SPINNING DISK GAME

Abstract

A method for at least two players to play a spinning disk game that includes each player spinning a disk having an image displayed thereon on a surface starting at substantially the same time; the player spinning the disk the longest winning a predetermined number of points; the players accumulating points by repeatedly spinning their disks; when a player reaches a predetermined threshold number of points, spins the disk the longest, and identifies the image on the disk surface, the player wins the game. The identified image may include those chosen from the group consisting of natural objects, man-made objects, caricatures, people, pop culture figures, designs and logos.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/096,542 filed Sep. 12, 2008, the contents of which are incorporated herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to games and, more specifically, to a method and system for a spinning disk game.

BACKGROUND

Games of dexterity, suspense, and intellectual challenge provide entertainment for adults and children. Games that combine these features offer an even greater level of entertainment, especially if they are of low complexity, so that the effort required to learn them is low. Games that combine these features with players' other interests, such as sports, history, or popular culture, increase a game's desirability and playability even further.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a method for at least two players to play a game that includes the steps of (1) each player being associated with a different spinning object; (2) each player spinning their associated object on a surface starting at substantially the same time; (3) the player spinning their associated object the longest winning a predetermined number of points; (4) the players accumulating points by repeatedly spinning their associated objects; (5) when a player reaches a predetermined threshold number of points and spins their associated object the longest, the player identifying an image displayed on a face of their associated spinning object while the object is still spinning; and (6) when the player correctly identifies the image on their associated spinning object while the object is still spinning, the player winning the game. The identified images are preferably chosen from the group consisting of natural objects, man-made objects, caricatures, people, pop culture figures, designs and logos.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The preferred and alternative embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings:

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a spinning object used with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of a preferred method of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is directed to a portable, educational spinning object game for use on a substantially flat surface. The game challenges players to determine who can spin an object the longest and identify images of people, places and things. The preferred objects can be any size or shape and may compete with other objects of the same type or shape. The objects used for the games may be of a wide variety of sizes and shapes, as long as each includes an identifying image on the object.

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the spinning object a disk 10. The disk 10 is substantially flat and circular, similar to a coin in shape, and includes a front face 12, a rear face 14 and an edge surface 16. The disk 10 is preferably composed of metal, polymer, or ceramic, or in an alternative embodiment is a combination of two or more of these materials. In one embodiment at least one face is smooth. In another embodiment, at least one face is textured. The edge surface 16 is substantially smooth, but in an alternative embodiment the edge surface 16 is knurled.

At least one of the faces 12, 14 includes an image 18. In one embodiment, the front face 12 includes a front face image 18-1 and the rear face 14 includes a rear face image 18-2. In another embodiment, the disk 10 includes only a single image 18 on the front face 12 and the rear face 14 is plain or nondescript.

The spinning object may be any shape or configuration capable of spinning that allows for display of an image on a least one surface.

The image 18 is any humanly recognizable person, place or thing. Examples include a natural object, a man-made object, a caricature, a person, a pop culture figure, a design, or any other physical or created feature that could be recognizable to a person playing the game. In one embodiment, the front face image 18-1 is a sports team logo and the rear face image 18-2 is a football. In another embodiment, the front face 12 has no front face image 18-1 and the rear face 14 includes the rear face image 18-2 of a figure from popular culture. Other examples and categories exist outside of those examples provided.

In another alternative embodiment, the front and rear faces 12, 14 also include a label 24. In one embodiment, the label 24 occupies a perimeter region 26 of the front face 12 and is related to the brand-manufacturer of the disk 10. In another embodiment, the label 24 occupies the perimeter region 26 of the rear face 14 and is related to the rear face image 18-2.

FIG. 2 shows a method 30 of the present invention. The method uses at least one disk 10 for each participating player and a playing surface. The playing surface is a substantially hard, flat surface, such as a table. At a first block 32, each player simultaneously spins one disk 10 on the playing surface. The players can use any method they desire for putting their disk 10 into a spinning motion. One condition is that each player's disk 10 must begin spinning at substantially the same time.

