DK2468375T3

DK2468375T3 - Conjurer

Info

Publication number: DK2468375T3
Application number: DK12001053.3T
Authority: DK
Inventors: Herman Jacques Monshouwer
Original assignee: Hanky Panky Toys Thailand Ltd
Priority date: 2009-12-11
Filing date: 2009-12-24
Publication date: 2014-03-03
Also published as: NL1037549C2; EP2332624A1; EP2468375A1; ATE547160T1; HK1138722A2; ES2386501T3; EP2468375B1; EP2332624B1; HK1140631A2

Abstract

Conjurer's kit (1), comprising a box (100) comprising walls (101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106) enclosing an interior (109) and having a display opening (107) in one front wall (106), wherein the inside surfaces of all walls are of a very dark colour, preferably black and at least one attribute (300; 400; 510; 520; 530) having an at least partly black outer surface.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates in general to a conjurer's kit, especially for children.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] For children, it is fun to play to be a magician or conjurer. Thus, several kits have been developed for use by children with which they can play the same (or similar) tricks as performed by professional magicians or conjurers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] One specific trick is a trick involving disappearing objects, or objects changing from one shape to another shape, as described in US-1760842. This document discloses a conjurer's box placed in front of a horizontal tube. The box has doors in its rear wall which can be opened such that an assistant is capable of accessing the interior of the box via said tube. Performing the trick requires the presence of an assistant, and requires that the box be equipped with doors in its front opening, because these doors must be closed when the assistant is handling the objects within the box.

[0004] Likewise, US-873447 discloses a cabinet of sufficient size to contain a person. At its front size, the cabinet has a door fitted with bars, and moveable shutters that are either concealed within the bars to allow visual access into the cabinet's interior or positioned between the bars to conceal the cabinet's interior from view. This cabinet too requires the presence of a door in its rear wall, the presence of a door in its front opening, and the presence of an assistant.

[0005] It is a specific objective of the present invention to provide a relatively simple and easy-to-use kit with which children can perform such trick involving disappearing objects, without the disadvantages of the prior art box. Such kit provided by the invention has the features of claim 1. The combination of the features of the box and the features of the attribute, having an at least partly black outer surface, allows children to easily perform the trick.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be further explained by the following description with reference to the drawings, in which same reference numerals indicate same or similar parts, and in which: figure 1 schematically shows a perspective view of a box for use in a conjurer's kit according to the present invention; figures 2A, 2B, 2C schematically show a front view, a top view in cross section, and a side view in cross section, respectively, of the box of figure 1; figures 3A and 3B are views comparable to figure 2C, schematically illustrating a first trick; figures 3C, 3D, 3E, 3F are similar views, schematically illustrating a variation of the first trick; figures 4A and 4B are views comparable to figure 2C, schematically illustrating a second trick; figure 5A schematically illustrates playing cards according to the present invention; figure 5B schematically shows a stack of two of these playing cards for performing a third trick; figures 5C and 5D are views comparable to figure 2C, schematically illustrating the third trick; figure 5E schematically shows a stack of three of these playing cards for performing a variation of the third trick.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Figure 1 schematically shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a box 100 for use in a conjurer's kit 1 according to the present invention. Figures 2A, 2B, 2C schematically show a front view, a top view in cross section, and a side view in cross section, respectively, of the box 100. The box 100 as shown has a general block shape, with a planar bottom 101, a top wall 102, a rear wall 103, side walls 104, 105, and a front wall 106. In the preferred embodiment shown, said walls are mutually perpendicular to each other, but different angles are within the scope of the present invention. For sake of simplicity, the top wall 102, rear wall 103, and side walls 104, 105 are planar, and are pependicular to each other, but this is not essential in all embodiments.

