Construction element

Abstract

A construction element, preferably a constructional toy, including a tubular body portion and, formed integrally with each of the opposite ends thereof, a pair of gripping jaws, each pair constituting a coupling portion. The constituent jaws of each pair are oppositely disposed with respect to a longitudinal axis of the body portion and are separated by oppositely disposed peripheral coupling device. The tubular body portion is formed with longitudinally directed, angularly spaced-apart, first coupling device. Each pair of the gripping jaws of the construction element can embrace a body portion of a second construction element, with the jaws not extending beyond a median plane of the body portion of the second construction element, and with inner surfaces of the pair of jaws conforming to the outer surface of said body portion. The jaws are formed with second coupling device which can snap-fittingly mate with the first coupling device so as releasably to couple the first and the second construction elements together in a mutually orthogonal position. One pair of jaws of the first construction element being receivable within respective interstices of a pair of jaws of an aligned second construction element with the peripheral and second coupling device which can adapted snap-fittingly mate so as releasably to couple the two aligned elements together. Various complementary construction elements are also described.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.