EP2506942A1 - Jigsaw puzzle having one or more puzzle pieces that can be bent - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a jigsaw puzzle having at least one puzzle piece (10) that can be bent at along at least one predefined bending line (22), which has an upper face (12) and a lower face (14) and a puzzle piece thickness extending between the upper side (12) and the lower side (14) which is reduced from an inner side of a bend along the or each bending line (22). In order to neutralise the resilient restoring force that acts in the bent state, on each side of each bending line (22) there is a fixing device (40) which releasably fixes a desired bending angle, each fixing device (40) having at least one recess (42) into which a corresponding protrusion (44) engages in a clamping and/or latching manner when the puzzle piece (10) is bent.

Description

 Puzzle with one or more foldable puzzle pieces

The invention relates to a puzzle game comprising at least one puzzle piece bendable along at least one predefined fold line, having a top and a bottom and a puzzle piece thickness extending between the top and bottom, reduced along a or each crease line from a kink inside. Such a puzzle is from the Spanish

Patent Application Publication No. 2 133 232 known.

In conventional puzzles with kinkable puzzle pieces for creating three-dimensional objects composed of puzzle pieces, the problem arises that the flat surfaces of the object bulge, resulting in an unsightly and non-lifelike appearance of the finished puzzle article.

Moreover, especially the last parts of such an article are difficult to puzzle, i. In particular, the last pieces of the puzzle can be difficult to use in the almost finished gepuzzelten object.

The invention has for its object to provide an improved puzzle game with foldable puzzle pieces, in which the aforementioned problems no longer occur.

This object is achieved on the basis of the above-mentioned puzzle game according to the invention that on both sides of each crease line a locking device is provided which removably fixes a desired bending angle, each

Locking device has at least one recess into which engages a corresponding projection when buckling the jigsaw piece clamping and / or detent. In the present invention it was recognized that the bulging surfaces of three-dimensional puzzles and said poor Puzzlebarkeit caused by restoring forces, which transmits each foldable jigsaw piece in abge ^¬ buckled state in spring-elastic manner to adjacent, connected thereto puzzle pieces. These restoring forces lead to tension in adjoining kinks, flat sections of the puzzle, which occur depending on the material of the kinkable puzzle piece, the temperature, the bending angle, the geometry of the kinkable puzzle piece, etc., and thus ultimately completely undefined. With the solution according to the invention, these restoring forces are neutralized and prevent their transfer to adjacent puzzle pieces, so that these forces can no longer be harmful.

According to the invention, the locking device has at least one recess into which engages a corresponding projection when the puzzle piece is bent. To fix a desired bending angle, the projection can engage in the recess in a clamping and / or latching manner. For example, the projection relative to the recess may have a slight oversize, so that it is clampingly engaged with the recess in each kinked position. Alternatively, the projection may be conical, so that it is only from a certain bending angle clamped with the recess into engagement. Finally, upon reaching a desired bending angle, the projection can latchingly engage with the recess in order to releasably fix this bending angle. For example, a latching projection may be formed on at least one surface of the projection and / or the recess that extends at least substantially in the crease line cross-sectional direction and interacts in a predetermined kinked position of the puzzle piece with a corresponding latching recess in an opposite surface of the recess respectively of the projection. To ensure the latching function, only one latching projection on the area extending in the bending line cross-sectional direction need be formed, for example, of the projection, which engages in a corresponding latching recess of the opposite surface of the recess. However, latching projections may be formed on a plurality of surfaces of the projection which extend in the bending line cross-sectional direction and / or surfaces of the projection and of the recess which extend in the bending line cross-sectional direction and which can engage in respectively associated latching recesses of the opposite surface. Preferably, the at least one

Recess arranged in a side wall of a channel, which is formed along a fold line of a bendable puzzle piece by the reduced there puzzle piece thickness, and the corresponding projection is arranged in the opposite channel side wall.

The locking device can also be designed so that the engagement between the releasable fixing effecting elements both clamping and detent occurs. For example, a latching protrusion formed on a projection can initially come into clamping engagement with the recess, into which the projection engages when the puzzle piece is bent, and can lock with an associated latching angle on continued kinking and reaching a desired bending angle. deepening. Other embodiments of a clamping and latching engagement of the locking device are possible.

