US 6,648,715 B2Granted

Snap-fit construction system

OwnerBenjamin I. Wiens, Eric G. McIntoshinventors

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Abstract

A modular construction system featuring an improved snap-fit connection element that can be incorporated into a wide variety of construction elements. These construction elements may be made in a range of sizes and used in a variety of fields such as, construction, toys, educational, machinery, products, jigs, two and three dimensional art, and signs. Various shapes disclosed are blocks, beams, radial-hubs, struts, rods, wires, panels, plates, rotators, adaptors, and locks. The preferred connection element comprises of a bendable pair of male ribs containing ridges that snap-fit into a pair of grooves of a mating female connection element. The grooves contain projections at roughly their midpoint and locate into mating indentations in the ridges. This connection element is more exotic than typically used, but can be snap-fit together or taken apart easily in a variety of directions while still allowing it to be molded inexpensively.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A snap-fit type construction system comprising of:

(a) various possible sets of construction elements,
(b) said sets of construction elements having a male type one connection element and a female type two connection element,
(c) said type one connection elements having a ridge and an indentation and type two connection elements having a groove and a projection,
(d) said male type one connection elements having a pair of spaced apart ribs extending outward in a longitudinal direction from a side surface of said construction elements, a rib cavity being defined between them, with at least one of those faces of said ribs that face furthest away from said rib cavity being provided with said ridge projecting in a horizontal direction outward from said rib, running in a vertical direction up a considerable distance of the height of the bendable ends of said rib, with said ridges being provided with said indentation falling between the ends of the height of said ridges,
(e) said female type two connection elements having a pair of opposed walls extending inwards in said longitudinal direction from said side of said construction elements, a recess being defined between said opposed walls and an end wall, with said recess having at free edges, an open face facing in said longitudinal direction, and two opposed open faces each facing in said vertical directions, with at least one of the sides of said opposed walls that face towards said recess being provided with said groove running in said vertical direction up along the entire height of said recess from a bottom surface to a top surface, with said groove being provided with said projection falling between the ends of the height of said grooves,
(f) said ribs being resiliently bendable and substantially more bendable than said opposed walls,
(g) said male type one connection element, including said ribs, said ridges, and said indentations, being of such a shape that by snap-effect are able to be received and releasably secured in said recess between said opposed walls by locating in said grooves and said projections of said female type two connection element,
(h) whereby said male type one connection element and said female type two connection element may be used to connect different sizes and shapes of said construction elements together in a variety of orientations and for a variety of purposes.

5 more elements

A snap-fit type construction system comprising of:

(a) various possible sets of construction elements,
(b) said sets of construction elements having a male type one connection element for connecting to a female type two connection element as well as a male type two connection element for connecting to a female type one connection element,
(c) wherein said type one connection elements are the more resiliently bendable and said type two connection element are the less resiliently bendable,
(d) said male connection elements having a rib and said female connection elements having a recess,
(e) said type one connection elements having a ridge and an indentation and said type two connection elements having a groove and a projection,
(f) said male type one connection elements having pairs of said spaced apart ribs extending in a longitudinal direction from a side surface of said construction elements, a rib cavity being defined between them, with at least one of those faces of said ribs that face furthest away from said rib cavity being provided with said ridge projecting in a horizontal direction outward from said rib, running in a vertical direction up a considerable distance of the height of the bendable ends of said rib, with said ridges being provided with said indentation falling between the ends of the height of said ridges,
(g) said female type two connection elements having a pair of opposed walls extending in said longitudinal direction from said side surface of said construction elements, said recess being between said opposed walls and an end wall, with said recess having at free edges, an open face facing in said longitudinal direction, and two opposed open faces each facing in said vertical directions, with at least one of the sides of said opposed walls that face towards said recess being provided with said groove running in said vertical direction up along the entire height of said recess from a bottom surface to a top surface, with said groove being provided with said projection falling between the ends of the height of said grooves,
(h) said male type two connection elements having pairs of said spaced apart ribs extending in said longitudinal direction from said side surface of said construction elements, said rib cavity being defined between them which can be filled in to form a solid single rib if desired, with at least one of the outermost faces of said ribs being provided with said groove running in said vertical direction up along the entire height of said rib from said bottom surface to said top surface, with said groove being provided with said projection falling between the ends of the height of said grooves,
(i) said female type one connection elements having said opposed walls extending in said longitudinal direction from said side of said construction elements, said recess being between said opposed walls and said end wall, with said recess having at free edges, an open face facing in said longitudinal direction, and two opposed open faces each facing in said vertical directions, with at least one of said sides of said opposed walls that face towards said recess being provided with said ridge projecting in said horizontal direction outward from said opposed walls, running in said vertical direction up a considerable distance of the height of the bendable ends of said opposed walls, with said ridges being provided with said indentation falling between the ends of the height of said ridges,
(j) said male connection element being of such a shape that by snap-effect is able to be received and releasably secured in said female connection element,
(k) whereby said male connection element and said female connection element may be used to connect different sizes and shapes of said construction elements together in a variety of orientations and for a variety of purposes.

