US3128098A

US3128098A - Game board with means for receiving game pieces in a plurality of different vertically displaced positions

Info

Publication number: US3128098A
Application number: US221763A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward R Kolenda
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1962-09-06
Filing date: 1962-09-06
Publication date: 1964-04-07
Anticipated expiration: 1981-04-07

Description

Aprll 7, 1964 KOLENDA 3,128,098

GAME BOARD WITH MEANS FOR RECEIVING GAME P ES IN A PLURALITY OF DIFFERENT VERTICALLY D TIONS Filed Sept ISPLACED P 6, 1962 I m) e n1: o'r Edwa rd R- Kolend a. 33, MW, Mww& flvhilfiw United States 3,128,098 Patented Apr. 7, 1964 ice 3,128,098 GAME BOARD WITH MEANS FOR RECEIVING GAME PIECES IN A PLURALITY OF DIFFERENT VERTICALLY DISPLACED POSITIONS Edward R. Kolentla, 8025 S. Linder, 02k Lawn, Ill. Filed Sept. 6, 1962, Ser. No. 221,763 Claims. (Cl. 273-136) This invention relates to game apparatus and particularly to such apparatus wherein a checker board has game pieces mounted in alternate squares of the game board in a permanently associated manner for playing the game of checkers.

Many different variations of checker boards have been provided wherein the playing pieces were associated more or less permanently with the board, but in the prior game apparatus of this general character, the structure has been relatively complicated and has introduced complications in the playing operations, and it is therefore the primary object of this invention to provide simplified game apparatus for playing the game of checkers, and it is a related object to provide such game apparatus wherein permanently associated playing pieces may be readily manipulated by the players to indicate that a particular playing piece is out-of-play, in play, and to indicate whether or not it is an ordinary playing piece or is entitled to a king rating in the play.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claims, and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which, by way of illustration, show a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principles thereof, and what is now considered to the best mode in which to apply these principles. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principles may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a checker board embodying the features of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view that is fragmentary in character and taken substantially along the line 22 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view showing a playing piece in its out-of-play position;

FIG. 4 is a View similar to FIG. 3, and showing the playing piece in a normal playing position;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIGS. 3 and 4 and showing a playing piece in its king position;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the structure shown in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view showing one of the playing pieces when it has been shifted to a vertical plan for the purpose of shifting it between the positions shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5.

For purposes of disclosure the invention is herein illustrated as embodied in game apparatus 10 which is adapted for playing the game of checkers, and which embodies the game board 11, the upper face of which is divided into sixty-four squares that are alternately of different colors, and which are herein indicated, according to color, as 12R and 12W.

Centrally located in each of the white squares 12W, a playing piece 15 is permanently mounted, these playing pieces having the general characteristics of the usual playing pieces used in the game of checkers, but the playing pieces 15 are somewhat thicker than would ordinarily be used and are made with different colors on the opposite flat faces thereof. Thus as indicated in FIGS. 3 to 5, each playing piece 15 is colored black on one side thereof and is colored red on the other side thereof, and

the peripheral edges may of course be correspondingly colored down to the mid-plane of the playing piece 15.

In associating the playing pieces 15 with the several squares 12W, the playing board 11 in each of the squares 12W, is provided with a centrally located circular opening 16 within which the corresponding playing piece 15 is mounted for shifting movement up and down between the several position shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, and for rotative movement about a horizontal axis so that either the black or the red side of the checker may be located in an upwardly facing position.

In providing for such a mounting of the playing piece 15, the board 11 is in the present instance made from a top wall 11T, a bottom wall 11B and internal division walls 11W that connect the top and bottom Walls together and define recesses 11R beneath the opening 16 which are provided in the top wall 11T. The depth of these recesses is somewhat more than one-half the diameter of the playing piece 15, and this is necessary in order that the playing piece may be manipulated as will be hereinafter described.

In providing for the desired shifting movements of the playing piece 15, as above described, each playing piece 15 is provided with a diametric shaft 18 that is located midway between the opposite fiat faces of the playing piece 15 and which extends beyond the opposite side edges of the playing piece 15 so that these projecting ends may extend into resilient supporting clips 20 that are provided in the walls 11W of the recesses 11R as shown particularly in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7 of the drawings. The mounting clip 20 is in the present instance made from a resilient sheet metal and is generally U-shaped in form. The clips 20 are mounted in vertical slots 22 that are formed in the walls 11W in appropriate locations, and one arm of the U-shaped clip 20 is bent to a horizontal position to provide an attaching ear 20E that may be suitably secured as by a screw to the lower edge of the wall 11W beside the slot 22. The two opposed arms of the clip 20 are provided with arcuate portions that oppose each other and in effect provide three different bearing portions 2013 in which the projecting ends of the shaft 18 may be located.

When the shaft 18 is located in the lower one of the bearing portions 26B, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the upper flat surface of the playing piece 15 is located substantially in the plane of the upper surface of the playing board, and as above pointed out, this is the out-of-play position. When a player wishes to change the vertical position of the playing piece 15, he merely presses down on one edge of the playing piece so as to bring it to a substantially vertical plane as indicated in FIG. 7 of the drawing. The player may then grasp the projecting upper portion of the playing piece to move the same upwardly or downwardly and thereby engage the shaft 18 with another one of the bearing portions 20B of the supporting clips 24). When the shaft 18 is moved into position in the upper one of the bearing portions 208, the playing piece will be located in the king position of FIG. 5, while location of the shaft 18 in the middle one of the bearing portions ZtlB will locate the playing piece in the playing position shown in FIG. 4 of the drawings.