[0008] Preferably, the box 100 is foldable. In a preferred embodiment, the box 100 comprises a bottom part 110, a cover part 120, and a wall part 130. The bottom part 110 consists of the bottom 101 and an upstanding rim 111 of a few centimeters high, which rim 111 in use will be directed upwards from the bottom 101. Likewise, the cover part 120 consists of the top wall 102 and an upstanding rim 121 of a few centimeters high, which rim 121 in use will be directed downwards from the top wall 102. The cover part 120 and the bottom part 110 may be mutually identical, but it is also preferred that one is somewhat smaller than the other such as to be nestable within each other. Particularly, the cover part 120 may be somewhat larger than the bottom part 110, so that these two parts together may form a storage box with the cover part 120 as lid. The wall part 130 consists of the rear wall 103, the two side walls 104,105 foldably attached to the rear wall 103 at opposite edges, and two strips 134 and 135 foldably attached to the side walls 104, 105, respectively at the free edges thereof opposite the central rear wall 103. This assembly can be folded such as to fit in the above-mentioned storage box. In unfolded condition, the wall part 130 can be placed upright within the bottom part 110, and the cover part 120 can be placed over the wall part 130, such as to form the box 100. From figure 1 it can be seen that the front wall 106 has a large opening 107 surrounded by relatively small wall portions defined by portions of rims 111 and 121 and by said two strips 134 and 135, which together forma window 108 around said opening. Through the opening 107, which will hereinafter also be indicated as display opening, the interior 109 of the box 100 can be seen. The box 100, in this condition, can be used as a magical theatre for performing conjurer's tricks, as will be explained later.

[0009] The dimensions of the box 100 are not critical, but for practical use the box 100 may have depth, width and height in the order of 40-100 cm.

[0010] The outside surfaces of the box 100 may be provided with colourful decorations, as desired, and may even be provided with illumination. The inside surfaces of the walls of the box, including the top wall and the bottom, are of a very dark colour, preferably black.

[0011] The interior 109 may be entirely empty, but the preferred embodiment is not. In the preferred embodiment, the box 100 comprises a partitioning wall 140 standing upright on the bottom 101, having a height smaller than the interior height; a suitable height is in the order of about 10 cm. The partitioning wall 140 extends from the one side wall 104 to the opposite side wall 105, at a distance from the rear wall 103, which distance is suitably about one-third of the depth of the box, although this distance is not critical; a suitable distance d is in the order of about 15 cm. The partitioning wall 140 may be a planar wall parallel to the rear wall 103, but it may also be curved, as shown.

[0012] The space between the partitioning wall 140 and the rear wall 103 will be indicated as hiding space 141. The bottom of the hiding space 141 is covered with a bottom cover 142 of a soft material, such as foam, sponge, carpet, or the like. The floor of the interior 109 between the partitioning wall 140 and the opening 107 will be indicated as stage 143; this stage may be a part of the bottom 101, or may be raised by an insert having a black top surface, as shown in figure 2C.

[0013] The kit 1 further comprises at least one attribute having an at last partly black outer surface. The key aspect of this feature is that such surface, when held before the opening 107 and especially when placed inside the box 100, is virtually invisible to spectators located in front of the box 100. In the following, some examples of such attributes will be described, including the tricks the player / conjurer can perform.

[0014] In a first example, illustrated in figures 3A and 3B, an attribute 300 has the general shape of an inversed cup. In top view, the profile may be round or angular. In side view, the cross section may be A or n, and actually the top may be open or closed. The attribute 300 of figures 3A and 3B has a cone-shape. The outer surface of this attribute 300 is entirely black. The trick is played with a secondary attribute 302 fitting in the interior 301 of the attribute 300. The secondary attribute 302 is bright enough such as to be normally visible. The shape of the secondary attribute 302 is basically immaterial, but for increased suspense the shape may for instance be an animal. When the secondary attribute 302 is placed on the stage 143 with the attribute 300 placed over it, the secondary attribute 302 is invisible to the spectators (figure 3A). When the conjurer lifts the attribute 300 (which as such can not be seen by the audience), while pronouncing a magical formula, the secondary attribute 302 magically appears (figure 3B). To have his hands free, the conjurer may place the attribute 300 on the stage 143 or in the hiding space 141. When the conjurer places the "invisible" attribute 300 over the secondary attribute 302, while pronouncing a different magical formula, this secondary attribute 302 magically disappears (figure 3A).

