JP2001113055A - Sounding toy - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sounding toy having improved readout precision at a low manufacturing cost by reading a signal section mechanically or reading a recognizable bar code optically. SOLUTION: The sounding toy reads the signal section formed with projections and recesses with a pair of switches manually or electrically. Pulse signals read on the signal section are controlled by a microcomputer, and words, cries of animals, melodies, and other sound are generated from the sound generation section.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toy that reads a signal portion that can be read mechanically or electrically and that emits words, animal sounds, music, and other sounds corresponding to the read code signal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional example, there is known a toy that reads a bar code by an optical sensor and produces a sound. These toys read out a lot of data according to the contents of the read codes and could handle complicated controls. However, if a bar code that is more complicated than necessary is used for the signal portion, a problem may occur in the probability of reading the bar code, and in order to increase the reading accuracy, the manufacturing cost is increased. Could not be provided.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and has an improved reading accuracy by mechanically or electrically reading a signal portion which is easy to recognize. It is another object of the present invention to provide a sound toy with a low manufacturing cost.

[0004]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A signal unit comprising a pair of switch units, a convex portion or a concave portion for closing each switch unit, an arithmetic unit for arithmetically processing a pulse signal picked up by the signal unit, and generating a sound according to the arithmetic result It is characterized by comprising a voice pronunciation unit.

According to the present invention, a pair of switches mechanically reads an electric signal read by a signal section to generate a sound under microcomputer control.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the sound data corresponding to a plurality of combinations are arranged by continuously or intermittently arranging convex or concave portions in the signal portion corresponding to each of the switch portions. Is stored in the sound generator in advance,
It is characterized in that a plurality of types of sounds can be generated.

According to the present invention, words, sounds of animals, melodies, and other sounds can be generated by storing a plurality of types of sound data in a sound generation unit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, a signal portion in which the convex portion or the concave portion is arranged in a continuous or intermittent combination is formed on a plane.

The present invention can be applied to toys that play in a plane, such as rail toys, picture books, and drawing toys.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, a signal portion in which the convex portion or the concave portion is arranged in a continuous or intermittent combination is formed on a three-dimensional surface.

Since the present invention has a signal portion formed on a three-dimensional surface, it can be applied to, for example, a station building of a rail toy, a signboard, and the like.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first to fourth aspects, the pair of switches is manually operated.

According to the present invention, a pulse signal can be picked up even if the operation or movement of the pair of switch units is not constant. For example, the present invention can be applied to rolling cars and vending machine toys.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the first to fourth aspects, the pair of switches is operated by electric power.

The present invention can be applied to any toys running on electric power.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the first to sixth aspects, a signal portion comprising a convex portion or a concave portion for closing the switch portion is formed in a block.

In the present invention, since the signal section is formed in a block, the signal is generated when a pair of switch sections operate on the block. In addition, each block can be made to sound differently.

The invention according to an eighth aspect is characterized in that, in any one of the first to seventh aspects, characters, pictures, and the like are displayed in the blocks.

In the present invention, characters, pictures, and the like are displayed on blocks. For example, alphabets, hiragana (aiueo), katakana (aiueo), and the like are displayed as characters. Also, animal themes, music themes, car themes, and the like can be displayed as pictures.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in accordance with the first to eighth aspects, a plurality of blocks displaying characters, pictures, and the like are arranged in series to express a meaningful word or a specific theme. And

According to the present invention, a plurality of blocks are connected in series to express, for example, meaningful words such as "Amagafuru" and "Otanjobi congratulation", and a specific theme such as an animal theme. It can express music theme, car theme and so on.

The invention according to claim 10 is the invention according to claims 1 to 9
, A guide groove is formed on the surface of the block to form a track, and a traveling body having a guide pin fitted and guided in the guide groove runs on the track.

According to the present invention, when the traveling body travels on a track,
For example, as a result of pronounced one character at a time, it is possible to express a meaningful word, pronounce a musical instrument, or pronounce an animal cry. Further, since the traveling body is guided by being fitted into the guide groove, the traveling body can travel without deviating from the track.

The eleventh aspect of the present invention relates to the first to ninth aspects.
In the above, a traveling body having a guide groove formed by arranging ribs on the block surface and arranging protrusions having the same height as the ribs at four corners thereof to form a track, and being guided by being fitted into the ribs. The vehicle runs on the track.

