Fidgeting accessory and system for providing the same

Abstract

A fidget accessory includes a plurality of piece-shaped members that geometrically mate with a bowl-shaped member. The bowl-shaped member includes a bowl-shaped member base on which the plurality of piece-shaped members are configured to rest in a base orientation. The bowl-shaped member includes a bowl-shaped member flange that circumferentially surrounds a top edge of the bowl-shaped member, and a bowl-shaped member ramp that extends between the bowl-shaped member flange and the bowl-shaped member base. One or more magnets in the bowl-shaped member base have an opposite polarity from a corresponding magnet in the plurality of piece-shaped members such that the plurality of piece-shaped members magnetically engage with the bowl-shaped member.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The disclosure relates to a fidget accessory, and more particularly, to a fidget accessory having a bowl and a stone arrangement based on complementary geometry and magnetic interaction therebetween. BACKGROUND

[0002] Many fidget accessories are based on a spinner arrangement in which a base supports an outer spinning member. A user holds the base in their hand and spins the spinning tool about the base. Bearings are often disposed between the base and the spinning tool to facilitate the spinning action. Such "fidget spinners" are based on the concept that such spinners can calm those who are prone to fidgeting as a mechanism to release nervous energy, anxiety, etc.

[0003] While known fidget spinners can provide some beneficial calming effects, they represent only one approach that can not provide the same or any calming effect for all users, and / or can not provide the optimal level of calming for any particular user. For example, such spinners are based on the user creating continuous motion of the spinner, rather than creating motion or movement in response to only certain user actions. Accordingly, there is a continuing need in the art for an improved fidget accessory that can provide beneficial calming or stress relief effects for users based on alternative approaches, including approaches that do not rely on continuous motion. SUMMARY

[0004] The disclosure relates to a fidget accessory including a plurality of stones. Each stone includes a stone cover, a stone body, and at least one stone magnet disposed inside the stone body of each stone of the plurality of stones. The fidget accessory further includes a bowl having a bowl base disposed at a bottom of the bowl, the plurality of stones configured to be arranged in a base orientation on the bowl base. The bowl includes a bowl flange circumferentially surrounding a top edge of the bowl, and a bowl ramp extending between the bowl flange and the bowl base. The bowl further includes one or more bowl magnets housed in the bowl base, a polarity of the one or more bowl magnets being opposite to a corresponding one of the stone magnets at least when the plurality of stones are arranged in the base orientation, wherein the one or more bowl magnets are configured to magnetically interact with the stone magnets.

[0005] The disclosure further relates to a fidget accessory comprising first and second chess pieces and a bowl piece. Each of the first and second chess pieces comprises a chess piece cover, a chess piece body, and a first chess piece magnet and a second chess piece magnet are disposed inside the first and second chess pieces, respectively. The bowl piece comprises a bowl piece base disposed at a bottom of the bowl piece, the first and second chess pieces are configured to be disposed side by side on the bowl piece base in a base orientation adjacent to each other. The bowl piece comprises a bowl piece magnet housed in the bowl piece base and has a polarity opposite to that of the first and second chess piece magnets, wherein the bowl piece magnet is configured to magnetically interact with the first chess piece magnet and the second chess piece magnet. The bowl piece and the first and second chess pieces have complementary geometries and magnetic interactions that, upon application of an external user force in an upward direction to the first chess piece, cause the first chess piece to disengage from the base orientation and move towards the second chess piece, and upon application of the external user force, the geometries and magnetic interactions further cause each of the first and second chess pieces to remain magnetically engaged with one of the bowl piece and the corresponding other chess piece.

[0006] These and other aspects, advantages, and alternatives will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading the following detailed description, with appropriate reference to the drawings. Further, it should be understood that the description provided in this Summary and elsewhere in this document is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive, of the claimed subject matter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0007] The illustrated embodiments of the present subject matter will best be understood by reference made to the drawings which are by way of illustration, and in which:

[0008] FIG. 1 A perspective view of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure is shown;

[0009] FIG. 2 An exploded view of the fidget accessory of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure is shown along with another band portion;

[0010] FIGS. 3A-3C A side view and an end view of the bowl piece of the fidget accessory of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure is shown;

[0011] FIGS. 4A-4B A perspective view of the fidget accessory of FIG. 1perspective view of a chess piece of a fidget accessory,

[0012] FIG. 5A shows a perspective view of a chess piece of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure, FIG. 1 FIG. 5B shows a perspective view of a bowl piece of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure, FIG. 5A

[0013] FIG. 6A shows a perspective view of a bowl piece of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure, FIG. 1 FIG. 6B shows a perspective view of a bowl piece of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure, FIG. 6A

