Technical field

The present invention relates to a toy marble ball.

Background Art

The need is particularly felt, in many sectors of industrial and commercial activities, to renew the manufactured products and to always find new ones in order to better distinguish these from those offered by the competition.

This need is particularly felt in the field of collection articles and/or articles for the recreational entertainment consisting of decorated toy marble balls.

These marble balls can be collected and/or used in home or outdoor games, such as competitions on the beach; the known marble balls, nevertheless, do not enjoy great success among children.

In fact, despite the different decorations allow to distinguish the marble balls during the competition, the same are not particularly effective in arousing and maintaining the interest in children, both during non-competitive games and when children play alone.

In this regard the fact is highlighted that to date the need is strongly felt to have articles for the recreational entertainment in which the interaction between the child and the game is not static, but always provides new incentives aimed at improving the perceptual, attentional and visual- spatial skills of children.

Description of the Invention

The specific aim of the present invention is to provide a toy marble ball which allows satisfying the aforementioned requirements, thus resulting innovative, original and of excellent workmanship.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a toy marble ball in which the interaction between the child and the game is dynamic.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a toy marble ball which allows overcoming the mentioned drawbacks of the prior art within the ambit of a simple, rational, easy, effective to use and affordable solution.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become better evident from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of a toy marble ball, illustrated by way of an indicative, but non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an exploded view of the marble ball according to the invention; Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the marble ball according to the invention in the locking configuration;

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view of the marble ball according to the invention in the release configuration;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view of the marble ball according to the invention in the starting configuration;

Figure 5 is an axonometric view of the marble ball according to the invention in a particular embodiment.

Embodiments of the Invention

With particular reference to such figures, reference numeral 1 globally designates a toy marble ball.

The marble ball 1 comprises a main element 2, 3 having an outer surface 4 with a substantially spherical shape adapted to allow the rolling thereof.

It is useful to point out that the rolling of the marble ball 1 can take place on any surface either flat such as e.g. the surface of a table or a meadow, or inclined such as e.g. a chute.

Furthermore, as is shown in Figure 5, the rolling of the marble ball 1 can take place on a support 5 made of a flexible material foldable on itself, spreadable on the surface and reproducing the features of a playing field.

Alternative embodiments cannot however be ruled out in which the support 5 is made of a rigid material.

Furthermore, the marble ball 1 comprises an opening 6 formed on the main element 2, 3 and in which at least one launching disc 7 is at least partly insertable.

The main element 2, 3 comprises a base body 2 having the opening 6 and defining a portion of the outer surface 4 of the main element itself.

With reference to the particular embodiment shown in the figures, the base body 2 comprises two half-shells 8 assemblable together at the respective joining edges 9. Advantageously, each half-shell 8 is made of a polymeric material.

In addition, each half-shell 8 has respective union means 10, 11 to couple to the other corresponding half- shell 8.

The union means 10, 11 comprise at least one pin element 10 associated with one of the half- shells 8 and at least one cavity 11 associated with the other half- shell 8 and adapted to accommodate by interlocking the pin element 10.

As visible in the illustrations, one of the two half-shells 8 has two pin elements 10 and the other half-shell 8 has two cavities 11.

Alternative embodiments cannot however be ruled out in which one of the two half- shells 8 have three, four, five, etc. pin elements 10 coupleable to the respective cavities 11.

Alternative embodiments cannot also be ruled out in which the two half- shells 8 are coupleable to one another by interposition of a layer of adhesive material of the type of glue or the like.

In addition, the main element 2, 3 comprises a push-button body 3 associated with the base body 2 in a movable manner, defining another portion of the outer surface 4 and having an activation surface 12 pushable by a user 13.

The push-button body 3 is associable with the half- shells 8 by interposition of connection means 14, 15.

The connection means 14, 15 comprise an interlocking protrusion 14 arranged on the lateral sides 16 of the push-button body 3 and insertable by interlocking within respective interlocking seats 15 each of which is arranged on a respective half- shell 8; this means that the push-button body 3 is insertable within the main element 2, 3 by means of the sandwich clamping of the half- shells 8 on the lateral sides 16 of the push-button body itself.

With reference to the particular embodiment shown in the figures, the activation surface 12 has a substantially circular conformation.

The base body 2 comprises a housing seat 17 of a balancing body 18.

The balancing body 18 is made of metal or other material having a high specific weight.

Advantageously, the housing seat 17 is formed on a portion of the base body 2 substantially opposite to the activation surface 12. This arrangement of the balancing body 18 ensures that the marble ball 1, when rolling, will always stop in a position in which the push-button body 3 is arranged above the balancing body 18 and on top of the main element 2, 3, that is, in a balance position in which the marble ball 1 is ready to be pushed by the user 13.

In a preferred embodiment, the balancing body 18 is a magnet; in detail, the support or the playing field 5 has a metal core which, by simple electromagnetic attraction, facilitates the stop of the marble ball 1 in the position described above.

