PLUSH WITH TACTILE SENSORY SPONGE

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) from U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/716,964, filed Nov. 6, 2024 in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND

Neurodivergent people, especially children, benefit from sensory toys, i.e., toys which engage senses such as touch. However, most sensory toys only provide one form of engagement or type of “feel,” so a user may quickly become bored or lose the benefit of a sensory toy if the “feel” is not to their satisfaction.

There is therefore a need for a sensory toy with multiple textures to engage a user's sense of touch.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept provide a sensory toy that provides multiple types of tactile engagements for the user, and a method of manufacturing the same.

The foregoing and/or other features and utilities of the present general inventive concept may be achieved by providing a sensory toy, including a plush body, one or more sensory zones affixed to the plush body, each sensory zone including a pocket, and a sensory sponge contained inside the pocket of each sensory zone, the sensory sponge being substantially detached from the pocket.

In an exemplary embodiment, each of the one or more sensory zones may be configured to be grasped between two fingers of a user.

In an exemplary embodiment, each of the one or more sensory zones may have a thickness of about 10 mm.

In an exemplary embodiment, each sensory sponge may include polyester.

In an exemplary embodiment, each sensory sponge may include a core disposed between two outer walls.

In an exemplary embodiment, the core of each sensory sponge may connect the outer walls together.

In an exemplary embodiment, each sensory zone may include a front surface including a first material and a back surface opposite the front surface including a second material.

In an exemplary embodiment, each sensory zone may further include a border area at an edge of the sensory zone, the border area including a third material.

In an exemplary embodiment, each sensory sponge may be only attached to the pocket at a region where the corresponding sensory zone is affixed to the plush body.

The foregoing and/or other features and utilities of the present general inventive concept may be achieved by providing a method of manufacturing a sensory toy, the method including providing a plush body, affixing one or more sensory zones to the plush body, forming a pocket in each of the one or more sensory zones, and disposing a sensory sponge inside the pocket of each of the one or more sensory zones, the sensory sponge being substantially detached from the pocket.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each of the one or more sensory zones to be grasped between two fingers of a user.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each of the one or more sensory zones at a thickness of about 10 mm.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each sensory sponge from polyester.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each sensory sponge to include a core disposed between two outer walls.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include connecting the outer walls of each sensory sponge together via the core.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each sensory zone with a front surface including a first material and a back surface opposite the front surface including a second material.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include forming each sensory zone with a border area at an edge of the sensory zone, the border area including a third material.

In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further include only attaching each sensory sponge to the pocket at a region where the corresponding sensory zone is affixed to the plush body.

Additional features and utilities of the present general inventive concept will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the general inventive concept.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other features and utilities of the present general inventive concept will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1A illustrates a sensory toy according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 1B illustrates a front view of a cross-section of a sensory toy according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 1C illustrates a side view of a cross-section of a sensory toy according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 2 illustrates a sensory toy according to another exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 3 illustrates a sensory toy according to another exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 4 illustrates a sensory toy according to another exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 5 illustrates a sensory sponge according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 6 illustrates sensory sponge in a pocket according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept;

FIG. 7A illustrates a sensory sponge according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept; and

FIGS. 7B-7C illustrate a sensory sponge being interacted with according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTIVE CONCEPT

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present general inventive concept, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present general inventive concept while referring to the figures. Also, while describing the present general inventive concept, detailed descriptions about related well-known functions or configurations that may diminish the clarity of the points of the present general inventive concept are omitted.

Expressions such as “at least one of,” when preceding a list of elements, modify the entire list of elements and do not modify the individual elements of the list.

All terms including descriptive or technical terms which are used herein should be construed as having meanings that are obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art. However, the terms may have different meanings according to an intention of one of ordinary skill in the art, case precedents, or the appearance of new technologies. Also, some terms may be arbitrarily selected by the applicant, and in this case, the meaning of the selected terms will be described in detail in the detailed description of the invention. Thus, the terms used herein have to be defined based on the meaning of the terms together with the description throughout the specification.

Also, when a part “includes” or “comprises” an element, unless there is a particular description contrary thereto, the part can further include other elements, not excluding the other elements.