[0015] In a variation illustrated in figures 3C-3F, an attribute 310 consists of two separate components 311 and 312 as well as a secondary attribute 313, which in the example shown is a ball having a bright colour such as to be clearly visible. The two separate components 311 and 312 are each similar to the attribute 300 discussed in the above, namely inverse-cupshaped; in the example shown, each of said components 311 and 312 has the shape of a truncated cone. The two cones 311 and 312 are of soft and a flexible material, for instance plastic or rubber, and are of slightly different size so that they can be nested in each other. The smaller cone 312 has a completely black outer surface, while the larger cone 311 has a bright colour such as to be clearly visible. The ball 313 fits in the smaller cone 312. Figure 3C shows the ball 313 placed on the stage 143 with the smaller cone 312 placed over the ball 313 and with the larger cone 311 placed over the smaller cone 312. The audience only sees the outer cone 311. Now the conjurer may pick up the outer cone 311 so that the inner cone remains standing over the ball 313 (figure 3D): the black inner cone 312 makes the ball 313 invisible to the audience. Alternatively, the conjurer may pick up the outer cone 311 while squeezing the outer cone 311 somewhat so that it will clamp the inner cone 312 and the inner cone 312 is lifted as well (figure 3E): now the clearly visible ball has magically appeared on the stage 143. Alternatively, the conjurer may pick up the outer cone 311 while squeezing even harder, so that both the inner cone 312 and the ball 313 are lifted (figure 3F): now the stage 143 is empty.

[0016] In a second example, illustrated in figures 4A and 4B, an attribute 400 has two opposite surfaces 401 and 402. One surface 401 is entirely black, the opposite surface 402 is bright enough such as to be normally visible. The shape of the attribute 400 is basically immaterial, but for increased suspense the shape may for instance be an animal. The trick is played by placing the attribute 400 on the stage 143. When the second surface 402 is directed towards the opening 107, the attribute 400 is visible to the audience (figure 4B). When the conjurer, pronouncing a magical formula, turns the attribute 400 around so that the first surface 401 is directed towards the opening 107, the attribute 400 has magically disappeared (figure 4A). When the conjurer, pronouncing a different magical formula, turns the attribute 400 around again so that the second surface 402 is directed towards the opening 107, the attribute 400 has magically reappeared (figure 4B).

[0017] It is to be noted that the magical formula to be pronounced for making the secondary attribute 302 disappear is preferably identical to the magical formula to be pronounced for making the attribute 400 disappear. The same applies for the formulas to be pronounced for making the secondary attribute 302 or the attribute 400 appear.

[0018] In a third example, illustrated in figures 5A and 5B, a trick is played with a set of at least two, but preferably three cards 510, 520, 530. Each card has a front side 511,521,531 and a back side 512, 522, 532, respectively. Each front side 511, 521, 531 shows the same playing card (or other figure). Each back side 512, 522, 532 is at least partly black. A back side may be entirely black, but a back side may also comprise the face of the same playing card as the front side but at a smaller size. Figure 5 A shows a first playing card 510 having nine of hearts at its front side 511, while its back side 512 comprises a portion 513 containing the face of nine of hearts at a smaller size while the remainder portion 514 of the back side 512 is black. A second playing card 520 also has nine of hearts at its front side 521, while its back side 522 comprises a portion 523 containing the face of nine of hearts at a smaller size while the remainder portion 524 of the back side 522 is black. The size of second playing card 520 is substantially the same as the size of card portion 513 of the first card's back side 512. A third playing card 530 also has nine of hearts at its front side 531, while its back side 532 is completely black. The size of third playing card 530 is substantially the same as the size of card portion 523 of the second card's back side 522.

[0019] The different cards have mutually different sizes; the size ratio may for instance be about 1:1.5:2.

[0020] One trick is played with only one card having the same card figure at both sides yet with different sizes, such as card 510. By turning the card around, it seems as if the conjurer is magically capable of making a playing card increase or decrease in size. It is noted that the same type of trick would be possible with the attribute 400 of figure 4.