[0014] FIGS. 7A-7H shows various possible orientations of a chess piece and a bowl piece of a fidget accessory according to an embodiment of the disclosure, and FIG. 1

[0015] FIGS. 8A-8H shows various cross-sectional views of a chess piece and a bowl piece of a fidget accessory in various possible orientations according to an embodiment of the disclosure, FIGS. 7A-7H FIG. 1

[0016] The skilled person will appreciate that the elements in the drawings are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and / or relative positioning of some of the elements in the drawings can be exaggerated relative to other elements to help improve the understanding of various embodiments of the present application. Furthermore, common but well-known elements that are useful or necessary such as, for example, controllers, conduits, electrical wires and the like, can commonly not be depicted in order to facilitate a less hindered view of the various embodiments. It will further be appreciated that certain actions and / or steps can be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that the specific order of occurrence can not be required. It will also be understood that the terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons having ordinary skill in the technical field as set forth above except as specifically noted otherwise herein.DETAILED DESCRIPTION DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] ​​​​​​The published text generally relates to a play accessory comprising a plurality of checkerboard pieces configured to geometrically mate with a bowl-shaped piece. The bowl-shaped piece includes a bowl-shaped base on which the plurality of checkerboard pieces are configured to be oriented in the base orientation. The bowl-shaped piece includes a bowl-shaped flange circumferentially surrounding its top edge and a bowl-shaped ramp extending between the flange and the bowl-shaped base. One or more magnets in the bowl-shaped base have opposite polarities to corresponding magnets in the plurality of checkerboard pieces, such that the plurality of checkerboard pieces magnetically engage with the bowl-shaped piece. In one or more embodiments, the play accessory is configured to allow a user to engage in play-based manual manipulation of the position of the checkerboard pieces relative to the bowl-shaped piece and relative to each other, thereby exerting a calming and stress-relieving effect on the user.

[0018] Now refer to the attached diagram, FIG. 1 A play accessory 10 according to an embodiment of the disclosed text is shown. The play accessory 10 includes first and second checkerboard-shaped pieces 11a and 11b that are magnetically engaged with a bowl-shaped piece 12, wherein the bowl-shaped piece 12 is optionally magnetically or otherwise engaged with a strip portion 13. FIG. 1 As shown, the first and second checkerboard pieces 11a and 11b can be arranged adjacent to each other such that they are magnetically engaged with the bowl-shaped piece 12 by means of one or more magnets arranged within the first and second checkerboard pieces 11a and 11b and one or more opposing pole magnets arranged within the base of the bowl-shaped piece 12. Although two checkerboard pieces are shown herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the play accessory 10 may include fewer or more than two checkerboard pieces arranged within the bowl-shaped piece 12.

[0019] FIG. 2 Different embodiments with section 13 are shown, based on the publicly available text. FIG. 1 A breakdown diagram of play-on accessory 10. (See attached image.) FIG. 1 As shown, each of the first chess piece 11a and the second chess piece 11b includes a chess piece cover defining one side of the chess piece, a chess piece body, and a chess piece magnet disposed within the chess piece body. For example, the first chess piece 11a includes a chess piece cover 11c, a chess piece body cover, and a chess piece magnet (not shown) disposed within the chess piece body cover.

[0020] Continue to refer to FIG. 2 The bowl-shaped component 12 is equipped with a bowl-shaped flange 12a, a bowl-shaped ramp 12b, a bowl-shaped groove 12c, and one or more bowl-shaped magnets (not shown) arranged within the base of the bowl-shaped component 12d. FIG. 2As shown, the bowl 12 is circumferentially surrounded by a bowl slot 12c. Further, the bowl flange 12a is formed as an inwardly projecting perimeter disposed about a top edge of a bowl ramp 12b. The bowl ramp 12b is defined by a curved region connecting the bowl flange 12a and a bowl base 12d. The bowl ramp 12b has a convex ramp profile so as to cooperate with the chess piece body (e.g., the chess piece cap) of the first and second chess pieces 11a and 11b. The innovative shape of the bowl ramp 12b is configured to cooperatively house one or more chess pieces (here, the first and second chess pieces 11a and 11b) by having a ramp profile that facilitates movement of the chess pieces therealong, for example, as FIGS. 4A-4B shown in greater detail in the . Such cooperative seating is based not only on the complementary shapes of the bowl ramp 12b and the chess piece body (e.g., the body cap), but also on magnetic interactions. As noted above and below, these magnetic interactions are provided by one or more magnets disposed within the first and second chess pieces 11a and 11b, with one or more opposite pole magnets disposed within the bowl base 12d. This combination of complementary geometry and magnetic interactions between the bowl ramp 12b and one or more chess pieces (e.g., the chess pieces 11a and 11b) provides a mechanism for play-based stress reduction, anxiety reduction, or mental stress reduction by which a user can be able to reduce nervous energy, anxiety, or mental stress.

