Toys with connected play
AssigneeKids II Hape Joint Venture Limited
InventorsScott V. Wells, Barry Leitch, Adam Shillito
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A wirelessly connected ensemble of children's toys with capacitive touch interactivity. The children's toy generally includes a user input overlay panel and one or more capacitive touch sensors. The overlay panel may be formed from a capacitive touch conductive natural organic material such as wood. The toy can be shaped and ornamented to resemble a musical instrument, and configured to play music in response to user input applied to the user input overlay panel and sensed by the capacitive touch sensors. The children's toys are configured for individual and connected play modes. In the connected play mode, the children's toys produce synchronized and/or harmonized sounds and/or melodies.
Claims20
A children's toy, comprising:
- a user input panel comprising a substantially continuous cover portion comprising a natural or synthetic wood touch surface and further comprising at least one capacitive touch pad;
- a processor configured to receive an input signal corresponding to a user interaction with the at least one capacitive touch pad;
- an audio speaker configured to receive an output signal from the processor and to output a sound corresponding to the user interaction with the at least one capacitive touch pad, and
- a connectivity device to wirelessly connect the children's toy to other children's toys, and
- an actuator configured to allow selective user input to select connected play or to generate coherent or complementary sound outputs when the children's toy is wirelessly connected to one or more of the other children's toys,
- wherein the children's toy is configured to receive one or more wireless signals from the one or more other children's toys and generate a secondary responsive output signal in response thereto.
A toy instrument ensemble comprising:
- a lead toy instrument;
- and
- one or more non-lead toy instruments configured for wirelessly connecting to the lead toy instrument and one another,
- wherein, in response to an output signal from the lead toy instrument, the non-lead toy instruments generate synchronized sounds or riffs corresponding to lead sounds or riffs generated by the lead toy instrument when the non-lead toy instruments are wirelessly connected to the lead toy.
A method of synchronizing two or more interconnected children's toy instruments to generate harmonized music and sounds, the method comprising:
- selecting, via an actuator, a connected play mode to initiate a wireless interconnection between two or more children's toy instruments;
- establishing the wireless interconnection between the two or more children's toy instruments;
- playing one or more melody backers on the two or more children′ toy instruments;
- designating one of the two or more interconnected children's toy instruments as a lead instrument and the remainder as a non-lead instrument or instruments;
- sending an output signal from the lead instrument, where the output signal is activated by user interaction with the lead instrument;
- and
- generating a combination of synchronized melodies or sounds from the non-lead instruments in response to receiving the output signal from the lead instrument.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.