According to the present invention, since the running body is guided by being fitted to the ribs, the running body can run without deviating from the track.
In addition, since protrusions having the same height as the ribs are provided at the four corners of each block surface, the blocks are stably arranged.

The number of combinations of pulse signals in the signal section of the present invention is determined by the following digital calculation formula. When the alphabet is used, the number of characters is 26, so if five convex portions or concave portions are used in the signal portion, 16 × 2
There are 32 columns, and combinations can be made up to 32 characters. If you use Hiragana or Katakana,
Since there are 51 characters, if six convex or concave portions are used, 3
2 × 2 columns = 64 ways, and combinations can be made up to 64 characters.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a bar code signal section in which two colors having different light reflectivities are alternately arranged in a fence shape using two kinds of widths, a bar code reading means, and a bar code reading means. It is characterized by comprising an operation unit for converting the code signal detected by the reading unit, and a sound generation unit for generating a sound according to the conversion result.

The present invention is a sounding toy which reads a barcode in which colors having a constant width and two kinds of colors having different light reflectances are alternately arranged, and generates a sound corresponding to the read code signal. . For example, by using a bar code in which a black line having a predetermined width is drawn on a white background in a fence shape with an interval of the same width as the black line or 0.2 times the width of the black line, the black line and the black line are used. There are two widths of the white line between the line and
Since the difference is five times, it is possible to reliably determine.
The code signal can be represented by a binary number by sequentially reading the width of the white line. For example, if there are eight black lines, there are seven white lines between them. If the wide width is 0 and the narrow width is 1, the code signals sequentially read will be binary 000000.
It becomes from 0 to 1111111, and is from 0 to 12 in decimal.
There are 128 kinds of code signals up to 7, which can easily be converted and output various sounds.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the twelfth aspect, sound data corresponding to the code signal detected from the signal part is stored in a sound generation unit in advance, and a plurality of types of sounds can be generated. And

According to the present invention, the storage location of audio data in the audio generation unit is determined from the code signal detected from the signal unit,
From there, audio data can be read and output as audio. For example, if the signal part is a bar code of 64 types of eight black lines and seven white lines, reading in the forward direction corresponding to the signal part of the preceding and following objects outputs "A" as a voice, and reading in the reverse direction. This can be dealt with by storing 52 types of voices twice as large as 26 letters of the alphabet so as to output a voice as "action".

According to a fourteenth aspect, in the twelfth or thirteenth aspect, the signal portion is formed by printing, pasting, coloring, or the like on paper, vinyl, cloth, or the like.

The present invention relates to a toy that performs a planar play,
For example, the present invention can be applied to a rail toy having a signal portion printed, pasted, or colored along a rail or a map, a car racing toy having a signal portion printed, pasted, or colored on a course.

[0033]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the present invention, a first embodiment is an example in which a signal portion composed of a convex portion or a concave portion is read manually or electrically by a pair of switch portions.
The embodiment of the present invention shows an example in which a signal unit based on a barcode is read by a reading unit manually or electrically. The code signal read from the signal section is converted by the control section, and voice data corresponding to the code signal is output to the voice generating section. The voice sounding section to which the signal is input outputs words, animal sounds, melodies, and other sounds.

[0034]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. 1 to 11 illustrate the first embodiment, and FIGS. 12 to 21 illustrate the second embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a basic circuit configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 4 show alphabetical blocks. The switch units 1 and 2 are formed by trigger switches and are closed by the signal units 3 and 4 arranged on the surface of each block of the alphabet "F", "L" and "P", and mechanically switch the signal units. It is configured to read a signal.

The structure of the signal units 3 and 4 will be described in detail.
Each signal portion is provided with a projection forming a convex portion, but may not be a convex portion and may be a concave portion forming a concave portion. In any case, any shape may be used as long as the shape of the signal section on which the switch sections 1 and 2 operate.

In FIGS. 2 to 4, each alphabet has a position with a protrusion and a position without a protrusion. At a position with a protrusion, ON (〇 mark) is applied because power is supplied. At a position without a protrusion, power is not supplied. It is displayed with OFF (x mark).

