JP7510477B2 - Toy parts and doll toys - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to toy parts and doll toys.

Assembly toys (for example, doll-type assembly toys) are assembled by combining multiple parts. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a plastic model in which each part is assembled by combining two plastic parts, one on the front and one on the back. The plastic parts have projections and recesses, which are combined to join the parts together.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-5103

However, when two parts are combined to form a part, if the seam (parting line) of the connecting part is visible from the outside, it can ruin the aesthetic look of some parts of the toy and make the viewer feel uncomfortable.

The present invention provides toy parts and doll toys that have no visible seams on the surface and can maintain a beautiful appearance.

The present invention relates to, for example, a toy component for an assembly-type doll toy, comprising a first part, a second part rotatably connected to the first part, and a third part that at least partially houses the first part and the second part, the third part having a first cavity therein and being integrally molded seamlessly on its surface, and including a cover member that covers the connection between the first part and the second part when the third part is housed in the first cavity of the third part with the first part and the second part connected to each other.
The present invention also relates to a toy component for an assembly-type doll toy, comprising a first part and a second part that at least partially houses the first part, the second part having a first cavity therein and being seamlessly molded on the surface, the first cavity connecting a first opening of the second part to a second opening opposite the first opening, the first cavity having a protrusion on the inside, the first part being positioned within the second part by engagement between the protrusion and a recess formed in the first part, and the portion of the first part that is not housed in the second part and is located on the second opening side has a cylindrical portion for connecting with a fourth part .

The present invention also relates to, for example, a toy part for an assembled doll toy, comprising a fourth member, a fifth member rotatably connected to an opening of the fourth member, and a sixth member that houses the fourth member and the fifth member in a second internal cavity when they are connected, the sixth member having a first opening for receiving the fourth member and the fifth member in the second cavity and a second opening for connecting the housed fifth member to a second other member, and being integrally molded without seams on the surface.
Furthermore, the present invention is an assembly type doll toy including the above toy parts.

The present invention provides toy parts and doll toys that have no visible seams on the surface and can maintain a beautiful appearance.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the external front view of the doll toy according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an exterior side of the doll toy according to the embodiment. 1A is an exploded perspective view of a torso portion of a doll toy according to an embodiment, and FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of a chest portion of the doll toy according to an embodiment. 1A is a perspective view of a shoulder joint portion of a doll toy according to an embodiment, FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the shoulder joint portion of the doll toy according to the embodiment, and FIG. 11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining the rotational movement of a shoulder joint of the doll toy according to the embodiment. 1A is an exploded perspective view of a torso portion of a doll toy according to an embodiment, and FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of a waist portion of the doll toy according to an embodiment. 1A is an exploded perspective view of a movable mechanism of a leg of a doll toy according to an embodiment; FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the movable mechanism of the leg of the doll toy according to an embodiment; 1A is a perspective view of a movable mechanism of a leg of a doll toy according to an embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the movable mechanism of a leg of the doll toy according to an embodiment.

The embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the invention. Two or more of the features described in the embodiments may be combined in any desired manner. In addition, the same reference numbers are used for the same or similar configurations, and duplicate descriptions are omitted.

In addition, in each figure, the up, down, left and right directions on the paper surface will be used in the description in the text as the up, down, left and right directions of the parts (or components) in this embodiment. Note that in the embodiments described below, the present invention uses ABS (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene) resin, SBC (styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-based special transparent resin), etc. as molding materials, but is not limited to these, and does not exclude the use of other materials (thermoplastic resins such as polyethylene, thermosetting resins, soft resins, metals, etc.).

<Appearance of doll toy>
First, an example of the external configuration of a doll toy 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1A and 1B. Figure 1A shows the external front view of the doll toy 100. Figure 1B shows the external side view of the doll toy 100. Note that the arrows indicating up/down, left/right, and front/rear indicate the orientation of the doll toy in the figure, and the same applies to the other figures.

The doll toy (doll body) 100 includes a head 101, a chest 102, arms 103r, 103l, an abdomen 104, a waist 105, and legs 107r, 107l. The doll toy 100 is a movable doll toy such as an assembled movable figure, and each part can be moved within a limited area caused by its relationship with other members. The head 101 is connected to the chest 102 by a spherical connecting member (hereinafter, also referred to as a ball joint). The chest 102 is further connected to arms 103 including a right arm 103r and a left arm 103l by a spherical connecting member, and is connected to the abdomen 104 at the bottom. The detailed structure of the chest will be described later. The waist 105 is connected to the abdomen 104. The legs 107 including the right leg 107r and the left leg 107l are connected to the waist 105, and are covered with clothing such as a skirt.