The projection, which engages when kinking a bendable puzzle piece in the corresponding recess of the opposite gutter side wall can be designed in various ways. In a preferred embodiment of the puzzle game according to the invention, the projection is formed by a portion of the respective groove side wall which does not protrude beyond the puzzle piece thickness. Such an embodiment allows accommodation of the locking device in the range of the regular material thickness of the puzzle piece, i. there are no over the thickness of the puzzle piece protruding elements of the locking device, but the locking device on both sides of the along a crease line extending channel

integrated flush into the puzzle piece.

Alternatively, it is also possible that the or each projection of the locking device projects beyond the puzzle piece thickness, for example if the material thickness of the puzzle pieces is too small to realize a locking device in the frame thereof.

Although in principle per buckling line of a bendable puzzle piece a projection and a cooperating recess, which are formed in the two opposite gutter side walls, sufficient as a locking device, preferably a plurality of projections and corresponding recesses are distributed over the length of a channel to neutralize the still to balance the remaining restoring force across the puzzle piece. Due to the then available, larger engagement surface, the individual elements of the locking device can be made smaller without the overall achievable clamping force suffers. The projections themselves may have any shape that allows for clamping and / or notching in a corresponding recess. For example, the projections may be block-shaped, pin-shaped or lamellar. On the projections latching elements may be present, which engage in bending in corresponding latching recesses, which are provided on opposite surfaces of the locking device.

Puzzle jigs according to the invention consist of many puzzle pieces, of which at least one, but as a rule several, and under certain circumstances even all along at least one predefined fold line, can be bent off. The foldable puzzle piece or the foldable puzzle pieces can also contain several predefined bend lines. have, for example, parallel to each other and their Knickungsinnenseiten have all arranged on the same side of the puzzle piece. Alternatively, the buckling inner sides of the various crease lines may be disposed on opposite sides of the puzzle piece, for example, alternately on one and the other side of the puzzle piece, to allow a zigzagged kinked puzzle piece. Also, crease lines of a kinkable puzzle piece can run at right angles to one another and, for example, have a common crease line end point. If the buckling inner sides of two such bend lines extending at right angles to one another are arranged on the same side of the foldable puzzle piece, the corner of a cube can be formed with such a bendable puzzle piece, for example. Of course, crease lines of a kinkable puzzle piece can also run obliquely to each other, for example, to allow the formation of a pyramid tip or similar parts.

Because according to the invention the puzzle piece thickness of a bendable puzzle piece is reduced only from a buckling inside, the outside (visible side) of the puzzle piece in the bent state has no visible disturbance, but forms a perfect edge between the bent faces of the visible side of the puzzle piece.

A groove formed along each crease line of a kinkable puzzle piece by the puzzle piece thickness reduced there may have various cross-sectional shapes, but preferably its bottom portion is always made such that a bottom portion of the groove above which the side walls of the groove extend is seen in cross section defines a free space, which is at least partially maintained even in the bent state of the puzzle piece. This clearance in the lowermost region of each channel prevents the buckling of the puzzle piece at the lowest bottom of the channel from causing material to squeeze against one another, which would cause an elastic restoring force acting in the opening direction. Rather, during the kinking process at the bottom of the channel optionally displaced material can escape into the free space. The tendency of a kinkable puzzle piece according to the invention to reopen after kinking is therefore significantly reduced in comparison with conventional kinkable puzzle pieces. In embodiments of the puzzle according to the invention with the free space in the bottom region of each channel thus acting on the type of elastic spring restoring forces each bendable puzzle piece much smaller than usual, so that the locking device has to neutralize less forces and therefore smaller and less conspicuous dimensions. Preferably, the bottom portion of the or each gutter is provided with a rounded cross-section. For example, the groove may have an approximately V-shaped cross-section, with the tip of the V being cut off and replaced by a circle segment, for example a semicircle. Also, the channel may have an open-topped, rectangular or square cross section, wherein the corners of the bottom portion of the channel are executed rounded. Furthermore, the channel may have a U-shaped cross-section. Other cross-sectional shapes for the channel are possible, for example, the above the bottom portion of a groove extending side walls of the channel need not be flat, but can be curved in cross-section.

In order to keep the aforementioned restoring forces low, the gutter side walls extending above the bottom area of the gutter are designed such that they touch each other when a desired bending angle is reached at the earliest. Preferably, the mutually facing side walls of the channel are inclined so that they do not touch when reaching the desired bending angle, and more preferably, these side walls are mutually inclined so that they come into contact shortly after exceeding the desired bending angle. In the latter embodiment, the gutter side walls act as a mechanical stop, which comes into effect shortly after exceeding the desired bending angle without the return forces even at the desired bending angle can be transmitted by contacting gutter side walls.