[0021] Referring back to FIG. 2 , the band 13 includes a band loop 13a, a band wrap 13b, a band hole 13c, a band tail 13d, a magnetic cap 13e, and a band magnet (not shown). According to one embodiment of the disclosure, the bowl slot 12c is configured to cooperatively receive the band loop 13a of the band wrap 13b. It will be appreciated that the band loop 13a can be configured to form a snap fit with the bowl slot 12c, thereby securing the band 13 to the bowl 12 in a fixed but temporary or reversible manner. In this way, different embodiments of the band 13 can be connected to and disconnected from the bowl 12.

[0022] Referring now to FIGS. 3A-3C , end and side views of the bowl 12 according to the disclosure are shown. As shown, the slot 12c is disposed along the outside of the bowl 12, thereby forming a circumferential indentation about the bowl 12.

[0023] FIGS. 4A-4B An embodiment of the first chess piece 11a according to the disclosure is shown. As FIGS. 4A-4B shown, the cap 11c can include a concave shape that is complementary to the curvature of the chess piece body cap, such that the chess pieces of the disclosure can be vertically stacked in an engaged manner, as shown and described in greater detail below.

[0024] Referring now to FIG. 5BA cross-sectional view of the first checkerboard element 11a is shown, wherein the checkerboard magnet 20a is arranged inside the checkerboard body cover. In one or more embodiments, the complementary geometry between the checkerboard cover 11c and the checkerboard body cover is as follows: FIG. 5B The chess piece magnets 20a arranged within the chess piece body, as shown, combine to provide a configuration in which multiple chess pieces can be stacked in an engaging manner (e.g., one placed on top of another).

[0025] FIG. 6B This is a cross-sectional view of the bowl-shaped member 12, showing first and second bowl-shaped magnets 24a and 24b arranged side-by-side inside the bowl-shaped member base 12d. In one or more embodiments of the disclosed text, the first bowl-shaped magnet 24a may be configured to interact primarily with the opposing pole magnet 20a of the first checkerboard member 11a (see, for example...). FIG. 5B The second bowl-shaped magnet 24 can be configured to magnetically interact with the opposing pole of the second checkerboard magnet 11b (not shown), such that the first and second checkerboards 11a and 11b remain magnetically engaged with the bowl-shaped element 12. It should be understood that the checkerboard magnets and the corresponding first and second bowl-shaped magnets 24a and 24b are oriented such that the first and second checkerboards 11a and 11b remain magnetically engaged with the bowl-shaped substrate 12d until an external force of sufficient magnitude is applied to the first and / or second checkerboards 11a, 11b to overcome the magnetic attraction between the checkerboards 11a and / or 11b and the bowl-shaped element 12, thereby causing the checkerboards 11a, 11b to detach from the bowl-shaped substrate 12d. The complementary geometry of the checkerboard pieces 11a and / or 11b to the bowl-shaped piece 12, and the aforementioned magnetic interaction between them, provides an arrangement in which, when the checkerboard pieces 11a or 11b are detached from the bowl-shaped piece base 12d by the external force, the checkerboard pieces move upward along the bowl-shaped piece ramp 12b, or move up and down relative to each other, as further illustrated below.

[0026] FIGS. 7A-7H Various orientations of the first and second checkerboard pieces 11a and 11b relative to the bowl-shaped piece 12 of the play accessory 10 are shown. These orientations can occur in response to the application of exemplary forces by the user, such as when the user plays with the accessory 10. It should be understood, of course, that the user can manipulate the checkerboard pieces based on play by applying a wide range of forces to one or both of the checkerboard pieces 11a and 11b, and such forces can be in any direction and have a range of amplitude depending on the desired effect. Similarly, FIGS. 8A-8H Depicting in FIGS. 7A-7H Cross sections of the first and second checkerboard-shaped pieces 11a and 11b and the bowl-shaped piece 12 in various orientations are shown.

[0027] First refer to FIG. 7A / FIG. 8A The first and second chess pieces 11a and lib are shown in a "base" orientation whereby the bowl piece magnets 24a and 24b and the corresponding chess piece magnets 20a and 20b are in their closest and most collinear orientation and thus experience the greatest magnetic attraction that secures the first and second chess pieces 11a, lib to the base of the bowl piece 12.