In the following, the upper body including the head 101, chest 102, and arms 103 is referred to as the upper body. The lower body including the waist 105 and legs 107r and 107l is referred to as the lower body. The upper body and lower body are connected via the abdomen 104. The chest 102, abdomen 104, and waist 105 are also collectively referred to as the torso. In the following, as the joint structure according to this embodiment, a shoulder joint structure that connects the arm 103b to the chest 102 by a spherical connecting member (ball joint), and a hip joint structure that connects to the waist 105 are described. However, there is no intention to limit the present invention, and the joint structure described below is not limited to the shoulder joint and hip joint, and can also be applied to other joints, such as elbow joints and knee joints.

<Upper body (chest) structure>
Next, a detailed configuration of the chest 102 in the upper body of the doll toy 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2(a) is an exploded perspective view of the chest 102, abdomen 104, and waist 105 of the upper body. Fig. 2(b) is an exploded view of the chest 102 including the chest joint and shoulder joint. The arms 103r and 103l are connected to the shoulder joint, but the arm 103r is omitted in Fig. 2.

As shown in FIG. 2(a), the chest 102 is connected to the abdomen 104 by a spherical connecting part (ball joint). That is, the chest joint according to this embodiment movably connects the chest 102 to the abdomen 104 by a ball joint. However, this is not intended to limit the invention, and connecting parts of other shapes may be used instead of the spherical connecting part.

As shown in FIG. 2(b), chest 102 is composed of multiple parts 201 to 207. Part 201 is the base part for multiple joints. Part 202 is inserted into part 201 from below to form the chest joint. With part 202 inserted into part 201, parts 203r and 203l are fitted into each of the two sides. This makes it possible to prevent part 202 from falling out of part 201.

Parts 204r and 204l are connected to parts 203r and 203l, respectively, which together with part 201 form a shoulder joint. Furthermore, arms 103r and 103l are connected to parts 204r and 204l. Only arm 103l is shown in FIG. 2(b). Note that parts 201 to 203 are sandwiched between part 205, which is an external part of the chest, and part 206, which is an external part of the upper back, which are assembled to lock them in place.

A further recess is formed on the top of part 201. A spherically shaped connector of part 207 is connected to this recess. The neck joint of doll toy 100 is formed by connecting parts 201 and 207. In this way, according to this embodiment, chest joints, shoulder joints, and neck joints can be realized using part 201, which serves as the base for multiple joints, making it possible to achieve various movements with fewer parts. Furthermore, when a spherical connector is used in each joint, it can rotate in all directions within the spatial limitations of the other parts.

<Structure of shoulder joint connected to chest joint>
Next, a detailed configuration of the shoulder joint connected to the chest joint according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3(a) is a perspective view showing a part of the configuration of the shoulder joint in the arm 103l. Here, it is referred to as a shoulder joint section 300. FIG. 3(b) is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the cross-sectional structure of the shoulder joint section 300 in FIG. 3(a). The cross-sectional view in FIG. 3(b) is a cross-sectional view of the line A-A' in FIG. 3(a) as seen from the direction of the arrow. FIG. 3(c) shows an example of an exploded view of the shoulder joint section 300. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIG. 3(a) to FIG. 3(c).

In Figure 3, shoulder joint 300 is composed of a combination of part 203l, part 204l (second part), part 301 (third part), and part 302 (first part). In Figure 3, the symbols r and l for distinguishing between left and right parts are omitted, but Figure 3 shows the configuration of the left arm, and it is assumed that similar parts are used in right arm 103r.

Part 203l has a spherical connecting portion 203la formed at one end and an opening 203lb formed at the other end. A spherical connecting portion 204la formed at one end of part 204l is connected to this opening 203lb so as to be rotatable in the direction indicated by arrow 321 in FIG. 3B. Also, an opening 204lb is formed at the other end of part 204l, and a protrusion 302a formed on the upper end side of part 302 is connected to the opening 204lb so as to be rotatable in the direction indicated by arrow 322. This range of rotation is regulated by the engagement between the ends 204lc and 204ld of the recess provided on the connection surface side of part 204l with part 302 and the protrusion 302c provided on the lower side of protrusion 302a of part 302. In addition, the connection portion between opening 204lb and protrusion 302a is covered by cover members 301a and 301b on the upper end side of part 301 so that it is not exposed to the outside. The shape of the upper end of cover members 301a and 301b is an arc shape to correspond to the trajectory of connecting portion 204la when part 204l rotates relative to part 302. This does not interfere with the trajectory of connecting portion 204la when part 204l rotates.