FIG. 2 is a block imitating the alphabet "F", and the signal portion 3 includes five protrusions 3a, 3b, 3
c, 3d, and 3e. On the other hand, the signal portion 4 has one rib-shaped protrusion disposed from the position of the protrusions 3a to 3c, but has no protrusion disposed at the position of the protrusions 3d and 3e.
As a result, the switch unit 1 conducts electricity at a position having five protrusions, while the switch unit 2 switches the three protrusions (3a, 3b,
Power is supplied at the position corresponding to 3c), but not at other positions. The sound data is determined by combining the positions where the pair of switches 1 and 2 are energized and the positions where the pair of switches are not energized as described above, and the sound data is stored in the sound generating unit 6 in advance. In the case of the alphabet “F”, the data is stored as sound data so as to generate, for example, sounds of “F” and “flower”.

FIG. 3 is a block imitating the alphabet "L", showing a state rotated by 90 degrees. In FIG. 3, the principle of the signal units 3 and 4 is the same as that of FIG.
FF (x mark) is attached and displayed. The alphabet "L" is represented by such a combination of ON and OFF.
The content to be pronounced is determined in advance. For example, "Ell"
-The voice of "lobby" is set and stored in advance.

FIG. 4 is a block imitating the alphabet "P". The principle of the signal units 3 and 4 is the same as in FIG. The signal unit 3 is in a state where five protrusions can be energized, and the signal unit 4 is in a state where only one protrusion can be energized. The content of the letter "P" to be pronounced is determined in advance by such a combination of ON and OFF. For example, voices “P” and “Piano” are set and stored in advance.

In FIGS. 2 to 4, the pulse signals picked up by the signal units 3 and 4 are subjected to arithmetic processing by the arithmetic unit 5,
The sound is transmitted to the sound generating unit 6 and generates a sound corresponding to the calculation result from the sound data set and stored in advance. The sound to be pronounced is amplified by the audio amplifier 7 and the speaker 8
Pronounced through

FIGS. 5 and 6 show blocks of Hiragana. The block 10 shown in FIG. 5 includes a character “Hi” and a “Duck picture” starting with the hiragana “A”.
And "Duck" are displayed. In addition, in block 10 shown in FIG. 6, characters of hiragana "i", hiragana "i"
The characters "inu" and "inu" are displayed. Although the signal portions 3 and 4 are not shown in each block, a plurality of protrusions are actually arranged similarly to the alphabet described above.

In each block, when the switch units 1 and 2 read the signal units 3 and 4, for example, in the case of the block "A", the sound "Duck" is produced after the sound "A". If the block is "i",
After the voice "I", the voice "Inu" is pronounced.

FIG. 7 shows an embodiment of the present invention, in which a vehicle travels on a track formed by a plurality of blocks. Car 11 is a block "A"
After passing, pronounce "A" and then block "Me"
After passing through, "me" is pronounced, and thereafter, "ga", "fu", and "ru" are also pronounced for each block. This pronunciation sounds to the player as if to pronounce a meaningful word, "Amega Furu."

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the signal section according to the present invention is arranged on a three-dimensional plane. In the present embodiment, a state in which the automobile 11 travels on the road 12 is shown. On the road, an upright sign corresponding to the block 10 is provided, and the signal units 3 and 4 are three-dimensionally arranged. Car 1
Switch units 1 and 2 are provided on the right side of 1.
The signal units 3 and 4 are configured to be read when passing through a standing signboard.

FIG. 9 shows an embodiment on the theme of animal sounds. In the figure, a plurality of blocks each displaying a picture of an animal and a plurality of blocks not displaying anything are continuously provided to form a predetermined trajectory. The present embodiment is based on the theme of a zoo and expresses a situation in which many animals are observed while riding in a car. In the figure, a guide pin (not shown) is provided on the bottom surface of the car 11 so that the car can be guided on the guide groove 13 and run on the track many times. The car 11 is approaching a block displaying "elephant", and when passing through this block, the elephant's sound is pronounced. Each of the blocks displaying the other animals is similarly configured so that the sound of each animal is pronounced for each block. A block in which nothing is displayed is configured to represent an area where no sound is pronounced and there are no animals.

