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US 4,148,488 AGranted
Random selection apparatus
OwnerWalter Kohlhageninventor
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OwnerWalter Kohlhageninventor
Estimating the term…
A die includes a first, sealed cube having six transparent, window forming faces. A second cube within the first cube has six insignia bearing faces, each in register with and in relatively close proximity to a corresponding face of the first cube. An optical shielding liquid within the container fills the container so that when the die is at rest a transparent bubble is formed between an upper, horizontally disposed insignia bearing face and the container face in registration with the upper face. The shielding liquid obscures all of the other insignia bearing faces. In a second embodiment, a randomly selected, upper face of a polyhedron, buoyant in an optical shielding liquid, is guided so that it is close to, but spaced from, and in registration with a horizontally disposed window on an upper wall of a sealed container for the liquid by guide walls of the container, as well as bosses on the polyhedron. The shielding liquid fills the container so that a transparent bubble is formed between the upper face and container window. In both embodiments, the bubble is confined between the upper container window and the upper, insignia bearing face to wipe the shielding liquid from the window and face, thereby enabling the insignia to be clearly seen.
A die comprising a sealed polyhedron container having a plurality (N) of faces each of which carries a window, a polyhedron within the sealed container having the same number of faces as the container, each face of said polyhedron bearing an insignia, each face of the polyhedron being maintained in register with and spaced from a different one of the window carrying faces while the die is at rest, said container being configured so that for each rest position of the die there are two substantially horizontal faces of the container, said horizontal faces being upper and lower faces of the container, an optical shielding liquid within said container, the container, liquid, faces and insignia being such that when the die is at rest the liquid obscures from view the insignias on all of the insignia bearing faces except the insignia on the upper, substantially horizontal face of the polyhedron.
A random selection device comprising a sealed container having relatively flat window means at least a portion of which is adapted to be substantially horizontally disposed, a single polyhedron within the container having multiple insignia bearing faces one of which is randomly displayed to an observer through the horizontally disposed portion of the window means when the polyhedron is at rest, an optical shielding liquid within said container, the liquid, faces and insignia being such that when the polyhedron is at rest the face carrying the displayed insignia lies in a plane substantially parallel to and in close proximity to the horizontally disposed portion of the window means so that the liquid obscures from view the insignias on all of the insignia bearing faces except the displayed insignia, the displayed insignia being on an upper face of the polyhedron, the liquid being of a material and filled in the container so that when the polyhedron is at rest a single transparent, fluid bubble is formed in the liquid between the face carrying the displayed insignia and the horizontal portion of the window means, said single bubble having a predetermined volume such that substantially the entire face carrying the displayed insignia can be viewed through the bubble and the horizontally disposed portion of the window means, the spacing between the face carrying the displayed insignia and the horizontal portion of the window means being relatively close, so that the bubble is confined between them and is not allowed to assume its normal spherical or ellipsoidal shape, but has a smaller height than either an sphere or ellipse, to exert a sufficient force on the horizontally disposed portion of the window means and the face carrying the displayed insignia to displace any liquid having a tendency to adhere to the horizontally disposed portion of the window means in proximity to the displayed face and the face carrying the displayed insignia, wherein the container is a second polyhedron having the same number of faces as the insignia bearing polyhedron, corresponding faces of the two polyhedrons being maintained in register while the container is at rest, said window means being provided on each face of the second polyhedron to enable each of the insignias to be displayed when the face carrying the insignia is the upper horizontal face.
A die comprising a first, sealed cube having six window forming faces, a second cube within the first cube having six insignia bearing faces, each of the window forming faces being spaced from and in register with a different one of the insignia bearing faces, corresponding ones of the insignia bearing and window forming faces being in relatively close proximity to each other and lying in substantially parallel planes so that they are always in register with each other, an optical shielding liquid within said first cube, the first cube, liquid, faces and insignia being such that when the die is at rest with one of the faces substantially horizontal the liquid obscures from view the insignias on all of the insignia bearing faces except the insignia on an upper substantially horizontal face of the second cube.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.