Hereinafter, one or more exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept will be described in detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

Exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept provide a tactile sensory toy that may offer multiple types of tactile engagement. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a sensory toy 10 may include a plush body 100 including one or more sensory zones 200 affixed thereto. The plush body 100 may have any color, as well as any size or shape suitable to a sensory toy. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept the plush body 100 may have a size or shape that allows it to be easily held by the intended user. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the plush body 100 may be about 6 inches long on its longest dimension, for example from head to tail. FIGS. 1A-C and 2-4 illustrate non-limiting examples of different shapes of the plush body 100. The plush body 100 may further comprise a fill, for example a polyfill, to give the plush body 100 structure and resilience, for example allowing the plush body 100 to resume its original shape after being squeezed by the user.

The plush body 100 may be covered in any material suitable for a plush toy, for example fake angora. Different parts of the plush body 100 may have different coverings, each covering having a predetermined tactile feel, which may in turn provide a user with different stimulation depending on which part of the plush body 100 they touch. Different exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept may use different materials to provide different tactile feels. For example, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept illustrated in FIG. 1, “toe” regions 110 of plush body 100 may have a double-bond 2 mm soft boa covering. According to another exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept illustrated in FIG. 2, the “toe” regions 110 of the plush body 100 may have a 2 mm fake angora covering.

According to other exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept, part or all of the plush body 100 may be covered with Cera Velvet having a length of about 5 mm. The sensory zone(s) 200 may be covered with microsuede, giving desirable grip and adding a cooling touch feel. The “toe” or “claw” regions 110 may be made of felt having a length of about 1-2 mm. Decorative facial features such as a “nose,” “mouth,” or “eye” section of the plush 100 may be made of, e.g., plastic or embroidery. Accent portions of the plush 100, for example the back of the ears or tail sections, may be made of fake angora having a length of about 10 mm.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, the sensory zone(s) 200 may be one or more relatively large areas of the toy 10. The sensory zone(s) 200 may be flat areas disposed on the plush body 100, such that they are thinner than the rest of the plush body 100, enabling a user to grasp the sensory zone(s) 200 between two fingers, or between a thumb and finger.

According to the exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, the sensory zone(s) 200 may be the “ears” of the toy 10. As illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, sensory zone(s) 200 may have an exaggerated size relative to the plush body 100, making wide, flat regions of the toy 10. According to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept, the sensory zone(s) 200 may include a covering different from that of the plush body 100, for example a microsuede textile fabric. The covering of the sensory zone(s) 200 can be any color and texture desired for the specific embodiment. The covering of each sensory zone 200 may also comprise one or more different materials, to provide a different tactile “feel” for different parts of the sensory zone(s) 200. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, a single sensory zone 200 may have a “front” face 201 comprising a first material, e.g., microsuede, and a “back” face 202 opposite the front face comprising a second material different from the first, for example 5-10 mm fake angora fabric. Exemplary embodiments of the front and back faces 201, 202 are illustrated in FIG. 1C.

The sensory zone(s) 200 may also include border areas 230, for example a trim region around an edge of each sensory zone 200. These border areas may comprise a third material different from the rest of the sensory zone(s) 200. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the border area 230 may be made of fake angora, which may be similar or different to a covering of the plush body 100 and/or the sensory zone(s) 200. For example, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept the plush body 100 may be covered in fake angora of 5 mm length, while the border area 230 may be made of fake angora of a 10 mm length.

According to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept, each sensory zone 200 may include a hollow pocket 210, illustrated in FIG. 6. The pocket 210 may be any size, up to the size of the sensory zone 200, and may be defined by the front face 201 and back face 202 of the sensory zone 200. Instead of fill which may be included in the rest of the plush body 100, the pocket 210 may be configured to accommodate a sensory sponge 220 which may be inserted therein, as illustrated in FIG. 6. Exemplary embodiments of the sensory sponge 220 are illustrated in FIGS. 1B-1C and FIG. 5. As illustrated in FIG. 1B, the sensory sponge 220 may have a shape that fits into the pocket 210. The sensory sponge 220 may also have any desired texture and elasticity. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the sensory sponge 220 may have a thickness of about 10 mm. Thicknesses greater than 10 mm may make the sponge 220 too thick to use, for example too thick to grasp effectively between two fingers. Furthermore, at thicknesses greater than 10 mm, the pocket 210 may not adequately house the sponge 220. For example, a seam between the front face 201 and back face 202 may be too wide to stitch effectively, and furthermore the edges of the sensory zone 200, i.e., the border between the front face 201 and back face 202 may curl, fold, or otherwise not hold a desired shape to present different materials of the front and back faces 201 and 202 for the user to interact with. Conversely, at thicknesses less than 10 mm, the sponge 220 may be less effective, for example not providing enough resistance or “feel” to the user to gain any sensory benefit from interacting with the sponge 220, and furthermore lacking enough elasticity to resume its original shape when the user stops interacting with it.

