CA1174251A

CA1174251A - Collapsible disc toy

Info

Publication number: CA1174251A
Application number: CA000376992A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Steven Krupnick
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-05-30
Filing date: 1981-05-06
Publication date: 1984-09-11
Also published as: ZA813134B; JPS5722774A; AU7048381A; NO811768L; LU83351A1; GB2076671A; FR2483246B1; SE443517B; GB2076671B; SE8103306L; IT1136837B; DK213981A; ES258682U; ES258682Y; BE888752A; IT8121928A0; NL8102446A; AU549546B2; DE3120546A1; FR2483246A1

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
There is disclosed a flexible, one-piece ring defining a generally circular opening and a sheet member rigidly se-cured to the ring for closing the circular opening and formed of a flexible material.

Description

COLLAPSIBLE DISC TOY

This invention relates to aerial toys, and more ~ , specifically to a collapsible disc-like toy which, when thrown with a spinning motion is aerodynamically shaped to sail.
Such devices in the past have been generally disc-shaped devices which are rigid in structure, such as the whistling scaling toy disclosed in United States Patent Number 3,959,916, the aerial toy disclosed in United States Patent Number 3,852,910 and the toy hat disclosed in United States Patent Number 3,571,311, but are cumbersome to carry when not in use.

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Early ring type devices were known to be flexible.
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For example, the play ring shown in United States Patent :~^3 ~: ~l Number 1,593,453 is an early embodiment of a flexible toy ;..~.:,~.
ring device. A circular disc like projectile manufactured of flexible material, but stuffed, is disclosed in United States Patent Number 3,026,110. Additionally, there is shown in United States Patent Number 4,115,946 a flexible disc device which utilizes a plurality of spaced individual weights around the peripheral edge thereof to achieve the desired results.
The foregoing flexible style devices, while being col-lapsible, are expensive to manufacture and utilize a ~;cr~ plurality of parts which complicate their structure and ~i.,,.~
",l manufacturing procedure.

Additionally, known devices have been found to be subject , to wear and tear to a degree greater than that desired. Thus, .'.~ -, ~!
; 1; in the flexible disc device of patent number 4,115,946, it -: , ; ~ can be seen that tearing the hem 18 will permit the weighted materials to drop out of the structure thus rendering the ~ .

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"A i~ ~ ' ~ device useless.
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It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a collapsible disc toy which is simple to manufacture, utilizes a minimum of elements, and is economical to manu-facture.
Them objects of the present invention are achieved by a ~;!',i~ structure, one embodiment of which includes a flexible, one-¦ piece ring defining a generally circular opening and a sheet member rigidly secured to the ring for closing the circular opening and formed`of a flexible material.

A more complete understanding of the present invention ~!r` ~ may be had from the following detailed description thereof particularly when read in the light of the accompanying drawings wherein:
i~t~ FIG. 1 is a top view of collapsible disc toy structured ~` ~ according to the present invention; and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional elevational view through the plane 2-2 of FIG. 1.
As noted above, this invention~relates to c~ollapsible disc-like toy devices.
Referring now to FIGS. l and 2, there is illustrated a collapsible disc toy generally designated as 10 and comprised ;~ of a ring element 12 and a sheet member 14.
Ring element 12 comprises a flexible, one-piece ring, the inner edge 16 of which defines a generally circular opening. Ring 12 includes a generally circular element 18 and a radially inwardly extending shoulder 20 disposed around the inner edge of the circular element.

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~-f'~t Ring 12 is manufactured from molded plastic material .,. ," .
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~l7~Z~il found that suitable materials are moldable PVC and plastisol however other suitable materials may be utilized.
The sheet member 14 is rigidly secured to ring 12 along the inner edge of ring 12, such as to close the opening de-fined by ring 12.
Sheet member 14 is a generally circular sheet which is provided with a plurality of holes 24 formed around its peri-phery. The purpose of holes 24 is to permit a rigid bond between sheet member 14 and ring 12 such as to preclude separation thereof during use. More specifically, during the manufacture of toy 10, sheet member 14 is placed within the opening of a circular mold device such that the peripheral edge 26 thereof extends within the mold cavity. Thereafter, the sheet member 14 is clamped in that position and plastic injected into the mold cavity. The plastic passes through ~.;..-;.~
holes 24 and sets up around the edge of sheet member 14, such as to cause a secure, fixed bond between the material of the sheet and the plastic of the ring.
Although many materials may be suitable for use as the ~ sheet material, it has been found that nylon is particularly $3~ useful.
Referring specifically to FIG. 2 it can be seen that sheet member 14 is dimensioned such as to cause a concave surface 28 on its underside and a convex surface 30 on its ,,,~
. ,3 upper side. Th~s occurs when the toy is thrown with a spin-ning motion. The configuration of the shee-t 14 during flight, . . . 7 ~~ therefore, establishes an aerodynamic flow of air across its ,, ,~
surface such as to permit it to sail in the manner well known ~'~'''",' 3 to "frisbee" players.

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117g251 i It thus can be seen that the dimension of the surface of sheet rnember 14 when measured diametrically across ring 12 from inner edge 16 to inner edge 16 is a greater dimension than the corresponding diameter of the ring. Such dimensioning per-mits the aforesaid aerodynamic effect and enhances the recrea-tional value of the toy.
As will be recognized by those skilled in these arts, the .~ structure of the present invention is advan-tageous in that it comprises two elements, is manufactured through the use of an injected molding process thus permittlng high volume, low cost manufacture, and is an aerodynamically sound but fully flexible element, such as to improve its safety characteristics and thus reduce likelihood of injury during use.

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Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A collapsible disc-like toy, which comprises:
a sheet member formed of a flexible material having a plurality of holes formed about a peripheral edge thereof; and a collapsible, flexible, substantially planar one-piece ring member having an inwardly-extending shoulder, said ring member being formed of a moldable material, said sheet member being molded within said inwardly-extending shoulder whereby said moldable material forming said ring member extends through said plurality of formed holes of said sheet member thereby to establish a rigid bond between said sheet member and said ring member.

2. The collapsible disc-like toy as defined in claim 1 wherein said flexible material forming said sheet member is different than said moldable material forming said ring member.

3. The collapsible disc-like toy as defined in claim 1 wherein said inwardly-extending shoulder extends radially inwardly around the entire inner edge of said ring member.

4. The collapsible disc-like toy as defined in claim 1 wherein said ring member includes a generally circular element and wherein said inwardly-extending shoulder extends radially around an entire inner edge of said circular element, said sheet member being secured to said ring member around said radially inwardly-extending shoulder.

5. The collapsible disc-like toy as defined in claim 4 wherein said sheet member is secured along said entire inner edge of said ring member.

6. The collapsible disc-like toy as defined in claim 1 wherein said sheet member has a diameter as measured diametri-cally arcoss an inside diameter of said ring member greater than said inside diameter of said ring member thereby to form in flight a convex surface.