Simulated space station puzzle game
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a puzzle game object which provides a high degree of test and challenge to a player&#39;s skill and patience. The object has an attractive space station overall artistic appearance and structure so as to captivate the player&#39;s interest and to provide a great amount of entertainment. 
     Heretofore, there have been a large number of puzzle game objects which require the player to scramble and to match various pieces therein to obtain various desired combinations of colours and/or patterns. The well known Rubic cube is one example of such puzzle games. Another puzzle game comprises of a plurality of square pieces slidably mounted within a rectangular frame. The square pieces have various colours and/or patterns thereon such that the square pieces may be slidably scrambled or arranged within the frame to obtain various chosen combinations of colours and/or patterns. Some of such prior art puzzle games such as the Rubic cube provide a high degree of test to the player&#39;s patience and skill and they have a multitude of combinations of movements; however, they are unattractive in appearance and are unable to sustain the player&#39;s interest. Moreover, these puzzle games are far too complex in construction such that they are expensive and difficulty to fabricate, while others are too simple in construction and have a limited amount of movements such that they offer little challenge to the player and do not render too much entertainment value so that the player would quickly lose interest in the game. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a puzzle game object which provides a high degree of challenge to the player&#39;s skill. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a puzzle game object which has an attractive and artistic appearance that can sustain the player&#39;s interest as well as to provide an entertaining object or toy. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a puzzle game object having few component parts and is simple to fabricate and assemble. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide a puzzle game object wherein the components afford a large number of variations of movements. 
     The puzzle game object of the present invention comprises a disc-shaped main body simulating a space station. The main body comprises an upper inverted saucer and a lower saucer mounted together on a central axis, and the upper and lower saucers are rotatably horizontally relative to one another on this central axis. A plurality of spherical members are rotatably mounted on horizontal axes disposed at the diameter if a plurality of semi-circular bays evenly located at the periphery of the main body. Each spherical member has eight equal sectors; and the spherical member is rotatable relative to its axis such that one group of four sectors therein may be located at the upper saucer of the main body while the other group of the other four sectors are located at the lower saucer of the main body. The upper saucer and lower saucer may be rotated to match selected groups of four sectors at the upper saucer with the other selected groups of four sectors at the lower saucer, and the spherical members thus matched may additionally be rotated to change the position of the lower and upper groups. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective overall elevation view of the puzzle game according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a top elevation view of thereof. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective side elevation view thereof. 
     FIG. 4 is a exploded perspective elevation view of the puzzle game of the present invention showing the component parts therein. 
     FIG. 5 is an isolated cross section side elevation view of the upper lower saucers of the main body of the puzzle game. 
     FIG. 6 shows an isolated side elevation view of a sector of the spherical member slidably engaged with upper half of the coaxial sleeve mounted on the upper half of the axis for mounting the spherical member with the view taken from a plane transverse to the axis. 
     FIG. 7 is another isolated side elevation view of a sector of the spherical member taken from a plane parallel to the axis and showing the slidable engagement between the sector and the coaxial sleeve mounted on the upper half of the axis. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     With reference to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the various views, the puzzle game 10 of the present invention has a disc-shaped main body 11 which consists of an upper inverted saucer 12 and a lower saucer 13 having a mirror image of each other and are rotatably mounted together on a rotary axis 14 such that the upper inverted saucer 12 and the lower saucer 13 are rotatable relative to each other about the rotary axis 14. The rotary axis 14 as best shown in FIG. 4 has an upper shaft portion 15, a lower shaft portion 16 and a support plate 17. The upper shaft portion 15 is slidably and rotatably engageable with a central opening 18 formed at a hub portion 19 in the upper inverted saucer 12. The lower shaft portion 16 is similarly slidably and rotatably engageable with a central opening 20 formed at a hub portion 21 in the lower saucer 13. The upper inverted saucer 12 is maintained in the mounted position by a slip ring 22 engaging with an annular groove 23 formed on the upper shaft portion 15, while the lower saucer 13 is maintained in the mounted position by a second slip ring 24 engaging with an annular groove 25 formed on the lower shaft portion 16 of the rotary axis 14. The support plate 17 cooperates with the slip rings 22 and 24 to prevent the upper inverted saucer 12 and lower saucer 13 from sliding up and down the rotary axis 14 so that the upper inverted saucer 12 and lower saucer 13 are abutting each other in the mounted position. A cap 26 is mounted to the hub portion 19 of the upper inverted saucer 12 to cover the upper shaft 15 in the mounted position. The cap 26 has a plurality of L-shaped spring tabs 27 engageable in a snap action with openings 28 formed in the hub portion 19 of the upper inverted saucer 12. Similarly, the lower shaft 25 in the mounted position is covered by a second cap 29 having a plurality of L-shaped spring tabs 30 engageable in a snap action with openings 31 formed in the hub portion 21 of the lower saucer 13. 
