Holiday displays having active figurines
A top or lid for carved objects; particularly, pumpkins or jack-o-lanterns is provided comprising a base sized to cover an opening, a figurine coupled to the base, a light coupled to a power source, and possibly a speaker in communication with the power source, a sound generator capable of playing scary sounds or music and an amplifier coupled to the speaker. The figurines are various animated representations such as a spider, haunted house, skeleton, witch, etc.
This application claims priority from application Ser. No. 60/760,502 which is incorporated herein by reference
FIELD OF INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to holiday displays; it relates more particularly to figurines for Halloween and most particularly as a topper for carved pumpkins or other similar objects.
BACKGROUNDA popular activity around Halloween is carving pumpkins into jack-o-lanterns. Generally, this involves carving a hole, usually in the top, in a pumpkin, extracting the insides, and carving a design, such as a scary face, on at least one side surface of the pumpkin. Normally, a candle or other light source is placed inside the carved pumpkin so that the design is illuminated, and the removed portion becomes the lid for display of the newly created jack-o-lantern.
This type of jack-o-lantern suffers from disadvantages. Candles may not burn brightly or at all because of weather elements or from lack of oxygen when the lid is placed over the hole. Even if they burn brightly, the candles usually do not burn for a long time and are potential safety hazards. Other methods of illumination, such as “glow sticks”, lights, etc., may not present these problems, but they usually provide illumination for only a relatively short period of time or lack the desired effect. Moreover, the appeal for a jack-o-lantern is dependent on the carved portion and, therefore, the display is limited by the carver's talent or the shape of the pumpkin.
There remains a need for a creative display that is not dependent on the carver or the available surface and provides a better illumination option as a means of providing holiday entertainment.
SUMMARYThe present invention provides a display figurine comprising a base, a sculpture or figurine coupled to the base and means for producing light, animation or sound in response to activity in proximity to the display piece. In one embodiment, a light and a speaker are coupled with an amplifier and a sound generator so that activity causes sudden lighting along with the playing of scary sounds and possibly animation. The figurine may be various animated figures such as a spider, haunted house, skeleton, witch, etc. or it could be tombstones and the like which appear to come to life. The figurines may be animated mechanically through a motor driven line or by air from a fan.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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The speaker 48 is used to emit various sounds that may be stored in a memory in the controller 47, in a sound database 49 or in both as may fit a particular figurine. Depending on the application, such as an outdoor use, it may be desirable to also include an amplifier.
The multi-state on/off switch 42 is preferably configured to enable a user to selectively activate any combination of the features. For example, any one of three components may be activated at any time, any two of these components may be activated at any time, or all three of these components may be activated at the same time.
The motion detector 8 and the touch activator 10 are connected to controller 47. When either is triggered, the controller 47 implements the selected feature or features of the present invention. For example, the controller 47 may cause the speaker 48 to emit various sounds, the LED(s) 41 to illuminate, the motor 24 to activate such that particular mechanical functions (e.g. movement of various body parts) or activation of a fan so that the figurine is animated. For example, the gargoyle of
Controller 47 may be configured to implement multiple electrical or mechanical functions in varied sequences. The controller 47 can be comprised of a processor containing a set of instructions for execution and suitable processors include both general and special purpose processors.
Claims
1. A display comprising:
- a base;
- a figurine coupled to the base;
- at least one function associated with the figurine;
- a activator connected to the at least one function associated with the figure; and
- a power source that responds to the activator and implements the at least one function associated with the figure.
2. The invention of claim 1 wherein the base includes appendages for mounting the display on a non-planar object.
3. The invention of claim 1 wherein the figurine is support on a shaft connected to the base and the at least one function associated with the figurine is a physical movement of the figurine.
4. The invention of claim 3 wherein the display includes functions selected from the group comprised of lighting, sound and motion.
5. A display comprising:
- a base;
- a figurine coupled to the base;
- a light coupled to the base;
- means for activating the figurine;
- means for illuminating the figurine; and
- means for generating a sound associated with the figurine.
6. A display topper for a jack-o-lantern comprising:
- a base for closing an opening in a jack-o-lantern;
- a figurine coupled to the base;
- a light source coupled to the base for illuminating the jack-o-lantern;
- a driver for activating the figurine; and
- a power source coupled to light source and the driver for activating the figurine.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 22, 2007
Publication Date: Aug 16, 2007
Applicant: PTI Group Inc. (O'Fallon, MO)
Inventor: Todd Grisoff (Minnetonka, MN)
Application Number: 11/656,163
International Classification: A63H 3/28 (20060101);