Track assembly for toy trains

(42) Date of commencement of the patent: 15. 9.1985 (45) Date of issue: 25. 4.1986

<td>(30) Priority:</td><td>(73) Patent owner:</td>

<td>20.12.1979 DK 5465/79 claims. (56) Documents:</td><td>INTERLEGO A / S BILLUND (DK).</td>

<td>AU-PS 405969 DE-OS16O3597 DE-OS2006934 DE-0S2446475</td><td></td>

<td>DE-OS2834047 GB-PS1131961 GB-PS2013506 SE-PS 318218 SE-PS 333024 US-PS 1758093 US-PS3464624</td><td></td>

(54) TOY BOXES WITH MULTIPLE WIDE RAIL RAILS UNO THRESHOLD TO COMPOSITE TRAILS FOR TRAINS / / τ nor

KP. 0073013

- 2 No. 380807

The invention relates to a toy building set with several Breitfuß rails and sleepers for assembling tracks for toy trains, wherein the foot of each rail has a longitudinally extending the same, downwardly open cavity and the cuboid sleepers are provided at their tops with upwardly projecting coupling pin . which for the purpose of releasably securing the ends of the rails to the sleepers are insertable into the downwardly open cavity of the rail feet.

In a toy building kit of this type known from US-PS No. 3,464,624, the rails are detachably mounted on the sleepers by engaging a pair of the coupling studs at the top of the sleepers with complementary coupling studs provided in the cavity of the rails.

The invention aims to provide a toy building block of the kind set forth in which an improved coupling device is provided between the rails and sleepers, which results in an increased coupling effect to form a kind of snap-lock device. Furthermore, the joining together and disassembly of the components for children should be facilitated. The modular system according to the invention is characterized in that each rail near its ends has an opening in the ceiling of the cavity and an associated with this opening, immediately adjacent thereto, in a conventional manner extending transversely through the rail web opening, and that the coupling pins, which in a manner also known per se two each separated by a longitudinal slot, equipped with resilient tongues at their free ends with outwardly projecting projections, provided with a base having a width substantially equal to the width of the cavity, the projections for releasably anchoring the ties to the rails in the aperture are receivable.

By this means a double clamping effect and thus an increased coupling effect is achieved, u.zw. first by clamping the socket in the cavity of the rail, and secondly by clamping the tongues to the surface of the rail.

Further advantages of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a plan view of a track assembly which can be produced with the construction kit according to the invention; FIG. Figures 2, 3 and 4 a rail according to the invention in plan view, in the bottom view and in side view. Figures 5 and 6 a threshold according to the invention in plan view and in the bottom view; 7 shows a section along the line VII-VII in Figure 6; 8 shows an enlarged section of a rail according to the line VIII-VIII in Figure 2 in a position above one side of a part of an associated threshold. Fig. 9 is an enlarged sectional view of the connected rail and tie of Fig. 8 taken along the line IX-IX in Fig.l; and Fig. 10 is an end perspective view of a pair of rails mounted on a sleeper, with one of the rails in part shown in section.

The rail arrangement shown in Fig.l comprises a pair of rails -10- and a pair of sleepers -20-. The rails are detachably mounted on the sleepers by a coupling device according to the invention, which are not shown in Fig.l, however. This coupling device will become apparent from the following description with reference to Figures 2 to 10, in particular from the description of Figure 9, which shows a section along the line IX-IX in Fig.l.

In Figs. 2, 3, and 4 there is shown one end of a rail 10 according to the invention, having an elongated substantially rod-shaped body with a top -10a and a bottom -10b-. A rib -11- formed integrally with the body at the top -10a extends in the longitudinal direction of the rail -10-, while at the bottom -10b- side walls -15- and end walls -16- extend inwardly limit the longitudinal direction of the rail -10- extending cavity -12-. In the ceiling of this cavity -12- the end wall -16- adjacent an opening -13- is provided and above this opening -13- the rib -11- is provided with an opening -14-, which extends transversely through the rail web and with the opening -13- is in communication, as shown in particular Fig.8. The opening -13- is preferably rectangular in shape, while the aperture -14- is a relatively narrow slot. The reasons for this shaping will be explained below with reference to the coupling means of the sleepers.

Nr.380177

The thresholds 20 shown in Figs. 5-9 are formed of rectangular plates each having an upper side -20a and a lower side -20b-. Inside each threshold, there is a cavity -20c- open towards the bottom -20b-, bounded by end walls -26- and side walls -27- which contains a series of tubular coupling pins -28- sandwiched between two pairs of cylindrical coupling pin -21a- at the top -20a- another threshold -20- can be clamped.

On the upper side -20a- of the sleepers -20- are provided two rows of the cylindrical coupling pins -21a and two pairs of further upwardly projecting coupling pins -21- which have a mutual distance corresponding to the gauge of the rails. Je10 the coupling pin -21- consists of a foot or a socket -22- which is integrally provided with a pair of upwardly projecting and resiliently deformable tongues -23- which are separated by a longitudinal slot -25- and provided at their upper ends with outwardly projecting projections -24-.

The coupling means for releasably connecting the ends of the rails -10- with the

Thresholds 20 cooperate in the manner clearly illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9.

As shown in Figure 8, the rail -10- near its end wall -16- is provided with three communicating cavities: the longitudinally extending cavity -12- at the bottom of the rail -10-, the opening -13- , and the aperture -14- which extends transversely through the rib -11-.

The coupling pin -21- the threshold -20- has the already mentioned coupling parts,

Socket -22-, tongues -23- and projections -24-, wherein the width of the base -22- is substantially equal to the width of the cavity -12- of the rail -10- and the distance x between the bottom -24a- the protrusions -24- and the top -22a- of the base -22- is preferably equal to or slightly larger than the thickness of the ceiling of the cavity -12-.

When the rail -10- is connected to the threshold -20- by pressing the two coupling parts together in the relative position shown in Fig. 9, the socket -22- in the cavity -12- between the end wall -16- and the side walls -15- clamped. Simultaneously, the projections -24-, when inserted through the opening -13-, cause the resiliently deformable tongues -23- to be compressed until the projections -24- are moved through the opening -13- and the top surface -10a - have reached the rail -10-. In this end position, the tongues -23- move away from each other again so that the lower sides -24a of the projections -24- are pressed firmly against the upper side -10- of the rail -10-.

In this way, a greatly improved coupling effect is achieved, u.zw. due to the interaction of the socket -22- with the walls of the cavity -12-, the interaction of the undersides -24a- of the projections -24- with the top -10a- of the rail -10- and - at least at a certain distance - the pressure the sides of the tongues -23- against the walls of the opening -13-.