The forces acting in the bent state of a puzzle piece, optionally minimized restoring forces are neutralized in their effect by the inventively existing locking device which removably fixes a desired bending angle. The locking device can be designed so that it can fix a variety of different bending angle releasably, but it can also be designed so that it only releasably fixes a certain desired bending angle. Preferably, the locking device is provided only in areas above the free space defining bottom portion of each channel.

Puzzles according to the invention enable the realization of three-dimensional structures with corners, edges and points, wherein at corners, edges or tips subsequent, flat surfaces due to the non-returnable kinkable

Puzzle pieces show no vaulting and the individual puzzle pieces look good in the already existing puzzle piece composite can be used. Furthermore, by means of puzzles according to the invention, the formation of static load-bearing angle profiles is made possible in that a plurality of foldable puzzle pieces each form an angle profile in the bent and interconnected state. Several such angle profiles can serve, for example, as a support structure for a building of puzzle pieces or the like.

If foldable puzzle pieces described in the context of the present invention are designed on their peripheral edges, extensions and recesses as described in German Patent Application No. 10 2009 056 286.9 entitled "Self-stabilizing Puzzle" by the same Applicant, solid and yet releasable components can be used Angle profiles composed of puzzle pieces, which can take on a supporting function in the horizontal direction within the puzzle to three-dimensional object. In this way, one obtains three-dimensional objects from puzzle pieces with a high static load capacity. To further improve the strength of a three-dimensional puzzle, the puzzle-pieces forming planar surfaces according to the cited patent application no. 10 2009 056 286.9 can also be formed and thus self-stabilizing.

The individual puzzle pieces of a puzzle game according to the invention are preferably made of plastic, but the present invention is not limited to plastic puzzle pieces. For example, the puzzle pieces may be made from a paperboard material. Also, the puzzle pieces may be multi-layered and the individual layers may be made of different materials. For example, each puzzle piece may have a core of cardboard material which is coated on the top and / or bottom with plastic, such as by means of a plastic film. Other material combinations are also conceivable.

If the individual puzzle pieces of a puzzle game according to the invention are made of plastic, then these parts are preferably made by plastic injection molding. Obtained in this way very dimensionally accurate, stable puzzle pieces with reasonable production costs. Depending on the material selected for the puzzle pieces, stamping methods for their production may alternatively be used.

The invention is explained below with reference to schematic figures, of preferred exporting ^¬ approximately examples together with further advantages in more detail. It shows: a puzzle piece which can be bent along a bend line in plan view, the puzzle piece from FIG. 1A in an already slightly bent state, a puzzle piece bendable along two mutually perpendicular bend lines, the puzzle pieces from FIG. 1A and FIG. 2 in the bent and interconnected state in a spatial representation , in spatial representation, several kinked and interconnected puzzle pieces according to Figure 1A, which together form an angle profile, a spatial, schematic representation of a cube of puzzle pieces, as he can be produced with the aid of the bendable puzzle pieces shown in Figures 1A and 2, an opposite foldable puzzle piece with two parallel bending lines in the section, the puzzle piece of Figure 6A in the bent state, a two-fold kinkable to the same side puzzle piece with a curved section in cross-section and in spatial representation, a simple knickba res puzzle piece with curved surfaces in cross-section and in spatial representation, a three-fold oppositely bendable puzzle piece with curved sections in section and in spatial representation, a detailed view of a locking device for fixing a ge ^¬ desired bending angle, 9A shows the puzzle piece with the locking device from FIG. 8 in cross-section and in the opened state, FIG.

FIG. 9B shows the puzzle piece from FIG. 9A in cross-section and somewhat bent

 Status,

FIG. 9C shows the puzzle piece from FIG. 9A in cross-section and in the fully bent state;

FIG. 10A shows a puzzle piece similar to FIG. 9A in cross section and with a modified locking device in the opened state, and FIG

10B, the puzzle piece of Figure 10A in cross-section and in the fully bent state.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show a first exemplary embodiment of a puzzle piece, generally designated 10, which has an upper side 12, also referred to as the visible side, an oppositely disposed lower side 14 and a peripheral edge 16 extending between the upper side 12 and the lower side 14. The extent of the peripheral edge 16 between the top 12 and the bottom 14 corresponds to the puzzle piece thickness. Extending from the peripheral edge 16, in the embodiment shown, two puzzle piece recesses 18 extend inwards and four puzzle piece extensions 20 towards the outside, which in the usual way serve to connect the puzzle piece 10 to other matching puzzle pieces (not shown). The puzzle piece recesses 18 and puzzle piece extensions 20 are merely exemplary and may be shaped and arranged differently.

