Puppet

Abstract

A puppet having left and right upper and lower limbs, a body and head. Each upper limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of a first one of an operators hands, and the head has at least one finger recess to receive a finger of the first one of the operators hands, and each lower limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of the other, operators hand. At least one of the upper limbs may have a movable finger associated therewith, the finger being movable by a cable drive arrangement operable by a lever mounted upon the body. The head may have a pair of finger recesses associated therewith to receive respective fingers of the first one of the operators hands, wherein the finger recesses associated with the head comprise respective finger receiving components, each of which is pivotally connected to the head such that relative forward-backward movement between the finger receiving components drives the head for angular movement.

1 . A puppet comprising left and right upper limbs, left and right lower limbs, a body and a head, wherein each upper limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of a first one of an operators hands, and the head has at least one finger recess associated therewith to receive a finger of the first one of the operators hands, and each lower limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of the other, second one of the operators hands. 
     
     
         2 . The puppet according to  claim 1 , wherein, in use, the operators first hand is orientated with its fingers pointing in a generally upward direction, the operators second hand being orientated with its fingers pointing in a generally downward direction, the backs of the users hands facing towards one another. 
     
     
         3 . The puppet according to  claim 1 , wherein the head has a pair of finger recesses associated therewith to receive respective fingers of the first one of the operators hands, wherein the finger recesses associated with the head comprise respective finger receiving components, each of which is pivotally connected to the head such that relative forward-backward movement between the finger receiving components drives the head for angular movement. 
     
     
         4 . The puppet according to  claim 3 , wherein the pivotal connections between the finger receiving components and the head are located close to one another such that a relatively small amount of relative forward-backward movement drive the head for movement through a relatively large angle. 
     
     
         5 . The puppet according to  claim 4 , wherein the pivotal connections are spaced apart from one another by a distance of less than 10 mm. 
     
     
         6 . The puppet according to  claim 5 , wherein the pivotal connections are spaced apart from one another by a distance in the range of 5-10 mm. 
     
     
         7 . The puppet according to  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the upper limbs has a movable finger associated therewith, the finger being movable by a cable drive arrangement operable by a lever mounted upon the body. 
     
     
         8 . The puppet according to  claim 7 , wherein the cable drive arrangement includes a cable extending within a flexible tube between the lever and the finger. 
     
     
         9 . The puppet according to  claim 8 , wherein the finger is of resilient form, adopting an extended condition at rest, the cable drive arrangement being resiliently biased to place the cable thereof under tension pulling the finger to a contracted position. 
     
     
         10 . The puppet according to  claim 8 , wherein the tube includes a loosely wound helical support member operable to reduce contact between the cable and the tube and thereby reduce frictional resistance to movement. 
     
     
         11 . The puppet according to  claim 7 , wherein at least two fingers are provided, and one or more of the fingers is controllable independently of the remaining fingers. 
     
     
         12 . The puppet according to  claim 1 , wherein the body is of multi section form, the sections being interconnected by spring means. 
     
     
         13 . The puppet according to  claim 12 , wherein one of the body sections includes a feature to be gripped between two of the fingers of the operators second hand such that relative movement between the operators hands adjusts the positions of the body sections. 
     
     
         14 . A puppet comprising left and right upper limbs, a body and a head, wherein each upper limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of a first one of an operators hands, and the head has a pair of finger recesses associated therewith to receive respective fingers of the first one of the operators hands, wherein the finger recesses associated with the head comprise respective finger receiving components, each of which is pivotally connected to the head such that relative forward-backward movement between the finger receiving components drives the head for angular movement. 
     
     
         15 . A puppet comprising left and right upper limbs, a body and a head, wherein each upper limb includes a finger recess shaped to receive a respective finger of a first one of an operators hands, and the head has at least one finger recess associated therewith to receive a finger of the first one of the operators hands, wherein at least one of the upper limbs has a movable finger associated therewith, the finger being movable by a cable drive arrangement operable by a lever mounted upon the body.