     At least two and preferably three semi-circular bays 32, 33 and 34 are formed in even intervals around the peripheral portion of the upper inverted saucer 12, and similarly semi-circular bays 35, 36 and 37 are formed around the peripheral portion of the lower saucer 13. The upper inverted saucer 12 and lower saucer 13 may be rotated to align the semi-circular bays 32, 33, and 34 with the semi-circular bays 35, 36, and 37. A mounting shaft 38 is located at the diameter of each of the semi-circular bays 32, 33, and 34 in the upper inverted saucer 12. As best shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, each mounting shaft 38 has semi-circular upper surface 39 and a flat bottom surface 40. Similarly, a mounting shaft 41 is located at the diameter of the semi-circular bays 35, 36, and 37 in the lower saucer 13. The mounting shaft 41 in each semi-circular bays 35, 36, and 37 has a semi-circular lower Surface 42L and a flat upper surface 42U. When the semi-circular bays in the upper inverted saucer are aligned with the semi-circular bays in the lower saucer, the mounting shafts 38 would cooperate with the mounting shafts 41 to form a cylindrical mounting shaft in each semi-circular bays in the main body 11 by the mating saucers. Three openings 43, 44, and 45 Are formed in the mounting shaft 38 in all the bays of the upper inverted saucer 12. The opening 43 and 45 are respectively located adjacent to the sides of the bay. The opening is located opening 44 is located at the centre of the shaft 38. The portions of the shaft 38 adjacent to the openings 43, 44 and 45 have a larger diameter than the remaining portion of the shaft 38. Similarly, openings 46, 47 and 48 are formed in the mounting shaft 41 in all the bays in the lower saucer 13. The openings 46 and 48 are located respectively adjacent to the two sides of the bay, and the opening 47 is located at the centre of the mounting shaft 41. Also, the portions of the mounting shaft 41 around the openings 46, 47, and 48 have a larger diameter than the remaining portion of the mounting shaft 41. 
     Three semi-circular covers 49, 50 and 51 are mounted over the larger diameter portions of the mounting shaft 38. Each one of the covers 49, 50 and 51 has two L-shaped tabs 52 and 53 engaging respectively with the openings 43, 44, and 45 to secure the semi-circular covers 49, 50 and 51 at the mounted position. The inner diameter of the semi-circular covers 49, 50 and 51 is equal to the diameter of the larger portions of the mounting shaft 38 and they are longer in length than these larger portions of the mounting shaft 38 so that, at the mounted positions of the semi-circular covers, arcuate; gaps 54 are formed between the end portions of the semi-circular covers 49 and 51 extending beyond the larger portions of the mounting shaft 38 around the side openings 43 and 45 in the upper inverted saucer 12. Also, similar arcuate gaps 55 and 56 are formed between the end portions of the semi-circular cover 50 extending beyond the larger portion around the centre opening 44 of the mounting shaft 38. Three semi-circular covers 57, 58, and 59 are mounted on the larger portions of the mounting shaft 41 in each one of the bays 35, 36 and 37 in the lower saucer 13 in the same manner. 
     Three semi-spheres 60, 61 and 62 are located in the bays 32, 33 and 34 respectively in the upper inverted saucer 12. Each semi-spheres 60, 61 and 62 consists of four quarter spherical pieces 63 mounted to the mounting shaft 38 as best shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. An arcuate plate 64 is provided at the narrow base end of each quarter spherical piece 63 such that a quarter spherical piece may be mounted onto the mounting shaft 38 such as by slidably engaging the arcuate plate 64 with the gaps 54 and 55. All four quarter spherical pieces 63 may thus be slidably mounted to the mounting shaft 38. A small downwardly extending projection 65 is provided in a spaced manner above the arcuate plate 64, which is engageable with either one of two longitudinal grooves 66 and 67 formed on the upper surface of the semi-circular cover 50 and 58 to provide detent stops in the sliding movement of the quarter spherical pieces over the mounting shafts 38. In the same manner, three semi-spheres 68, 69, and 70 each consisting of four quarter spherical pieces identical to the quarter spherical piece 63 are mounted onto the mounting shaft 41 in each of the three bays 35, 36 and 37 in the lower saucer 13. 
     Depressions 71 are formed on the upper surface of arcuate ridges 72 provided in the lower saucer 13 and complementary projections are formed on the lower surface similar downward extending arcuate ridges provided in the upper inverted saucer 12 such that the projections in the upper inverted saucer 12 are engageable with the depressions 71 when the upper inverted saucer 12 and lower saucer 13 are rotated relative to each other to provide detent stops in each of the four positions at which the semi-spheres in the upper inverted saucer 12 are aligned with the semi-spheres in the lower saucer 13. Also, since the semi-spheres in the upper inverted saucer 12 and the semi-spheres in the lower saucer are identical in construction, whenever they are aligned to form three complete spheres, each sphere may be rotated relative to the mated mounting shafts 38 and 41 such that a pair of the quarter spherical pieces 63 in the upper inverted saucer 12 is moved into the lower saucer 13 while a diametrically opposite pair in the lower saucer 13 is moved into the upper inverted saucer 12. Thus, by rotating the spheres in one direction or in the opposite direction, a pair of quarter spherical pieces and the diametrically opposite pair of quarter spherical pieces would move from one saucer into the other saucer. 
     The quarter spherical pieces in each sphere may have a different colour or may have selected patterns provided on their outer surface. For example, the quarter spherical pieces in one sphere may be red, the second sphere may be green and the third one may be blue. The colour of the spheres may be scrambled by rotating the upper inverted saucer 12 relative to the lower saucer 13 such that different colour semi-spheres in one saucer align with those in the other saucer. The colour may be further scrambled by then rotating the spheres to move pairs of quarter spherical pieces from one saucer into the other. An exemplary game in testing the player&#39;s patience is to re-arrange such scrambled colour spheres back to the spheres of the same colour in each bay. In order to reach such goal the player must be capable of manipulating the game by rotating the upper and lower saucer and the various spheres in a logically manner. Similarly, when designed patterns are provided on the surface of the sphere, the player must be capable of re-arranging the scrambled patterned back to the original pattern. 
     The surface of the main body 11 may be provided with an artistic appearance simulating the surface appearance of a space craft or station such that the game may serve as a display object or toy of a simulated space craft or station. 
     While the present invention has been shown and described in the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is desired therefore that only such limitations be placed thereon as are imposed by the appended claims.