Patent Abstract:
A flying disc toy includes a cylindrical rim and a flat circular airfoil located within the rim. The centerline of the edge of the airfoil is positioned to bisect the side surface of the rim, resulting in a flying disc toy of increased stability and throwing ease. A cord, preferably of elastic material, is tethered to the symmetrical center of the circular airfoil.

Full Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/476,259, filed on Jan. 3, 2000 for Circular Flying Dick Toy, the disclosure thereof being incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The subject invention relates generally to toys and amusement devices and more particularly to an aerodynamic disc consisting of a circular center airfoil centered within a circular outer rim or ring. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Flying saucer devices, or so-called “frisbees,” are known in the prior art. Such devices have been used as throwing implements or toys, typically in games of “catch.” Such devices typically employ a central disc portion and a rim extending downwardly from and circumscribing the central disc, for example, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,359,678. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a flying disc toy including a cylindrical rim having a circular top edge running parallel to a circular bottom edge. A flat circular central airfoil having a circular edge is attached to the inner circumference of the rim such that the vertical height of the cylindrical rim extends beyond the circular edge in opposite directions by equal amounts. In addition, the central airfoil has a small aperture at its symmetrical center through which a cord of elastic or inelastic material is passed and tethered to the airfoil by a knot, either through a spherical bead or knot. When thrown, the flying disc provides increased gyroscopic effect and stability. The cord tethered to the disc may be used for catching, throwing, holding, or moving the disc about while it is spinning. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The just summarized invention will now be described in detail in conjunction with the drawings of which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken at  2 — 2  of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment; 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken at  3 — 3  of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line  6 — 6  of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line  6 — 6  of FIG. 5 showing an alternative attachment method for the cord; 
     FIG. 8 is a sectional view of an alternate embodiment of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 3 with a cord tether. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A flying disc toy  11  according to a preferred embodiment is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The center circular portion or airfoil  13  of this disc toy  11  is planar, constructed of a plastic foam board, or any other equivalent light-weight material and can vary in diameter, e.g., between 5 inches to 12 inches. The outer rim  15  is cylindrical, comprised of the same material as the airfoil  13 , and may vary in height from 1 inch to 2 inches in correlation to the size of the center circular portion or airfoil  13 . 
     The outer rim  15  is positioned around the airfoil  13  and attached at a 90 degree angle with a glue gun or other adhesive. In the alternative, the outer rim and airfoil are molded as one piece. The outer rim  15  is attached to the airfoil  13  such that the center line  17  of the edge of the airfoil  13  bisects the side surface  20  so that equal portions  19  of the side surface  20  extend to each side of center line  17 . For a 10 inch diameter disc, for example, the side portions  19  may each be about ¾ inch. As a result, the top and bottom of the flying disc toy  11  are mirror images of one another. 
     After the outer rim  15  is attached to the airfoil  13 , silicone is applied over the perimeter of seams  21 , or “equatorial line,” where the outer rim  15  connects to the airfoil  13 . The Silicone is smoothed evenly around the entire circumference on both sides to that both sides, have a smoothed layer of silicone  16  where the airfoil  13  and outer rim  15  connect. This treatment increases the circumferential weight at the outer rim  15 , increasing the gyroscopic effect tending to level the disc in flight. 
     The height of the rim  15  in relation to the diameter of the airfoil  13  determines distance performance. Thus, for example, with an airfoil diameter of 8 inches, use of a vertical rim height  14  of 1½ inches results in substantially more air resistance than a vertical rim height of 1¼ inches. A ratio of diameter versus height of rim could vary from a ratio of 5:1 to a ratio of 8:1 without significantly effecting performance. Only the distance of flight is affected by this ratio. Greater height of the outer vertical rim results in more air caught between the airfoil and the outer rim, thus resulting in a more pronounced floating effect. A ratio of diameter to rim height greater than 9 to 1 has been found to result in instability of flight causing the flying disc to veer to the right or left. 