With the structure that is thus provided, the playing pieces are maintained at all times in association with the playing board 11, and by suitable manipulation of the playing pieces, the game of checkers may be played.

Thus, in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the first three rows of playing pieces adjacent opposite edges of the board have been marked with the letters R and B to indicate that these pieces have been rotated respectively to their red and black positions, and over and above this, most of these playing pieces in the first three rows adjacent opposite edges of the board are elevated to the playing position shown in FIG. 4. However, two of the playing pieces 315 are shown in FIG. 1 in their vertical position which is assumed when the pieces are being turned, or raised or lowered. In the two central rows of the board, either the red or the black face of the checker or playing piece may be exposed, but the playing pieces in these two rows are moved downwardly to the out-of-play closed position as shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings. Such a setting of the playing pieces then corresponds to the initial or starting arrangement of playing pieces employed with conventional checker board sets.

With the board set up as shown in FIG. 1, play may proceed according to the usual rules of checkers, but the movements of the playing pieces are represented by manipulation of the individual playing pieces 15 that may be involved. Thus, if it be assumed that the red playing piece 115 indicated in FIG. 1 is to be moved from the square 112W to the square 212W, the playing piece 115 is depressed from its playing position of FIG. 4 to its outof-play position shown in PEG. 3, and then the playing piece 215 is in its exposed position.

This same general procedure is followed when a playing piece is moved to what amounts to a conventional jump, the playing pieces being appropriately shifted in a vertical relationship so that when the shifting movements are complete, the playing board constitutes an accurate representation of the play that has been made.

When one of the players has succeeded in locating one of his playing pieces in the king position of the opposing playing, this playing piece is accorded the king value by raising this playing piece to the fully elevated position of FIG. 5.

*rom the foregoing description it will be apparent that the present invention provides game apparatus for playing checkers wherein the playing pieces are permanently associated with the playing board, and in which the playing pieces may be readily and easily manipulated to give an accurate representation of the progress of the play.

Thus while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated herein, it is to be understood that changes and variations may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appending claims.

I claim:

1. In game apparatus for use in playing the game of checkers, a playing board having a checker board design thereon and downward recesses formed centrally in alternate squares of the checker board, disc-like playing pieces having opposite faces of different colors and disposed in the respective recesses, and having diametric support shafts therein parallel to and midway between opposite faces thereof, bearing means within said recesses and resiliently engaging said shafts to support said shafts at any one of a plurality of different levels.

2. In game apparatus for use in playing the game of checkers, a playing board having a checker board design thereon and having downward recesses formed centrally in alternate squares of the checker board, disc-like playing pieces having opposite faces of different colors and said pieces being disposed in the respective recesses and having diametric support shafts therein parallel to and midway between opposite faces thereof, and means within said recesses for guiding said shafts for up and down iovement to position the shafts in any one of a plurality of different vertical positions, and resilient means for yieldingly supporting said shafts rotatably in any one of said different vertical positions.

3. In garne apparatus for playing the game of checkers, a playing board having a checker board design thereon and downward recesses formed centrally in alternate squares of the checker board, disc-like playing pieces disposed in the respective recesses, and means supporting said pieces within said recesses for rotative movement about horizontal axes and for up and down movement to any one of a plurality of different vertical positions, and resilient means for yieldingly supporting said pieces in any one of said different vertical positions.

4. In game apparatus for playing the game of checkers, a playing board having a checker board design thereon and downward recesses formed centrally in alternate squares of the checker board, disc-like playing pieces having opposite faces of different colors and disposed in the respective recesses, pivotal support means acting between said board and the respective pieces within said recesses to pivot said pieces on horizontal axes, and said pivotal support means providing a plurality of different pivotal axes for each piece at different levels.

5. in game apparatus for use in playing the game of checkers, a playing board having a checker board design thereon and having downward recesses formed centrally in alternate squares of the checker board, disc-like playing pieces having opposite faces of different colors and said pieces being disposed in the respective recesses and having diametric support shafts therein parallel to and midway between opposite faces thereof, and a pair of spring clips mounted in and on opposite sides of each of said recesses and having a plurality of resilient arcuate portions engageable with the end portions of the related shaft to define a plurality of different vertical positions, between which positions the shaft may be shifted vertically to support the shaft rotatably in any one of said different vertical positions.

References Citedin the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 687,487 Powell Nov. 26, 1901 2,268,892 Erle Oct. 28, 1941 2,452,341 Wasserman Oct. 26, 1948 3,074,721 DeMoon Jan. 22, 1963

Claims

3. IN GAME APPARATUS FOR PLAYING THE GAME OF CHECKERS, A PLAYING BOARD HAVING A CHECKER BOARD DESIGN THEREON AND DOWNWARD RECESSES FORMED CENTRALLY IN ALTERNATE SQUARES OF THE CHECKER BOARD, DISC-LIKE PLAYING PIECES DISPOSED IN THE RESPECTIVE RECESSES, AND MEANS SUPPORTING SAID PIECES WITHIN SAID RECESSES FOR ROTATIVE MOVEMENT ABOUT HORIZONTAL AXES AND FOR UP AND DOWN MOVEMENT TO ANY ONE OF A PLURALITY OF DIFFERENT VERTICAL POSITIONS, AND RESILIENT MEANS FOR YIELDINGLY SUPPORTING SAID PIECES IN ANY ONE OF SAID DIFFERENT VERTICAL POSITIONS.