The marble ball 1 comprises retaining means 19 which are arranged inside the main element 2, 3 and adapted to retain the launching disc 7 in the opening 6. The retaining means 19 comprise a locking element associated with the pushbutton body 3 and which is movable between:

a locking configuration (Figure 2) wherein it engages the launching disc 7 and holds it inside the main element 2, 3; and

a release configuration (Figure 3) wherein it is moved away from the launching disc 7 by effect of the pressure applied by the user 13 on the push-button body 3.

In order to ensure the retention of the launching disc 7 inside the opening 6 during the movement of the marble ball 1, the locking element 19 comprises an abutment protrusion 20 and, in parallel, the launching disc 7 comprises a groove 21.

In the locking configuration (Figure 2), the abutment protrusion 20 is inserted in a removable manner in the groove 21 and, in the release configuration (Figure 3), the abutment protrusion 20 is outside the groove 21.

In this regard it is worth pointing out that the launching disc 7 is insertable substantially snugly in the opening 6.

Advantageously, the groove 21 has a substantially annular shape and is formed on both faces of the launching disc 7; this ensures the insertion of the abutment protrusion 20 in the groove 21 irrespective of the way the launching disc 7 is inserted inside the opening 6.

In other words, the user 13 does not have to check either the direction, top or bottom, or the angle by which he/she inserts the launching disc 7 inside of the opening 6.

In addition, in the locking configuration the outer surface 4 and the surface 22 of the launching disc 7 are substantially flush; this means that the surface 22 of the launching disc 7 serves as a connector with the outer surface 4 surrounding the opening 6.

More in detail, the launching disc 7 has a diameter substantially mating with the diameter of the main element 2, 3.

The surface 22 of the launching disc 7, by connecting to the outer surface 4, ensures continuity and regularity to the spherical shape of the outer surface 4. When the marble ball 1, by rolling, is placed in the balance position, the launching disc 7 is arranged substantially horizontally.

The marble ball 1 comprises launching means 23 arranged inside the main element 2, 3 and adapted to launch the launching disc 7 outside of the opening 6.

The launching means 23 comprise a movable thrust elastic element which, in the locking configuration, is loaded by effect of the pressure applied by the launching disc 7 on the thrust elastic element 23 and, in the release configuration, is unloaded.

It is worth pointing out that within the scope of this discussion when it is stated that in the release configuration the thrust elastic element 23 is "unloaded" it means either a condition of total loosening of the thrust elastic element 23 or a condition of slight preload, i.e. a position inside the main element 2, 3 in which the thrust elastic element 23 remains slightly preloaded.

Upon the switch from the locking configuration to the release configuration, the launching disc 7 is projected outside of the main element 2, 3 through the opening 6 by effect of the force exerted by the thrust elastic element 23.

With reference to the particular embodiment shown in the illustrations, the thrust elastic element 23 comprises a foil having a first extremity 24 associated with the push-button body 3 and a second extremity 25 associated with the base body 2.

Specifically, when the marble ball 1, by rolling, is placed in the balance position, the foil 23 extends substantially vertically passing through a hole 26 which is formed on the locking element 19 and has dimensions such as to enable the foil itself to move between the locking configuration and the release configuration.

The first extremity 24 is adapted to allow the return of the push-button body 3 to a starting configuration (Figure 4).

Before the detailed explanation of the operation of the present invention and of its particular constructive details, it is useful to point out that the marble ball 1 can be mounted on a body 27 reproducing the features of a character, so that the marble ball itself reproduces the character's head.

In detail, the marble ball 1 can be decorated according to the requirements of the users 13, for example, it can reproduce the facial features of the character or just have colors and patterns intended to facilitate the distinction thereof during the games.

Figure 5 shows the marble ball 1 associated with the body 27 by simple electromagnetic attraction; in detail, the body 27 has a metal core that interacts with the balancing body 18 made of a magnetic material, so as to maintain the marble ball 1 associated with the body itself.

The marble ball 1 can however be removed from the body 27 through a simple push which, by causing it to fall, allows its use on the support 5 or on another surface.

Similarly, the support 5 may be magnetized so as to further delimit the playing field.

The operation of the present invention is as follows.

The marble ball 1 is employed in games based on the use of a plurality of marble balls 1 and in which the final purpose of the user 13 is to hit other opposing marble balls 1, through the expulsion of the launching disc 7, and to cause the exit thereof out of the playing field.

The marble ball 1 associated with the body 27 is made to fall on the support 5 by means of the application of a force by the user 13.

The user 13, after having identified the opposing marble ball 1 to hit, pushes the push-button body 3 which determines the passage of the locking element 19 from the locking configuration to the release configuration and, therefore, the consequent projection of the launching disc 7 outside of the opening 6.

Once the game is off, the user brings back the locking element 19 from the release configuration to the locking configuration, by inserting the launching disc 7 inside the opening 6.

It has in practice been ascertained that the described invention achieves the intended objects and in particular the fact is underlined that the present invention allows improving the perceptual, attentional and visual-spatial skills of children through a dynamic game that goes beyond the simple rolling of the marble ball.