A Foot-ball Toy or Puzzle.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Mar., 1898-Accepted, 28th May, 1898
A Foot-ball Toy or Puzzle.
We, JOHN GUEST, of Avondale, Burnttree, Tipton, Manager of Galvanizing
Works, and SAMUEL WILKES, of No, 11, Groveland Road, Dudley-Port, Tipton,
Planisher, both in the County of Stafford, do hereby declare the nature of this
nvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
:-
This invention consists of a toy or puzzle constructed in the form of a box with
a flat bottom on which is provided projections to represent approximately the
positions of one team of players at the commencement of a game of foot-ball.
A goal being formed at the front end of the box and a ball representing a foot-
ball placed on the flat bottom of box; the puzzle consists in rolling the miniature
foot-ball into the goal over the flat bottom of the box between or past the projec-
tions; the toy or box can be used as an amusing game; the outer flat under
surface of the puzzle box affords convenience for advertising.
We will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying drawings
the manner in which our invention is constructed and used.
Figure 1 represents a plan of the toy or puzzle.
Figure 2 represents a vertical section of Figure 1 on the line A, B.
Figure 3 represents a broken off section of puzzle or box shewing a second
method of securing the glass top or cover to the box.
Figure 4 represents a vertical section of Figure 1 on the line, C, D.
Figure 5 represents a plan of cover as shewn in use at Figure 3.
a
In carrying out our invention we in some cases utilize flat sheet metal and form
the box from such flat sheet by the stamping process; the dies from which the
box is produced are so formed as to produce a box with a perfectly flat surface
which represents the foot-ball playing field; on the playing field are stamped up
projections which are intended to represent one team of foot-ball players.
represents the goal, which is partitioned off by means of the goal-boundary pro-
jections b, c represents the goal-keeper, represents the right back, e represents
the left back, f represents the centre half back, y represents the right half back,
represents the left half back, j represents the centre forward, represents the
inside right forward, represents the outside forward, m represents the inside
left forward n represents the outside left forward, the projections hereinbefore
described are provided as obstacles that will in some measure retard the progress
of the foot-balls towards the goal a the configuration of the projections in some
measure representing the ground travelled by a player.
The boundary line of the field is shewn at Figure 1 by the line o, such boundary
line o commences from the back of the one team field, level with the field and
dips down towards the goal a forming a gutter as clearly shewn by the shaded iines
beyond the boundary line o of field and as also shewn at q Figures 2, 3, and 4; to
facilitate the adjustment of a glass cover we provide the ledge r on two sides of
the box or on the four sides of the box, so that a foot-balls can be put inside the
box, a glass cover t placed to rest on the ledges r and the thin metal turned over
as shewn at u to secure and lock the glass t on the ledges r.
Our structure produced in the manner hereinbefore described can be used to play the
game of foot-ball as an amusing game and also as a puzzle; the box can be produced
of any convenient size, for use by hand, we find one convenient size to be about

page_text: three inches long by two and a half inches wide, such a box would be held with
the glass upwards and with the miniature foot-ball s at the back of the one team
field, the game or puzzle then consists in so tilting the box as to roll the miniature
foot-balls past the forward projections; n m jk and 1 and thence between the
projections and g to escape being caught within the projection f, afterwards
between the projections e and d round one end of the goal-keeper projection c
towards and into the goal a, or instead of passing between all the projections in
the manner hereinbefore described the ball could pass between some of them and
miss some as decided on by the person using the puzzle or by two persons using
two of our miniature foot-ball fields to play a game to see which of the two would
get the miniature foot-ball in his goal first, considerable skill would be required
to so tilt and manipulate the box as to roll the miniature foot-ball s from the back
of the one team field past or between the projections representing the players into
the goal a without the miniature foot-ball rolling over the boundary line o into the
gutter as shewn at p and therein consists the game and the amusement to be
obtained by the use of our box shaped miniature foot-ball field.
As herein before described one person can use the miniature foot-ball field for
personal amusement or two persons' can use one each, and play a game to see who
gets his ball in goal first and it will be readily understood that three, four or more
persons can play a game, each of such persons trying to get his particular ball
into its goal first.
We have described a convenient method of producing our miniature foot-ball-
field box out of thin sheet metal but we do not confine ourselves to using sheet
metal as we prefer in some cases to cast the boxes out of metal or out of glass or
to produce the boxes from blown glass, from porcelain or other clay or from paper,
fibre, or from any other material suitable to form the box with a level field.
We have described one convenient method of securing the glass t to the edges
of box but we prefer in some cases where found more convenient, to form a ledger
as shewn at Figure 3 which would be equivalent to the ledger shewn at Figures 2
and 4, we then provide an extra separate lid or open frame as shewn in a reduced
scale at Figure 5; it will be observed that this separate frame merely consists of
an outside rim a section of which is clearly shewn at Figure 3, by using this separate
frame the glass t can be readily secured to a paper box, or to a glass box, or to a
metal box, or to a box made from any other suitable material.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1st. A foot-ball toy or puzzle consisting of a box having a surface to represent
a foot-ball field in miniature and on such field certain projections indicating the
position of foot-ball players in the act of playing so that a miniature foot-ball can
be used in the box and the box tilted and manipulated to cause the ball to roll
past or between the several projections into the goal as illustrated and described
in relation to Figures 12 and 4.
2nd. In a foot-ball toy or puzzle the utilization of a separate open frame to clip
or secure the glass cover to the box as illustrated and described in relation to v
Figures 3 and 5.
Datod this 26th do of l
1000
Witness:-
ALFRED WILLIAM TURNER,
JOHN GUEST.
SAMUEL WILKES,
International Patent Agent and Consulting Engineer,
Cobden Buildings, 67, Corporation Street, Birmingham.