[0028] FIG. 7B / FIG. 8B An arrangement of the chess piece 11b is shown in which, after an external user force 30 is applied to the chess piece lib, the chess piece lib is caused to move away from its "base" orientation and towards the chess piece 11a depending on the direction and magnitude of the user force 30. In this way, the user force 30 overcomes the magnetic force to separate the chess piece magnet 20b from the corresponding bowl piece magnet 24b such that they are no longer in their closest and most collinear orientation. As a result, the user experiences a reduced magnetic resistance as the force 30 is continued to be applied. FIG. 7A / 8A, in which, after an external user force 30 is applied to the chess piece lib, the chess piece lib is caused to move away from its "base" orientation and towards the chess piece 11a depending on the direction and magnitude of the user force 30. In this way, the user force 30 overcomes the magnetic force to separate the chess piece magnet 20b from the corresponding bowl piece magnet 24b such that they are no longer in their closest and most collinear orientation. As a result, the user experiences a reduced magnetic resistance as the force 30 is continued to be applied.

[0029] Reference is now made to FIG. 7C / FIG. 8C Another arrangement is shown in which the external user force 30 continues to be applied to the chess piece lib, causing the chess piece lib to fully separate from the bowl piece and move onto the adjacent chess piece 11a. In this way, the magnetic attraction between the chess piece magnet 20b and the corresponding bowl piece magnet 24b is greatly reduced, which is experienced by the user as the force 30 is continued to be applied. At the same time, however, the magnet 20b of the chess piece lib now experiences an attraction with the corresponding magnet 20a of the chess piece 11a as the magnets 20a and 20b move closer to each other. Thus, the user not only experiences a greatly reduced magnetic resistance to the force 30, but now in fact begins to experience an increased attraction between the magnets 20a and 20b.

[0030] FIG. 7D / FIG. 8D The increased magnetic attraction between the external user force 30 and the magnets 20a and 20b is shown to cause the chess piece lib to fully slide to the other side of the bowl piece, causing the chess piece lib to fully stack on the adjacent chess piece 11a. This is taken into account when the magnetic attraction between the magnets 20a and 20b increases as the chess piece lib moves on top of the chess piece 11a, as well as the complementary shapes of the body and lid of the chess piece, as outlined above. FIGS. 4A-4BAs noted above, the user can experience the application of force 30 when "flipping" one piece on top of another, or even "snapping" into place in a stacked manner. The experience of fidgeting can be particularly calming or stress relieving, as although the user is pushing the pieces out of their base orientation, the user will not experience the risk of the pieces ever falling or completely disengaging, as one magnetic force decreases (i.e., between magnets 20b and 24b), another magnetic force increases (i.e., between magnets 20a and 20b).

[0031] FIG. 7E / FIG. 8E The same starting base orientation is shown as above FIG. 7A / FIG. 8A However, as opposed to force 30 in FIG. 7B / FIG. 8B , the direction and magnitude of user force 40 in FIG. 7F / FIG. 8F causes piece 1 lb to disengage from its "base" orientation and move under adjacent piece 11a. A further effect is to cause piece 11a to also disengage from its base orientation. As with the embodiment of FIG. 7B / FIG. 8B , user force 40 in FIG. 7F / FIG. 8F overcomes the magnetic force separating piece magnet 20b from its corresponding bowl magnet 24b, such that they are no longer in their closest and most collinear orientation, but also overcomes the additional magnetic force separating piece magnet 20a from its corresponding bowl magnet 24a, such that they are no longer in their closest and most collinear orientation as well. As a result, the user experiences a reduced magnetic resistance as force 40 continues to be applied.

[0032] FIG. 7G / FIG. 8G The effect of continued application of user force 40 is shown, particularly moving piece 1 lb further away from magnet 24b while lifting piece 11a off of its corresponding magnet 24a. As such, the magnetic attraction between piece magnet 20b and corresponding bowl magnet 24b is greatly reduced, which the user experiences as force 40 continues to be applied. At the same time, however, magnet 20b of piece 1 lb is now attracted not only by the corresponding magnet 20a of piece 11a due to magnets 20a and 20b moving closer to each other, but also by bowl magnet 24a. Thus, the user not only experiences a great deal of magnetic resistance to force 40, but now in fact begins to experience an increased attractive force as piece 1 lb slides over bowl piece.