[0021] Another trick is played with two cards 510, 520 of different size, held back to back, as shown in figure 5B. In this trick, the cards back sides are entirely black. In a first step, the front side 511 of the larger card 510 is shown to the audience; the smaller card 520 is out of sight. In a second step, the conjurer holds the stack of cards 510, 520 inside the box 100, and turns the stack around so that the front side 521 of the smaller card 520 is facing the audience (figure 5C). The portion of the back side 512 of the larger card 510 not covered by the smaller card 520 is invisible because of its being black. In a third step, the conjurer drops the larger card 510 into the hiding space 141 behind the partitioning wall 140 so that this card is out of sight (figure 5D). The soft bottom cover 142 of the hiding space 141 prevents the audience from hearing the card drop. The conjurer can now take the smaller card 520 out of the box and show it to the audience. In a variation, the conjurer may use a stack containing the third card 530 in between the first and second cards 510, 520 and placed back to back with the second card 520 (figure 5E), so that the same trick can be repeated to magically "shrink" the card once more.

[0022] It should be clear to a person skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments discussed above, but that several variations and modifications are possible within the protective scope of the invention as defined in the appending claims. For instance, other objects may be used, partially black, to be placed in the magical theatre such as to be partially invisible.

Claims

1. Tryllekunstnersæt (1) omfattende: en generelt blokformet kasse (100) omfattende vægge (101, 102, 103, 104,105,106), der rummer et indre (109) og har en visningsåbning (107) i en forvæg (106) hvor de indvendige overflader af væggene er af en meget mørk farve, fortrinsvis sort; og mindst ét tilbehør (300; 400; 510; 520; 530) med mindst en delvis sort ydre overflade; kendetegnet ved, at kassen (100) omfatter: en bunddel (110), der består af en plan kassebund (101) og en opretstående kant (111); en afdækningsdel (120), der består af en kassetopvæg (102) og en opretstående kant (121), hvor afdækningsdelen (120) er lidt større end bunddelen (110), således at afdækningsdelen (120) kan fungere som låg til bunddelen (110) for således sammen at definere en opbevaringskasse; og en vægdel (130), der består af en central kassebagvæg (103), hvor to kassesidevægge (104, 105) er foldbart fastgjort til kassens bagvæg (103) ved modstående kanter deraf, og to bånd (134,135) foldbart er fastgjort til kassesidevæggene (104, 105), henholdsvis ved de frie kanter deraf modsat den centrale kassebagvæg (103), hvor vægdelen (130) kan foldes for således at kunne gå ind i opbevaringskassen; ved, at tilbehøret har to modstående overflader, hvor den ene af overfladerne er tilstrækkeligt lys til at være normalt synlig; og ved, at tilbehøret kan placeres inde i kassen (100) og drejes rundt, mens det er inde i kassen (100)A magic artist set (1) comprising: a generally block-shaped box (100) comprising walls (101, 102, 103, 104,105,106) accommodating an interior (109) and having a display opening (107) in a front wall (106) wherein the interior surfaces of the walls are of a very dark color, preferably black; and at least one accessory (300; 400; 510; 520; 530) with at least a partially black outer surface; characterized in that the box (100) comprises: a bottom portion (110) consisting of a flat box bottom (101) and an upright edge (111); a cover portion (120) consisting of a cassette wall (102) and an upright edge (121), wherein the cover portion (120) is slightly larger than the bottom portion (110) so that the cover portion (120) can act as a lid to the bottom portion (110). ) thus defining a storage box together; and a wall portion (130) consisting of a central box rear wall (103), wherein two box side walls (104, 105) are foldably attached to the box rear wall (103) at opposite edges thereof, and two bands (134,135) are foldably attached to the box side walls. (104, 105), respectively, at the free edges thereof opposite the central box rear wall (103), where the wall portion (130) can be folded so as to enter the storage box; in that the accessory has two opposite surfaces, one of the surfaces being light enough to be normally visible; and know that the accessory can be placed inside the box (100) and rotated while inside the box (100)

2. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 1, hvor tilbehøret er en genstand (400) med én sort halvdel (401) og en modstående ikke-sort halvdel (402).The magic artist set of claim 1, wherein the accessory is an object (400) having one black half (401) and an opposing non-black half (402).

3. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 1, hvor tilbehøret er et spillekort (530) med en forside (531) med en spillekortsfigur og en sort bagside (532).The magic artist set of claim 1, wherein the accessory is a playing card (530) having a front face (531) with a playing card figure and a black back face (532).

4. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 1, hvor tilbehøret er et spillekort (510) med en forside (511), der viser en spillekortsfigur, og en bagside (512) med en kortdel (513), der viser samme spillekortfigur som på forsiden (511), hvor det resterende af bagsiden (512) er sort.The magic artist set of claim 1, wherein the accessory is a playing card (510) having a face (511) showing a playing card figure and a back (512) having a card portion (513) showing the same playing card figure as on the front (511). , where the remainder of the back (512) is black.

5. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 1, hvor det mindst ene tilbehør (300; 400; 510; 520; 530) er en bundløs, hul skjuleanordning (300) med en sort overflade.The magic artist set of claim 1, wherein the at least one accessory (300; 400; 510; 520; 530) is a bottomless hollow concealer (300) with a black surface.

6. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 5, hvor den bundløse, hule skjuleanordning (300) er kegleformet.The magic artist set of claim 5, wherein the bottomless hollow concealer (300) is cone shaped.

7. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 1, hvor det mindst ene tilbehør (310) omfatter to bundløse, hule skjuleanordninger (311, 312) af tilsvarende form og lettere forskellige størrelser, således at den mindre (312) kan gå ind i den større (311) med et lille spillerum, hvor den mindre (312) har en sort overflade, mens den større (311) har en lys farve.The magic artist set of claim 1, wherein the at least one accessory (310) comprises two bottomless hollow concealers (311, 312) of similar shape and slightly different sizes so that the smaller (312) can fit into the larger (311) with a small space where the smaller (312) has a black surface, while the larger (311) has a light color.

8. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 7, hvor de to skjuleanordninger (311, 312) er af et blødt og smidigt materiale, for eksempel plast eller gummi.The magic artist set according to claim 7, wherein the two concealers (311, 312) are of a soft and supple material, for example plastic or rubber.

9. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 7 eller 8, hvilket sæt endvidere omfatter en hjælpegenstand (313) med en lys farve og en størrelse, således at den kan gå ind i den mindre (312) af skjuleanordningerne.The magic artist set according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising an auxiliary object (313) of a light color and a size so that it can enter the smaller (312) of the concealers.

10. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge et hvilket som helst af de foregående krav, hvor kassen (100) omfatter en bundafdækning (142) af et blødt materiale, hvilken bundafdækning (142) fortrinsvis er fremstillet af skum, en svamp eller tæppe.The magic artist set according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the box (100) comprises a bottom cover (142) of a soft material, which bottom cover (142) is preferably made of foam, a sponge or blanket.

11. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge et hvilket som helst af de foregående krav, hvor kassen (100) omfatter et skjult rum (141), der er defineret mellem en bagvæg (103) og en skillevæg (140), der er opretstående på en bund (101), hvilken skillevæg har en mindre højde end den indre højde.A magic artist set according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the box (100) comprises a hidden space (141) defined between a back wall (103) and a partition (140) upright on a bottom (101). ), which partition has a smaller height than the inner height.

12. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 11, hvor skillevæggen (140) strækker sig fra én sidevæg (104) til den modstående sidevæg (105) i en afstand fra bagvæggen (103).A magic artist set according to claim 11, wherein the partition wall (140) extends from one side wall (104) to the opposite side wall (105) at a distance from the back wall (103).

13. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 11, hvor skillevæggen (140) er en plan væg parallel med bagvæggen (103), mens skillevæggen (140) fortrinsvis er buet med den konvekse side i retning af åbningen (107).The magic artist set of claim 11, wherein the partition wall (140) is a flat wall parallel to the back wall (103), while the partition wall (140) is preferably curved with the convex side in the direction of the opening (107).

14. Tryllekunstnersæt ifølge krav 11, hvilket sæt endvidere omfatter en forhøjet trindel (143) på bunden af det indre (109) mellem skillevæggen (140) og åbningen (107).The magic artist set of claim 11, further comprising an elevated step portion (143) on the bottom of the interior (109) between the partition wall (140) and the opening (107).