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US 4,040,630 AGranted
Puzzle
OwnerWilliam G. Brattaininventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
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OwnerWilliam G. Brattaininventor
Estimating the term…
A puzzle including a plurality of pieces each having a subset of coded symbols on its top and bottom surfaces. The pieces are adapted to fit together to form a closed structure when a plurality of symbols in the respective subsets of adjacent pieces match each other. In one embodiment, the pieces are arcuate blocks each having symbols formed by a plurality of peg arrangements extending from the top surface of the blocks, and correspoding aperture arrangements in the bottom surface of the block. The blocks are arranged end-to-end to form several courses, and the courses are stacked above each other with the blocks of one course overlapping two blocks of each adjacent course. However, the blocks may overlap each other only when their aperture arrangements match the peg arrangements of the blocks below. In another embodiment of the invention, the pieces are formed by a plurality of arcuate strips each having a plurality of spaced apart symbols. The strips overlap each other to form a continuous loop with a plurality of vertically adjacent symbols matching each other.
A puzzle comprising a plurality of stacked pieces each having a subset of coded symbols taken from a set of said symbols, said coded symbols being present on both the top and bottom surfaces of said pieces with the top symbols of each piece being adapted to interface with matching symbols on the bottom of other pieces, said subsets being derived from said set such that said pieces, when arranged in a puzzle solution, mate with other pieces to form continuous loops with vertically mating pieces overlapping each other such that a plurality of bottom symbols of each piece match a plurality of top symbols of a mating piece adjacent one end thereof, and a plurality of top symbols of each piece match a plurality of bottom symbols of a mating piece adjacent the other end thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.