FIG. 10 shows an embodiment in which the theme is the sound of a musical instrument. In the figure, a plurality of blocks, each displaying a picture of a musical instrument or a musical note, and a plurality of blocks, each of which is not displayed, are connected to form a predetermined trajectory. The present embodiment is based on the theme of the country of musical instruments, and expresses a state in which the user can enjoy the tone of the musical instrument while riding in a car. The car 11 is approaching the block displaying the note "SO", and when passing through this block, the sound of "SO" is emitted. Each block displaying other instruments and notes is configured in the same way, and each block emits the sound of the instrument and the sound such as notes "do", "re", "mi" etc. . A block in which nothing is displayed is configured to represent an area in which nothing is pronounced and there is no instrument.

FIG. 11 shows another embodiment of the present invention. A predetermined trajectory is formed by continuously connecting a plurality of blocks displaying characters and patterns and a plurality of curve blocks displaying nothing. In the block 10 displaying characters and patterns, a rib 13 is provided upright at the center thereof to form a track, and characters and patterns are displayed symmetrically on the right and left sides of the rib 13. Children playing inside and outside the orbit can see characters and pictures from the front. Further, at the four corners of each block, projections having the same height as the ribs 13 are formed, so that each block is stably arranged.

Each block displaying characters and pictures constituting the present invention can display different characters and pictures on both sides thereof, whereby the number of parts constituting one set can be reduced.

The layout of the above blocks can be set arbitrarily, and gives the player creativity through play.

The present invention is applied to rail toys, track toys and the like, and is a sounding toy that can be used for many themes such as 26 alphabets, 51 hiragana, 51 katakana, animal theme, music theme, automobile theme, and the like.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a basic circuit configuration provided with the reading means of the second embodiment. FIG.
And a reading unit 22 for reading a signal portion such as a bar code, and when a code signal detected by the reading unit 22 is input, reads out voice data corresponding to the read code signal from the storage unit 21 and outputs the voice data to the voice generating unit 23. Control section 20, an audio output section 23 that converts audio data input from the control section 20 into audio and outputs the audio, and an audio amplification section 2 that amplifies the audio signal and outputs the audio from the speaker 25.
4 The arithmetic unit 20, the storage unit 21, the voice sounding unit 23, and the voice amplifying unit form a control unit 26.

FIG. 13 is a side view showing the structure of the traveling body (automobile) 30, and FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view. The traveling unit 30 is provided with a control unit 26, a speaker 25, and reading means 22 downward from the surface of the traveling unit chassis, and reads a signal portion such as a track bar code while moving manually or electrically. Outputs audio according to the signal. FIGS. 13 and 14 show an example in which the guide pins 36 are provided on the chassis surface of the traveling body, but may be grooves for receiving the ribs of the track.

FIG. 15 shows an example of a spectacle-shaped trajectory. Guides or ribs 34 are formed on the track, and the running body travels manually or electrically along the track by fitting guide pins or grooves. A bar code is printed, pasted, or colored along the guide or rib of the track, and the traveling body reads the bar code by reading means on the chassis surface and outputs a sound. In addition, for example, by reading the barcode on the left side in the traveling direction of the guide or the rib 34, the traveling body can read the other barcode when the traveling direction is reversed.

In FIGS. 16 and 17, a predetermined trajectory is formed by connecting a plurality of blocks displaying characters and pictures and a plurality of curve blocks displaying nothing. In the block 32 displaying characters and patterns, a guide or a rib 34 forms a track at the center thereof, and characters or patterns are displayed symmetrically on the left and right sides of the guide or the rib. Children playing inside and outside the orbit can see characters and pictures from the front.

Each block includes, for example, Hiragana 51
Bar codes indicating sounds and sounds such as sounds, 26 letters of the alphabet, sounds of animals, sounds of vehicles, and sounds of musical instruments are printed, pasted, or colored. Also, by disassembling and assembling the blocks, the order and trajectory of the audio output can be changed.

FIG. 18 shows an example in which the track is a race track. For example, it is possible to read a barcode while the traveling body is electrically driven along the track and output an engine sound, a brake sound, and the like.

FIGS. 19 to 21 show another example of a mouse-type toy in which a reading means is provided on a mouse, and the mouse is placed on a mouse pad on which a pattern such as a bar code and a picture such as a character are drawn. When the user performs the operation of, the voice of the character can be output in some places. In addition, by making the pattern of the mouse pad a sheet so that it can be easily replaced, it is possible to output various sounds.

[0058]

The present invention is embodied in the form described above and has the following effects.

The present invention is a toy capable of mechanically or electrically reading a three-dimensional or bar code-like signal portion and generating various sounds in accordance with the read code signal.