8 more elements

A snap-fit type construction system comprising:

(a) various possible sets of construction elements,
(b) said sets of construction elements having a male type one connection element for connecting to a female type two connection element as well as a male type two connection element for connecting to a female type one connection element,
(c) wherein said type one connection elements are the more resiliently bendable and said type two connection elements are less resiliently bendable,
(d) said male connection elements having a rib and said female connection elements having a recess,
(e) said type one connection elements having a ridge and an indentation and said type two connection elements having a groove and a projection,
(f) said male type one connection elements having a pair of rows of spaced apart ribs extending in a longitudinal direction from said side surface of said construction elements, a rib cavity being defined between them, with at least one of those faces of said ribs that face furthest away from said rib cavity being provided with said ridge projecting outward in a horizontal direction from said rib, running in said vertical direction up a considerable distance of the height of the bendable ends of said rib, with said ridges being provided with said indentation falling between the ends of the height of said ridges,
(g) said female type two connection elements having a pair of rows of opposed walls extending in said longitudinal direction from said side surface of said construction elements, said recess being between said opposed walls and an end wall, with said recess having at free edges, an open face facing in said longitudinal direction, and two opposed open faces each facing in said vertical directions, with at least one of the sides of said opposed walls that face towards said recess being provided with said groove running in said vertical direction up along the entire height of said opposed wall, with said groove being provided with said projection falling between the ends of the height of said grooves,
(h) said male type two connection elements having a pair of rows of said spaced apart ribs extending in said longitudinal direction from said side surface of said construction elements, said rib cavity being defined between them which can be filled in to form a solid single rib if desired, with at least one of the outermost faces of said ribs being provided with said groove running in said vertical direction up along the entire height of said rib, with said groove being provided with said projection falling between the ends of the height of said grooves,
(i) said female type one connection elements having rows of said opposed walls extending in said longitudinal direction from said side of said construction elements, said recess being between said opposed walls and said end wall, with said recess having at free edges, an open face facing in said longitudinal direction, and two opposed open faces each facing in said vertical directions, with at least one of said sides of said opposed walls that face towards said recess being provided with said ridge projecting in said horizontal direction outward from said opposed walls, running in a vertical direction up a considerable distance of the height of the bendable ends of said opposed walls, with said ridges being provided with said indentation falling between the ends of the height of said ridges
(j) said pair of rows of spaced apart ribs and said rows of opposed walls includes those that are staggered in said vertical direction and contain a plurality of gaps between other said ribs or said opposed walls above or below them whereby a panel construction element can be molded in said horizontal direction as opposed to said vertical direction, in a way that said panel construction elements that are tall and thin can be easily molded,
(k) said indentations of said ridges being any form of reduction in said ridge projecting outward in said horizontal direction between the ends of the height of said ridges, including a slot cutting through a part or whole of said ribs,
(l) said male connection element being of such a shape that by snap-effect is able to be received and releasably secured in said female connection element,
(m) whereby said male connection element and said female connection element may be used to connect different sizes and shapes of said construction elements together in a variety of orientations and for a variety of purposes.

10 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.