Next, at blocks 34-40, the players evaluate whether the spin initiated at block 32 meets certain predetermined conditions so as to be considered a satisfactory spin. A plurality of players, a single designated player, or a non-playing judge could make this determination. Alternatively, the role of determining this could alternate from player to player, or between players and non-players.

At a block 34, the players determine whether each player started their spin at substantially the same time. If each player's spin is determined to have not started at substantially the same time, then the method 30 returns to the block 32 for a new spin. If the players' spins were substantially simultaneous, then at a block 36 the players determine if no disks 10 spun off the edge of the playing surface. If at least one disk 10 has fallen off the playing surface during the spin, then the method 30 returns to the block 32 for a new spin. If all disks 10 are still on the playing surface, then at a block 38 the players determine if any player touched another player's disk 10 during the spin. If any player has touched another player's disk 10 during the spin, then the method 30 returns to the block 32 for a new spin. If no player has touched another player's disk 10 during the spin, then at a block 40 the players determine if any player's disk 10 has touched any other player's disk 10 during the spin. If any player's disk 10 has touched any other player's disk 10 during the spin, then the method 30 returns to the block 32 for a new spin.

It will be appreciated that additional or different conditions could considered during this phase of the game methodology without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, conditions could be added such that the spinning must occur within certain predefined areas of the playing surface. In addition, one or more of the determinations made at blocks 34-40 may be made substantially simultaneously or in different orders.

If all of the predetermined conditions agreed to by the players are met, then at a block 42 the players determine which player's disk 10 is spinning the longest and whether that player has accumulated a predetermined threshold number of points x, such as ten. If the player with the longest spinning disk 10 has not accumulated the predetermined threshold number of points x, then at a block 44 the player is awarded a predetermined number of points y for winning the spin, such as one point, and the method 30 returns to block 32 for a new spin. If the player with the longest spinning disk 10 has accumulated the predetermined threshold number of points x, at a block 46 the player states what they believe to be the identifying name of the image 18 of their disk 10 while the disk 10 is still spinning.

Next, at a block 48, the players or judges used at blocks 34-40 determine whether the player with the longest spinning disk 10 correctly identified the image 18 on their disk 10, and did so while their disk 10 was still spinning. If the player did not identify the image 18 on their disk 10 correctly, or did not identify the image 18 on their disk 10 while it was still spinning, the method 30 returns to the block 32 for a new spin. If the player identified the image 18 on their disk 10 correctly, then at a block 50 the player wins the game.

In one embodiment of the method 30, the disks 10 used by the players have an image 18 that is different for each player. In a further embodiment, the image 18 is recognizable, but intellectually challenging for the players to identify in block 36 of the method 30. In another embodiment, the image 18 is selected according to the intellectual ability, age, or interests of the intended users of the disks 10.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of the preferred embodiment.

Claims

1. A method for at least two players to play a game, comprising:

associating each player with a different spinning object having at least one face configured to display an image;

each player spinning their associated object on a surface starting at substantially the same time;

awarding a predetermined number of points to the player spinning their associated object the longest;

when a player reaches a predetermined threshold number of points and spins their associated object the longest, identifying the image displayed on the face of the spinning object associated with the player while the object is still spinning; and

if the player correctly identifies the image on their associated spinning object while the object is still spinning, winning the game.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising accumulating points for each player by repeatedly spinning the associated objects and adding a predetermined number of points to the player spinning their associated object the longest.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if each player's spin occurs at substantially the same time and invalidating the players' spins if each player's spin does not occur at substantially the same time.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if any player's spinning object spins off the playing surface and invalidating the players' spins if any player's spinning object does spin off the playing surface.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if any player touches another player's spinning object and invalidating the players' spins if any player touches another player's spinning object.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if any player's spinning object touches another player's spinning object and invalidating the players' spins if any player spinning object does touch another player's spinning object.

7. An system for playing a game, comprising:

a playing surface, wherein the playing surface is substantially rigid and flat; and

at least two spinning objects, wherein each spinning object is substantially round, planar, and disk-shaped, and includes a front face and a rear face, wherein at least one face includes an identifiable image, and wherein the at least two spinning objects are configured to spin on edge on the playing surface.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the identifiable image is a graphical representation from the group consisting of natural objects, man-made objects, caricatures, people, pop culture figures, designs and logos.