. In a more complex form, the user control interface  58  may also include scroll and other input buttons for selecting an operating mode of the device, resetting the device, entering data such as names, and the like. The user control interface  58  may work in conjunction with display  62 . Display  62  is in communication with controller  52  and advantageously takes the form of an LCD display that displays, among other items, the elapsed time as measured by timer circuit  60 . Vibration sensor  64  communicates with the controller  52  and may take any form known in the art, such as an accelerometer or tilt sensor. The purpose of the vibration sensor  64  is to monitor the amount of vibration that the housing  30  is subjected to during the play of the game in some modes. The audio output device  66  may take any desired form, such as a simple buzzer, piezoelectric speaker, or the like. The audio output device  66  operates under the control of the controller  52 , and may be used to signal a successful completion of the game, an error, or may even be used to generate entertaining or distracting noises, as is desired. The shaker or displacement mechanism  68  operates under the control of controller  52 . The displacement mechanism  68  may take the form of one or more eccentric weights selectively rotating relative to a base that is suspended from a plurality of variable stiffness elastic elements disposed at asymmetric angles. The controller  52 , or electronics dedicated to the displacement mechanism  68 , could control the rate of rotation of the eccentric weights and the stiffness of the elastic elements to cause a weight shift within housing  30  that causes the housing to be displaced. The displacement mechanism  68  is operative to cause the housing  30  to move unpredictably relative to the underlying surface (e.g., table top) that the housing  30  is resting on. Advantageously, the displacement mechanism  68  is operated in an intermittent way such that the housing  30  is caused to intermittently jerk in a random direction for some modes of operation, as discussed below. 
     The hole sensors  72  communicate with the controller  52  and are operative to detect when the stylus  20  is inserted into the corresponding hole  40 . There should be a hole sensor  72  for each hole  40 . The hole sensors  72  may take the form of a reed switch (for a magnetic stylus  20  or a stylus  20  that has magnets on its ends), or advantageously a pressure switch that is tripped when the stylus  20  presses sufficiently thereagainst. 
     The lights  74  operate under control of the controller  52 , and may take the form of LEDs. There should be a light  74  for each hole  40 . The light  74  may be located at any desired angular relative position to the hole  40 , but should be located close enough to the corresponding hole  40  so that it is visually unambiguous as to which hole  40  the light  74  “belongs.” The lights  74 , as is conventional, have a lit or activated state wherein the light  74  is more visible and an unlit or deactivated state where the light  74  is less visible. 
     The device  10  may, in some embodiments, have four operating modes. In a first mode, the controller  52  may cause the lights  74  to be illuminated in a pre-determined sequence that is advantageously an adjacent sequence. As used herein, an adjacent sequence is a sequence where the items are arranged so that each intermediate item in the sequence is physically adjacent to both the previous and next item in the sequence. Thus, the targeting sequence of this mode may appear to sweep generally left-to-right across the holes  40 . When a light associated with a hole  40  is on, that hole  40  is the “target” hole. The game is played by the user inserting the correct end  22 , 26  of the stylus  20  in the target hole  40 . Due to the shapes of a given hole and the stylus ends  22 , 26 , only one end of the stylus  20  should be able to be inserted in a given hole  40 . When the hole sensor  72  of the target hole  40  detects the removal of the stylus  20  from the targeted hole, the controller  52  causes the next hole  40  in the sequence to become the target hole  40 . The user proceeds through the holes  40  as they are targeted until all holes  40  have been completed. If desired, the holes  40  may be progressed through one time or multiple times before a round is considered complete. It should be noted that as the sequence progresses, the user will be required to use different ends  22 , 26  of the stylus  20  because the holes  40  in the sequence will belong to different sets  40   a , 40   b  and therefore have different shapes. Depending on the layout, the player may be required to switch stylus ends  22 , 26  (e.g., flip the stylus  20  upside down) for each successive hole  40 , or there may be two or more holes  40  of one shape followed by one or more holes  40  of the other shape. Upon the last hole  40  being completed, the round is complete and the controller  52  causes a winning sound to be generated by audio output device  66  and the elapsed time to be displayed by display  62 . The game may then end, may continue in the same mode such as for another player, or may continue in another mode. The round may be ended successfully or unsuccessfully. An unsuccessful end occurs when the elapsed time exceeds a limit, or when the stylus  20  is inserted in an untargeted hole  40  (and the associated hole sensor  72  notifies the controller  52 ). 
     A second mode is similar to the first mode, but the targeting sequence of holes  40  appears to be random rather than a simple progression. Thus, the next hole  40  targeted may be any of the other holes  40  not already targeted. The random sequence may be truly random, or may be a predetermined sequence that appears to jump around through the available holes  40 ; both types are considered “random” herein. 
     A third mode adds a vibration aspect. In the third mode, the controller  52  also causes the round to be terminated unsuccessfully if the vibration sensor  64  determines that the housing  30  has been vibrated too much. Thus, a player must not only place the stylus  20  in the correct hole  40 , but must do so without unduly shaking the housing  30 . For the third mode, the holes  40  may be targeted in any sequence describe above. 
     A fourth mode adds a moving housing aspect. In the fourth mode, the controller  52  causes the displacement mechanism  68  to intermittently activate so as to cause the housing  30  to move in a jerking fashion, advantageously in random directions. Thus, a player must not only place the stylus  20  in the correct hole  40 , but must do so while in effect chasing the moving housing  30 . For the fourth mode, the holes  40  may be targeted in any sequence describe above. 
     The device  10  may operate according to any one of the modes described above, or may operate according to any combination of the modes described above. Advantageously, the device  10  progresses through the modes in increasing difficulty as the prior mode is successfully completed. The time displayed may be the time for a given level/mode/round or may be the cumulative time, as desired. 
     In the discussion above, lights  74  such as LEDs have been used to indicate the target hole  40 . However, the present invention is not limited to lights  74 , and any form of variable visual indicator  74  may be used. For example, each hole  40  may have an LCD display associated therewith, or a single LCD display may span several holes  40 , and the target indication may be provided by an arrow or other LCD indicia proximate the target hole  40 . The presence of the LCD indicia is considered to be an activated indicator and the absence or diminishing of the LCD indicia is considered to be a deactivated indicator. 
     The discussion above has been in the context of the stylus  20  having two differently shaped ends  22 , 26 . Such is appropriate for elongate double-ended styluses. However, the stylus  20  may, in some embodiments, be of a branched type with more than two ends, each with a protrusion of a different cross-sectional shape. For example, the stylus  20  may be T-shaped or X-shaped. The holes  40  could then be of more than two shapes, corresponding to the shapes of the stylus ends. 
     While the displacement mechanism  68  has been described above in the context of using selectively movable eccentric weights, such is not required in all embodiments. Indeed, an alternative approach is to have ball bearings or the like on the bottom  34  of housing  30  for support, and include two or more contact wheels disposed at differing angles that extend downward from the housing  30 . The contact wheels are coupled to variable speed bi-directional motors. The controller  52  controls the on/off state, speed, and direction of the motors, which in turn controls the movement of the contact wheels. Selective movement of the wheels then causes the housing  30  to be displaced in the desired random, jerking fashion. Another approach would be to use one or more contact balls rather than contact wheels, with the balls drivable in desired variable directions and speeds. 
     The present invention may, of course, be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the scope of the invention. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0