     For production purposes, it is presently preferred to fabricate a flying disc  33  (FIGS. 3 and 4) by a plastic injection molding process. The result is a molded plastic body including a flat circular airfoil  37  bounded about its perimeter by a rim portion  35  extending an equal distance on each side of the airfoil  37 . The rim portion  35  is at a 90 degree angle to the airfoil  37  for the entire circumference of the airfoil. The circumferential weight  36  in the form of extra material at the outer ring  35 , where the center airfoil  37  connects to the outer rim  35  is added as needed during the injection molding pricess. The outer surface  39  of the rim portion  35  may curve upwardly and downwardly from the center airfoil  37  enabling manual projection from either of the two identical sides. 
     The flying disc  33  is thus shaped to provide a body having an aerodynamic profile, such that when it is flung through the air with a spinning motion, it appears to sail, or “float,” through the air. The spinning motion imparted by a wrist-flick gyroscopically stabilizes the flight. 
     Flying discs such as those shown in FIGS. 1-4 may be thrown by the user in a backhanded motion with one hand, keeping the arm parallel with the ground, and ending the throw with a snapping motion of the wrist. Variations of the angle of the arm at launch determine the angle of flight relative to altitude and direction. 
     The flying discs  11 ,  33  are easier to throw and catch due to their shape, levelness, and the effect of “floating” toward the receiving individual, rather than being “whipped” toward that individual. Children adapt to the flying toy more quickly and easily, due to the steadiness of the flight and the ability to toss the flying disc along a more level path and at a shorter range. This flying disc can also be thrown in areas that previously did not lend themselves to this activity because the discs can be comfortably thrown at a closer range than those of the prior art, which is especially important in densely populated areas. Thus, a large playing field is unnecessary, and the flying disc of this invention can be comfortably used in an average-sized yard. It is also impossible for the flying disc to be upside-down when thrown since both the top and bottom are identical. 
     Enjoyment of the flying disc toy  11  can be enhanced by adding a cord  45  (FIG. 5) that is attached to the symmetrical center of the airfoil  13 . The cord  45  may be an elastic bungie-type cord or a non-elastic strap or strip of plastic or string strong enough to withstand the forces exerted on it during play. The cord  45  is preferably {fraction (1/16)} inch to ¼ inch wide and 12 to 60 inches long. 
     The cord  45  is attached to the airfoil  13  by any one of a number of ways. An aperture  43  may be placed in the airfoil at its symmetrical center. The aperture should be no larger than an ⅛ inch in diameter. A spherical bead of glass, steel, or plastic, or equivalent material, with a hole through its center is threaded onto the cord  45  and placed at one end  49  where it is held by a knot  48 , bulge, or equivalent. The other end of the cord  45  is threaded through the aperture  43  in the airfoil  13 . The bottom side of airfoil  13  then rests on the bead  47 . When the flying disc toy is spinning, it rotates around the cord  61  on the bead  63 , with the bead  63  acting as a relatively frictionless bearing. 
     The cord  45  may alternatively be attached to the airfoil  13  by a swivel attachment  53  (FIG. 7) that is placed at the symmetrical center of the airfoil  13 . 
     The flying disc toy  33  with a curved outer surface  39  on its outer rim  35 , also has an aperture  59  in the airfoil  37  at its symmetrical center. A spherical bead  47  held between a stop  49  and the bottom of the airfoil  37  acts as a bearing surface for the rotation of the disc  33  about its cord  45 . 
     In use, the cord  45  is held by one hand which the other hand is used to start the disc spinning. The disc will continue to spin on its axis maintaining its orientation with the play surface while it is propelled back and fourth, up and down and around, by manipulation of the cord  45 . When the cord  45  is attached to a long pole, the flying disc can be manipulated high in the air with hovering and darting movements that resemble a flying saucer. In this manner, the flying disc toy can be used and enjoyed by a single individual. The flying disc toy with elastic cord can thus be used as a hybrid, gyroscope spinning yo-yo. 
     When multiple users are involved in multiple-user play, the disc may be caught by its cord. When so caught, the disc continues to spin and glide from the force of the spinning thrust until its inertia is negated by the capture of the elastic cord. When captured, its path comes to a mild stop and begins to move in the opposite direction, as it continues to spin. 
     In an alternate embodiment shown in FIG. 8, a flying disc toy is shown wherein the airfoil  13  has an indentation at its symmetrical center to permit the disc to rotate and spin on a pointed object  57 , like a pen or pencil, for example. 
     Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various adaptations and modifications of the just-described preferred embodiments can be configured without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Therefore, it is to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described herein.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0