| 摘要 |
<p>A suite of construction toy systems in which mechanical connection is provided by hermaphroditic and functionally identical (genderless) connectors (30, 32). Both hub-and-rod (30, 32) and building-block (145, 160) construction toy systems are disclosed. In the hub-and-rod construction systems, the use of genderless connectors allows: rods (30) to connect directly to rods (30) by the same means rods (30) connect to hubs (32) (longer rods can be directly formed out of shorter rods); hubs (32) to connect to hubs (32) by the same means that rods (30) connect to hubs (32); and, in some assemblies hubs to be substituted for rods. An additional useful feature of the genderless connectors used and of the overall design of these toy systems is that many of the different construcion toy systems disclosed herein will inter-connect. By the application of this invention, a very wide range of very different and independent toy systems can be designed that freely inter-connect.</p> |
