Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    In general, the present invention relates to amusement devices that challenge a person&#39;s physical coordination and sense of timing. More particularly, the present invention is related to musical devices that attach to the body and are played using selective manipulations of the body.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0004]    When a person grasps or manipulates another object, it is most often done with the hands. As such, it is a physiological necessity that people develop good hand/eye coordination and dexterity. The degree of coordination of the hands and arms is usually vastly superior to that of any other major muscle group in the body.  
           [0005]    Since physical coordination of muscle groups other than the hands and arms is typically underdeveloped, it can be somewhat amusing to attempt to complete otherwise simple tasks using these other muscle groups. It is also amusing to watch a person attempt to complete simple tasks using a muscle group other than those contained in the arms and hands. It is for these reasons that the prior art is replete with amusement devices that attach to the body at different points and provide simple tests of coordination and timing. The most famous of such prior art devices is the Hula Hoop, which is spun around the waist. Other prior art amusement devices that attach to the waist and test coordination are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,186,124 to Voss, entitled Peg And Hoop Exercising Toy; U.S. Pat. No. 3,342,482 to Paclone, entitled Waist Mounted Gyration Rod Recreational Device; U.S. Pat. No. 3,610,622, entitled, Hip-Toss Ball Game; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,224,774 to Klotz, entitled Ball And Paddle Device.  
           [0006]    In addition to the waist, amusement devices have been developed that attach to the head and legs. Prior art amusement devices that are worn on the leg are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,165,315 to Petrusek, entitled Skipping Device and U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,651 to Shure, entitled Bubble-Producing Skipping Toy.  
           [0007]    Prior art amusement devices that are worn on the head are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 6,220,917 to Nelson, entitled Body Suspended Amusement Device.  
           [0008]    Typically, when an amusement device first is attached to the body, a person can slowly manipulate the amusement device. The amusement device can then typically only be rapidly manipulated after several practice sessions. The practice sessions are required to develop the muscle coordination needed to control the amusement device. If a person tries to manipulate the amusement device quicker than he/she can control, then the attempt fails.  
           [0009]    The present invention device is an amusement device that attaches to the body. The amusement device plays music depending upon controlled movements of the body. Music has a specific beat. As such, in order to play a piece of music a person is required not: only to manipulate their body, but to do so in beat with the music. This task provides play value to the present invention device that does not exist in other body attached novelty devices.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    The present invention is an amusement device. The amusement device includes a sensor that detects movement. The sensor is coupled to a sound generating assembly. The sound generating assembly plays one note of a selected melody each time the sensor detects movement.  
           [0011]    A body supported object is provided that attaches to a person&#39;s body. The sensor and the sound generating assembly are attached to the body supported object. Accordingly, in order to cause the sensor to detect movement and cause the sound generating assembly to play, a person must move the part of their body onto which the body supported object is attached. Since the sound generating assembly only plays one note of a melody each time movement is detected, a person must move their body in beat with the melody in order to cause the melody to play properly. The repeated sporadic movements of the body needed to cause the selected melody to play properly provides novelty to the person wearing the present invention as well as to others who are watching the person wearing the present invention. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]    For a better understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following description of exemplary embodiments thereof, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary embodiment of a motion sensor used as part of the present invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the electronic components of the present invention; and  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the present invention having multiple body mounting options. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]    Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown an exemplary embodiment of an amusement system  10  in accordance with the present invention. The amusement system  10  includes a pair of eyeglass frames  12 . The eyeglass frames  12  contain a bridge region  14  that extends across the top of the nose and two temple elements  16  that extend over the ears. As will later be described, electronic circuitry is contained within the eyeglass frames  12 . Control buttons are present on the eyeglass frames  12  so that the electronic circuitry can be activated and preset for operation.  
         [0018]    A tilt sensor  20  is attached to the eyeglass frames  12 . In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the tilt sensor  20  is positioned in front of the bridge  14  of the eyeglass frames  12 . The tilt sensor  20  can detect when the eyeglass frames  12  are moved in any direction.  
         [0019]    The electronic assembly within the eyeglass frames  12  contains a tone generator that is preprogrammed with a plurality of different well-known song melodies. The song melody can be selected using the control buttons  18  on the eyeglass frames  12 . The tone generator only generates a single tone from a selected melody each tine the tilt sensor  14  is activated. Accordingly, in order to cause the tone generator to generate the tones of the selected melody, a person must move the eyeglass frames  14  back and forth. In order to keep the selected melody in its proper beat, the eyeglass frames  12  must be moved to the beat of the melody. As a result, a person wearing the eyeglass frames  12  must make timed coordinated head movements in order for the tone generator in the eyeglass frames  12  to properly produce the selected melody.  
         [0020]    Referring to FIG. 2, a cross section of an exemplary embodiment of the tilt sensor  20  is shown. In this embodiment, the tilt sensor  20  includes a hollow tubular structure  22 . Inside the tubular structure  22  is an annular contact  24 . The annular contact  20  is electrically interconnected to a first lead  25  that extends from the tilt sensor  20 .  