Here, the part 301 is integrally formed and has no seams on the surface. This makes it possible to make the joints visually inconspicuous in the doll toy 100, which has a structure that exposes the shoulders and bare skin, while eliminating the sense of incongruity caused by the seams and giving the impression of bare skin. In addition, a cavity (first cavity, through hole) that connects the upper opening and the lower opening is formed inside the part 301, and the part 204l and the part 302 are inserted into the cavity from the upper opening of the part 301 in a state in which the opening 204lb and the protrusion 302a are connected. The above-mentioned protrusion 302a is formed on the upper end of the part 302, and the other end side is configured as a cylindrical member that is inserted into the cavity. In addition, the cylindrical member is provided with a step 302b (first step), and the inner diameter of the cylindrical member becomes thinner toward the other end side via the step 302b, or the inner diameter of the cylindrical member is different. In FIG. 3, only one step is provided, but multiple steps may be provided by varying the inner diameter of the cylindrical member by three or more steps. A step corresponding to step 302b is also provided in the cavity in part 301 (step 301d: second step), and step 301d and step 302b engage with each other to determine the insertion depth of part 302 into part 301. At this time, the bottom end of part 302 is maintained in a state protruding from the cavity of part 301. Other parts that make up arm 103l of doll toy 100 are connected to the member protruding from the opening on the bottom side of part 302.

Figure 4 is a diagram for explaining the rotational movement of part 204l and part 302. Figure 4(a) is a diagram showing the configuration of part 204l from the side opposite to the side shown in Figure 3(c), and on the connection surface side of part 204l with part 302, a recess 204le defined by ends 204lc and 204ld is formed along opening 204lb. Figure 4(b) is a diagram showing the configuration of part 302 from the side opposite to the side shown in Figure 3(c), and protrusion 302c is indicated by a dotted line.

Figure 4(c) shows the range of rotation when part 204l and part 302 are rotatably connected and rotate. Protrusion 302c engages with recess 204le and can move in the range from end 204lc to 204ld, thus defining the range of rotation of part 204l relative to part 302 (or vice versa).

<Waist Configuration>
Next, a detailed configuration of the waist 105 of the doll toy 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5(a) is an exploded perspective view of the chest 102 and abdomen 104, and the waist 105. Fig. 5(b) is an exploded view of the waist 105 including the waist joint and hip joint, and parts of the legs 107r and 107l.

As shown in FIG. 5(a), the waist 105 is connected to the abdomen 104 by a spherical connecting part (ball joint). This allows the waist 105 to be connected to the abdomen 104 in a rotatable manner.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5B, the waist 105 is composed of at least a plurality of parts 501 to 504. The part 501 is a part that is the base of a plurality of movable mechanisms. The part 502 is connected to the part 501 so as to be rotatable. The part 502 is a part of the clothing of the doll toy 100. More specifically, the part 502 is the pants part of the doll toy 100. Therefore, in the doll toy 100 according to this embodiment, the pants part moves on an axis independent of the other movable mechanisms and other parts. The part 502 is further connected to a part 504 that represents the buttocks and a skirt that is a part of the clothing of the doll toy 100. Therefore, the part 504 also rotates in accordance with the rotation of the part 502. Each of the parts 503r and 503l is sequentially connected to a cylindrical part formed at one end of the part 501. This forms the hip joint of the doll toy 100. Parts 503r and 503l are further connected to parts 505r and 505l, which are part of legs 107r and 107l, respectively.

<Leg movement mechanism>
Next, the leg moving mechanism 505 connected to the hip joint according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6(a) shows an exploded view of part 505r of leg 107r. Fig. 6(b) shows a cross-sectional view of part 503r and part 505r connected together. Note that the configuration of the right leg moving mechanism will be described with reference to Fig. 6, but the configuration of the left leg is similar and therefore will not be described.

As shown in FIG. 6(a), part 505r of leg 107r further includes parts 601 to 604. Part 601 (fourth member) is the base part of part 505r, and rotatably receives spherical part 602 in the upper receiving portion. The rotation direction of part 602 (fifth member) is the direction indicated by arrow 621 in FIG. 6(b), and part 602 can be connected to part 503r via connecting portion 602a when housed in part 601. Part 602 has a spherical shape and functions as a ball joint with respect to part 503r. Parts 601 and 602 are housed in a cavity (second cavity, through hole) 603a provided inside part 603 (sixth member). Cavity 603a is formed to connect the lower opening of part 603, where parts 601 and 602 are received, to the upper opening for exposing connecting portion 602a of part 602 to the outside of part 603.