[0033] Finally, FIG. 7H / FIG. 8HThe increased magnetic attraction between the external user force 40 and the magnets 20a and 20b and between the magnets 20b and the bowl magnet 24a is shown to cause the chess piece 1 lb to fully slide underneath the chess piece 11a such that the chess pieces 11a and 1 lb are again stacked in an orientation, albeit opposite to the sequence in FIG. 7D / FIG. 8D the above. As described above, the user can experience the application of the force 40 when "snapping" the chess pieces together in a similar manner as described above, whereby the user does not feel as if the chess pieces have the risk of falling due to the application of the force 40 by the magnetic force.

[0034] It should be appreciated that the user manipulation of the chess pieces 11a and 1 lb described above with respect to FIGS. 7A-7H / FIGS. 8A-8H is merely exemplary and that there is a wide range of fidget-based manipulations of the chess pieces that can equally provide a calming and beneficial effect to the user and that are particularly possible with the fidget accessories disclosed herein.

[0035] While the application has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, it will be appreciated that many variations, modifications and other applications of the application can be made. Therefore, the disclosed application should not be limited to what has been described in this detailed description.

Claims

1. A fidget accessory, comprising: a plurality of checker pieces, wherein each checker piece comprises: a checker piece cover; a checker piece body; and at least one checker piece magnet disposed within the checker piece body of a respective one of the plurality of checker pieces; a bowl piece, the bowl piece comprising: a slot circumferentially encircling the bowl piece; a bowl piece base disposed at a bottom of the bowl piece and on which the plurality of checker pieces are configured to be seated in a base orientation; a bowl piece flange circumferentially encircling a top edge of the bowl piece; a bowl piece ramp extending between the bowl piece flange and the bowl piece base; and one or more bowl piece magnets housed in the bowl piece base having a polarity opposite to a corresponding one of the checker piece magnets at least when the plurality of checker pieces are seated in the base orientation, wherein the one or more bowl piece magnets are configured to magnetically interact with the checker piece magnets; and a band portion, wherein the band portion comprises a band collar disposed on an inner surface of a band wrap, and wherein the band collar is configured to engage with the slot circumferentially encircling the bowl piece.

2. The fidget accessory of claim 1, wherein the band collar is configured to engage with the slot by a snap fit.

3. The fidget accessory of claim 1, wherein the checker piece cover of each of the plurality of checker pieces comprises a concave shape and the checker piece body of each of the plurality of checker pieces comprises a convex curvature.

4. The fidget accessory of claim 3, wherein the concave shape of the checker piece cover is complementary to the convex curvature of the checker piece body.

5. The fidget accessory of claim 1, wherein the bowl piece flange is formed as an inwardly projecting perimeter disposed around a top edge of the bowl piece ramp.

6. The fidget accessory of claim 1, wherein the bowl piece ramp is defined by a curved region extending between the bowl piece flange and the bowl piece base.

7. The fidget accessory of claim 6, wherein the curved region of the bowl piece ramp comprises a convex profile configured to mate with a shape of the checker pieces to facilitate movement of the plurality of checker pieces along the bowl piece ramp.

8. The fidget accessory of claim 1, wherein the plurality of checker pieces comprises a first checker piece and a second checker piece arranged side-by-side adjacent to each other in the bowl piece.

9. A fidget accessory, comprising: a first checker piece and a second checker piece, wherein each of the first and second checker pieces comprises a checker piece cover, a checker piece body, and a first and second checker piece magnet respectively disposed within the first and second checker pieces; a bowl piece comprising a bowl piece base disposed at a bottom of the bowl piece and on which the first and second checker pieces are configured to be seated side-by-side adjacent to each other in a base orientation, wherein the bowl piece includes a bowl piece magnet housed in the bowl piece base and having a polarity opposite to polarities of the first and second checker piece magnets, wherein the bowl piece magnet is configured to magnetically interact with the first and second checker piece magnets, wherein the bowl piece and the first and second checker pieces have complementary geometry and magnetic interactions therebetween that, upon application of an external user force in an upward direction to the first checker piece, cause the first checker piece to disengage from the base orientation and move toward the second checker piece, and that, upon application of the external user force, further cause each of the first and second checker pieces to remain in magnetic engagement with one of the bowl piece and the corresponding other checker piece; and a band portion, wherein the band portion includes a band collar disposed on an inner surface of a band wrap, and wherein the band collar is configured to be seated in engagement with a groove that circumferentially encircles the bowl piece by a snap fit.

10. The fidget accessory of claim 9, wherein each checker piece cover includes a concave shape, and a checker piece body of each checker piece includes a convex curvature.

11. The fidget accessory of claim 9, wherein the bowl piece flange is formed as an inwardly projecting perimeter disposed about a top edge of the bowl piece ramp.

12. The fidget accessory of claim 9, wherein the bowl piece ramp is defined by a curved region extending between the bowl piece flange and the bowl piece base.

Images