North bearing cap toy

Abstract

This North Bearing Cap Toy, also called MagSnap, is a miniature tethered projectile toy comprised of a cap and handle joined by an elongated cord. The cap and handle both contain magnets. The toy is approximately 7.5 millimeters in length. The symmetrical cap is made of a lightweight plastic that contains a ceramic magnet. The light plastic around the magnet and the power of the magnet allows for the magnet to carry and position itself with its magnetic force line to the Earth's north magnetic pole. Additionally, this lightness and power combine to make this magnetic positioning a quick one. For instance, if you were to place the cap at one inch above a surface and then release it, the cap would land on its southern edge and bounce towards the north. The energy that can be imparted on the symmetrical cap to get it airborne is constrained to that of an upward pull, diagonal upward pull, outward swing, and side circular swing. There is no direct energy force on the cap's horizontal or vertical axis such as that of the flipping of a coin. The player casts the cap upward, which will find its magnetic force line—direction alignment towards the Earth's north magnetic pole—when in free flight, and then attempts to align the handle with the cap so that the cap descends or ascends onto the handle and magnetism joins the cap and handle. This north facing angling of the cap piece during free flight adds another element to the objective of bringing the two pieces together. The variable of where you are geographically, with the cap's north angle being at its most horizontal at the equator, and what direction you then pull and/or swing the cap into the air is a factor to account for when the handle is being moved, with timing and dexterity, to the position for the alignment and attraction area of the two pieces.

1 . A miniature tethered projectile game device, comprising a lightweight symmetrical cap, a handle, an elongated flexible tethering element, with cap and handle being capable of engagement at a wide variety of angles, with a magnet in the cap to provide the north angling action or flip to north action due to the magnetic force lines factor—cap's direction alignment to the north magnetic pole, and magnetically attractable metal or magnet on the connecting surface side of the handle.  
   
   
       2 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein the side of the magnet in the cap attracted to north is the surface side of the cap to provide for the north angling action of the cap while it is in free flight/without string tension.  
   
   
       3 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein the side of the magnet in the cap attracted to north is the surface side of the cap to provide for the north angling action of the cap and the handle containing a magnet with the south side of magnet as its connecting surface, thereby allowing for the handle to be hung from the tethered element to act as a compass—the end of handle will point in the direction of north.  
   
   
       4 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein the side of the magnet in the cap attracted to north is inside the cap, thereby the south side being the surface connecting side of the cap to provide for the north flipping action of the cap while it is in free flight/without string tension.  
   
   
       5 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein the side of the magnet in the cap attracted to north is inside the cap, thereby the south side being the surface connecting side of the cap to provide for the north flipping action of the cap and the handle containing a magnet with the north side of magnet as its connecting surface, thereby allowing for the handle to be hung from the tethered element to act as a compass—the end of handle will point in the direction of south/surface side will point north.  
   
   
       6 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein the cap(s) can be taken off of the tethering element and used for the display of feats of magic: a north angling cap, the north side of magnet is the surface side of cap, can be held and then let go to show that it will hit the surface with it's southern edge first and bounce to the north all the time, while a cap with a non-magnetized magnet can be switched out with sleight of hand to show that it does not and vice versa.