         [0021]    An elongated contact arm  26  is suspended in the center of the tubular structure  22 . The elongated contact arm is electrically interconnected to a second lead  29  that extends from the tilt switch. The contact arm  26  is free to rotate in any direction about its point of suspension  27 . Accordingly, when the tubular structure  22  of the tilt switch  20  is accelerated or tilted in any direction, the elongated contact arm  26  swings freely inside the tubular structure  22 . If the tubular structure  22  is tilted or if it is moved with enough acceleration, the elongated contact arm  26  will touch the annular contact  24  inside the tubular structure  22 .  
         [0022]    Both the elongated contact arm  26  and the annular contact  24  are attached to a logic circuit. Each time the elongated contact arm  26  touches the annular contact  24 , an electrical connection is completed. Conversely, every time the elongated contact arm  26  moves away from the annular contact  24 , the electrical connection is broken. Accordingly, the tilt sensor  20  operates between two states. In one state, an electrical connection is made, and in the other state, an electrical connection is broken. Since the tilt sensor  20  operates in only two states, it can be used in a digital circuit, wherein the tilt sensor  20  creates a pulsed signal over time containing varying pulse changes between an “on” condition when the electrical connection is made, and an “off” condition when the electrical connection is broken.  
         [0023]    Referring to FIG. 3, it can be understood that contained within the eyeglass frames  12  (FIG. 1) is an electronic assembly  30 . The electronic assembly  30  contains a speaker  32  and a tone generator  34  that produces various tones for the speaker  32 . The tone generator  34  is directed by a logic circuit  36 , wherein the logic circuit  36  is used to select a melody from a plurality of preprogrammed melodies that are stored in a memory  38 . The selection of different melodies from the memory  38  can be performed by a user, utilizing the button controls  18 .  
         [0024]    Once a melody is selected, the logic circuit  36  only sends the tones of that melody to the tone generator  34  one note at a time. The only time that the logic circuit  36  sends a note to the tone generator  34  is when the logic circuit  36  detects a change in state from the tilt sensor  20 . Accordingly, each time the tilt sensor  20  changes between an “on” state and an “off” state, the logic circuit  36  sends a single note from the selected melody to the tone generator  34 . The tone generator  34  then produces the tone that is broadcast through the speaker  32 . As such, if a person wants the melody being played to sound proper, that person must move the tilt sensor  20  to the beat of the selected melody. Since the tilt sensor  20  is connected to eyeglass frames  12  (FIG. 1), the person wearing the eyeglass frames must repeatedly move their head to the beat of the melody in order to change the state of the tilt sensor  20  to the beat of that melody. This causes a person to rapidly move their head in a sporadic manner that is fun for both the person wearing the eyeglass frames and other people who are watching.  
         [0025]    Referring back to FIG. 1, the tilt sensor  20  is attached to the bridge of the eyeglass frames and the electronic assembly of FIG. 3 is contained within the structure of the eyeglass frames. Such a structure is merely exemplary, and it should be understood that the tilt switch and the electronics of the present invention can be located in many different positions on the eyeglass frame or may even be embodied in an assembly that can be retroactively attached to a separate pair of eyeglasses or other body supported object.  
         [0026]    Referring to FIG. 4, such an alternate embodiment of the present invention device is shown. In FIG. 4, a plurality of body supported objects  40  are shown that can be used to attach the present invention to a person&#39;s body. The body supported objects include a pair of eyeglass frames  42 . Also shown are other body supported objects that can be substituted for the eyeglass frames  42 . Among the substitutes include a head band  44  that can be worn around the head, a hat  46  that can be worn on the head, a chin strap  48  that is worn on the chin, and a body strap assembly  50 . The body strap assembly  50  includes a mounting plate  52 . The mounting plate  52  is connected to a strap  54 . The strap  54  can be secured around the waist, arm, leg or any other part of the body.  
         [0027]    An electronic assembly  60  is provided that can be attached to any of the body supported objects  40 . The electronic assembly  60  includes the electronic components described in FIG. 3 along with a battery for power. Accordingly, the electronic assembly  60  plays one note of a selected melody each time the electronic assembly  60  is accelerated or jarred. The electronic assembly  60  can attach to any of the body supported objects using a mechanical fastening system, such as a hook, or other fastening systems such as Velcro. In the shown embodiment, each of the body supported objects  40  has a female connector  58 . The electronic assembly  60  contains a small male protrusion  62  that passes into any of the female connectors  58  and engages the female connectors  56  with a friction fit. Accordingly, the electronic assembly  60  can be attached to any of the body supported objects  40  by simply pressing the male protrusion  62  of the electronic assembly  60  into the female connector  58  of a body supported object  40 .  
         [0028]    It will be understood that the embodiments of the present invention amusement system that are described and illustrated herein are merely exemplary and a person skilled in the art can make many variations to the embodiment shown without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, there are many types of sensors that can detect physical movement. Such sensors include accelerometers, mercury switches, ball hearing switches and the like. Any such sensor can be adapted for use as part of the present invention. All such variations, modifications and alternate embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

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