A protrusion 603b is formed on the inside of cavity 603a, and protrusion 603b engages with recess 601a provided in part 601, thereby positioning parts 601 and 602 within part 603. This positioning mechanism allows connecting portion 602a of part 602 to be aligned with the position of the upper opening of part 603, ensuring connection with part 503r.

Here, the parts 603 are integrally formed and have no seams on the surface. This makes it possible to make the connecting parts visually inconspicuous in a doll toy 100 whose legs and bare skin are exposed, while eliminating the sense of incongruity caused by seams and giving the impression of bare skin.

As shown in FIG. 6(b), parts 503r and 602 are assembled to form a ball joint, which is provided inside leg 107r. Therefore, leg 107r connected to part 602 can rotate in all directions relative to the hip joint, as indicated by arrow 521, within the limits of the other parts. In addition, the cylindrical portion at the bottom of part 601 is rotatably inserted into the recess of part 604. Therefore, in leg 107r, the parts below part 604 can rotate in the direction of arrow 522 relative to part 601.

Next, the structure of the movable mechanism 505 of the leg 107 will be further described with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7(a) is a diagram showing a state in which parts 601 and 602 are connected and housed within part 603 as a part of the configuration of the movable mechanism 505. Part 602 exposes connecting portion 602a to the outside from an opening in part 601 through an upper opening in part 603, making it possible to receive part 503r.

Figure 7(b) is a top view of the cross section taken along line B-B' in Figure 7(a). Figure 7(b) shows that when parts 601 and 602 are housed in part 603, part 602 is sandwiched between parts 601 and 603 and cannot fall out of part 603. Specifically, part 602 is sandwiched between the inner wall of the opening of part 601 and the inner wall of the cavity of part 603. The inner wall of the opening of part 601 has a shape that corresponds to the spherical outer shape of part 602, which allows part 602 to rotate within part 601. It can also be seen that in the state shown in Figure 7(b), the recess of part 601 and protrusion 603b of part 603 are engaged and positioned.

As explained above, the toy parts according to this embodiment relate to the configuration of the parts exposed to the outside, such as the shoulders and legs of an assembled doll-type toy body. In either configuration, by forming the parts exposed to the outside as a single unit, it is possible to eliminate the seams and parting lines that would occur when combining two parts as in the past, so that the viewer does not feel visually uncomfortable and it is possible to give a natural feeling of bare skin. Furthermore, the integrated parts form joint parts, store connecting members made of at least two parts inside, and cover the connecting members to prevent the joint parts from being exposed to the outside. Note that in this embodiment, the case where it is applied to the bare skin parts of the shoulders and legs of a toy body has been explained, but it can also be applied to parts where the presence of seams and parting lines would cause discomfort, such as when single-colored clothing is depicted.

100: Doll toy, 101: Head, 102: Chest, 103r, 103l: Arms, 104: Abdomen, 105: Waist, 107r, 107l: Legs

Claims (9)

A toy part for an assembly-type doll toy,
A first part;
a second part that at least partially contains the first part;
The second part includes:
The first cavity is formed inside the molded body and is seamlessly molded on the surface of the molded body.
the first cavity connects a first opening of the second part to a second opening opposite the first opening;
A protrusion is provided on the inside of the first cavity,
The first part is positioned within the second part by engaging the protrusion with a recess formed in the first part ;
A toy part , wherein a portion of the first part that is located on the second opening side and is not housed in the second part has a cylindrical portion for connecting to a fourth part . 2. The toy part according to claim 1, wherein the first part is configured to be connectable to a third part, and when the first part and the third part are connected, the third part is configured to be connectable to an external part at the first opening. The toy part according to claim 2, wherein the third part is configured to be rotatable within the first opening when connected to the first part. The toy part according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the protrusion is formed along the longitudinal direction of the second part between the first opening and the second opening. The first opening is configured to open an upper surface of the second part obliquely;
The toy part according to claim 1 , wherein the second opening is configured to open parallel to a bottom surface of the second part. The toy part according to claim 1 , wherein the first part is rotatably connected to a fourth part via the cylindrical portion. The toy part according to claim 1 , wherein when the first part is connected to the second part and the fourth part, at least a side surface of the first part is covered by the second part and the fourth part. The toy part according to claim 1 , wherein, when the first part is connected to the second part and the fourth part, the second part and the fourth part together form a part of an outer surface of the toy part. An assembly-type doll toy comprising a toy part according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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