The present invention is a toy that can be widely applied to educational toys that produce characters depending on the types of characters and pictures displayed on the blocks, and various toys on the theme of animals, music, and the like.

Further, in the case where a signal such as a bar code is used for the signal portion, the signal portion can be formed in a seal shape or a sheet shape. Can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing blocks of an alphabet “F” used in the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a block of an alphabet “L” used in the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a block of an alphabet “P” used in the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a block of hiragana “A” used in the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a block of hiragana “i” used in the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which an automobile travels on a track formed by a plurality of blocks.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a state in which a signal unit is disposed on a three-dimensional surface according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention on the theme of animal calls.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an embodiment on the theme of the sound of a musical instrument of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a basic circuit in a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a main body according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of a main body according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing blocks of a circuit course used in the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a view showing a state in which the toy main body runs on a track formed by a plurality of blocks according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a view showing a second embodiment in which a rib is used for a course of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a view showing a second embodiment representing a racetrack of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a main body including a rotation detecting unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a bottom perspective view of a main body including a rotation detecting unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is an external view showing a mouse pad-like signal unit in the second embodiment of the present invention.

[Brief description of reference numerals]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Switch part 2 Switch part 3 Signal part 4 Signal part 5 Operation part 6 Sound generation part 10 Block 11 Traveling body (automobile) 12 Track (road) 13 Guide groove (or rib) 20 Operation part 21 Storage part 22 Reading means 23 Sound Sound generator 24 Audio amplifier 25 Speaker 26 Control unit 27 Bar code 30 Vehicle (car) 31 Mouse 32 Block 33 Track (guide groove) 34 Guide groove (or rib) 35 Mouse pad 36 Guide pin

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C150 BA11 CA01 CA02 CA16 CA26 DF02 DF04 DF06 DF08 DF33 FA42 5D108 CA02 CA04 CA07 CA11 CA25

Claims (14)

[Claims] A signal section comprising a pair of switch sections, a convex section or a concave section for closing each switch section, an arithmetic section for arithmetically processing a pulse signal picked up by the signal section, A sound toy characterized by comprising a sound generating section for generating a sound. 2. A signal section corresponding to each of said switch sections, wherein convex sections or concave sections are arranged in a continuous or intermittent combination.
The sound toy according to claim 1, wherein sound data corresponding to a plurality of combinations is stored in a sound generation unit in advance, and a plurality of types of sounds can be generated. 3. The sound toy according to claim 1, wherein a signal portion in which the convex portions or the concave portions are arranged in a continuous or intermittent combination is formed on a plane. 4. The sound toy according to claim 1, wherein a signal portion in which the convex portions or concave portions are arranged in a continuous or intermittent combination is formed on a three-dimensional surface. 5. The sound toy according to claim 1, wherein the pair of switches is manually operated. 6. The sound toy according to claim 1, wherein the pair of switches is operated by electric power. 7. The sounding toy according to claim 1, wherein a signal portion comprising a convex portion or a concave portion for closing the switch portion is formed in a block. 8. The sounding toy according to claim 1, wherein characters, pictures, and the like are displayed on said blocks. 9. The sounding toy according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of blocks displaying characters, pictures and the like are arranged in series to express a meaningful word or a specific theme. 10. A track is formed by forming a guide groove in the block, and a traveling body having a guide pin fitted and guided in the guide groove travels on the track. 10. The sound toy according to 1 to 9. 11. A rib is erected on the block surface, and protrusions having the same height as the ribs are arranged at four corners of the block surface to form a track, and a guide groove which is guided by being fitted into the rib is provided. The sounding toy according to claim 1, wherein a running body runs on the track. 12. A bar code signal section in which two colors having different light reflectivities are alternately arranged in a fence shape using two kinds of widths, a bar code reading means, and a code detected by the bar code reading means. A sounding toy comprising: a calculation unit for converting a signal; and a sound generation unit for generating a sound in accordance with a result of the conversion. 13. A sounding toy according to claim 12, wherein sound data corresponding to the code signal detected by said signal section is stored in a sound generating section in advance so that a plurality of kinds of sounds can be generated. 14. A sound toy according to claim 12, wherein said signal portion is formed by printing, pasting or coloring on paper, vinyl, cloth or the like.