The puzzle piece 10 is, as indicated by an arrow K (see Figure 1B), along a broken line reproduced kink line 22 bent, which runs in the embodiment shown in parallel to two edges of the puzzle piece 10.

Figure 2 shows a plan view of a puzzle piece 11 according to a second embodiment, which corresponds to its basic structure of the puzzle piece 10, but has two mutually perpendicular bending lines 22 which meet in a common bending line end point 23. The puzzle piece 11 can be formed by folding twice along its fold lines 22 to the same side towards a three-dimensional body in the shape of a cube or cuboid corner. The figure 3 shows the two puzzle pieces 10 and 11 in finished kinked and interconnected state in a spatial representation and illustrates that the puzzle piece 11 can form the corner of eg a cube whose edges can then be continued by puzzle pieces 10. FIG. 4 shows, in a three-dimensional representation, a plurality of bent and interconnected puzzle pieces 10, which together form an angle profile which can be used, for example, to continue a cube edge according to FIG.

FIG. 5 shows, schematically and in a spatial view, a cube composed of puzzle pieces, the supporting framework 24 of which, according to FIGS. 3 and 4, is made up of puzzle pieces 10 and 11. In this supporting framework 24 will be at all

Cube sides each used a surface 26, which is composed of non-foldable puzzle pieces. Preferably, the peripheral edges 16, recesses 18 and extensions 20 of all the puzzle pieces forming the cube are self-stabilizing, as described in the German patent application no. 10 2009 056 286.9 of the same Applicant.

The predefined crease lines 22 of the puzzle pieces 10, 11 and all other embodiments are formed by a groove-like reduction of the puzzle piece thickness along each crease line 22. In FIG. 6A, a first embodiment of kink areas 28 is shown in section, in which grooves 30 formed by the reduction in thickness comprise a groove 30 in FIG Substantially V-shaped cross-section having two facing side walls 32, 34 which extend above a bottom portion 36, the cross-section in the unbent state of the puzzle piece is semicircular as shown. The tip of the V-shaped cross-section of each channel 30 has been cut off so to speak and replaced by a trough-shaped bottom portion with a semicircular cross section in the example shown. As FIG. 6B shows, the trough-shaped bottom region 36 of rounded cross section prevents

effective that it comes when kinking of the puzzle piece along its fold lines 22 to material squeezings in the region of the channel bottom. Although shrinks when kinking the free cross section of the area enclosed by the bottom portion 36 space, however, there remains a free space 38 exist even in the fully bent state, which helps minimize elastic restoring forces that tend to reopen the kinked puzzle piece. The side walls 32, 34 are used in the illustrated embodiment as limiting attacks by coming shortly after exceeding the desired bending angle, which is here 90 degrees, come into contact with each other and no further kinking allow more. This way will the puzzle piece material in the area of the kink itself protected against overstretching.

FIGS. 7A, 7B and 7C show, in each case in the unbent cross-section and after corresponding bending in a spatial view, various foldable, partially arched jigsaw pieces 10 ', 10 ", 10'" which have one or more fold lines 22 extending parallel to one another. The three-dimensional bodies which can be achieved by means of these puzzle pieces 10 ', 10 "and 10'" are illustrated by the spatial view of the corresponding figure, wherein in the case of FIG. 7C the two outer bending regions 28 have oppositely arranged inner sides of buckling.

In order to neutralize the effect of the small, still remaining restoring forces bendable puzzle pieces 10 and 11, each puzzle piece 10, 11 per kink area 28 a locking device 40 which can fix a desired bending angle releasably. A first embodiment of such a locking device 40 is shown in FIG. The locking device 40 has three recesses 42, one of which is formed in the side wall 32 and two in the opposite side wall 34 of the channel 30. The recess-free parts of the side walls 32, 34 form corresponding projections 44 which engage in the respectively associated recess 42 when the puzzle piece is bent. 9A, 9B and 9C, of which FIG. 9A shows the fully opened state, FIG. 9B shows a slightly bent state and FIG. 9C shows the fully bent state of the puzzle piece in section. It can be seen clearly how each projection 44 engages from a certain bending angle in the associated recess 42 and the latter completely fills when reaching the desired bending angle.

Each of the block-shaped projections 44 here may be formed with some excess with respect to the associated recess 42 so that it comes into clamping engagement with the recess 42. The clamping force is such that it is at least sufficient to compensate for the elastic restoring force of the foldable puzzle piece, i. the still existing, elastic restoring force must not be able to change automatically fixed by means of the clamping force bending angle.