According to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept the sensory sponge 220 may be made of a core 221 of yarn or fibrous material disposed between two outer walls 222, as illustrated for example in FIGS. 5 and 7A-7C. When a user grasps the sponge 220 between two fingers, they may squeeze the sponge 220 to cause the outer walls 222 to move towards each other and compress the fibrous core 221, as illustrated in FIG. 7B, with dashed ovals indicating a user's fingers. The core 221 may be connected the two walls 222, and thereby indirectly connect the two walls 222 to each other, such that if the user moves their fingers back and forth parallel to the walls 222 as illustrated for example in FIG. 7C, they may generate tension between the walls 222. This tension may in turn provide sensory stimulation to the user.

According to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept the core 221 may also be elastic, i.e., configured to resume its original shape when pressure is removed, thereby allowing the sponge 220 to be flexible and also to return to its original shape in a bounce or rebound type of action when a user stops squeezing it between their fingers.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the sensory sponge 220 may include polyester. According to another exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the sponge 200 may include 3D spacer fabric, forming a breathable resilient padded surface having a predetermined thickness. For the purposes of this disclosure, “3D spacer fabric” may comprise a plurality of fibers made of, e.g., nylon as the core 221, the fibers being individually thin and durable, forming an elastic structure, i.e., one which may be deformed by a user and then spring back to its original shape when the user stops interacting with it. The 3D spacer fabric may comprise an outer mesh with a porous structure as the walls 222. A sponge 200 made of such a 3D spacer fabric may be able to stretch horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. When a user applies pressure to such a sponge 200, for example by squeezing it between their fingers as illustrated in FIGS. 7B-7C, this pressure may create a tension as the fibers in the core 221 shift to sides, making the mesh of the walls 222 slide in different directions around the applied pressure, thereby creating sensory stimulation for the user.

During construction of the toy 10 the sensory sponge 220 may be inserted into the pocket 210, after which the pocket 210 may be sealed, for example with stitching, to keep the sensory sponge 220 inside the pocket 210. The sensory zone 200 may be affixed to the plush body 100, for example with stitching. According to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept, when the pocket 210 is sealed, the sponge 220 may be left substantially detached from the pocket 210. That is, the sponge 220 may be contained within the pocket 210 but not connected to it. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the pocket 210 may be sewn shut with stitching, but this stitching may not go through the sponge 220, or may only go through a relatively small part of the sponge 220, for example at a region of the sponge 220 close to the plush body 100. As illustrated in FIG. 1B, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept each sponge 220 may be connected to the pocket 210 at a region where the corresponding sensory zone 200 is affixed to the plush body 100, the connection 225 illustrated by the bold lines. By keeping the sponge 220 substantially detached from the pocket 210, then when a user moves or bends the sensory zone 200, the sponge 220 may move independently of the pocket 210, and vice versa. Leaving the sponge 220 substantially detached from the pocket 210 may allow the sensory zone 200 more flexibility than if the sponge 220 were instead securely attached to the pocket 210.

In operation, a user may grasp the plush body 100 and interact with the sensory zone(s) 200. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present general inventive concept, a user may interact with the sensory zone(s) 200 by rubbing each sensory zone 200 between, e.g., their thumb and forefinger to receive sensory stimulation. By providing both different materials over different portions of the sensory zone 200, for example front face 201 and back face 202, as well as the sponge 220 inside of the sensory zone 200, each sensory zone 220 may provide multiple different kinds of sensory engagement for a user.

Exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept may help provide a variety of tactile sensory stimulations to a user by using different materials on the plush body 100 and the outside of the sensory zone(s) 200, as well as a sensory sponge 220 contained inside of the sensory zone(s) 200. Toys 10 according to exemplary embodiments of the present general inventive concept may therefore help users with sensory needs to focus or calm down, by providing several different surfaces and textures for the user's touch.

Although a few embodiments of the present general inventive concept have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the general inventive concept, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.