In addition to and / or as an alternative to the clamping engagement, latching projections 46 may be present on surfaces 46 of projection 44 and / or corresponding surfaces 48 of recess 42 that extend in groove cross-sectional direction a predetermined bending position of the puzzle piece 10, 11 engage with a corresponding latching recess in the opposite surface 48 and 46 latchingly engaged. Usually, this predetermined kinking is the

correspond to desired bending angle. The locking engagement is carried out releasably, for example by cooperating ball segment-shaped locking projections with dome-shaped locking recesses. By way of example, such a latching projection 47 on the surface 46 and such a latching recess 49 in the surface 48 are shown in FIG.

If, for example, the material thickness of a puzzle piece 10, 11 is too small to accommodate a locking device 40 in the available space, projections 44 'may protrude beyond the material thickness of the puzzle piece and may be lamellar, for example, as shown in FIG. 10A. The resulting in the bent state after reaching the desired bending angle configuration is shown in Figure 10B. The operation of the projections 44 'and associated recesses 42' corresponds to that of the recesses 42 and projections 44th

Although only one fixing device per knuckle region has been explained above, it will be understood that a plurality of these can be distributed over the length of a bending line. Also, the projections 44 need not be block-shaped, but may, for example, be made pin-shaped or lamellar.

Claims

claims A puzzle game comprising at least one puzzle piece (10; 10 '; 10 "; 10'"; 11) bendable along at least one predefined fold line (22), having a top side (12) and a bottom side (14) and one between the two Has top side (12) and the bottom (14) extending puzzle piece thickness, which is reduced along the or each crease line (22) from a Knickungsinnenseite ago, characterized in that on each side of each crease line (22) there is a locking device (40) releasably fixing a desired bending angle, each locking device (40) having at least one recess (42; 42 ') into which a corresponding projection (44; Buckling of the puzzle piece (10; 10 '; 10 "; 10'"; 11) by clamping and / or locking engagement. 2. Puzzle according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one recess (42; 42 ') is formed in a side wall (32) of a groove (30) formed along each crease line (22) by the reduced puzzle piece thickness, and in that the corresponding projection (44; 44 ') is formed in an opposite side wall (34) of the channel (30). 3. puzzle game according to claim 2, characterized in that a bottom region (36) of the channel (30), above which the side walls (32, 34) of the channel (30) extend, defined in cross section defines a free space (38) which at least partially in the bent state of the Puzzle piece (10; 10 '; 10 "; 10'"; 11) is preserved. 4. Puzzle according to claim 1, characterized in that a latching projection is formed on at least one surface (46) of the projection (44) and / or a surface (48) of the recess (42) extending in each case at least essentially in the crease line cross-sectional direction, said catch projection being in a predetermined kinked position of the puzzle piece (Fig. 10, 10 ', 10 ", 10"'; 11) cooperates with a corresponding detent recess in an opposite surface of the recess (42) or the projection (44) latching. 5. Puzzle according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the projection (44) is formed by a portion of the respective side wall of the channel (30) which does not protrude beyond the puzzle-piece thickness. 6. puzzle game according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the or each projection (44 ') projects beyond the puzzle piece thickness. 7. Puzzle according to one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that the two opposite side walls (32, 34) of a channel (30) each have at least one projection (44, 44 ') and a recess (42, 42'), preferably in each case a plurality of projections (44, 44 ') and Recesses (42, 42 ') have. 8. Puzzle according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the puzzle piece (10 '; 10 "; 10'") has a plurality of crease lines (22) parallel to each other and their inner sides of buckling on the same side of the puzzle piece (10 '; 10 "; 10'") or on opposite sides Pages of the puzzle piece (10 ', 10 ", 10'") are arranged. 9. puzzle game according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the puzzle piece (11) has two bending lines (22) running at an angle to one another, which have a common bending line end point (23) and whose inner sides of the buckling are preferably arranged on the same side of the puzzle piece (11). 10. Puzzle according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the mutually facing side walls (32, 34) of the channel (30) above the bottom portion (36) are mutually inclined so that they do not touch when reaching the desired bending angle. 11. puzzle game according to claim 10, characterized in that the side walls (32, 34) of the channel (30) are mutually inclined so that they come into contact shortly after exceeding the desired bending angle. 12. Puzzle according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a plurality of foldable puzzle pieces (10; 10 '; 10 "; 10 '"; 11) form an angle profile in the bent and interconnected state.